Summer is for s’mores, swimming, and sleepovers, but don’t forget to add some enrichment to exercise your teen’s mind during school break. Here are 10 summer activities for teens to balance their summer and get the best of both worlds!
What Educational Activities For Teens Are Available This Summer?
- Live, online creative writing workshops
- Free weekly audiobooks for teens
- Discount movie tickets
- Plant a garden through volunteering
- Summer cooking classes
- Calligraphy
- Museum fun
- Build a little free library
- Get college ready
- Get your art on
#1 Live, Online Creative Writing Workshops
First on the list is Write the World’s Virtual Summer Writing Camps, a summer program that is empowering the next generation of wordsmiths (ages 13-19) through a series of weekly writing themes. These camps are open to all levels of writers, and campers will learn from notable authors, editors, and educators. This immersive summer writing experience for teens nurtures creativity and literary talent, even if they are just starting their writing journey. Our line-up includes:
Creative Writing Camp (July 6 – 10)
How to Write a Novel Camp (July 6 – 10 OR July 27 – 31)
Sci-Fi & Fantasy Camp (July 13 – 17 OR August 3 – 7)
Poetry Camp (July 20 – 24)
How to Write a College Essay (July 20 – 24)
Fiction Writing Camp (July 13 – 17 OR August 3 – 7)
#2 Free Weekly Audiobooks for Teens
Awaken your teen’s visualization and auditory skills with free audiobooks this summer. Audible allows you to stream hundreds of audiobooks, podcasts, and more without trial or membership.
#3 Discount Movie Tickets
Be sure to look into whether your local movie theaters are offering any deals for the summer for families. For instance, Cinemark has tickets for select films starting at only $1.75 (summer 2026 dates releasing soon)! Regal also has a similar program with $2 morning movies and many more theaters have created programs as well..
#4 Plant a Garden Through Volunteering
Request materials to plant a garden through Meaningful Teens. There are also multiple volunteer opportunities through their organization to mentor and teach English to refugees. More details here.
#5 Summer Cooking Classes
The culinary experts at Sur la Table offer a 5-day series of seasonal cooking classes for kids ages 7-11 and teens ages 12-17 for around $299. From themes such as Global Flavors and Baking 101, these fun programs are a great way to add learning (and delicious food) to their summer from May 26th through September 4th.
#6 Master the Art of Calligraphy
In many cultures, calligraphy has been long forgotten despite its status as an ancient art form. For some, this may be a great skill to pick up this summer 2026! Courses like those on Outschool make learning fun and flexible, with guided lessons and supportive instructors. Calligraphy helps improve focus and artistic confidence while turning handwriting into a form of self-expression that teens can enjoy and develop over time.
#7 Museum Fun
Teens can register for free summer programs at The Met art museum in NYC every week throughout summer 2026. Not in NYC? Look up your local museums to find summer programs for teens; some states even offer free museum tickets all summer.
#8 Build a Little Free Library
Building a Little Library takes some work, but the benefits to your community are invaluable. Little Libraries are popping up all over the country in 2026 giving 24-7 access to books. If you spot these little wooden libraries on the side of the road, stop; borrow a book; and return it when you are done. Also, be sure to leave a book or two inside to pay it forward — this is how the Little Library gets more books.
#9 Get College Ready
Summer break is an excellent time for teens to write their college essay. The summer is quieter without the school year pressures. They say a quiet mind is one of the best ways to tap into our utmost creativity. Complete Your College Essay is an online course that offers more than just college application essay help – Write the World’s staff of expert instructors will teach you how to develop, write, and edit your perfect essay, all the way from rough idea to final submission. More details here.
#10 Get Your Art On
Check out local art programs or get creative at home on your own this summer. There are amazing DIY projects for teens to make as gifts or sell at the local market. For example, teens can try a hand at this curated list of DIY gifts that writers can make! Or, on the other hand, you might encourage them to enter a piece of art, writing, performance, film, or multimedia to Bow Seat’s Ocean Awareness Contest.
#11 Bonus: What writing activities are available for teens this summer?
Teens can never go wrong with entering one of our monthly writing competitions:
- Poetry & Spoken Word (April 2026)
- To Be Revealed (May 2026)
- Personal Essay Competition (June 2026)
- To Be Revealed (July 2026)
- Flash Fiction (August 2026)
Our programs don’t stop there! Encourage them to join our online writing community, check out our prompts (updated weekly), and receive feedback from other teen writers all around the world.
About Write the World:
Founded in 2012 at Harvard University, Write the World is a non-profit dedicated to developing the writing, critical thinking, reading, and communication skills of young writers (ages 13-19).
With over 100k teens and educators in the Write the World community, members write, peer-review, and share their writing with the world. Write the World spans over 125 countries, has hosted over 100 writing competitions, and has published over 180k pieces of writing on its global platform. With a mission to help teens become global citizens, achieving success in school, career, and life, Write the World offers innovative summer camps and an enriching college essay program. Visit writetheworld.org for more information.
“Nowhere else have I seen such genuine investment in young writers. Write the World is a beautiful and responsive community that I owe so much to – without it, I wouldn’t be a published author.” -Molly, 18
