summer melt
n.— «The largest-ever freshman class has caused a housing crunch at Penn State University.…“We expect that we will see a couple hundred more students change their minds over the summer.” While the admissions department waits for the effects of what is known as “summer melt,” the housing department is trying another tactic.» —“Happy Valley faces fall crowding” by Genevieve Marshall Morning Call (Pennsylvania) July 6, 2006. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
Astronauts returning from space say they experience what’s called the overview effect, a new understanding of the fragility of our planet and our need to reflect on what humans all share as a species. A book about the end of the universe...
Amid court-ordered busing in the 1970s, a middle-school teacher tried to distract her nervous students on the first day of class with this strange assignment: find a monarch caterpillar. The result? A memorable lesson in the miracle of metamorphosis...