The Necessity of Summer Break

Summary

---

Podcast Summary: "The Necessity of Summer Break"

Podcast: Hillsdale College K-12 Classical Education Podcast
Host: Scott Bertram
Guest: Mike Roberts, Headmaster at Hillsdale Academy
Release Date: May 12, 2025
Duration: ~20 minutes

---

Overview

This episode dives deeply into why summer break is essential within the context of classical education. Host Scott Bertram and guest Mike Roberts thoroughly discuss the rationale, benefits, and practicalities of the traditional summer break, focusing on students, teachers, administrators, and families. The conversation balances philosophical reasoning with actionable advice, aiming to redefine summer not as idle downtime but as an opportunity for active rest, renewal, and broader learning.

---

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Purpose of Summer Break for Students

Timestamp: 02:04–08:52

• Restorative Necessity:

  • Mike Roberts highlights that summer break is critical for students to rest, renew, and restore themselves after an intensive academic year.
  • "Students need rest and they need to renew and they need to restore before they jump back into another year." (B, 02:26)
  • The concept of leisure is emphasized—not as idleness, but as active rest that supports virtues classical education seeks to instill.

• Against Year-Round Schooling:

  • Roberts argues that short breaks do not allow for true leisure or recovery; it's often a constant cycle of winding down and ramping up.
  • "If you don't allow for some rest, if you don't change that routine, the opportunity for things to be unhealthy...in the end, that takes the life and the joy out of education." (B, 04:28)

• Active Use of Leisure:

  • Summer provides time for contemplation, reading for pleasure or value (not simply additional assignments), outdoor activities, work experience, and travel complementing classroom learning.
  • "I really just want to kind of push back against the lazy American song summer and think more about this active rest..." (B, 06:06)

2. School's Role in Summer Activities

Timestamp: 08:52–09:53

• Guidance Not Overreach:
  • Schools can offer summer reading lists or highlight enriching opportunities but should avoid making summer another checklist of mandatory work.
  • "Giving ideas and giving some inspiration is excellent, but I think we have to be careful about what we require. I would push back on that." (B, 09:06)

3. Importance of Summer for Teachers

Timestamp: 09:53–12:50

• Rest and Professional Development:

  • Teachers need summer to reflect, recuperate, and plan for an effective, joyful return.
  • Roberts emphasizes, "If they don't have a summer to reflect and contemplate on how their year went and make new plans...the cycle of joy would probably just be a huge problem for education." (B, 10:13)
  • Teachers often use the summer for professional reading, conferences, and growth with the same spirit of "active rest" as students.

• Preparation Cycle:

  • Host Scott Bertram shares personal insight about how breaks enable teachers to address what did or didn't work, especially in evolving fields.
  • "You've got to have time to sort of have those big picture discussions or thoughts in your mind." (A, 12:05)

4. Summer for Administrators

Timestamp: 13:24–17:55

• Distinct Administrative Rhythm:

  • Administrators' work during summer shifts to planning, evaluation, and institutional improvement—often a contrast to the pace of the school year.
  • "You're able to put together hours and days and serious thought into big decisions. And I love that part. I love the summer months. It's almost a totally different job." (B, 13:30)

• Professional Growth:

  • Roberts uses summer for attending conferences, networking, and immersing himself in the same literature as students for better leadership.
  • A typical summer includes: winding down the previous year, professional development (often in June), setting new goals, and forward planning for the coming school year.

5. Role of Families During Summer

Timestamp: 17:55–21:54

• Parents as Partners:

  • Classical education relies on partnership with parents—summer gives families more meaningful, less-structured time together.
  • "A parent needs that break, too, from the rigor of being a parent to support school to then shift towards...a more leisurely pace in the summer." (B, 18:04)

• Intentionality Without Over-Structuring:

  • Parents are encouraged to be intentional: set up healthy routines, foster reading, help with catch-up academic work at a relaxed pace, and encourage creative/outdoor play.
  • "We want kids outside, we want kids playing. We want kids...using their brains." (B, 20:07)
  • Caution against both total idleness and over-scheduling. Flexibility, patience during transition, and moderation are key.

