It might seem like an easy task to pick activities that will keep your kids busy during summer. After all, the warm summery weather allows for an endless list of activities from swimming to camping.
There are also plenty of advertisement fliers for things like summer camps, art classes and dance lessons.
But when summer comes you’ll be caught up in a whirlwind of indecision as you try to decide how to keep your kids busy and having fun.
Do you go for a family road trip? Do you go camping? Should you enrol them for music lessons?
This makes for an exhausting headache-inducing summer.
The trick is to plan ahead of time. Don’t let summer find you unprepared trying to fill up each day as it comes. Create an activity schedule for the entire season and combine a wide variety of activities.
Even if you want don’t have the budget to send them on a 3-week camp, there are still plenty of fun things you can do together at home.
Tip: If your kids have some homework, get it out of the way first. They might not like it but it’ll allow them to have more fun without worrying about any unfinished school work.
Here are some more ideas for fun things to do with kids in the summer:
At Home
You are going to be spending most of the summer at home with them so plan lots of activities to keep them busy and entertained. Otherwise, they’ll spend the whole day in front of the TV or computer.
Here you have plenty of options you can fill each day with.
- You can have an arts and crafts Monday where you do activities like drawing, painting or pottery, a sports Tuesday, maybe a gardening Friday to tend to the flowers and lawn and so on.
- It’s up to you how you arrange different activities. The most important thing is to plan and then let the kids know a day ahead what you’ll be doing tomorrow.
- Mix up the activities. In addition to the fun stuff they are used to like swimming and soccer, let them try their hand at new activities like cooking, gardening, cake decoration and so on. Through all of it, make sure they are having fun.
- You can also buy or rent playing equipment like a bouncy castle and an inflatable pool or build them an obstacle course in the backyard.
- Other fun activities you can do together at home include reading stories, water games, makeovers and karaoke.
- Don’t forget to leave some downtime for everyone. Leave some mornings or afternoons open for a movie or just spending time together.
Away from Home
Don’t spend the entire summer at home. There’s plenty to see and do away from home and it doesn’t have to be expensive.
- One simple and affordable idea is to visit family. Kids always love seeing their cousins and uncles.
- You can even combine it with a fun road trip. Remember to bring lots of snacks and travel toys for the kids.
- Another idea is to go camping. There are plenty of camping sites designed specifically for families. Look for one with various activities like hiking, fishing or swimming.
- Carry comfortable sleeping bags for kids and other essential like lighting, warm clothes for the evenings and some toys they can play with.
- Other away-from-home ideas include visiting museums, going to the zoo or an afternoon at the waterpark.
- You can also budget for trips to places like Legoland, a theme park or a super fun place like the CBeebies Land Hotel at Alton Towers.
With Friends
You’ll need a breather now and then. So do not over-schedule the summer holiday.
While your kids will love spending time with you they also love playing with their friends. You can plan for sleepovers, a tea party or just a day at home playing outside.
If the kids love spy stuff ask them if they’d like to play spies. They can form a spy team with their friends and spend a day hunting down clues to a mystery. You can even get them a few spy gadgets for kids to make it more fun.
Not only will your kids love playing with their friends, you’ll also get some much-needed rest or an opportunity to do catch up on your to-do list.
