Ahhh.....summer break! Although I have the kids at home fighting all day I am SO happy to have the reprieve from all the meetings, clubs, appointments & etc. I still like to keep us busy and there are a million lists of free things to do. I've really thought mine through and listed only things that are free or you should have around the house. We will be doing a few of these each week and I will post pictures, free printables and more to go along with them, so make sure you check back! Plus later in the week I will be posting a list of Cheap things to do for summer and a list of things for mom.
THINGS TO MAKE
- Check out and make Flat Stanley
- An indoor or outdoor obstacle course
- Write and Illustrate your own story book
- Make Pet/Monster/Picnic Blanket Rocks
- Rainbow crayons from your old crayons
- Paper planes
- A Scrapbook
- Puzzles/mazes
- A home movie
- Goop, Play-dough, or finger paints
- Popsicles, cupcakes, cookies
- Make a flip book
- Have a lego or block building contest
- Leaf rubbings
- Trace your bodies in chalk and then decorate yourself
- A tent
- A Kite
- Press flowers and make them into stationary/cards
- A Sundial
- Hats or masks
- Start a summer diary to remember all this awesomeness!
- Your own music video to your favorite song
- A comic book
- A Time capsule
- S'Mores
- A collage
- Silhouette Cameos. Make them of yourselves, then try toys and more.
- A dream board
- Your own board game
THINGS TO DO
- Geocaching
- Letterboxing
- Find a pen pal and write them a letter. Try Students of the World or PenPal World. Always monitor your child's correspondence and be careful when giving out personal information online.
- Make a card and send it to a family member or friend
- Have a sleepover
- Volunteer. VolunteerMatch.org is my favorite to use.
- Visit the pet store
- Have a treasure/scavenger hunt
- Catch bugs (and let them go)
- Go on a Park Passport tour (this printable will be available soon!)
- Explore the neighborhood
- Feed ducks, birds and squirrels at the park (I know you aren't supposed to feed them but don't we all?)
- Join your local library's summer reading program, also Barnes and Noble, Pottery Barn, Sylvan (bonus they test the kids after they've read the book so you know they aren't cheating ;) Pizza Hut Book-It (TONS of printables relating to specific books and lots more) Half Price Books.com (earn a $5 credit woo hoo)
- Go to a story time
- Make prank calls to family and friends (ONLY the ones who will be OK with it)
- Complete 5 random acts of kindness
- Take the dog for a walk
- Hunt for four leaf clovers
- Have a family awards ceremony
- Have a photo prop session. The Party Event has tons of ideas you can use.
- Trace pictures from a book and then color them in
- Copy a famous painting
- Go on a hike
- Take your favorite toy on an adventure. Take pictures of it in the grocery store, the park, & etc. At the end of summer you can make a photo book of everywhere it went.
- Have a birthday party for your pet or favorite toy
- Donate some of your old books to the children's hospital
- Go on a picnic
- Find a free concert in the park
- Plant Seeds
- Read a Dr. Seuss book backwards (Hilarious!)
- Have a toy/book/clothing swap party
- Find a free VBS
- Download the Storia App and get 5 free e-books
- Find a book that has been made into a movie. Spend a week or so reading the book then watch the movie and see how they compare.
- Find an episode of one of your favorite shows on YouTube, or something "vintage" like Smurfs- a personal fav of mine
- Star gaze, learn the constellations and the moon phases
- Make up your own holiday
- Find a local free day event
- Have a tea party
- Camp in your back yard
- Find a free factory tour
- Earn some Chuck E Cheese tokens
- Have a pajama day, even let them go to the store like that (like we don't already do this right?)
- Paint with water
- Join Postcrossing and exchange post cards all over the world.
- Join Swapbot. You can search for swaps just for kids. NOTE: there will be some shipping depending on the swap so keep that in mind.
THINGS TO PLAY
- Tic Tac Toe
- Bingo
- Have a Pillow Sack Race
- Have friends over for a playdate
- Go Fish
- Play in the sprinkler
- Have a dance party
- Make and have a puppet show
- Play Memory
- Old Maid
- Sing Karaoke
- Play School House (ironic kids like to play this in the summer!)
- Make your own Summer Olympics
- Hot potato
- Play Car Wash (BONUS your car gets clean!)
- Dress Up
- Have a Fake Accent Day
- Jump Rope
- Hopscotch
- Play mahjong online (or find another free game)
- Charades
- Have a family/neighborhood talent show
- Tag/freeze tag
- Truth or Dare
- Jacks
- Hangman
THINGS TO LEARN
- How to Zentangle. Tanglepatterns.com is my favorite site.
- How to skip rocks
- Research another country/religion
- Learn useful phrases in a new language
- Learn basic sign language
- A new song
- Origami
- A magic trick
- Juggling
- Tying knots
- Bird Watching
- How to play chess
- A new word every day
- A new math fact every day
- Teach your kiddos the basics of your computer, Word programs & etc.
- Pig Latin
- How to meditate
- Learn kitchen measurements, cups, teaspoons, gallons, ounces & etc.
- The rules to a new sport, or one you love
- A new craft- painting, sewing, knitting, drawing, etc.
Check with your local place to be sure before you go
Home Depot- Free kids workshop 1st Saturday of every month
Lowe's- Build & Grow classes for kids
Michael's- Lot's of different free in-store make and take projects
Toys R Us has free events every now & then
The Disney Store has occasional events. Check your local store for events
Lakeshore Learning- Free crafts for kids every Saturday
Pottery Barn free events
Lego Store Free monthly mini model build and other events. These are insanely popular so check with your local store to see if they hand out tickets before hand or how early you need to show up.
The Apple store teaches classes and has learning camps on occassion
American Girl store offers crafts & fun events
Bass Pro Shop offers crafts and lots of fun events
Phew! I worked my tush off on this list! If you have more ideas send them my way. Don't forget to come back for the list of cheap fun and treats just for mom.
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