In the USA the tradition of the ‘summer break’ – that is, the long summer vacation for school-goers, has existed for over a hundred years. The academic calendar with a long summer holiday didn’t come about until the early 20th century. Previously, urban schools operated year-round with short breaks between quarters. Contrary to the belief that the long summers were the result of the agricultural calendar requiring that children work on the farm in the summer months, the summer break was actually the result of an effort to standardize schooling across the country. Urbanization created the long summer vacation, not an agricultural economy. If all students had more or less the same schedule it was easier to administer testing and sell standardized education materials like textbooks.
The summer vacation generally last around 12-14 weeks depending on whereabouts you live. In the northern states, summer vacation generally starts at the beginning of June and finishes around early September. In the southern and western states it usually starts late May and ends late August.

The Pros and Cons Of Summer Break

Some of the advantages of summer break for students include:
• A break from the academic school world which can be very pressurized.
• Get to have a long holiday and also having enough time to do some extensive traveling.
• Summer camp! And getting to do lots of activities and make new friends that this affords.
• Refreshes students and readies them for the new year of study.
Disadvantages Of Summer Break
Some of the disadvantages of summer break include:
• Parents may have problems finding suitable activities during the long weeks.
• You may forget important information that you have learnt previously in the year.
• You may lose contact with friends during this time.
Overall, students love their long summer break  and see it as a time to reflect on the year before, prepare for the year ahead,  to spend time with friends, family, and to seek adventure and fun before the next big year of study ahead.