We meet every Wednesday year-round, with additional meetings as circumstances dictate (and the occasional cancellation as circumstances dictate); from the end of championship to the end of final exams we deliberately don't do a whole lot for a variety of reasons, including but not limited to:
- We need a bit of a break.
- It's my busiest time as a beekeeper.
- Academics! (AP exams, final exams, final projects, etc.)
It's a great idea to do off-season projects as a training regimen. This summer we worked on something we didn't finish, but it gave some of our never-evers experience working with tools, machines, etc. All those parts have been saved, and we'll finish up that project next summer...
With the sudden urge to take advantage of Gates's amazing generosity with sprockets and drive belts, we decided to meet every Thursday and Saturday in December (except Christmas Eve) to prototype a new drive train before the build season begins. Still not cheap, but the huge majority of the parts will be reusable as COTS items. Incorporated into this project, we're doing safety training, AutoDesk Inventor training, LabView training, TIG welding training, etc.
tl;dr version: Off-season projects are a great way to stay engaged all year, but don't feel bad about taking some time with minimal activity so that mentors and kids can recharge.