On June 6th, we will hear the bell ring for the last time that school year. Everyone is excited for a break from school, full of excitement. However, manty students return to school every year and have nothing to say about their break. Summer vacation always feels like a blur, ending too quickly. What is the perfect way to spend summer break? Summer break should be enjoyed to its fullest and be a time to change yourself for the better.
On the first day of summer, time slows down, taking in the new leisure time. But after the first week, you get into a routine, and the summer goes by quickly. This is because of experiencing the new. Studies have shown that new experiences slow our perception of time and force us to live in the moment. For example, our first field trips always stand out in your memory of school, even if you do not remember the rest of the year. This is a component of why kids experience time slower than adults; they’re constantly experiencing something new. We should plan something in the middle of the week for summer vacation, something new to do, or even something unorthodox. A water balloon fight, do an escape room or go to a track with your friends. Even at home, you can try a new habit, like a cold shower or a new hairstyle.
Being active also puts you in the moment. In a poll from 2013 to 2017, teens, on average, spend an hour on sports or exercise, which has been increasing. It puts you in the moment so that summer as a whole will be longer, and it is part of self-improvement. Over school, with all your classes and responsibilities, it is hard to try new healthy habits. However, over the summer, you have three months to improve for next year. Getting into a sport is perfect over the summer, as your friends are also open.
Even with the lack of classes, students are still learning. The same poll also showed that students spend more time studying each year over time. This is because, over the three months, students forget lots of the school material. Not only can this make the next class harder, especially in math, where everything builds upon each other. This can be shown in NWEA scores, which predicts that everyone will lose scores in the summer. Many use this fact to argue that all-year-round vacations, where summer break is broken up over the year, are better than regular Summer breaks. With students facing more competition against other students, studying over the summer is becoming more prevalent. Especially here, where students are taking summer or college classes to get ahead. While a break from studies can be helpful, this is a healthy habit that betters your life, similar to athletics.
The real-time taker of summer break is our screens. While these apps are enjoyable and tempting, everyone knows that they eat up our time as designed; we spend all our time on them. Companies use the addicting scroll, exploiting our brains by giving them something new every minute. And it works, on average, half of our leisure time in summer is on our screens. Plus, spending your time on a screen is not valuing your summer break, as you can scroll through your feed anytime, but only some of the time you can go river rafting. In addition, screens give no benefits to you and change nothing about your day. Looking at the sunset or cars driving by, while less appealing, lets you get to know yourself better.
To stop summer break from becoming a blur, you should try new activities that will better you. While everyone looks forward to summer, our phones always waste it. Though the blazing heat can discourage us, it allows us to do new activities with it. Historically, summer break was made for people to travel, as the heat lowered prices, and you can follow. So when summer eventually comes, spend some time with your friends and family and do something new.
