The end of the semester signals the beginning of a six-week period of supposed unadulterated relaxation. For the seniors intending to study in abroad, though, this means some final regular-decision application deadlines—and, it is hoped, many acceptances. For the IB juniors, it means a thousand-word deadline for the Extended Essay; but afterwards, some downtime to explore their real “academic” interests: television, computer, food, and sleep.

Here are some things Graded juniors and seniors are eagerly looking forward to this coming break: 

Manny Camilion (Grade 12): I look forward to seeing my parents in Miami. It hasn’t been too long since I’ve last seen them, but it’ll be nice to spend the next month or so with them. Also, American food. Lots and lots of American food.

Andrew Veilleux (Grade 12): I’m definitely looking forward to hearing back from the colleges that I applied to. Most of the decisions for Early Action come from mid-December to the end of January when we return for second semester. I really just want to get into college already.

Faria Nasruddin (Grade 11): I’ll admit, I’m a foodie at heart. I like good food, but lately I haven’t had time to go out and try new restaurants. I would say I’m really looking forward to trying new burger joints and finding the perfect burger here in São Paulo.

Pedro Werebe (Grade 11): Catching up on my school work and enjoying a nice, relaxing study session for the SATs. Whoopee.

Daniel Sneyers (Grade 11): Sleep, playing golf, sleep, catching up on work, sleep, hanging out with friends, sleep, cooking new things, sleep, doing things I never have time to do, sleep, and not being as stressed as I am at school.

Yoji Watanabe (Grade 11): I’m mostly looking forward to being able to waste all of my days doing absolutely nothing, without being made to feel bad during CAS meetings. Also, a break from the IB is always appreciated. And to sophomores, teachers aren’t just trying to scare you when they share experiences of dealing with almost psychotic IB students who, as much as they try not to procrastinate, end up burning the midnight oil in a coffee-fueled study session. Blessed be any and all time off from school.

Kaan Alptekin (Grade 11) : Mostly getting a nice and long break from the IB. Along with that, I will be having a lot of fun catching up on all of my lost sleep. I’m hoping to hit around twelve hours of sleep per night. It’s going to be nice celebrating the New Year’s with my family and getting presents from them. But the biggest highlight is probably visiting my hometown and seeing all my friends, whom I haven’t seen since last summer. And I can’t leave out the amazing food I will be eating a lot of.

Matthew Kim (Grade 11): Unfortunately, I am going to study for the SAT this winter/summer break when I’m in Korea, while watching it snow outside. Studying will be awesome because I know that I’ll have much to do. I don’t enjoy the snow, but I’ll enjoy reading through my SAT prep books.

Nicholas Householder (Grade 11): The brisk fresh air of America. The utter euphoria as my body rejuvenates with freedom, as its particles are absorbed through my pores, recharging my “freedom battery,” also known as my soul. This doesn’t even start to describe the pure joy of daily late-night Constitution reading sessions, including the Bill of Rights, obviously. Who knows, maybe one night I’ll even get a bit wild and peer through the Declaration of Independence? Man, my mouth is just watering at the thought. Maybe I’ll even eat seven cheeseburgers a day and gain up to 100 kgs. That’s the beauty of America, because I can if I want to. That’s freedom. That’s justice. That’s my vacation.

Lucas Valim (Grade 11): Not being in school.