Summer is the time of the year every student looks forward to. Apart from socializing with friends, enjoying the fresh air, and participating in outdoor activities, students have the chance to assure their learning abilities through summer projects. Summer projects should be school-designed because it allows flexibility, it develops leadership skills, and it increases creativity.

Student-designed projects allows flexibility during summer break. Generic_City's lifeguard program was very successful during the summer due to lifeguard availability. Being a lifeguard is a common job students pursue during the summer. Not only does it allow students to gain profit at a young age, but it also requires a high level of maturity and responsibility. Because it requires specific training and dedication, students must have the time to complete every task that is given. Having a student-designed summer project allows students to set their own study time instead of following a specific schedule that could intervene with working hours.

In 2019, the Pied-Piper Theater Association successfully rehearsed their summer musical: West Side Story The Musical, due to the availability and hard work of all actors. In West Side Story, the combination of performing arts and music are combined as one to produce an extraordinary musical. Rehearsing a musical is no simple task: lines must be memorized, choreography and blocking must be pristine, and every actor must be present on opening show days. A student-designed project over the summer can help students complete their required work in an flexible manner while still completing personal activities.

Developing leadership skills for the future are offered through student-designed projects. Designing their own promotional plans, students from the Technology Student Association were able to pursue college business majors. The Technology Student Association allowed students to be completely in charge of their own work to get a sense of the leadership that is needed in many technology and business fields today. As a result, the ones who were consistent in their work and created their own designs were the most successful at the TSA regional competitions. Student-designed projects allows students to be in control and have the opportunity to manage work responsibly. Even though having a teacher-designed project can help in follow instructions and meeting deadlines, being ones own boss opens doors to many leadership opportunities to excel in the work field, and in ones personal life.

Panera Bread employees that have shown leadership development have moved to higher job positions. In the food industry, like most jobs, employees must start off with a lower position and must enhance their abilities in order to move up to a higher position. For example, in Panera Bread, most new employees start of working as a cashier, dining room attendant, or produce worker; these minor positions prepare the employee with basic skills and prepare them for future duties. Later, when more experience is gained, employees move up to trainer or manager assistant. Similarly, student-designed projects help students learn to be self-sufficient and lead one another to success. As a result, future generations are encouraged to do the same.

Student-designed projects allow students to show their full potential through creativity. Generic_School economics and finance teacher, allowed students to create their own budget plan presentation, discarding the teacher rubric that was given, to show their creativity. A typical power point presentation a high school teacher assigns has basic requirements: a specific number of slides, easily-applicable pictures, and bullet point information. However, when given the chance, students embraced their creativity outside the classroom environment and created sideshows, music videos, and drawings that still portrayed the same important idea any basic power point would for the assignment. As a result, the students who got lower scores on previous power points, increased their grade tremendously. Unlike teacher-designed projects, Student-designed projects has many varieties a student can choose from; students don't have to limit their potential to strict instructions. Instead, they have numerous ways to complete any assignment feeling more confident and fulfilled.

Generic_School International Talent Show showed how students from different cultures expressed their love and appreciation through creative attire. The purpose of International Night is to unite students together to celebrate their culture as one. For example, students from Peru dressed up with typical Peruvian dresses and hats and danced salsa, while students from France wore more formal attire and simply help their flag up proudly. Every student had a unique way of showing their performance to the crowd; the teachers had very little input on exactly how the students should perform and let their creativity run free. Even though a summer project doesn't exactly involve performing to a large crowd, students have the chance to show their creative ideas and opinions without any limitations.

In conclusion, students have a unique way of showing their academic and social potential to the world. Summer projects should be student-designed because it allows flexibility, it develops leadership skills, and it increases creativity. As Walt Disney once said, " To Infinity and Beyond!".