Summer is one of the most looked forward to times of the year … besides Christmas. Warm weather, no school, endless opportunities to have fun are what most kids and teenagers think about when they hear the word “summer.” For parents, not much changes. The only exceptions are that their kids aren’t in school and maybe a few family vacations. For the older teenagers the summer is an opportunity to make some extra cash. While all are great options, the summer activities aren’t just about working or rotting inside on our devices, for anyone.
The summer time is all about getting out of the house and having fun. This could be going swimming, going to carnivals, festivals, rodeos, fairs, having a bonfire with some friends, going on a spontaneous trip to another town and more. One idea to get you outside and off your phone is to create a summer bucket list and try to hit everything before school starts back up.
These are some of the items on my bucket list for this summer:
- Star gaze.
- Have a movie marathon.
- Sleepover on a trampoline.
- Have a picnic.
Over the years of my summers are always jam packed with events, some I couldn’t wait to start and others I didn’t want to go to. However, my activities made my summers times to remember. The best part of living in a small town and it being summer are the camp opportunities for sports or extracurricular activities. Baseball, basketball, volleyball, softball, dance or cheer and more camps are always going on throughout the summer.
Some parents want to make sure their children are still learning and growing through the summer, and an activity to do this is to have your kids read. Now I know that for some children, reading isn’t their “thing.” I’ve found, though, that I don’t enjoy reading something boring or aimed towards your usual definition of learning. As a child and to this day, I’ve always enjoyed reading adventurous, fiction, mystery and fantasy books. They allowed me to dive into another world and let my imagination grow.
Books that were a series also kept me interested and wanting more, so I continued to read. My book suggestions are the ones that everyone knows and loves like the Harry Potter series, but even if you have read these, go back and reread them. There is nothing wrong with diving back into the magical worlds that books hold.
Here are some of my favorite books to read in the summer:
- The Harry Potter Series.
- The Hawthorn Series.
- The Selection Series.
Summer is the time to let loose and have fun. Don’t get into too much trouble, but don’t waste your time scrolling and working. Especially those that are in school or just graduated, you are still a kid and won’t be forever, so make this summer your summer!
– by Ari Hurdsman (18) Junction
Feature image caption: Summer is full of great activities if we’re just willing to look up and enjoy. Courtesy Hassan Ouajbir.
Ari Hurdsman – Junction
Ari Hurdsman is a junior journalist at the Byway. She just recently moved to Ephraim, Utah, where she is a freshman at Snow College. She enjoys writing about Piute sports, and she’s really good at it! In her free time, she enjoys singing, dancing, reading and hanging out with friends and family.