---

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

On the purpose of leisure:

"To receive the benefit of our education, we must make room for leisure."
— Mike Roberts (B), 02:26

On burnout and over-scheduling:

"If you don't allow for some rest, if you don't change that routine, the opportunity for things to be unhealthy...takes the life and the joy out of education."
— Mike Roberts (B), 04:28

On active summer living:

"Let's think carefully then about how we can do some of these things over those 12 weeks..."
— Mike Roberts (B), 06:06

On the teacher's need for break:

"If they don't have a summer to reflect and contemplate on how their year went...the cycle of joy would probably just be a huge problem for education."
— Mike Roberts (B), 10:13

On parents and summer:

"I think we'll burn out the family if we sustain a school year pace for 12 months."
— Mike Roberts (B), 18:04

On balanced family routines:

"I'm not saying we need a wall chart with every hour, you know, planned out. That might take the joy out of the summer for your child as well."
— Mike Roberts (B), 21:32

---

Timestamped Segment Guide

• 02:04 — Why summer break matters for students
• 04:03 — Year-round schools vs. classical approach to breaks
• 06:06 — What makes summer leisure “active”; examples of good use
• 08:52 — How schools should (and shouldn’t) suggest summer activities
• 09:53 — Teachers: the benefits of summer break and reflection
• 12:05 — Host’s perspective: the value of preparation time
• 13:24 — Administrators: summer for evaluation and planning
• 15:29 — Roberts' personal summer routine and goal setting
• 17:55 — Why families need the summer break
• 20:07 — How parents can intentionally support summertime learning

---

Closing Thoughts

Throughout the conversation, Roberts and Bertram return to the central idea of leisure as a valuable, active state—contrasted sharply with “rigor for rigor’s sake.” The episode advocates for deliberate use of summer for rejuvenation and broadening the scope of education beyond the classroom, making a strong case that true education—and healthy communities—depend on this time apart from the school-year routine.

---

Transcript

[A]

On the new episode of the Larry Arn Show, Hillsdale College President Larry P. Arn sits down with pastor, professor and author Kevin DeYoung for a one on one conversation. He saw that you might say reason and revelation coming together in the American founding and that they didn't have to be yet and that there was this groundwork. And it's interesting you talk about in the Hillsdale founding documents because Witherspoon gives a famous sermon in May 1776 leading to the the independence, and he says that very civil liberty and religious liberty have always stood or fallen together. Listen to this exclusive interview with Kevin DeYoung right now only available on the Larry Arn Show. Find it on the Hillsdale College Podcast Network at podcast hillsdale.edu also at Apple Podcasts Spotify and YouTube and subscribe to receive new episodes delivered right to your device. That's podcast hillsdale. Edu welcome to the hillsdale college k12 classical education podcast bringing you insight into classical education and its unique emphasis on human virtue and moral character, responsible citizenship, content, rich curricula and teacher led classrooms. Now your host, Scott Bertram. Thanks for listening. The Hillsdale College K12 Classical Education Podcast is part of the Hillsdale College Podcast Network. More episodes at Podcast Hillsdale Edu or wherever you get your audio. You also can find more information on topics and ideas discussed on this show at our website k12 hillsdale.edu. we're joined by Mike Roberts. He's headmaster at Hillsdale Academy here in Hillsdale, Michigan. Mike, thanks so much for joining us.

[B]

Thanks for having me again Scott.

[A]

Talking today about the necessity of summer break. Now I'm sure students might have real obvious answers to the necessity of summer break question, but we'll talk about it for students, for teachers, for administrators and yes for for parents as well. Starting the student side why is summer break so important for our students?

[B]

Sure. Well, summer break I think is essential for our students as we think about the whole of education. And that may sound kind of like a contradictory statement, right? That summer break is important for education. But it is. And you know today there is some discussion, you know, around the country about year round school and I have, I have always been a defender of the summer break and as we think about the students point, I think that will help us understand why those 12 weeks or so are so important and this idea that students need rest and they need to renew and they need to restore before they jump back into another year is, is really really important. A lot of this goes back necessity that we all have to live lives well, and to receive the benefit of our education, we must make room for leisure. And so this idea of sort of an active rest, you know, there's, you know, I think summertime for its own sake might not be a great answer, but how you could use those 12 weeks can be a huge benefit to the ends of a classical education as we're aiming for our students to become wise and virtuous people. I really think that this is a pivot point in a point of every student's education each year, that they need it in order to benefit from the next 36 weeks when we have school.

