As students across the UAE ease into a month-long winter break, headteachers are urging families to keep young minds engaged — not to pile on academics, but to avoid what educators describe as “learning regression”.
This year’s holiday stretches to four full weeks — from December 8, 2025, to January 4, 2026, with December 5, 2025, being the last working day in international curricula schools.
Principals emphasised that rest is essential, but they also warn that a complete academic shutdown can leave pupils playing catch-up when they return to class on January 5.
For many educators, the concern is not hypothetical but backed by trends they see year after year.
Headteachers explained that the break should indeed help children “restore”, but cautioned that research indicates how prolonged academic inactivity can slow momentum.
Principal of Woodlem British School, Ajman, Natalia Klykova said, “Winter break should restore children, but research reminds us that a full academic disconnect can lead to a 20–30 per cent dip in learning momentum. We think it’s important to find a healthy balance between real rest and light mental activity.”
Klykova pointed out that the school’s approach deliberately avoids burdening families with holiday homework. Instead, they offer optional, curiosity-driven tasks — the kind that keeps children thinking without making them feel they’re still in school.
She added, “We don’t give out homework over the holidays. Instead, we provide optional activities that are fun, meaningful, and meant to make you curious. It could be as easy as reading for 15 minutes, helping in the kitchen with measuring and sequencing, writing in a journal about what you saw, or looking for patterns in nature.”
These light-touch activities, she noted, help keep children mentally active in a way that feels natural and pressure-free. And come January, easing children back into learning becomes equally important.
“We know that when students come back in January, it takes some time to get back into the swing of things. That’s why we ease back in with gentle transitions, check-ins on well-being, low-stakes tests, and lessons that get students excited and boost their confidence and happiness.”
At Gems Founders School, Dubai, Executive Principal and CEO Matthew Burfield said the global conversation on learning loss remains highly relevant — pointing to documented evidence from international assessments.
“The OECD produced a paper called ‘Catching up on lost learning opportunities’ which stated that long holidays often lead to measurable declines in academic achievement, particularly in mathematics and reading.”
Burfield highlighted that while resources remain available online for families who wish to keep learning active, the school avoids rigid expectations over the break to respect how different families spend their downtime.
He added, “Home learning through our various platforms and through the most important activity, reading, is always available to our families. We encourage active engagement in these activities but try not to set a rigid framework around them, as family time takes different approaches, and this flexibility is critical for real bonding experiences.”
Curriculum specialists said the key is striking an intentional balance: protecting children’s wellbeing while keeping foundational skills sharp.
Introducing her winter learning strategy, Shanthi Subramanian, Head of Curriculum and Assessments at The Oxford School Dubai, noted that disengagement over long breaks is strongly linked to loss in academic gains — especially in math and literacy.
“We recognise that winter break is essential for students to rest and recharge, supporting their emotional well-being. However, research clearly demonstrates that long disengagement leads to learning regression, with studies showing learners could lose up to 20–30 per cent of their term gains in core areas like maths and literacy.”
Subramanian said their schools promote “low-pressure academic continuity” to reinforce what students already know.
Her recommendations extend to the home environment too — small daily habits that keep cognitive skills warm.
“We highly encourage simple routines like reading for pleasure for just 10–15 minutes a day. Parents can also integrate real-life maths by having children help with budgeting, measuring ingredients, or calculating travel time. Powerful learning comes from conversations… engaging in creative activities… and playing educational board games.”
Even with the best continuity practices, she said, it is normal for students to need a few days to regain rhythm after a long break. Schools anticipate this and prepare for a supportive restart.
“After any significant holiday, an adjustment period is entirely normal. We typically observe students needing three to five days to rebuild their attention spans and stamina… To ensure a smooth transition, we employ a multi-layered support system… soft-start days, structured revision, low-stakes checks, and wellbeing check-ins.”
© Khaleej Times
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