When summer finally begins, the last thing a student even considers thinking about is anything that is school related. The infamous summer project stands to change that. This topic, the summer project, coupled with my predetermined ideologies to what summer should represent lead me to the conclusion that if summer projects are to be a requirement for students, they should be designed by the student, for the student. The reasons students should have the right to design their own projects include, but are not limited to, the fact that giving students a say would let them express, and learn about, themselves creatively, the fact that students can make something they are passionate about, and the idea that summer is not a time to be doing school work.

If students acquire the right to design their own summer projects, they would most likely make the project in a manner that would be both fun and educational at the same time. This is exactly what I did in the 10th grade, when I was assigned a video project in the class Driver's Education. I had never recorded a video for school purposes, and I never learned to edit either. The video project made learning to edit a necessity. I not only learned how to edit because of the video, but I also learned that making and editing videos can be extremely fun! It showed me that I love to make people laugh, and honestly, I may want to pursue making and editing videos one day. Students could choose a video project, or any other way to channel their creativity through this project. In doing so, in choosing how the project is designed, they may learn something new about themselves, and it gives students a chance to show, or maybe even find, their creative side.

By giving students the right to design their own summer projects, you are giving students the chance to make something with the passions they have. This would have an extremely positive effect, as they would now be working on the project with an unconventional mindset, at least in the context of school work. This change in their mindset would make it easier for the project to be done, as the unique things each student loves are being incorporated. This would also drastically increase the quality of work, as they are doing something they love. Allowing students to incorporate their passions would also show teachers how each student is unique in their own way. Student designed summer projects may also create a new interest for whatever topic the project is on, as students would be more inclined to make a cocktail of their interests and school-related topics rather than isolating the two.

Over the 10 months that make up the school year, students are in a constant state of stress, due in part by the work that they must do. Summer is a time for students to unwind, and to forget what it means to be a stressed out, overworked, and sleep deprived student. A time to relax. A time, for once in a student's life, to put the work, and the stress that comes with it, down for an extended period of time. If students are to be required to complete a summer project, they should, at the very least, have a choice in how they will design said project. As it will ease the sting of having to do school work in a time where no school work should be done in the first place. One may say, "Anytime is a time to do school work!" And while I see where they are coming from, school is out of session for a reason. Summer vacation is a time to be away from school and all of the psychological endeavors it brings with it. Which is why I know, definitively, that school work should not be issued out during the summer in the first place, and because of this, if school work is to be issued, the school, at the very least, should give the students the right to design their summer projects.

In conclusion, students, without a shadow of a doubt, should be given the right to design their summer projects. Through designing their summer projects, students can learn about who they are creatively, they can incorporate what they are passionate about into the summer project, and finally, students can feel better about having to do a project during the summer, as they will at least have a choice in what that project is. All of these benefits are extremely valuable, as they will have a positive effect towards a student's life, as they can learn new things about themselves, and show people a bit of who they are. These positive effects would be an impossibility if the flexibility that comes from giving students the right to design their summer projects is not given in the first place.              