Thread: 12 Ways to Make the Most of Summer

When you're a kid, there's nothing quite like the high-flying feeling you get on the last day of school. No more pencils, no more books--you know the rest. It's summer vacation, and all you have ahead of you are warm, sunny days filled with ... filled with ...

And there's the problem.

Sometimes a break from school doesn't turn out quite as great as you thought it would be. I can remember getting into the habit of watching "just a little" TV after swim team practice. A little TV often turned into a day in the Twilight Zone (which was mostly what I watched). This is a guaranteed way to feel queasy and disoriented all day long.


It doesn't have to be that way. If you're a kid, or if you have a few of your own, you can have a great time without having to resort to the boob tube.

Here are a dozen ideas for making the most out of summer vacation. They're organized by age group, but don't feel like you have to pay too much attention to that.


For kids under 14

What do you want to do today? See something yucky? Burn rubber? Start a collection? Or make some money?

You can do all of these. But probably not all at the same time.


For high-schoolers

By now, you've probably realized you don't have all that many summers left before you're officially an adult, when summer vacation gets shrunk down to two days off: Fourth of July and Labor Day. Aauuughhh!

With this in mind, it may seem as though the ideal summer consists of two events: lounging and scrounging (for beverages and couch money). The world has more exciting things to offer--and besides, getting a suntan will give you wrinkles later in life.

Make this time count by doing something you love, something you'll learn from.


Ideas for parents

Studies by the American Psychological Association have shown that when kids spend too much time playing violent video games, they act more aggressively.

But you're a parent. You don't need a study to show you what you already know. So, how to keep your kids from blipping their summer away playing games? It's not that hard. Just provide them with some fun alternatives. It will mean a little more work on your part. But your kids--and your eardrums--will thank you.

Here are three suggestions for fun summer activities. You can also check out the recommendations I'm making for kids and high schoolers.

Have fun with these ideas, or come up with your own. Either way, have a great summer!


Fun summer stuff for kids under 14

Ready to have some fun? Then let's get right to it.

1. See something yucky right now

Here's a picture of a dragonfly popping out of its skin, a slimy alligator coming out of its egg, and a super-gross termite. You might get to see a real dragonfly this summer if you go outside. Aren't you glad you don't pop out of your skin every time you get a size bigger?

Even though you don't shed like a dragonfly, your body is pretty weird, too. Find out the secrets of sweat, snot, and other yucky things. You can come back to this site several times and still not learn every odd thing there is to know about the human body.


2. Start a collection and work on it all summer

OK, you've spent enough time in front of the computer. Why not start a collection? Think about something you really like. I used to collect the fortunes from fortune cookies. But they ended up going through the wash. Now, I try to collect things that have a little more staying power.

Here are some other things you can collect:

Coins

The United States Mint is making new quarters that show off each state. Every ten weeks until 2008, you can add a new quarter to your collection. Curious which states are out there for you to collect? You can find out here. You can also learn which states came first, because the new coins are being released in the order that states joined the Union.

Leaves

See if you can find one example of each leaf in this collection. http://beta.encarta.msn.com/encnet/r...29&pn=3&sec=-1 You can press them between pages of the phone book or make drawings of them in a notebook. Every time you come across a new kind of leaf, add it to your pile. Before long, you will know an awful lot about trees. And if you want to be a true expert, find out what leaves are for and how they work. http://beta.encarta.msn.com/encnet/r...efid=761558729


3. Do an experiment

How would you like to burn a little rubber without matches or make a volcano out of a film canister? Bill Nye's Web site has 40 experiments you can do at home without getting into too much trouble. But just to be on the safe side, be sure to ask permission first. If you do one experiment a day, you'll have something neat to do for a big chunk of your vacation. Click on the home demos link to find the experiments.


4. Make some money

Are there dogs in your neighborhood? If so, you can start your own dog-walking business and make a little money. First, you need to make a flier. You have to decide how much to charge (ask your parents). Then, figure out why people should hire you. This is your slogan. For example, "Your dog will smile after he's walked awhile!" You can post the flier in your neighborhood and, if your parents say it's OK, go door-to-door finding customers.

If you walk five dogs a day, at $1 each dog, you can make $25 a week!

Hint: If you seem to know a lot about dogs, people will be more likely to hire you. You can learn about all sorts of dog breeds here.


5. Put on a magic show

Everyone loves magic. When I was a kid, we used to float in the air and make oranges disappear. None of it was real, of course. But it sure looked cool.

This Web site has a bunch of tricks that are easy to learn. Once you know five or so, you're ready to put on a show for your family and friends. http://kids.mysterynet.com/magic/

And if you get really into magic, you can learn about the great Harry Houdini, who escaped from all sorts of exciting spaces.




High schoolers: deejay your summer away

If whiling away your summer days playing your favorite CDs sounds like fun, how about building your own radio station? Of course you may have to start a business or get a job so you can buy the equipment you need, and there's always community relations to think about ...

