25+ Summer Holiday Ideas for Teachers to Get the Most Out of Your Free Time

Did the summer break already start where you live? Lucky you! Are you counting down the days? Hang in there, summer break is just around the corner.

After a busy school year filled with lessons, planning, grading, and supporting your students, the summer break is the perfect moment to slow down, recharge, and focus on yourself. Whether you want to relax, discover new hobbies, spend time with loved ones, or use your time to prepare for the year ahead, this break offers plenty of opportunities to find the right balance.

In this blog post, you'll discover more than 25 ideas to help teachers make the most of their summer break. From ways to disconnect and enjoy your free time to practical tips for preparing the new school year, we've gathered inspiration to help you start September feeling refreshed and ready.

25+ Summer holiday ideas for teachers

This post includes 26 ideas to help teachers make the most of their free time. I'm listing them here, but make sure to read on for more information about each idea. Whether you're looking to relax, be productive, or try something new, you'll find plenty of inspiration below.

Part I - Ideas to disconnect and relax during the summer break: Discover plenty of ways to recharge, have fun, learn something new, and make the most of your well-deserved break.

Part II - How to prepare for the next school year: Explore practical tips to get organized, plan ahead, and start the new school year feeling confident and refreshed.

For those who prefer a more practical approach, we've created a handy Planner Widget. It already includes all 26 activities from this blog post, but you can easily personalize it by selecting your own activities and arranging them in any order you like. We've also included the most important links from this blog post directly in the planner, so everything you need is in one place.

If you're new to BookWidgets, let me explain it to you in 3 sentences:

1. BookWidgets is an all-in-one interactive quiz maker for teachers that helps all teachers create interactive digital assignments and assessments (with a variety of 37 interactive question types).
2. Teachers can share BookWidgets evaluations through their connected learning management systems, such as Google Classroom, Microsoft Teams, Canvas, Moodle, and many more, making digital activities easy to manage within their existing workflow.
3. Student answers are collected and organized in a grading dashboard, where teachers can review work, give feedback, and evaluate performance efficiently.

Part I - Ideas to disconnect and relax during the summer break

Are you looking for inspiration to fill your free time? The first part of this blog post is all about refreshing your soul and your mind before you dive in again. We’ll provide you with our best tips for your 2026 summer.

1. Meet up with friends, family, and colleagues

After a busy school year filled with lessons, planning, and responsibilities, it’s time to make room for meaningful conversations and quality moments with the people who matter most. Reconnecting with friends, family members, or former colleagues can be a great way to relax and recharge.

Call someone you haven’t seen in a while and plan a coffee date, a relaxing afternoon, or a fun activity together. Sometimes, a good conversation and a little time away from your daily routine are all you need to recharge.

2. Attend a festival, sports event, or other events

There’s always something exciting happening during the summer months. Whether you love music, sports, culture, or local activities, there are plenty of ways to enjoy your free time and create new memories.

From major sporting events like the Tour de France, Formula 1 Grand Prix races, and athletics competitions to popular music festivals such as Lollapalooza, Tomorrowland, and Sziget, there is something for everyone.

You don’t have to travel far either. Check out events happening near you and support local artists, athletes, and communities. A fun day out can be the perfect way to relax, recharge, and create new summer memories.

3. Travel the world

“The world is a book, and those who do not travel read only one page.”

Traveling allows you to step away from your daily routine, discover new places, and experience different cultures. Whether you explore a new country or a destination closer to home, every journey can bring new memories and fresh perspectives. These experiences can enrich you as a person and even inspire you in your role as a teacher.

Still looking for travel inspiration? Check out this Google Maps Widget with some of the best travel tips from the BookWidgets team members. Instead of the typical tourist attractions, you’ll discover hidden gems and lesser-known places that are definitely worth exploring.

Not in a position to travel far? No problem! You don’t have to go far to discover new experiences. A short trip close to home or even a staycation can be just as enjoyable. Go local: visit a farmer’s market, explore a thrift store, discover a nearby town, or find hidden gems in your own area.

4. Do day trips

A day trip is always a great way to make the most of your summer break. Whether you visit a museum, explore a nature reserve, discover a new city, or simply go somewhere you’ve never been before, you’ll always come home with new experiences and memories.

A successful day trip could be repeated with your students next school year as a field trip. Be sure to check out our blog post on field trips for inspiration.

Looking for more inspiration? You can also try an escape room experience. While nothing beats the excitement of a real escape room, digital versions can be a fun way to challenge yourself. Try this digital adventure, where you follow Eric Murphy through a remarkable day, or discover more examples in this blog post.

5. Step out of your comfort zone and learn something new

With fewer deadlines and a little more time for yourself, you finally have the chance to try something you’ve never done before. Whether you want to learn a new skill, discover a new hobby, or challenge yourself with a new experience, there are endless possibilities.

