Summer Activities for Children

Summer Activities for Children

After the thrill of summer has worn off, summer activities for your children keeps the boredom away. Of course, you could always rustle up a few chores to stop their complaining, but what about introducing a few fun crafts and games to break up the monotony of those long summer days? 

Memory Box

Are you planning a great vacation or weekend getaway with your family? If so, you have a great opportunity for a fun summer activity for kids. Why not design a memory box to store all of those wonder family memorabilia and souvenirs? Shoe boxes work great, but virtually any box will do. Cover the box with Con-Tac paper, or glue craft or construction paper to the box and decorate it with paints, markers, beads, shells, ribbons, etc. Then, store all of your fun keepsakes inside! 

Seashell Wind Chimes

Got a whole collection of shells just gathering dust in your closet? You and your child can make wonderful wind chimes out of those shells. You'll have to help by drilling a small hole into one end of each shell. Use your largest shell for the top, and drill several holes into that shell along its edges. Then, help your child tie fishing line to each hole. Cut the fishing line in lengths of one to two feet, then tie smaller shells at varying intervals along the line to create the chimes. You can even paint the shells different colors if you like! 

Sandscape Jars

Even the most ordinary of tools can become ingredients for summer activities for kids. Use small canning or jelly jars for this project. Fill the jars halfway with sand, or salt if you don't have sand, then add small shells, pieces of seagrass, and anything else that reminds you of the sea. You can even glue a large shell to the jar's lid. Have your child write the name of a special beach on the outside. 

Sand Art

Sand art is always fun, and it is so easy to do! First, you'll need to color your sand by separating sand into plastic bags and adding a few drops of food coloring. Seal the bags and shake, pressing your fingers to the outside of the bag to ensure the sand is thoroughly colored. Pour the sand onto separate sections of wax paper or newspaper to let it dry. Now, your child can draw a pattern or design on construction paper, then trace the pattern with a thin line of glue. Now, place the sand back into the bag, and let your child dribble sand along the glue, shaking excess sand back into the bag. 

Rock Paperweights

Find odd shaped rocks, give your child a paintbrush and some paints, and let her create a unique paperweight for your desk! 

Summer Games

Squirt Gun Tag
This is a variation of the popular game of tag. Give each child a squirt gun, and let them play tag by trying to squirt each other. You can also play freeze tag with the squirt guns. 

Water Obstacle Course

The best way to enjoy summer is to get wet! Kids love water, and you can make an inexpensive water obstacle course using sprinklers, wading pools, slip and slides, etc. Set up a course in your yard, and let the kids run through the sprinklers, hop into the wading pools, and slide on the slip and slides! 

Flashlight Tag

This game is best played in the evening. Give one child a flashlight, and designate a base, such as the front porch or swing set. The person who has the flashlight is it, and they tag the others by shining the flashlight on them as they hide. If a person makes it back to the base before they are tagged, they're safe! 

Lightening Bugs

Who hasn't caught lightening bugs in a jar? Children love to do this! Find a plastic jar, and poke a few holes in the lid. Your child will love chasing the fireflies across the yard! Be sure you let the bugs go before you head back indoors. PARENTS DON'T USE COMMERCIAL SPRAYS ON LAWNS AND GARDENS, IT KILLS LIGHTENING BUGS, LADYBUGS AND BUTTERFLIES. 

Scavenger Hunts

The next time your children come dragging into the house all whiney and bored, give them a scavenger hunt. It really doesn't matter what items you list, as long as they have a long list to search for. Items could include yellow leaves, a stick shaped like a snake, a locust shell, a ladybug, a bird feather, a four-leaf clover, a pinecone, an acorn, a dandelion, a pink flower petal, etc.

Cheap Summer Activities for Children

Day 1. See a “one dollar” movie at the theater. 

Many theater chains around the country offer summer movie programs for children where they offer a dollar movie  every day for a week, or on a particular day of the week all summer.

Day 2. Sprinkler day

   Delay your sprinklers for one day so they come a little later in the morning.  This way everyone can get on their bathing suits and have fun jumping through the sprinklers on a hot day.  But not for too long!  This is a good time to teach them about conserving water, reducing utility costs, etc.

