My school will be out for a few days next week, so I’ve been spending some time planning out my mission for those days. But without the slight structure given to us by a school, there are so many possibilities in terms of things you can do. For someone like me, that can be both a wonderful and a dreadful thing. Listing it all out tends to help a lot. And if you aren’t on a break at the moment? Planning ahead of time is equally helpful.

PLANNING IT ALL OUT

I like to begin by asking myself: “Do I want to exercise or relax my brain?”

If you are burned out and need to spend some time relaxing and re-charging, focus on self-care and hobbies. Self-care can mean many things depending on who you ask. You could tidy up your room, read a book, or snuggle with a pet—but you should always aim to get at least 7 hours of sleep, drink enough water, and do a bit of exercise (stretching counts too). If you can, enjoy one of your hobbies with a friend or a family member (or do something else enjoyable, like bake together or watch a movie).

Maybe you want to get ahead or back on track in school. If that is the situation, then spend your break doing a bit of homework, studying, and reviewing. Remember to take frequent breaks so you don’t get too tired—your goal is to study smart. Work on a few math problems, analyze a text, then take a 5-to-30-minute break after a certain amount of time. The length of your break should increase with the time you spend working and studying!

Nothing is always simply 1 and 2. There is always an in-between, and, in this case, that is your extracurricular activities. During your break, you will have more time to focus on those extracurriculars or get involved in more. However, no activity is exactly alike, and some might not even be active during breaks. For example, my school’s clubs do not have meetings during our breaks.

PRIORITIZE YOURSELF

Regardless of how you choose to spend your break, make sure you are happy! You can always do all three: spend some time studying, focus more on your extracurricular activities, and relax with your family. The important thing is to have a balance and, of course, take care of yourself!

Sincerely, Wordynora.