[A]

So you mentioned there is not just an idea, but in practice year round schools with various types of schedules, of course, for those who argue, well, look, you don't have a break, you don't lose that knowledge, you can just keep rolling forward. It's got to be better for the students where. What is that difference between the classical approach to have this break, to have this opportunity in schools that are prioritizing rigor for its own sake.

[B]

Right. So the goal of education is not to just do lesson upon lesson upon lesson in more and more content. The idea of course is can we deliver this education to students, pass on things to the next generation, especially make sure that we have the skills that are needed for like reading and writing and math. Accomplish. Can you do that along with this break? And I, and I think the answer is yes, but the piece on this is there is, then, you know, what do I do with my summer? I think that's the big, that's the big question. It's hard to argue, you know, of course that it's like working out, right. If you can, if you work out consistently, you will, you will achieve great things. But again, if you don't change up that workout, if you don't allow for some rest, if you don't change that routine, the opportunity for things to be unhealthy, the idea for you to put yourself in a position of burnout and to just kind of do rigor for rigor's sake, in the end, that takes the life and the joy out of education. So I think this idea in one or two weeks is just not enough. In a lot of these programs that are talking about year round school, they do have breaks of one to two weeks. The problem there is you're always ramping down and you're always ramping up and, and you can't find that rhythm for what leisure can be in the summer without putting a significant chunk in there for all people that need it.

[A]

So how can a well spent summer break support our goals for classical education?

[B]

Right. So again, what we want to fight against, when we talk about the idea of rest or leisure, we're not talking about doing nothing, we're not talking about just being idle. We're not talking about sleeping in until noon and we're laying on the couch and eating chips and just watching TV mindlessly. So if you flip that and start thinking about, well, what do we do with our time and this idea of active rest and this idea of leisure that allows for contemplation about what did I just learn this past year, Right. You know, and the ability to use that time well. So this is where, you know, we think a lot about summer reading. Not to just fit another literature book into the sequence and push the students to read and write about it, but no, to read something of value that they can do without a teacher. And this is, you know, all ages. Right. So all of our students, K through 12, will read or be read to. You know, I think it's fair to point out that the discussion about how to use your summer, it's going to look a little bit different for Our K through 4 or 5 and a little bit different for the upper school kids. And I think we should be thinking about the age of the child and what is right there. But still to have a plan and a purpose to continue to learn, but to learn in a different way. Again, it's reading, it's getting outside. The idea of summer camp, the idea of clinics, the idea of traveling, the idea of your parents partnering with us and doing some things with the children during the summer, all of these things can reinforce the great learning, the great knowledge that the students received. So imagine learning about the founding of our country, but taking a trip out east to go see these places and the students can put these things together or at least to be able to read about those things in a leisurely way. So I really just want to kind of push back against the lazy American song summer and think more about this active rest and you know, what, what students can do using that time well to grow and develop. The other thing I have to throw in for students when you're at a certain age, but even the young ones to work in a different way, to work at home or to do something in the workforce that is something that helps prepare our young people for a long time, long term, you know, learning, contributing, serving, I think these types of ideas that we don't have the opportunity to do that during the regular school year. If you think about what you miss out on that 36 weeks, let's think carefully then about how we can do some of these things over those 12 weeks.

[A]

So should schools be involved with providing optional academic programs or suggested academic programs? To what extent should schools be involved in sort of saying, here's an idea for how you can spend this summer?

[B]

I think this, what you said is right on the idea. The point of the school giving some ideas is great. And so whether that's a summer reading list or making sure that families understand the opportunities that exist within their school summer, whether it's sports related or science camp related or something else in the community, to be a bridge to pass on these different opportunities for them is really important. But we have to be careful that we're not just turning it into another requirement and we're not just scheduling the summer or that the school is replacing the family over the summer. So giving ideas and giving some inspiration is excellent, but I think we have to be careful about what we require. I would push back on that.

[A]

We'll come back to the family idea in just a little bit. Mike Roberts with us, headmaster at Hillsdale Academy, talking about the necessity of summer break. What about the necessity of summer break for teachers? Why is it important for them? How do those breaks perhaps help a teacher's ability to rest, reflect and prepare?

