This is the first time this kid has had summer work assigned, and it’s specifically for AP Chem. They checked out the text book to the kid, so there’s no “I didn’t have web access” excuse available. As far as folks moving in at the beginning of the school year – most families who end up having to move at the beginning of a kid’s junior year understand their kid may not be able to access some classes due to the timing of the move. And, well, in this state, most kids who are entering 11th grade are at the cusp of 16 yrs old, which the state has work permit restrictions on the hours anyone under 16 can work, and also 16-17 yr olds. I believe folks can have youth work more than those permitted hours in a family business, but that’s not often “for pay” when it’s “keeping the family business afloat”. Pretty much, if you’re getting a W-2, you can’t work that many hours in this state at that age. Leaving enough time for summer homework, on whatever passes for a weekend at the job you have. (And, no, it doesn’t sound like those kids are having a lot of “fun” or “break time”, but that isn’t the reality of their lives, either.)
The W2 requirement is easy to work around. D25 went to Florida with her cousin for a few days and didn’t want to lose her income, so is working 4 hour shifts at 2 different jobs today. One of them limits her to 15 hours in a week, the other kind of does but they turn a blind eye to shift swapping. Usually she is below 15, but has done close to 30 before when she is trying to bank money.
For her it isn’t a necessity, but I’m sure there are plenty of 16 year olds with a few 15 hour jobs that actually need the money. And my kids also seem to find one off things that pay them for an afternoon or helping someone move or something like that. Usually those are informal gigs, no OSHA involvement just an exchange of cash at the end of the day.
Overall she likes Amherst. She wouldn’t choose it again but for a very specific reason that doesn’t affect most people.
She was diagnosed with celiac disease the summer she graduated HS. They kinda try to accommodate her, but honestly it’s been a big disappointment. Housing and professors are great with it. Dining is the issue.
Dining is understaffed and in an inadequate facility. I know a 23 grad who had a good experience with different food issues his frosh year, but after Covid it got pretty rough for him and they never really tried to accommodate him even when things got back to “normal.”
She eventually got herself removed from the meal plan. There is a kitchen in her dorm that she cooks her meals in, although frequently she just eats something from her microwave or that doesn’t require any prep.
It’s a big time sink, and socially stinks because with the single dining hall and essentially everyone living on campus 4 years it is a big socialization area that she misses out on.
So it isn’t turning out great for her, but for 99% of kids it isn’t an issue. They are building a nicer newer dining facility, so I’m guessing it will get better in a couple years, but that doesn’t help her.
It also isn’t great for “mathy” kids. There are a lot of math majors, and the professors are excellent. But they cater to second major kids, and introducing kids to the wonders of advanced math. If you only have a couple semester of calc done when you show up on campus it’s fine. But for the kids already pretty advanced, you end up taking a lot of classes at UMass. It’s available, but not why you chose Amherst. That doesn’t affect my D, but I know a kid who didn’t have a great experience because of it, and another that crossed amherst off his list when he realized that by junior year her would mostly be a UMass student. In fairness, neither of these kids were typical. Both are very gifted, and were pretty deep into typical college math major requirements in HS. But for that tiny group amherst doesn’t work well.
Those 2 issues don’t affect many people. And she and I highly recommend Amherst to anyone not in those 2 groups. Premed in particular is great. Prospective premeds can meet with premed advisers their first month on campus. The beginning Science classes are curved but not too harshly. If you are willing to stay in Amherst over the summer research is easy to come by and can continue into the school year.
I’m happy to answer more specific questions.
Appreciate the honest feedback from a current parent. I’m sorry the school hasn’t been able to better respond to your daughter’s needs–that is concerning. Amherst was a final contender for my D18, and she liked almost everything about it (that Science Center!) except for the food. So a new dining facility seems long overdue.
D25 has 3 books to read over the summer for APLang. She’s completed the first book/assignment and will do one this month and one in early August. She thought she’d also have AP Calc work over the summer but nothing was assigned so who knows.
We just go back from a family vacation and leaves for Italy in 9 days. Summer is flying by!
My kids were caught off guard last week when they found out part of their Spanish summer work was due on Friday. It was a bit of a scramble as neither kid had bothered to check their summer packets yet.
oh my goodness! I wouldn’t have expected anything to be turned in until the new school year starts.
Definitely unusual. My guess is that leaving all the work for the end of the summer (or doing it all right away) defeats the purpose. The teacher is probably trying to pace them so they keep the language fresh in their brains.
Due!?!?
I mean, fine , I find summer reading lists unethical, but others here disagree and I can respect that that’s really largely a difference in philosophy, we can happily coexist despite our differences.
But having actual assignments come due over summer break? Please tell me that I’m not nearly as alone in finding that horrifying.
Summer work, with some work due periodically throughout the summer, was the norm for my D’s high school, in multiple subjects.
Yeah - that one caught us a bit of guard. But like I said, I’m pretty sure it’s so the kids actually use their Spanish every few weeks. I agree with you in principal but the reality is that the teacher is right. Watching a 10 minute video and writing two paragraphs about it is not going to kill anyone.
FWIW, only H and AP classes do this and the school is pretty good about no HW nights and no HW during shorter breaks. AP classes are allowed to have work bc of the brisk pace it requires. All teachers are really good about giving kids extensions if requested in advance and there is very little, if any, busy work.
Really? Why? Our summer reading is almost always “here are 30 great books, read one!” What’s wrong with that? And I’m pretty sure if someone emailed the teacher and said “I’m really interested in reading this instead for XYZ reason” the teacher would say sure!
To me, a break is a break.
If your boss requires you to do work on your vacation, that is unethical. Same for schoolkids.
(And there’s a meaningful difference between “Hey, read a book this summer!” and “Hey, read this book this summer, there will be a test.”)
I agree. My D25 has to read 3 books and there are decent size assignments that go along with them. They are REALLY boring books too (so far anyway). They could at least make the 3 books interesting to read!
When I was in hs we didn’t have any sort of assignments at all.
I know that happens a lot and it’s very unfortunate. My kids have been very lucky in that sense. The list always has a variety of genres and plenty of current books. They even offer several “themes” of AP Lang, with reading material varying from one to the other.
No summer requirements here for AP Lang, AP Calc, or AP Comp Sci.
I don’t mind some requirements because 2.5 months off is a long time and even if there were some requirements, there are plenty of weeks where my kids would do absolutely 0 academics.
We were in Europe earlier this summer and a shopkeeper was shocked that our kid had 11 weeks off. They only get 6.
S25 took AP Lang last year and had no summer reading. The only classes that have summer reading/work are AP World and IB ToK.
The difference is, there is no concern that you’ll lose your job skills acquired over many years during your 3 weeks off.
However, there is a valid concern for kids’ progress through material still being learned, will step back a bit if not used between June and September.
The real problem is that in the U.S. students still have time off as if all of them would be needed to plow their family’s fields in Central Park – while in other developed countries, fewer weeks need to be bridged.
Let’s put it this way, if today many (affluent, and not so) parents (and kids) find themselves chasing down and paying extra for “enrichment” summer camps, held by teachers of some school district as their summer job, then maybe the entire system of “180 contact days” should be questioned?
My kids have all received 4s and 5s on their AP tests without even summer reading and they’re not particularly exceptional kids or anything. I mean, I think they are, but you get my point.
Speaking of AP"s the scores come out on Wednesday. D25 is worried (she’s my worrier). I told her it matters very little to me what she gets.