Summer is supposed to be your time off from school and having to spend hours of your time thinking intensely, whether it's about something you hate or something you love. But both so that you can keep on track when the summer's over and so that you don't get incredibly bored (which would inevitably happen at some point), it's important to keep your brain working while you're on vacation, if just in little ways that are still enjoyable.

1. Tell stories. (And receive them)

Basically what I mean is, write. In all styles and genres, and whether or not you think you're a writer. Write about your day, write about what you've been pondering during a particular hour, write about politics or what you ate for lunch. Share it with people or keep it to yourself, but write stuff for no other reason except to do something and to not forget how to form letters with a pen. Also, read and watch stories in the forms of books, films, plays, TV shows--sometimes the screen stuff can feel unproductive, but you can gain something from all of it.

2. Read the newspaper.

I know it sounds really boring, but there's a section for everyone. I'm a theater geek, so I always read the arts section first, to hear what actor is doing a new project and what Broadway show got reviewed beautifully or atrociously. But most days, I'm curious about other news, too, and I read the other sections if I have time. There really is an article for practically any interest you might have.

3. Do crossword puzzles.

As the end of my school year neared, I spent a lot of time in my government class doing random crosswords our teacher found about the U.S. presidents or other historical subjects. It's amazing how many tiny pieces of information you have stored in your brain, and crossword puzzles give you a fun opportunity to put it to use and to give yourself a sense of accomplishment for completing something.

4. Memorize or learn something new that you're curious about.

For the past couple of years, I've been working on learning the names of all the countries of the world. This summer, one of my big projects is going to be memorizing the capitals of those countries. (Sporcle.com is a great resource for anything like this!) Or maybe try learning a new language--for that, I'd recommend the Duolingo app or online site, which can also help with maintaining a language you already know and don't want to lose over the summer.

5. Go to museums.

I will concede that I've never been much of a museum person myself, but I still think that visiting one is a good activity for a day when you want to get out of the house. And most museums have so much information that you could spend two or three days, or even more, exploring them. In New York City, where I'm from, some of my favorites are the National Museum of Mathematics, the Museum of the Moving Image, the New York Hall of Science, the American Museum of Natural History, the Tenement Museum, the Transit Museum, and of course the MoMA and the Met, which are classics. In either New York or Washington, D.C., the Holocaust museums are great options, or in the Baltimore/D.C. area, I'd recommend the National Cryptologic Museum.

6. Form a game group.

With a group of your friends, you can get together to play card games, Monopoly, Apples to Apples, or countless other games that will get your mind moving in different ways. And it's a win-win situation, because you also get to spend time with your friends!

I'm certainly not advocating for a longer academic year, but I am advocating for the importance of brain activity even during your vacation, a time when you could choose to wander around mindlessly. It will be a much more interesting way to spend your summer, and you'll be better prepared to think in more difficult ways when it's time to go back to school.