It’s summer time, and everyone knows what that means: trips to the beach, fun in the sun and just plain old relaxing. Since many students will be having tons of fun, and not engaging in educational activities, they will most likely forget things they were taught in school before it let out. Though this loss of knowledge is concerning, summer still holds its value when students spend their time productively, ensuring they won’t forget what they so desperately studied in May for their exams.

Summer vacation offers students opportunities to be productive members of society, given all the free time they receive. Students can start doing volunteer work anywhere that would help the community, like being a camp counselor at a local summer camp. By volunteering, students make sure that they do not spend the majority of their days inside on Netflix or doing something else that doesn’t make the most of their time. Volunteering is not the only method to make summer productive; students can exercise their minds by studying for major exams they may be taking the following year. Another way students can be productive is to actually start reading the books they’re assigned to read during the summer; to know which books you need to read this summer along with helpful links, click here!

Many people question summer’s value because students lose about two months’ worth of knowledge, as most do not stimulate their brain on an educational level. This learning loss is concerning since, according to National Summer Learning Association, the amount of knowledge lost varies depending on family income; lower income families typically have fewer educational opportunities over summer vacation.

The phenomenon of students forgetting what they were taught can be mitigated if students participate in summer courses or programs that could not only help them remember things they have forgotten but also teaching them entirely new things. Another issue that people have with summer vacation is that it seems like it is way too long; in actuality, summer is a mere 11 weeks long! However, summer vacation can feel like it’s going by too fast if students are being productive and not letting their minds waste away.

“I think that summer vacation is very important to students and is very necessary, because students deserve a break sometimes, since we work very hard and sometimes a little too much throughout the school year,” senior Maria Aguila said.

After all the hard work students put in all year, they do truly deserve to take a break from it all during their summer vacation. Even though they may be set back the following year, with a few review lessons or summer courses they can regain all the knowledge they lost and then some, making the experience and opportunities that summer brings worth much more.