[B]

No, that's right. An they need that opportunity to be at their best year in and year out. We hear all the time that teachers only work so many months of the year and sometimes there's a knock on that profession. When I think of our teachers, and I think teachers across the country, especially the way we're doing things in classical education, I have the utmost respect for the work that it takes to be a teacher, to be on each and every day with the students and to carry the curriculum and to carry this into the classroom and to do so with joy. If they don't have a summer to reflect and contemplate on how their year went and make new plans moving forward. I just fear the burnout and the cycle of joy would probably just be a huge problem for education. And so this idea of, of rest and restoration, it's not just resting, it's about coming back better, having an opportunity to think. So our teachers, you know, we have summer reading too. We read something together and come back. It's an important topic, something we could be thinking about together for the school year. We'll be, we'll use part of the summer for summer conferences. We'll have our teachers at Hillsdale College K12 classical conference. We'll attend other places. This is an opportunity to meet other educators, to think about your craft, to read different books, but also just again to go back to this idea of leisure for our teachers, that they have this opportunity to do some things with their mind and their bodies. That is not the general routine of what we're doing. So teachers need this break, but teachers are not off like for three months. That just doesn't exist. But it is different in that you don't have to report. It's not that seven to five o' clock job or whatever. Teachers work longer hours than that too.

[A]

I will say I was not a teacher in a classroom until I arrived here at Hillsdale and teach in the journalism department and realized very quickly how important the summer break and even the winter break was. Because you have to be very prepared. I mean, so many things happen during the course of the academic year that are unexpected or something's change or you're sick or whatever might come up to be able to have that preparation to fall back on, but also to reflect and realize, oh, that didn't work as well as I thought it would. I got to change this for next time. Or in journalism, this is changing very quickly in our world. I have to add this section and take this out. You've got to have time to sort of have those big picture discussions or thoughts in your mind.

[B]

No, that's right. And you know, we're also asking teachers often to teach something new or there's some variable that's coming at them. And so that opportunity to prepare and to plan. But I keep going back to this idea of contemplation, this idea to think, to be able to kind of quiet the mind, have sit in some silence and evaluate what just happened over the course of the past year. If we don't allow for that, we're not going to be at our best as teachers. And they can accomplish a lot more if we give them this active rest period.

[A]

And hey, what about administrators, headmasters and people like that? Why is summer break so important for them?

[B]

Well, it's, you know, again, anyone that's part of school, I think needs this sort of reset. We have this unusual business where there's always a start to a new year, you know, where, you know, sometimes in the workforce there isn't this, this natural start, but in education there is, right? Coming back and ready to do things. It's always a new crop of kindergartners, right? Everyone is always, you know, up a grade. You always have new staff, there's this new beginning. And rarely does one year look exactly the same as the next. And so for administrators, there isn't the summer break where you're off of work as much maybe as the, the students and the students and the teachers. Most administrators are working throughout the summer, but even there it's a different sort of work. The job is very different when the students and the teachers are not in the building. And that is your total focus as an administrator is being available for them. Therefore, the summer allows for the planning and again the evaluation. And to do so, I would say, at a leisurely pace where it's not just taking care of the urgent and surviving one event to another. You're able to put together hours and days and serious thought into big decisions. And I love that part. I love the summer months. It's almost a totally different job. I'll tell you. By August, I want teachers and I want students and I want parents back. But that opportunity to work together with my administrative team and to do so at a pace that is sustainable and also to grow ourselves. Right. This is our time to go to conferences, to read. I'm always trying to read books that our students are reading in literature and in history and, and go back to some of those to be more prepared for the school year. So I found that, I find that a satisfying leisure. Right. To do that as well.

[A]

How, I mean, maybe a little more specifically, do you spend your summer break? Do you have personal professional goals you're trying to check off during those course of the months? How do you sort of refresh and find yourself more motivated to again begin that school year in August?