1. Build your own radio station

If you love music, you're in for some fun. You can build your own Internet radio station. This is a great way to share your favorite music with the world--and also to get some experience for a job as a DJ at your college radio station. My sisters hosted a show together (called Twisted Sisters, of course). They were hilarious, which is sometimes easier when your shift starts at 7 AM.

What's great about building your own radio station is that you can use this on your résumé and college applications to demonstrate your creativity and initiative--especially if you find a way to make your stuff popular.


[2. Start a business

My brothers made what seemed to me a sick and unfair amount of money running their own landscaping business. They bought a truck, made business cards, and kept busy and rolling in the green--both money and plants--by convincing our parents' friends that they needed to have their yards made over.

Do you have this kind of skill? If so, you can start your own company, then put it down on your college application, proving to the world that you owned a business before you turned 18. You don't even need to make a lot of money. The important thing is that you did it.

And your business doesn't have to be doing yard work. Think about what you're good at and like to do. Do you build Web sites? Make T-shirts or sandwiches? Baby-sit? All you need to do is find customers who want what you do, and you're in the money.

Even better, if you have friends who are good at the same thing, form a company together. This way, someone is always available for customers, and you have more hands to bear the workload. Plus, it's really fun.

No matter what your business is, you will learn all about working with and for people. And it looks very, very good to colleges and future employers when you show an early entrepreneurial spirit.


3. Get a great summer job

If you don't feel ready yet to start your own business but would like a little work experience and the money that comes with it, that's great too. Some of the same principles apply.

You have more options than just the local fast-food joint, although if that's what sounds the most fun to you, by all means pursue it. Finding a job that involves something you already like to do is key. Then it won't feel like work.

Once you've found openings that sound like fun, you'll need to put together a résumé listing any related experience you have--even if you didn't get paid for it. Then you'll need to contact the company and sell yourself and your skills.

[Job search resources:

www.Petersons.com and www.Snagajob.com can help you find fun summer jobs no matter where you live.



4. Do something good for your community

One of the most satisfying things you can do is volunteer in your community. If you don't want to take on a summer job, think about spending a few hours a week helping out other people.

Links to start with:

Pitch in at your local Boys and Girls Club. www.bgca.org/clubs/
Volunteer at the Red Cross. www.redcross.org/services/youth/teens/
Help the families of sick kids at the Ronald McDonald House. www.rmhc.com/

Summer parenting: let the kids take over

Summer parenting is tough. At least during the school year you are relieved from duty for a few hours each day. But when the weather heats up, so does your job. Are you wondering how to keep the youngsters occupied for hours at a time? Here are three ideas.

1. Have your kids plan the vacation itinerary

Summer vacations always sound like fun until your kids let you know in the middle of the Great Vegetables of the American West Museum that they're BORED.

You can prevent this by putting your kids in charge of the vacation itinerary. Pick a place, and read all about it on the Internet. (For some ideas, you could even start with America's weirdest roadside attractions.) The best part is, should your kids choose not to participate in plannning your trip, they can only blame themselves when they're bored out of their gourds at the Great Vegetables Museum.



2. Organize a "knowledge hunt"

A knowledge hunt is like a scavenger hunt, only the name of the game is to find an answer instead of a thing. The hardest part is coming up with the questions. Encarta is a great tool for this. You can use it to come up with five to ten questions, which you can write on the outside of envelopes (the answer, of course, is inside). You can even color-code the envelopes: green for easy questions, yellow for medium questions, and red for the stumpers.

A sample question could be, "Find me two mammals that lay eggs." Sic your kids on Encarta to find the answer. After they do, give them the next question.

To make up your own questions, click around in Encarta's reference area. Make the questions a little harder than what you think your kids know. For example, "What year did Columbus sail to America?" is a good question for a second-grader, but too easy for an eighth-grader. You could ask your eighth-grader what Columbus was looking for on his fourth voyage.

Not every question has to send the kids running to the computer, by the way. You can print out pictures of a flower and send them to the yard to try to find an example. Another way to get them outside: Tell them to find out what temperature it is and convert it to Celsius.

Your kids can work in teams, using different questions for each team. Or, they can take turns answering them. You can turn up the pressure by giving a time limit for each question. The beauty of it is, they won't know they're learning.

Don't forget to pick a cool prize, by the way. It doesn't have to be anything expensive: a homemade apple pie, hula hoops, sidewalk chalk--even matinee tickets.

3. Adopt an animal at the zoo

If you're lucky enough to have a nearby zoo, ask your children what their favorite animals are. Look up information about these animals in Encarta's Encyclopedia Center, and read it together.

Then, take a trip to the zoo and visit the animals your children have adopted. I did this very thing when I was in the third grade (minus Encarta, which hadn't been invented yet). And I still have memories of how excited I was to see my first panther. Unfortunately, our zoo didn't have panthers. Although I was quite content to see lions, it might be a good idea to make sure your kid adopts an animal that actually does live at your local zoo.



Africam:

the world's first virtual game reserve. In addition to seeing really neat, live pictures of wild animals, your kids can learn about wild animals and the importance of conservation. You never quite know what you're going to get here, which makes the site a fun one to visit often.


http://beta.encarta.msn.com/encnet/f...cle=summermain