What is something that interests you or a certain subject that interests you? This is a question that schools, who require students to complete summer projects, should ask the students. It is very important to understand what interests the students who are doing these projects. When students are doing a project they are not interested in, they are not as creative with it and they do not learn as much. I know from personal experience that when I am doing a project that interests me, I do so much better and I learn so much more about the subject. It is very beneficial for both the students and the teachers. If some students do not like it or are not interested enough, they might end up not doing the project or getting a really bad grade on it. I believe student-designed projects would be the best way to go because they will learn better and more efficiently, they will get better grades, which is very important, and it will help them learn throughout their break so that they learn so much more.

The first reason that I think student-designed projects would be better, is because they will be more interested in it if they pick something that they are passionate about. The project could be about subjects in school like Math, Science, English, or anything that is related to nature because those are some beneficial things to learn about. I know, from experience, that doing a project that interests you is so much more beneficial. When I was a freshman, my English teacher explained to us that we had to write a paper about something that we are passionate and feel very strongly about. We had to finish this paper by the time our summer break was over. It really helped a lot of my fellow classmates learn so much more about the things they are so passionate about. It was so beneficial to all of us. When we got back to school after summer break, everyone got to share what they wrote about. It was very interesting to hear everyone's point of view on certain things. I really enjoyed it.

Another reason that student-designed projects would be better, is because students can be so much more creative with them. For example, if you really love flowers and you are making a big poster project, you can be so creative with it. You can go out and take beautiful pictures, you can draw and color flowers, and you can search for interesting facts about them. Their are so many interesting things to learn about in the world. Students with creative minds should be given the ability to use them in their own way; therefore, I strongly believe they should be able to design their own projects and be creative and spontaneous with them. In order to do the projects, they still need the teacher's consent, but if it is beneficial and helps them learn, the teacher should be fine with it. It is amazing to see what students can do with all their creativity. The teachers can learn so much about their students' ability when they let them get creative.

The third reason I believe student-designed projects are better, is because it can help both the teachers and the students. If teachers just give every student the same project, some students may decide they can cheat off of their friends, especially if they are not interested in the project or just do not want to do it. If you let them design it and let them do the project about something that they love or are interested in, they will not be able to cheat and will do it on their own. It can also help the students get a better grade on it. If the students are getting better grades on it, then the teachers know that they actually learned something over summer break. I think it is very important to keep learning even over break because it keeps your brain fresh and ready to roll when school comes back around.

It is very important to know and understand what interests your students. Many students are so creative but some never get to use their creativity in school, especially if what they are doing does not interest them. It is very important to let them use their artistic abilities or any other talents they have by doing student-designed projects. Student-designed projects are better for learning and could be beneficial for students in the future even after they get out of school. They can learn many skills from doing them and it will help them continue learning. I strongly encourage teachers to let their students design their summer break projects for not only their benefit, but also for the students'.                                      