Just curious if college applications ask for activities only starting in 9th grade and subsequent summers, or whether activities in the summer before 9th grade are listed anywhere. We are generally of the have fun/relax attitude for summers (including 4 week overnight camp). Just wondering if that rising 9th grade summer should be used for internships/research/summer programs at colleges if a highly selective college is the goal. Kid is math/science focused, high-achiever so far.
Obviously there are programs for kids that young (CTY, etc.) but honestly I would try for the summer is for fun approach as long as possible. We have friends whose son went to 7 week sleepaway camp through the summer after 9th grade and still managed to be admitted to Harvard, MIT, Princeton and Stanford.
If your school system considers your child to be a 9th grader from the moment 8th grade ends, it might be possible for your child to take one or two boring, routine nonacademic courses in summer school to free up time in the academic year for something he/she likes better.
This is how my full-IB kid managed to stay in the band all four years – something that was very important to her. She created space for band in her schedule by taking unimportant things in the summers before 9th and 10th grades.
I was told that everything starts counting the day that 8th grade ends. So, count the volunteer hours, and work with your child to plan a meaningful summer. Maybe that involves summer swim league, or travel baseball team, or volunteering with boys and girls’ club or vacation bible school at your church. It doesn’t have to be taking summer academic classes.
Mowing lawns and pet sitting can show great responsibility.
Your child will be asked (on most college applications) for 2 or 3 activities from each summer. You just want to avoid having to say “I sat in front of the tv and/or played video games all summer.” So, does your child like to program? That’s using your brain, and if there is something tangible published by the end of the summer, that would be something for the student to be able to talk about during an interview.
And a 4 week summer camp can be meaningful also. Don’t discount the normal things in life, like spending time with grandparents and helping them harvest their garden, or help rebuild their porch steps. Pursuing an interest in something, whether it is purely academic or not, can show student’s personality.
Not everyone needs to start a non-profit or crusade through Africa curing malaria. But showing some kind of volunteer work that has some connection to your student, and maybe a lesson learned through that volunteering, could be worthwhile.
Even though you are trying to shoot for a lofty goal of an elite college, be sure to find genuine ways for your student to let his personality and interests shine through. You don’t want a student to get stuck lying about “what motivated you to do this project last summer?” So figure out your child’s natural interests and look for ways they can use that interest in a job or volunteer position, or a reason for a family trip to scuba dive and see the coral reef or hike into the Grand Canyon, or volunteer to clear a path on the Appalachian trail.
I encourage you to make sure your child has some down time also. Don’t program every moment of every day.
Here are some enriching activities my kids did in the summer after 8th grade: swim at neighborhood pool, hang out with sib/friends, play musical instruments, watch TV, read books, ride bikes, mow lawn, babysit, play videogames, weed the garden, visit grandparents/cousins, etc.
I’m with atomom. This planning every moment of a 14 year old’s summer with the goal of how it will look for college admissions is, in my opinion, not only ridiculous, but sad.
In our school there is summer reading for Honors English. Other than that let them be kids. 
My oldest son took Cryptography at CTY the summer before 9th grade because he thought it was fun. It was only 3 weeks, which left the rest of the summer for reading books and playing video games.
Younger son went to his last year of sleep-away camp at the place he’d been going since elementary school and then played the rest of the summer. He kept up with his violin lessons, but that was about it for anything worthy!
There isn’t a slot on the Common Application for the summer before 9th grade - so I agree let them enjoy the summer - if enjoying including taking a course - that’s fine.
Echoing the sentiments of others, I want to say that the summer before high school should be spent on having fun and completing summer assignments. I got into two Ivies as well as 7 other amazing schools having not done anything special during my summers besides babysitting (before 11th) and a summer class at UMD (before 12th).
While I wish my parents allowed me to do summer programs before the one I did this past summer, I see now that I wasn’t at a huge disadvantage, especially considering I wouldn’t have had enough CA slots for ECs had things been different.
No matter what happens, just make sure your kid is doing what interests them, whether that’s research or learning how to play chess
Thanks for all the responses.
You aren’t a high school student when you haven’t yet set foot in high school any more than you are a college student the day you get your high school diploma. My daughter applied to several elite colleges and she was asked how she spent the past two summers.
I would let your kid decide what they want to do, whether that is exploring an area of interest or just relaxing. Some kids in our area do take summer PE to free up time in the high school schedule but honestly what they come up with their own when they have some free time can unexpectedly turn into the most compelling part of their application. Not only is it important for them to have some personal time to find and develop their interests, but also, my impression is that colleges like to see some individual initiative, not just another cookie cutter applicant whose life has been entirely micromanaged and filled by attending the “right” programs and dutifully completing all the activities organized by adults.
Let your kid be a kid. Do summer activities that appeal at the time, not for the resume. The HS extracurriculars are done during the school year, not summers. Remember that colleges are aware that some families can afford more than others. Vacation do good trips aren’t any better than doing something in your own city for the resume. Do the academic summer camps if they appeal to your child- not because it looks good on the record but because that is how they want to spend part of their summer.
Give your child the best childhood- this includes down time to just be a kid. Think in terms of the present- what if your kid never lived to adulthood- would his/her life have been good or just preparation for the future that s/he never gets? Morbid thought but I have no regrets in giving our gifted son full normal childhood experiences instead of maxing out his academic potential all of the time.