The beginning of a teacher’s summer is glorious.
Those first few hours? Thrilling. Celebratory. Whether they’re driving with the windows down on a coastal California highway or just pretending they are by blasting “Tame Impala” from their school parking lot in Iowa, teachers are all confetti and sunshine.
Once the initial thrill wears off, teachers generally enter a period of blissful hibernation with very little movement for several days. They might spend a lot of quiet time at home or somewhere else where they can relax, like a beach or a park. You can often find them reading or spending time with a variety of screens at this stage. (If you find one in the wild, do not disturb them.)
In the weeks after and well into their summer, teachers generally enter one of several states depending on what brings them joy and what kind of work/projects they have to take on. Often, these tasks correlate with the life of a teacher—reviving garden beds that were sacrificed to standardized testing season, scheduling all the health appointments that were put off, etc.
But the very beginning of a teacher’s summer? Pure bliss, baby.
Recently these two Reddit posts asked teachers how they mark the beginning of their summer journeys. We loved the traditions, rituals, and some full-on procedural approaches to maximizing summertime teachers reported. Here’s what they had to say.
Scheduling luxury
When it’s basically impossible to get any kind of appointment during school hours, you have to go all out in the summer.
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by u/fourth_and_long from discussion What are your first-day-of-summer traditions?
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by u/hrroyalgeekness from discussion What are your first-day-of-summer traditions?
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by u/erkala21 from discussion What is your “start of the summer” tradition?
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Little weekday delights
Taking advantage of those less-crowded time slots.
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by u/BrightEyes7742 from discussion What are your first-day-of-summer traditions?
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by u/robbynkay from discussion What is your “start of the summer” tradition?
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Arranging perfect days
An hour of leisure isn’t enough: The whole day needs to be scheduled out. These are my people.
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by u/teenytinyducks from discussion What are your first-day-of-summer traditions?
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by u/ChapterNo4115 from discussion What are your first-day-of-summer traditions?
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by u/MTskier12 from discussion What is your “start of the summer” tradition?
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Blasting a special anthem
These are so cute!
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by u/blane2354 from discussion What are your first-day-of-summer traditions?
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by u/jayjay2343 from discussion What is your “start of the summer” tradition?
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by u/thelb81 from discussion What is your “start of the summer” tradition?
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Grown-up field trips
Note: MANY responses involved grown-up field trips to bars.
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by u/crafty_teach_1335 from discussion What are your first-day-of-summer traditions?
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by u/gravitydefiant from discussion What are your first-day-of-summer traditions?
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by u/Agreeable_Metal7342 from discussion What are your first-day-of-summer traditions?
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A school year bonfire
This is genius.
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by u/Harcourtfentonmudd1 from discussion What is your “start of the summer” tradition?
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It’s the simple things
You’ve earned it (and so much more).
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by u/MaeMaeGriff from discussion What are your first-day-of-summer traditions?
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by u/auntbat from discussion What are your first-day-of-summer traditions?
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by u/mxc2311 from discussion What is your “start of the summer” tradition?
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Cleaning
You know the teachers at your school who start out their summer with a deep clean.
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by u/strawberryalfredo from discussion What is your “start of the summer” tradition?
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by u/Stock_End2255 from discussion What are your first-day-of-summer traditions?
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by u/Rokaryn_Mazel from discussion What are your first-day-of-summer traditions?
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Snoozing
Draw the blinds. Cuddle up with a duvet. Turn on rain noise. Repeat.
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by u/dcaksj22 from discussion What are your first-day-of-summer traditions?
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by u/Background-Noise-Now from discussion What is your “start of the summer” tradition?
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by u/UnableAudience7332 from discussion What are your first-day-of-summer traditions?
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by u/Paperwhite418 from discussion What is your “start of the summer” tradition?
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by u/captain_hug99 from discussion What are your first-day-of-summer traditions?
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The inevitable beginning-of-summer illnesses
Why, though?! 😩
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by u/kak1111993 from discussion What is your “start of the summer” tradition?
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by u/c2h5oh_yes from discussion What are your first-day-of-summer traditions?
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Huh. OK.
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by u/TheBagman07 from discussion What are your first-day-of-summer traditions?
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You do you, my friend. Whatever sparks joy.
What’s your favorite start-of-summer tradition? Let us know in the comments!
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