Hang up the uniform. Put away the pens and notepads. For thousands up and down the country, exams are over, the school year is done, and eleven glorious weeks of holiday beckon.

But many will be unsure how to celebrate their newfound liberty. So here are seven tips from great thinkers to help you not just have fun this summer, but find happiness too.

Travel the world. 16th-Century French philosopher Michel de MontaigneA Frenchman who lived in Bordeaux and is credited with inventing the essay as a type of writing. described the world as a "mirror" that we can use to better understand ourselves. With an Interrail pass costing less than £200, you could spend a month broadening your horizons all over Europe.¹

Learn a language. Ludwig WittgensteinAn Austrian-British philosopher and mathematician most famous for his work on language. Some consider him the greatest philosopher of the 20th Century. wrote that "the limits of my language are the limits of my world".² Learning a new language can reshape the way you see everything.

Make new friends. French thinker Jacques DerridaA controversial French philosopher, born in 1930. wrote that having friends is what allows us to understand ourselves.³ Making a new friend this summer could bring out an aspect of yourself you never knew was there.

Read, read, read. Ancient Chinese philosopher ConfuciusA Chinese philosopher who lived around 500 BC. He founded Confucianism, which focuses on being merciful, conscientious and humane. It also emphasises obedience and the importance of obeying the hierarchies in society. For example, showing respect to your parents. argued we improve ourselves through education.⁴ If you spend the summer reading books, you may start the next academic year a better person.

Get new hobbies. Karl MarxA 19th-Century German economist and philosopher who argued that capitalism was doomed to collapse. believed that making things with our hands and brains is a form of self-actualisationA psychological concept in which an individual reaches their full potential. that makes us more fully human.⁵ So try taking up sewing or clay modelling.

Get politically involved. AristotleA student of Plato, tutor to Alexander the Great and the father of political philosophy. wrote that "humanity is a political animal".⁶ And with the election coming up, now is the perfect time to join in.

Do nothing. Chinese philosopher Zhuang ZiAn influential Chinese philosopher who lived around the 4th Century BC. believed in the art of "wu wei", meaning "doing nothing". But this did not mean being idleLazy.: it meant not acting against the universe. So this summer, just do whatever the world seems to be telling you to do.

Is happiness harder than fun?

Yes: Having a lark is the easiest thing in the world, but it passes quickly. Building a deep bedrock of happiness takes time and the growth of self-knowledge.

No: Happiness is nothing but the accumulation of fun. Try to have fun in everything that you do, and you will quickly find that happiness comes naturally. It is finding the fun in difficult and boring things that is hard.

Or... Happiness does mean more than just having fun, but we cannot be happy without having fun. The important thing is to find out what we truly enjoy doing, and do as much of it as we can.