You could try anything from skydiving, geocaching, or scuba diving to learning computer science, improving your photography skills, creating TikTok videos, baking something new, or starting your own creative project.

Stepping outside your comfort zone helps you grow as a person and as a teacher. Experiencing the challenges of learning something new yourself can help you better understand your students and bring fresh inspiration into your classroom.

6. Rediscover old hobbies

During the school year, hobbies are often the first thing to disappear when your schedule gets busy. Your summer break is a great opportunity to pick up an old hobby again or make time for something you used to enjoy.

Whether it’s playing an instrument, drawing, crafting, gardening, photography, sports, or any other activity you loved in the past, reconnecting with old interests can help you relax, recharge, and bring back a little creativity.

This is also a nice reminder that teachers are more than just their job. Your hobbies and passions can bring new energy and inspiration into your personal life and even your classroom.

7. Cook and bake new things

During your summer break, when you finally have a little more time away from the hustle and bustle of the school year, you can try some new recipes. Cooking and baking can be a fun and relaxing way to recharge. Looking for inspiration? Here are three tasty and easy recipes to try:

• Carrot and smoked paprika soup
• Spaghetti puttanesca with red beans & spinach
• Vegan Cherry-Almond cake

8. Read books

Summer break is the perfect time to slow down, step away from your daily routine, and enjoy a good book. You don’t have to spend a lot of money on new books either. Visit your local library, browse second-hand bookshops, or exchange book recommendations with friends and colleagues.

Looking for reading inspiration? Check out our list of 40+ books for teachers or explore our summer reading tips in this Tiptile Widget.

After reading a book, you can reflect on your reading experience and analyze the story. In this blog post, we share 15 creative book report ideas for students. Why not try some of them yourself and see which ones could work in your classroom?

9. Get outdoors

There is something refreshing about spending time outside. Whether you enjoy hiking, (e-)biking, running, swimming, or exploring new places, getting outdoors is a great way to relax, stay active, and discover something new.

Looking for inspiration to plan your next adventure? Apps like Strava, RouteYou, MapMyRide, and Komoot can help you find and create routes near you.

If you’re in the United States, take some time to explore local, state, and national parks. Get off the beaten path and discover some lesser-known parks with fewer visitors:

• Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve, Alaska
• Isle Royale National Park, Michigan
• North Cascades National Park, Washington
• Dry Tortugas National Park, Florida
• Congaree National Park, South Carolina
• Guadalupe Mountains National Park, Texas

And while you're enjoying the outdoors, you can already test a few lesson ideas from this blog post and bring those experiences back to your classroom next school year.

10. Read blogs and listen to podcasts

During the school year, you probably come across interesting blog posts, articles, or podcast episodes that you want to explore, but you don’t always have the time to dive into them. Your summer break is a great opportunity to catch up on the content you saved for later.

Looking for inspiration? You can start with the 5 most popular articles on the BookWidgets Blog from the past school year, or of all time.

BookWidgets’ 5 most read blog posts of 2025-2026

1. “Film Study Made Easy: Interactive Movie Activities for the Classroom”
2. “18 Fun Picture Drag and Drop Activities for Students of all Ages”
3. “The Best Way to Grade Open-Ended Digital Assignments with Rubrics”
   
4. “Why Randomizing Questions in Digital Assignments is Very Powerful”
   
5. “Successful EdTech Implementation Strategies for Schools - From Pilot to Practice”
   

BookWidgets’ 5 most read blog posts of all time

1. “60 Digital exit tickets for teachers - The ultimate exit ticket guide”
   
2. "15 Fun classroom energizers for students"
3. “20 interactive teaching activities for in the interactive classroom”
   
4. “30+ Short films for students with ready-to-use lesson ideas”
5. “19 Classroom seating arrangements fit for your teaching”

Other useful edublogs can be found in this article.

Are you more of a podcast listener? Then be sure to check out this list of interesting podcasts for teachers. Or listen to some podcasts related to your teaching subject, that you could also share with your students

11. Watch series/Movies/Short films

While we recommend getting outdoors as much as possible and taking a break from screens, sometimes it’s simply nice to relax with a good movie, series, or short film.

Looking for something different? Visit a small alternative cinema or explore lesser-known foreign movies and series instead of only watching the biggest blockbusters.

Still looking for inspiration? In this Tiptile Widget, you’ll find some must-see movies and series for teachers to enjoy during their free time.

Or check out the short films in this blog post, which can inspire you for next school year’s lessons.

12. Meditate

Take some time to invest in your most important resource - YOU.

