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Fun Things to Do with Your Kids this Summer
By Susanne Myers
10 Fun Things You Can Do With Your Children this Summer
that Won’t Break the Bank
For a family with small children like my own, a big family vacation in
the summer isn’t always an option. But just because your summer entertainment
budget is small doesn’t mean you and your kids can’t have lots
of fun this summer.
Here are ten ideas to get you started on lots of fun this summer –
on a budget.
1) Water + Kids = Lots of Fun
Put everyone in bathing suits and turn on the sprinklers. Fill the plastic
pool that’s been lying around the garage all year. Get some inexpensive
water guns at the dollar store and fill up some water balloons. Believe
me, your kids won’t need any further instructions. Just keep plenty
of towels around to dry off afterwards.
2) Your Child on Paper
Get a large sheet of packing paper, or use some leftover wallpaper. Any
big sheet of paper will do. Ask your child to lay on his or her back on
the paper and use a pen or pencil to draw the outline around him or her.
Let your child paint features, clothes etc. When the paint dries, cut
the shape out and hang this life-size picture of your child up.
3) Make Your Own Sidewalk Chalk
Use the recipe found at http://www.kinderinfo.com/crafts/sidewalk-chalk.htm
to make your own sidewalk chalk. Use it to let the kids turn the driveway
into a piece of art, or and use it to play hopscotch.
4) Take Me Out to the Ballgame
Do you have a baseball team in town? It doesn’t have to be a major
league team. In fact tickets will be a lot cheaper if it isn’t. Take
the kids out to a minor league game or even watch your high school team
play.
5) Backyard Camping Trip
Don’t have time to take the kids on a camping trip this year? Just
camp out in the backyard or even in your living room. Your kids will enjoy
it just as much as going out into the woods, and it will give you a great
chance to spend some quality time with your kids uninterrupted by TV,
video games etc. For more tips on how to turn this into a fun event, read
Backyard Camping Trip at http://www.kinderinfo.com/articles/backyard-camping-trip.htm
6) Take the Kids to Work
Have your kids been curious what Mom or Dad do all day at work? Take
them with you for a day or even just a few hours before they have to go
back to school. Of course you may want to check with your employer first.
If he doesn’t like the idea of having a child hang out in the office
all day, ask if it would be ok for someone to bring your child in for
an hour or two. Get your child involved while he or she is visiting with
you. Ask him or her to help you with some of your everyday tasks.
7) Game Night / Movie Night
Dig out some of the board games that have been sitting in the closet
for ages and play games for a few hours. You can even share some games
that you enjoyed playing as a child.
Movie Night is another great way for the entire family to spend the evening
together. Rent a family movie, make some popcorn and have everyone watch
the movie together.
8) Lemonade Stand
Encourage your children to open a lemonade stand. They’ll be busy
all day making posters, and lemonade of course, setting up the table and
selling the lemonade. This is also a great time to work in some math practice
by working with them to figure out the cost of each glass of lemonade
and how much they need to sell it for to make a profit.
9) Treasure Hunt
You can keep the kids busy for hours with a fun treasure hunt. The idea
is to create a series of clues that the kids will have to follow to get
to a little prize in the end. You can draw the item where the next clue
is hidden on a note card, or give them a written clue. For example, “The
next clue is hidden under a chair in the house”. Put another clue
under one of the chairs saying that the next clue can be found hanging
in a tree in the yard. This can be as simple or as elaborate as you’d
like.
10) End of Summer Party
Invite the kids your child has been playing with all summer for an End
of Summer Party. You may want to have their parents over as well, to give
you a chance to get to know each other. This doesn’t have to be fancy,
just ask everyone to come over and grill some hotdogs in the backyard.
For more Summer Fun Ideas for Kids, join the Kinderinfo Newsletter at
http://www.kinderinfo.com/newsletter
and we’ll also send you our ebook “Summer Fun”, which is
full of even more great ideas to have a good time this summer.
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