[B]

Right. So yeah, there's sort of a rhythm to, to administrator summer. But you know, you're the first week or two, this is that ramping up, ramping down principle. The first couple weeks you're spending with teachers, you're spending with families and maybe some student wrap up. That takes about a week or two to sort of just tie up all the loose ends. Maybe there's some things that still have to be accomplished or finished in different reports like that. And so the first two weeks is pretty focused on ending the school year well. And then, you know, for us, especially a lot of people in classical education, June has turned into conference month. So whether that's the Hillsdale College K12 conference or other ones nationally, this is a popular time to bring administrators together. And I find this enriching to go talk to another headmaster that's doing the exact same thing that we're Doing or something similar, and to have the opportunity to hear from others, learn from others, just have dinner with others. So that sort of takes you through that. So the goal there, that usually sets up a lot of my goals for the rest of the summer. As I'm thinking about what do we want to implement for next year, what do we need to do to prepare our teachers? Well, what are some of the things our culture of our school is going to need? And so you spend the summertime thinking about those things in planning and preparing, intentionally thinking a lot about in service when our students come back. Right. So, so for me, it's, it's an evaluation, but also going to do some professional development development myself, which I can't do during the school year as much, a little bit, but not as much. And then all of that just puts you in planning mode. And it's just about preparing. So July to August, it's, it's, it's all eyes forward. A lot of times, I'd say for administrators, it's reflection in June and looking forward in July and then August, you ramp up to the beginning of the year. So, yes, every summer I'll set goals for what I want to read, what conference I want to go to, and what sort of projects do we need to tackle to implement next year for our school year?

[A]

All right, let's talk about parents and families. Why is summer break so important for the students to be with that family?

[B]

Well, in classical education, we're talking all the time how we are in partnership with parents, and I'm a parent too, so the lift that parents have to partner with us, just making sure that their children have what they need throughout the school year and just the being present and kind of all in to help when needed. Sometimes that's providing a studious environment at home. Sometime that's reading to your child. Sometimes that's, you know, being available for questions on homework, but also to support them. We all know what activity load our students have, right? Activities are part of education. So whether it's the play or sports or some sort of leadership development, as Quiz bowl, we are, as parents, we're driving all over the place, and we are helping make sure that our kids have what they need for their education. So in the summertime, the schedule can change for us too. Now our role with our child, we get to spend more time with them in a different way. We're taking on other responsibilities. And so as we think about areas that we want to help our children grow, we can do so in a way that's not so scheduled. And a parent needs that break, too, from the rigor of being a parent to support school to then shift towards, again, I'm going to say, a more leisurely pace in the summer that allows even for parents. I mean, how many of us think about, okay, next school year, we're going to change a few things in our routine. We're going to have a couple new ideas for this child or our family. And I think that's really essential because I think we'll burn out the family if we sustain a school year pace for 12 months.

[A]

And again, we don't want to give specific homework or specific instructions. But if we were to maybe describe how parents can think about their role over the summer and how they can support their child's education during those summer months, how might they take that approach?

[B]

Right. So, again, I do think it's good to be intentional. I find that the first couple. A word of caution. The first week or two can be tough. Anytime you change, transition and there's change, I don't know. I remember from experience, especially with younger children that transition from school, not into school. So one, be patient. Right. So parents need to be patient with that, but also have a plan. Again, what would be a productive and a healthy day? And this is taking our children to the library, providing extra books for them. Some students do need some extra work. The teachers recommend, like extra math facts or maybe have to work on grammar or something that needs a little bit of work. And so being available to do that again at a leisurely pace. But just be thinking about the routine. We want kids outside, we want kids playing. We want kids using their finding hobbies, you know, using their brains, you know, where can we take them in our communities to learn? So I just think all of those things are really important. So planning is key. So what we want to do is just avoid the television and the iPad and something else. Right. And just this mindless entertainment. Right. That is the sort of thing that would not be using our summer. Well, now there's time and place for that.

[A]

Sure.

[B]

Right. And there's more time in the summer for that. But this is, you know, I think parents can be really thoughtful about how they kind of organize and structure the day to an extent. Again. Right. I'm not saying we need a wall chart with every hour, you know, planned out. That might take the joy out of the summer for your child as well.

[A]

Mike Roberts is headmaster at Hillsdale Academy here in Hillsdale, Michigan, as we talk about the necessity of summer break. Mike, thanks so much. For joining us here on the Hillsdale College K12 Classical Education Podcast.

[B]

Thank you for having me.

[A]

I'm Scott Bertram. We invite you to like us on Facebook search for Hillsdale College K12 classical education. You also can follow us on Instagram hillsdalek12. That's hillsdalek12 on Instagram. Thank you for listening to The Hillsdale College K12 classical education podcast, part of the Hillsdale College Podcast Network. More at Podcast Hillsdale Edu or wherever you get your audio.