Get Smarter Over the Summer

I think the majority of people have been guilty of relaxing a little too much over summer break. Don't get me wrong, I love a good siesta, but eventually everything you learned throughout the school year, even those final reviews you spent hours studying, starts flowing out of your brain. It seems to be something correlated with the summer months- maybe it's that the sun starts absorbing your knowledge like a giant sponge. According to onlinecollege.org, students perform worse on standardized tests at the end of summer break than they do before it. Additionally, students lose over 2 months of computational skills over their vacation.

So why would you go backwards when you have the potential to rise to new heights this summer? It's seems like a waste to lose the knowledge you worked hard to earn over your break, and it is. Think of it this way: during the school year there is a set curriculum, and the teachers educate you on what they are required to by the state instead of what the students want to learn about. This is your chance to pursue your interests without restrictions. Whether your interest is history, math, or science, you can find incredible resources all around you, including at your laptop and local library. Here are 10 ways that you can be get smarter this summer:

      1. Watch documentaries.

Netflix isn't only for binge-watching. If you take a look at Netflix's documentary section, you'll find films about popular musicians, endangered animals, poverty, war, and a plethora of other subjects. Most of these documentaries last around an hour and will engage you so that you're learning without even realizing it. You can also watch documentaries on Hulu and they air frequently on channels such as National Geographic, Discovery, and the History Channel.

      2. Get an internship.

Internships are offered for high school students everywhere from your local aquarium to a nearby college or university. It's great to put yourself out there and the experience looks great on a resume as long as you're doing something you love. Websites such as InternMatch can help you find your ideal summer internship for free.

      3. Write

In school there is much time for creative writing between the lengthy research papers you're assigned (but if that's what you are in to, great for you!). Writing is a great way to release your creative spirits, and you can do it whichever way appeals to you: blogging, keeping a journal, or even writing fan fiction. A great idea that I can vouch for is keeping a small journal to keep your thoughts organized. That way, whenever you feel like writing, you can choose an idea and type away! In addition, great writing communities exist online, especially for teens. Some of my favorites are Wattpad and Girls' Life's Inkspiration.

      4. Read

This one's a bit of a no-brainer, but no matter what kind of reading you do (be it teen romance novels or magazines), it's a lot better for your brain than standing idly by all day. Reading improves your vocabulary, sparks creativity, and takes your mind off of your troubles. Make reading more exciting by joining the bookstagram community (books+Instagram), finding a cozy reading spot (a bench at the park or Starbucks), and creating a summer reading list (see my post here for some ideas).

      5. Visit the history museum.

Personally, I find it incredibly interesting to learn about the important people that walked on this Earth before I was even born and be educated about how my city came to be. When going to your local history museum, you'll find there's a story behind a lot of the things you take for granted every day.

      6. Khan Academy

You've probably heard a lot about Khan Academy before, and for a while I never really used it and wasn't aware of all the amazing resources it had to offer. If you're looking to prepare yourself for next year's courses, need help with college admissions, or simply want to learn about a topic that interests you, Khan Academy is a valuable source that can teach you about almost everything except for ELA or reading. (Currently I'm taking courses on human anatomy/physiology and a crash course in world history.)

      7. Lumosity

While it's questionable whether Lumosity actually makes you "smarter," I think it's a fun way to test your brain's capabilities. Lumosity claims it's games have been created by neuroscientists and that it is a sort of "cognitive training" that gradually increases in difficulty to keep your brain challenged. You can have access to three games a day for free, or pay money for a more personalized training program.

      8. Sporcle

If you're a lover of Trivial Pursuit and Trivia Crack, you'll enjoy Sporcle's daily featured trivia games. Sporcle has thousands of quizzes about history, vocabulary, television, and more, and you can even create your own trivia games to challenge others.

      9. Mental Floss

Mental Floss has a fairly well known magazine and Youtube channel, and their website makes learning crazy new things equally as hilarious. Mental Floss has new articles daily, and they answer some of the world's biggest questions, showcase unique new products/technology, plus more.

      10. Merriam WebsterOn the website of this widespread dictionary, you can learn a new word every day, observe word trends, and take three minute quizzes to test your spelling and vocabulary skills.

Good luck with your educational endeavors!

xoxo, Lexi