Looking Ahead to Summer
I was having a virtual lunch with some Upper School students a couple of weeks ago, and I asked if they were looking forward to summer. “Dr. Botti,” one grinned in reply, “you have no idea.”
I laughed, in part because I thought I did have an idea; indeed, two decades of teaching has shown me that by May, people who work at schools are thinking about summer almost as much as those who attend those same schools. But mostly I was chuckling at the enthusiasm of the response and the promise that it held. This Panther was clearly having a vision of summer as release, as relief, as rebirth, and I thought that was just about right.
Whatever its successes, novelties, and joys, the past school year has also been one of unavoidably heightened challenges for our boys and families. Learning and living a new way of going to school, whether slightly or substantially altered, can be really stressful, despite our best efforts and deepest care. So while the summertime is usually greeted as a welcome break, this year, it feels more vital than ever. As adults, we need time and space to restore ourselves, to observe a gentler pace, and to let our imaginations roam. For kids, such opportunities are not just desirable; in fact they may very well be essential healthy development and to resetting our boys for the school year to come..
This is a summer to step away from the tendencies that have necessarily governed our school year. While computer and phone screens are not the enemies of our children, they may nonetheless be guests who have temporarily overstayed their welcome, and so any chance to get our boys outside into the fresh air and sunshine is one that we should take. Similarly, our masked-and-distanced life may have separated us from relatives and dear friends since last March; if vaccinations allow for greater in-person contact with loved ones, such visits are worth prioritizing. Exploring the world and reconnecting with family and friends are not only sources of joy, but also elements of the kind of balanced life that enables both intellectual growth and healthy emotional attachments.
“If we are fortunate enough to have some measure of freedom this summer, perhaps we can use it to hold anxiety at bay, embrace some of the relationships that we’ve missed, and create space for some simple self-care. ”
And we all want our boys to be prepared for their next level of schooling, but sometimes that involves actually taking a break from intentional academic preparation. Certainly, if someone wants to take summer classes for the pure joy of it, that’s something to be applauded and supported; at the same time, both joy and learning can be found elsewhere, too. A student who spends his June, July, and August pursuing hobbies that he developed during the pandemic, reading all kinds of things for pleasure, or simply writing or painting or tinkering without any particular aim is not only going to keep his mind alive—he will also be touring the kinds of passions that may one day flourish into a true purpose, the kind of thing that gives his life enduring significance. It’s intuitive to assume that “more is better,” and that our boys require year-round structure and intensity to maintain their learning, or even to “get ahead.” But both research and experience demonstrate that giving learners the autonomy to utilize their imagination and nurture their curiosity is a healthy, productive complement to the more guided instruction they receive during the school year.
I don’t mean to suggest that summertime is always carefree; to be sure, summer can mean obligation—to childcare, to eldercare, to jobs—and such duties demand our commitment and our respect. But if we are fortunate enough to have some measure of freedom this summer, perhaps we can use it to hold anxiety at bay, embrace some of the relationships that we’ve missed, and create space for some simple self-care. September will come, and it will bring a new school year with it—and when that time comes, we will be ready. For this summer, though, I hope we’ll all have the chance to find more of the restoration and the joy that the past year-plus has worked so hard to hide from us.