Day 3. Attend “story time” at your local library. 

Children love to check out books on all kinds of subjects.    Many libraries also have a story time to encourage a summer reading program.  Stories are read out loud and the kids have a chance to interact with the story-teller and answer questions about the book.

Day 4. Set up a lemonade stand. 

Favorite idea because of the lessons in entrepreneurship involved.  Loan your children $15 as “seed money” for supplies, or better yet, let them use their own money from savings.  This way they don’t get used to the idea that borrowing leads to prosperity.  Take the kids along to the grocery store one morning and let them pick up the lemons, sugar, cups, and a couple bags of ice to keep in a cooler.  Yes, Crystal Light lemonade works, too, but is less authentic and more expensive.  This is a great way for neighborhood kids to work together, as they can divide into teams to man the lemonade stand, make the lemonade, handle the money, etc.  Please remember that an adult needs to be with the kids at all times, both inside and outside the house, so have a neighbor help.

Day 5. Teach your kids to fly a kite. 

Check your 10-day forecast and look for a windy day in the coming week.  Pick up an expensive kite for the kids.  I even recommend springing for the extra spool of kite string on a roller because the string and handles that come with the kites are lousy.

Day 6. Make homemade play-doh.  I can tell you it is a lot of fun!  I suppose the next best option would be to pick up some commercial Play-Doh on sale, but what fun would that be?
Day 7. Bake a cake.  

Make memories with your children let them help you make and frost a cake or cupcakes.  And not all the fun came at the end when I got to lick the icing from the bowl!  Let your kids help bake a cake, and surprise mom or dad when they arrive home that afternoon.
Plenty of teachable moments here with opportunities to teach fractions (four 1/4 cups equals one cup, etc.). 

Day 8. Build a “fort” in the living room.  

Your kids may get the biggest kick out of playing in giant cardboard boxes.  Color them, and cut “windows” out for child to look through.  A living room “fort” could be as simple as a few kitchen chairs gathered in a circle with a large bed sheet thrown across them and draped to the floor.  The kids can hide from mom and dad, read books, or pretend they are camping out in the living room.

Day 9. Go bowling.  

Spend many hot, summer afternoons bowling a couple games at the local bowling alley.  These days, bowling can be an expensive activity.  Call the lanes ahead of time and ask if they have any summer specials (certain days may be cheaper). Also check those coupon mailer packs for coupons for free games.  To keep costs down, just let the kids bowl – you can work on your game another time.
Day 10. Declare a “bored” game day. 

Play chess, checkers, backgammon.  Kids today don't realize you can play games without a computer.  Most of these old board games are inexpensive in their basic form – skip the “deluxe” edition to save even more.

Day 11. Have a water balloon fight.  

Fill several dozen mini balloons with water.  Have kids participate in games like a water balloon toss – they start close together, but take a step back with each toss to increase the distance.  The last one to break the balloon is out.  With that was left, the kids had an all-out water balloon battle.  Lots of fun, but be sure to pick up the balloon remains, especially if you have very little ones or pets as they could be a choking hazard.

Day 12.  Create a “mini-me.” 

Find a piece of large poster board, or large heavy-duty paper (such as a butcher paper) wide enough for your kids to lay down on.  Use a dull pencil (less chance for boo-boos) to trace their entire body to the paper from head to toe.  Now let the kids decorate the kids to look like themselves in the same clothes they are wearing, same color eyes, hair, etc. When they are finished, help them cut out their mini-me for proud display.

Day 13. Pajama day.    

Stay in your pajamas all day long.  Make pancakes in the morning, bake a pizza for lunch, and lounge around watching movies.  Use your Netflix subscription to have a couple kid-friendly movies on hand.
Day 14. Spend a day volunteering your time. 

A good way to wrap up your two-week blitz of summertime fun is to allow your children to donate their time to a worthy cause.  Contact a few local charities and find out which ones will allow kids to volunteer some time over the summer (under your supervision).  Project Linus in the past – an organization that makes blankets for children who've suffered a traumatic experience.
Bonus tip: Get your kids to come up with their own tee shirt designs with markers and fabric paints.

Photos courtesy of StormyDog, rochelle, et. al, Mrs. Frugal, daveparker, skennel