Creating a meditation or mindfulness routine during your summer break can help you relax, reduce stress, and prepare for the new school year. The benefits of mindfulness and meditation have been widely recognized, especially when it comes to teacher wellbeing, focus, and emotional balance.

Mindfulness and meditation can help teachers to:

• Reduce stress and feelings of burnout.
• Improve emotional health, including self-confidence, empathy, compassion, and patience.
• Enhance teachers’ ability to concentrate and focus.
• Improve health, including reductions in absenteeism.
• Enhance job performance (better classroom management for example)

Looking for free meditation apps and resources for teachers? Here are some options to explore:

• Headspace for Educators
• Calm for Schools

Once again, you can share your own successful experiences in this area with your students later. Inspiration can be found in this blog post.

13. Reflect on the past year

Another school year is over! It was a year full of experiences, challenges, growth, and memorable moments. Taking some time to reflect can help you look back on what the past year has brought you, both as a person and as a teacher. How have you grown? In what ways were you more than just a teacher to the students? What will you remember from the past year? Why?

There are many ways to reflect: you can simply think about the past year, talk with colleagues, or write down your thoughts in a journal. Reflecting helps you close one chapter and start the next school year with new energy and ideas. To learn more about reflecting, check out this blog post.

14. Do nothing

The ideas above will hopefully give you plenty of inspiration, but sometimes the best thing you can do is simply slow down and give yourself time to rest. Don’t plan every moment of your free time. Allow yourself to relax, clear your mind, and recharge after a busy school year. Taking a real break is an important part of teacher wellbeing too.

Above all, don’t forget to enjoy your summer! ☀️

Part II - How to prepare for the next school year

Is your summer vacation almost over and are you ready to start the new school year with full energy? Then you will find in this second part of the blog 12 tips to be perfectly prepared at the starting line.

15. Set some personal goals for the new school year

As a teacher, you know that every successful lesson starts by defining clear learning goals. So why not set some personal goals for the new school year too?

If you have reflected on the past school year (see tip #12), you have probably already indentified some opportunities for personal growth. If you're struggling to define your goals, try the "What is your why?" method. Once you know your why, the how will follow.

To keep your goals visible when the busy school year starts, write them down and revisit them regularly. You can also create a vision board and place it in your classroom or near your desk as a daily reminder.

16. Consider Professional Development

If you have set your personal goals (see tip #14), you may realize that professional development can help you achieve them. Whether you want to learn new teaching methods, discover new EdTech tools, or deepen your knowledge in your field, there are always interesting professional development opportunities to explore.

It’s a good idea to start thinking about this before the new school year begins so you can include it in your planning. Once the school year gets busy, it can be easy to lose sight of your own growth as a teacher.

Looking for inspiration? Check the 20+ professional development resources for teachers in this blog post.

17. Organize classroom materials and supplies

Your classroom is where the magic happens! It’s the place where your students learn, grow, collaborate, and feel safe throughout the school year.

As a teacher, you want to create a learning environment that provides structure while also encouraging creativity and engagement. Maybe this is the year to give your classroom a small refresh. Often, a few simple changes, such as adjusting your seating arrangement (see tip #22), can completely transform the atmosphere of your classroom.

To get inspired, check out this Pinterest board and this Instagram account with classroom decorating ideas.

Before buying new classroom supplies, check with your school board about the available budget. If it's limited, you can still create an inspiring classroom with with some creative ideas. You could also consider registering on sites such as Adopt a classroom or Donors Choose.

18. Archive the work from last year

Starting a new school year with a clean slate also means taking some time to wrap up the previous one. Depending on the rules in your country, state, region, or school district, you may need to keep certain lesson materials, student records, or other teacher resources from the past school year. If you’re unsure, check with your school board or administration first.

Once everything is properly archived, you can fully focus on preparing for the new school year.

If you used EdTech tools last year (and we bet you did 😉), don’t forget to check what happens with your content, activities, and student results before starting fresh.

If you work with BookWidgets, we have good news. All previous student results are automatically organized by school year. Widgets are also automatically reset, meaning that repeaters will no longer see their completed answers from the previous year when you reuse the same widget. More information can be found in this recently updated blog post.

19. Check the licenses/accounts of your favorite EdTech tools

Technology is great... when it works. Before the new school year starts, take some time to check your accounts, licenses, and favorite EdTech tools so everything runs smoothly from day one.

Here’s a small checklist with our tips:

• Check that you still have access to your school’s LMS and your most-used EdTech tools (do you still remember your passwords?);
• Check with your school's IT admin if you need to renew some licenses. If you have a BookWidgets account, click here to check the expiry date of your license;
• Check if your favorite EdTech tools have done any interesting updates that could be useful in the new school year (like the custom grading scales, resume codes, random question selection and scoring rubric in BookWidgets);
• If you manage a student/parent communication tool yourself, update student (and parent) data;
• Archive previous years' data to start with a clean slate (see tip #17);
• Check for professional development on EdTech tools (see tip #15);
• Change your passwords and consider the use of a password manager like Bitwarden, Dashlane, or 1Password.

