Stop saying back to school means summer is over.

I have seen so many posts, articles, and commercials in the past week mourning “the end of summer” or dreading the start of school.

But school starting doesn’t mean summer is over. It really isn’t.

And I don’t just mean that according to the calendar, summer isn’t over until September 22.

I would liken the “school starting/summer is over mindset”  to the “TGIF mentality” where folks seem to live for the weekends. But does it really have to be summer, or the weekend for us to enjoy life?

I propose a different way of thinking, a different perspective:

Why can’t every day be great? And why can’t a school day be a day full of fun?

As a parent, my girls and I pack in fun as much as we can after school hours. We plan to swim, hike, explore and play outdoors through at least mid-October. The last two years we’ve done what I call “Monday Funday.’ It’s where I intentionally take the kids somewhere fun and it gives us something to look forward to, while others may choose to wear their “I hate Mondays” faces.

Or, challenging myself here, as teachers, what if we these weeks left of summer as days we can take our students outdoors for activities and hands-on learning?

I hope you’ll join me this school year and soak up every bit of summer. And make every day a joyful one, even Mondays.