Finding Your Passion: A Guide to Choosing the Right Summer School Course for Your Child
SUMMER BOARDING COURSES
Choosing the right summer school course for your child can be a challenge. Long gone are the days when summer schools only offered General English, and now they offer so much more.
Maybe your child has their heart set on one particular course like Medicine, and we offer more than one type or programme, or perhaps they are an all-rounder and are still narrowing down which subject they’d like to do. Or perhaps as a family, you would like to use summer school to help discover whether a newly discovered interest for a particular subject can develop from intrigue into a real flair. Or maybe you’ve paid us the greatest of compliments by deciding to return, and are looking for something different from last time.
Whichever of these, or even if it’s something else, our admissions team are here to help. If you prefer to read up on course options before potentially speaking over the phone, we have put together a guide to assist you in making the best decision.
If you haven’t looked at the relevant pages already, our homepage is the best place to identify what’s on offer. With so many courses available, there’s plenty of information available, but a great starting point is the Our Courses tab where you can begin your search for a course by clicking on a subject of interest, a particular campus, or by age group.
Whatever you decide for your child’s summer school plans you cannot go wrong. There are so many benefits which come from this unique experience. Whether it is to broaden your child’s cultural horizons, to enable them to socialise with other young people from all around the world, or to help them prepare for their next chapter in academia. A summer school is now so much more than about improving English, but it is a platform in which young people are able to explore and show what they can do, making it a nurturing hub of academic progression and overall well-being.
What helps elevate a summer school from being a fun experience to a potentially life-changing one, is that young people get to enter a new world. A world in which they can feel free to explore new interests, gain new skills, and make new friends. Should a young person be looking to explore something new about themselves, it is possible to do so at a summer school.
Maybe your son or daughter has untapped leadership qualities which for whatever reason, haven’t risen to the surface at school, or maybe your child’s extracurricular time is dominated by sport and they have a hidden artistic side they would like to develop. Or maybe your child finds it challenging to share their thoughts and ideas, and it’s all there ticking underneath. Each year at summer school, we help facilitate and support a young person’s exploration of what they want to bring to the world. And this pastoral interest and passion for developing the individuality of each student we meet, is what makes us unique in our field.
If you’re new to choosing a summer school course, there are certainly different factors to consider, which can vary from student to student. These factors can include age, language level, the child’s interests, goals, and academic needs as well as the level of challenge of the course.
For some programmes, you will notice that we have Introduction courses, with ages starting as young as 11 and 12. These include:
Introduction to Leadership – Ages 11-15
Introduction to Politics & Economics – Ages 12-16
Introduction to STEM – Ages 11-15
These are great options as an alternative to General English, where students have the possibility to explore something different. The age groups start lower, and with a wider age gap, older students and younger students get to explore a different dynamic to what they might experience at school. Younger students can seize hold of the challenge of mixing with older kids, and older students can feel more confident in group work in taking more responsibility in leading a group. Or who’s to say your prodigious 11-year-old wouldn’t thrive in leading older learners in a group project?
If you have an inquisitive son or daughter who loves being challenged or if your child needs something different to reignite a passion for English, the Introduction courses are a great option.
Between 13-16 a student will be deciding their options for their GCSEs or coming to the end of their final exams. Either way, a student might want further direction on what possible career path their grades are leading them towards, which is why our future-focused courses are an exciting practical start to discovering more about where their potential careers might lie, as well as developing a foundation of practical skills. Our Future courses include:
You’d be amazed by just how entrepreneurial and busy-savvy students can be when given a chance to work on a project. Business courses for students are an immersive and motivating way in which students can develop interpersonal skills and presentation skills in English whilst learning transferable knowledge about business they can use later in life, or even as young entrepreneurs. Our business courses include:
Many of our students have a maturity and an idealism that belies their age, and progressing their English is very much part of a wider effort to be part of urgent environmental matters and to help be part of resolving global issues. If a student is passionate about current affairs, environmental issues, and working in diplomacy, or would be driven to learn more and develop in these areas. The courses below are both enormously relevant and challenging in helping students become worldly global citizens.
You will notice that at SBC we have either school or college courses. Our schools have younger students aged between 11-15 which have a more structured programme in keeping with the needs of their respective age groups, whereas colleges have an older intake of students from 15-17, which very much focus on preparing students with the skills they will need as undergraduates.
Below are a list of courses which are perfect for students either thinking about studying these academic courses at university, or are looking at courses they might not have the chance to study at A Level or GCSE.
If your son or daughter is looking to meet more like-minded students passionate about the same subject area, our academic courses at Oxford, Cambridge, and Eton listed below are a wonderful option.
As much as student’s interests and needs have changed, how could we possibly move on from General English? General English is as classic a favourite as a Margherita is for a pizzeria. All of our beliefs that education should be an immersive and interactive experience come from how we’ve always taught English. An intensive two-week General English course at a summer school, is a wonderful opportunity to build confidence and fluency, and for learners to put into practice all of the English they have learnt throughout the rest of the year. If students are finding that mainstream English lessons aren’t enough, or would benefit from boosting their confidence or are looking to further develop a love of the language, General English lessons are a great option for students of all ability levels.
Whether a student is well down the path to pursuing their passion for art, digital media, or even architecture, a summer school is a great place to follow their passion, or even to find it for the first time. Throughout the rest of the academic year, with a demanding schedule, students may not have the chance to learn different subjects that they’re curious about, however, a summer school can provide that opportunity. With each of the courses focussing on group projects, and exploring a new technique or approach each day, prior knowledge is not essential to be able to take part in the programme. As long as a student has enthusiasm for the course and a level of B1/B2 or higher, learners will be able to make the most out of their course.
After reading our guide, we hope that your decision-making process for summer school is a little clearer and that the benefits and possibilities are even more evident.
Whatever your needs or requirements for summer, and wherever a student is on their learning journey, at SBC, across all of our campuses we have so much to offer.
If you are still unsure about which course, then our supportive admissions team are here to help you find the very best option for your child’s summer. Or if your preferred course is already full, then we hope you can see just how many exciting alternatives there are.
To look again at just how many different summer programmes we run and secure your child’s spot for an incredible summer. Or if you need time to have a chat with out admissions team, you can contact them via the contact details below.
