How to Transform Your Kids’ Summer Vacation

Summer is the ideal occasion for family fun while the children are out of school.  It can get costly taking them to amusement parks, even more so if you’re short on cash. If you happen to be in the same predicament as many people are, you shouldn’t fret, because there are scores of free activities you can do at home. These fun things to do are ideal for children under 10 years old. Many of these ideas are centered on  activities and learning together.

Expand Their Imaginations with Things Around the House

Everyday things from your home can be the props in the mock scenes you create.  An entertaining game to play at home is to pretend you run a medical clinic. Have the kids gather a stuffed toy or other toy and then use things from around your house that can serve as pretend surgical instruments. Most homes are bursting with  oddly-shaped utensils that can be imagined into medical kits.  You can also do another variation of this game by setting up a mock news reporting studio for television. A stuffed toy or other toys can be used as part of the make-believe scenes that your child and you are reporting to the pretend audience.

Go on a Make-Believe Safari

Something really fun to do is to pretend that you’re on a safari trip in your living room.  Gather some large blankets and tuck the ends into chairs, the sofa, or to anything in the room that will hold steadily.  Wrap the blankets so that thechildren feel like they are hidden by large forest trees or in the thick brush where the wild creatures can’t see them.  If you have a pair of binoculars, get them out for added fun.  Have your kids get together all of the stuffed critters and creature figures they can find and set them up throughout the area, partially hidden from view, and then use the binoculars to spy on them. Ask the children to call the names of the animals as they find them and then make the sound of that animal. They always have a blast with this game!

Create Quality Time and Get Active

An inexpensive, yet really entertaining activity is to go out as a family for a ride on bicycles.  If you have younger children, you can bring them with you in a trailer attachment where they can sit in an enclosed seat. For low-mileage outings, some children might want to use their electric scooter to get through the ride. To make it even more entertaining, take your time and suggest animals and things for them to find, like a treasure hunt. Things like lizards, airplanes, or dragonflies can all be great things for everyone to call out as they find them. This game also works perfectly on a stroll in the great outdoors and can be a learning tool about nature and their environment.

Things to Do After the Sun Sets

As night falls, the fun doesn’t have to be finished!  Set up a tent in the back of your house along with binoculars for star gazing. If you have a firebowl or a small charcoal barbeque, you can make a campfire out of wood for them. Have the kids get together some branches that can be wooden skewers for roasting s’mores. If you have a few days open this summer, go camping at a nature preserve or forest and extend your time outdoors! These suggestions will surely give you and your children some quality time together to learn, grow, and laugh.

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