20. Make a plan

“Plan your work and work your plan.”

A good plan is one of the best ways to stay organized and keep track of everything during the school year. Of course, this doesn’t mean you need to have every lesson planned in detail before the first day. Your lesson plans can change, but having an overview gives you and your students structure and something to rely on.

When creating your teacher planning, it’s helpful to consider the following:

• What major curriculum components do I need to cover?
• How much time do I have?
• When are the holidays?
• When are the exams?
• How much time should I provide for repetition and remediation?
• Which large assignments do students need to complete for my subject and other subjects?
• When are field trips scheduled?
• When do I plan professional development?

If you want to make your planning visual, be sure to check out these fun free template planners from Canva or invest in a complete planner on Teachers Pay Teachers.

21. Create an emergency substitute folder

Unexpected absences can happen during the school year. Whether you are absent yourself or need to replace an absent colleague, it often happens at the most inconvenient moment. Having an emergency substitute folder ready in advance can save you time and make sure your students can continue learning.

Your folder can include ready-to-use lesson activities, instructions, and resources that another teacher can easily use when needed.

The good news is that creating an emergency substitute folder is easy with BookWidgets. Read more about it in our blog post "4 ways to help students continue learning when the teacher is absent".

22. Create and follow groups to collaborate with other teachers

Looking for new lesson ideas or teaching inspiration? Teacher collaboration is a great way to discover ready-to-use digital lessons, interactive exercises, and creative ideas from other educators.

In BookWidgets, teachers can share teaching materials in groups. If you have a BookWidgets account, you can explore these lesson materials, duplicate them to your own account, adapt them to your needs, and share them with your students.

Don’t have an account yet? Create a free BookWidgets account and start discovering relevant groups. We recommend checking out:

• Teaching English
• Primary Education
• BookWidgets blog

You can also search for groups related to your subject or profession in the "My groups" section of your account.

Collaboration works both ways: you can share your own teaching materials and help other teachers discover new ideas too.

Learn more about collaborating in BookWidgets in this recorded webinar.

23. Determine your desk and seating arrangement

Even though education has changed a lot in recent years, classroom seating arrangements often still look quite traditional. However, different teaching methods can work even better when your classroom setup supports them.

The start of the school year is a great moment to review your classroom layout and discuss with your colleagues whether your current desk arrangement still fits your teaching style and your students’ needs.

For inspiration, be sure to read our blog post “19 classroom seating arrangements fit for your teaching”.

24. Prepare for the first day of the school year

The first day of the school year is always a special moment. After a well-deserved break, everyone returns with new energy, holiday stories, familiar faces, and new beginnings. It’s also an important opportunity to build a positive connection with your students from day one.

Every teacher knows that the first day of school (and the first week) can set the tone for the rest of the school year. That’s why a little preparation can make a big difference.

Over the years, many teachers have used our ready-to-use lesson ideas to make the first day of school engaging and memorable. Find inspiration in these blog posts:

• 20 ready to use digital lesson activities for the first day of school
• 5 fun back to school icebreakers for the first school day
• 15 creative lesson ideas for the first day of school

25. Get to know your new students

Depending on your school organization, you will receive your class lists a few weeks or even just a few days before the start of the school year. Learning so many new names in a short time can be challenging, but quickly getting to know your students is an important first step in building a positive classroom community.

A fun way to get to know your new students is by using this fake Facebook profile page, created with the BookWidgets Worksheet Widget. Students can introduce themselves, add a photo, and practice pronouncing their own name, helping you connect with them from the very beginning.

26. Don’t forget to enjoy your last days of summer break and… don’t stress

Yes, there will probably be plenty of things to manage at the start of the school year, along with unexpected situations like a copy machine that stops working during the first week. But you’ve got this!

If things start to feel overwhelming, take a moment to use your meditation techniques (see tip #11), revisit your vision board (see tip #14), or check your planning (see tip #19). A little preparation and self-care can help you feel more confident and ready for the school year ahead.

Wrap up

We hope this blog post gave you plenty of inspiration to make the most of your summer break. Want to use some of the ideas from this blog post in your lessons? You’ll find them in this BookWidgets group.

Join the BookWidgets Teacher Community to share ideas with other teachers, and follow us on Instagram for more teaching inspiration.

On behalf of the entire BookWidgets team, we wish you a relaxing summer break and a great start to the new school year! Keep being awesome! 🎉☀️

Dimitri & Sheryl