Summer vacation is a great time for young people to explore new interests or to develop existing interests that get short shrift in the bustle of the school year. In an effort to help develop burgeoning young artists, the Suffolk Art League is offering a slate of classes, workshops and camps designed to accomplish just those goals.

Young Artists classes will take place from 2 to 3 p.m. on July 17 and Aug. 21, featuring age-appropriate activities for ages 3 to 5. “Students will use their natural creativity while exploring a theme through a variety of art materials each month,” SAL administrators have said.

Ages 14 and up can learn how to use complementary colors and about under painting during the Summer Pastel Workshop Series, whose workshops will run from 9:30 a.m. to noon July 2 and 16.

Summer Art Days are planned for June 27; July 11, 18 and 25; and Aug. 1 and 8. Ages 5 to 8 attend from 10 to 11:30 a.m., and ages 9 to 14 from 1 to 3 p.m. Classes are subsidized by the Suffolk Fine Arts Commission and Target, and each day’s activity is self contained.

Art In Your Pocket, from 10 a.m. to noon on July 30, will allow ages 8 to 13 to create their own artist trading cards.

The Summer Pastel Workshop Series, designed for children 14 and older, starts Tuesday with “Opposites Attract,” using contemporary colors to explore under painting. July 2 is “Broad Strokes,” creating impressionist landscapes, and July 16 is “What’s Underneath,” using sandpaper and under painting.

And finally, an art camp, themed “Suffolk Gallery of Modern Art,” will run Aug. 12-16. The program for ages 6 to 9 is from 10 a.m. to noon, and ages 8 to 12 from 1 to 3 p.m. The camp will include everything from landscapes to cubism and painting to sculpture.

Workshops and programs will be held at the Suffolk Art Gallery, 118 Bosley Ave. To register, send the student’s name, mailing address, email address and daytime phone number, along with the appropriate registration fee, to Suffolk Art League, P.O. Box 1086, Suffolk, VA 23439.

Amidst all the pressure for students to achieve good scores on standardized tests and to get the right classes under their belts to get accepted into good colleges, schools are increasingly turning away from spending time teaching youngsters to get in touch with their artistic talents. These summer offerings could be just the thing to help them reestablish those connections.