Summer break is finally here, which means having free time can actually be a thing! I know catching up on your favorite Netflix shows can be tempting when you're trying to come up with something to do now that you actually have free time to do it, but there's so many other fun things worth doing!

1. Hanging out with your friends

Sure, there's a lot of hanging out with friends throughout the school year, but over the summer is when you can with friends who don't go to the same school! It's also a chance for you and your friends to go out and have fun without having to worry about class or homework assignments!

2. Working out

Even if you've never taken a step inside a gym before, it's never too late to start! No pressure to use a million different machines because even just going on the stair stepper or the treadmill is incredibly beneficial! Working out is definitely a great thing to do in your free time, and summer is the perfect time to get into a good routine.

3. Swimming

For those of you who live in places where four seasons are a thing: we all know that summer is the best time to go swimming. Why not spend the day relaxing and laying out at the pool instead of sitting indoors? The swimming weather won't last for forever!

4. Day trips

5. Anything outdoors

On days when it's not unbearably hot outside, why not go outside? I mean think about it: how many chances do you get during the school year to go do things outside just to be outside? Hiking, bike rides, going on walks, and so much more are fun things to do over the summer.

6. Reading

Whether it's on a car ride to whatever day trip you and your friends are going on, or in your room after a day at work, reading never fails to be a reliable source of entertainment if you've got a good book. I mean c'mon, everybody knows that the book is always better than the movie anyways.

7. Cooking

Learning how to cook or working on improving your cooking is always something that I hear people saying they want to do, but they "never have the time." Summer break is the time! Cooking is such a valuable skill, especially when you're broke during the school year because it's so much cheaper to make your own food than going out to eat.

8. A summer job

Regardless if it's because you need the money or just want some extra cash, a summer job is never a bad idea. It's good experience because it won't always be like this; in the real world, there isn't a "summer break." Plus, having a routine even after the school year is over can help with getting back into a routine once the break is coming to an end.

9. Picking up a new skill or revisiting an old one

Were you ever really good at something, but you didn't have the time to continue it when school started up? Or is there something that you've always wanted to learn how to do, but never had the time to during the school year? You might as well use your free time during the summer to learn it or to refresh on it because once summer's over, you'll probably tell yourself that you don't have time to again.

10. Working on self-care

The school year can be incredibly stressful. Even after summer starts, sometimes I still feel the stress carrying over from the school year when I worry about my grades or my classes for next semester. Meditation and working on ways to de-stress can be extremely helpful with lowering stress, so why not spend your summer working on ways to de-stress? Who knows, maybe it'll help you be less stressed once the school year starts up again.

11. Learning a new language or refreshing on an old one

There's a ton of learning language apps out there, and summer is a great time to learn something new. I've heard so many times that a bilingual brain is a sign of high intelligence, plus it might come in handy to know another language.

These are only a few things to do besides watching TV all summer, and summer tends to go by fast so might as well spend it doing things rather than watching things.