Making a Summer Bucket List

How many times have you walked into school on the first teach work day of the new school year saying, "I meant to do ___, where did the summer go?" Having a place to write down goals for things I want to happen over summer break helps me get so much more out of my time off and I feel so much more satisfied, refreshed, and ready for a new year when the new school year rolls around. Plus it's fun! Here's how to set up a bucket list for summer so you can really make your break everything you want it to be.

Pick a Spot

I've done my lists like this different ways over the years- sometimes I use a blank page in my planner, like I did this year, sometimes I've done sticky notes that I keep in my planner or somewhere in my room, and some years I've had a page on my fridge or in my kitchen where I can see it and add to it any time. They're all great options, the important thing is to pick one place to be your "brain dump" spot for all those "I really want to ____ this summer" thoughts.

Create Categories

The biggest key to making a good summer bucket list is to create categories under which you can list ideas. Think about the types of things you want to do this summer- you might have categories like:

• travel
• family activities
• home projects
• school projects
• doctor appointments/ self care
• books to read/ movies to watch
• people to see

Obviously I used planner stickers to create categories on my page in a fun and visual way, but it doesn't have to be fancy- many years I have just used one sticky note for each category and stuck them all on one piece of paper. The important thing is that the categories help with maintaining balance in how I spend my time over break by reminding myself of things I want to do in all aspects of life, not just work-related projects, and it helps me organize all the thoughts swirling in my head when I break things up into categories.

Keep it Accessible

Once you've dumped all your initial ideas into your list, keep it somewhere you'll see it often. Then when inspiration hits, or boredom strikes, you can remind yourself of the things you hoped to do, and you can add to your lists as you think of other things too.

Teachers, have you ever made a bucket list for yourself like this? Let me know in the comments!