{"id":97,"date":"2017-08-04T03:21:31","date_gmt":"2017-08-04T03:21:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.aupairinamerica.com\/dev\/?page_id=97"},"modified":"2017-08-04T03:22:54","modified_gmt":"2017-08-04T03:22:54","slug":"august-connection-101-fun-things-kids-summer","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/blogs.aupairinamerica.com\/dev\/connections\/august-connection-101-fun-things-kids-summer\/","title":{"rendered":"August Connection -101 Fun Things to Do With Kids This Summer"},"content":{"rendered":"

Do you need help thinking of kid-friendly activities for summer? Here are some great ideas to get you started.<\/h3>\n
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Summer may be a time to relax, but tell that to kids who are bouncing off the walls or shrieking “I’m bored<\/a>.” We want each summer to be more memorable than the next, and with that comes the need for a few new ideas — especially if your child is too young to go to a\u00a0summer camp<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Here are 101 ideas for your summer bucket list — to keep kids from being bored and create memories that they’ll have for a lifetime (or at least for that first day of school when they’re asked “what did you do this summer?”)<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Bake cookies<\/a>\u00a0for ice cream sandwiches.<\/li>\n
  2. Volunteer at a nature center.<\/li>\n
  3. Make a\u00a0photo journal or a family yearbook<\/a>.<\/li>\n
  4. Have a luau in the backyard.<\/li>\n
  5. Visit the beach and collect shells.<\/li>\n
  6. Make a fort out of cardboard boxes.<\/li>\n
  7. Visit a farmer’s market.<\/li>\n
  8. Stage an A to Z scavenger hunt, where you have to find something that starts with every letter. Here are\u00a08 more scavenger hunt ideas<\/a>.<\/li>\n
  9. Pick berries<\/a>.<\/li>\n
  10. Have a picnic at a state park.<\/li>\n
  11. Make ice cream<\/a>. Tipograph loves using\u00a0YayLab’s ice cream ball<\/a>, which you fill with ice cream base and kick around until frozen.<\/li>\n
  12. Go canoeing at a local lake.<\/li>\n
  13. Build a sandcastle.<\/li>\n
  14. Write and illustrate your own book and have it published into an actual hardcover book using\u00a0IlluStory<\/a>.<\/li>\n
  15. Forget cooking — set up an ice cream sundae buffet for dinner.<\/li>\n
  16. Clean up trash at a local park<\/a>.<\/li>\n
  17. Have a backyard campfire…or just use the grill! Roast hot dogs on sticks, pop popcorn and finish off with s’mores.<\/li>\n
  18. Make homemade pizza.<\/li>\n
  19. Go for a walk and then make a collage from nature objects you find along the way.<\/li>\n
  20. Head to a creek and look at the ducks. (See some duck games<\/a>)<\/li>\n
  21. Set up a\u00a0lemonade stand<\/a>.<\/li>\n
  22. Have a water balloon fight.<\/li>\n
  23. Practice your origami skills and\u00a0make objects<\/a>\u00a0to hang from the ceiling.<\/li>\n
  24. Go biking on a trail<\/li>\n
  25. Interview an older relative about what life was like when they were young.<\/li>\n
  26. Plan a picnic at a local park — or in your backyard.<\/li>\n
  27. Print out a list of\u00a0children’s books that have won Caldecott Medals<\/a>. Visit the local library throughout the summer and try to read as many as you can.<\/li>\n
  28. Create salad spinner art: Place circles of paper inside a cheap salad spinner, dab tempera paints on top, cover and spin away.<\/li>\n
  29. Practice making interesting shadow puppets and then put on a show with your characters.<\/li>\n
  30. Plant a garden of herbs and veggies.<\/li>\n
  31. Make a sidewalk chalk mural.<\/li>\n
  32. Go ice blocking (sledding) in the grass with a towel-covered block of ice.<\/li>\n
  33. Have an outdoor painting party using huge canvases or cardboard.<\/li>\n
  34. Visit a fish hatchery.<\/li>\n
  35. Plant a butterfly garden with flowers.<\/li>\n
  36. Pretend to be pirates for a day — dress up in costumes, plan a treasure hunt and\u00a0talk like a pirate<\/a>.<\/li>\n
  37. Make an indoor sandbox using colored rice: mix 4 cups of rice with 3 tablespoons of rubbing alcohol and a few drops of food coloring and let dry overnight.<\/li>\n
  38. Turn the backyard into a carnival — set up a face painting area and games like ring toss.<\/li>\n
  39. Make totem poles out of paper towel rolls and decorate them.<\/li>\n
  40. Visit a museum you’ve never been to.<\/li>\n
  41. Make a giant hopscotch or Twister game on the lawn (with spray paint) or driveway (with chalk).<\/li>\n
  42. String beads into jewelry.<\/li>\n
  43. Make a bird house out of Popsicle sticks.<\/li>\n
  44. Learn about stargazing and identify as many constellations as possible — see if there are any local astronomy groups for kids.<\/li>\n
  45. Create leis with wildflowers.<\/li>\n
  46. Go fossil hunting near a lake.<\/li>\n
  47. Break out your baseball gloves and start a game, sandlot style. (3 baseball games you can play without a team<\/a>)<\/li>\n
  48. Make paper boats and race them in a kiddie pool using straws to propel them.<\/li>\n
  49. Play mini-golf — or set up a course in your driveway by laying different size containers on their sides.<\/li>\n
  50. Make your own colored sand and\u00a0create sand art<\/a>.<\/li>\n
  51. Get a map of the United States and mark off all the exciting places you want to visit — create the ultimate road trip.<\/li>\n
  52. Set up a net and play badminton and volleyball. Or try one of these\u00a011 Backyard Games for Kids<\/a>.<\/li>\n
  53. Visit an amusement park or water park.<\/li>\n
  54. Wade through a stream and search for minnows or tadpoles.<\/li>\n
  55. Go zip-lining.<\/li>\n
  56. Have a tricycle race at the park.<\/li>\n
  57. Investigate an ethnic grocery store and make lunch using interesting spices and\u00a0kid-friendly international recipes<\/a>.<\/li>\n
  58. Visit a fire station.<\/li>\n
  59. Collect rocks and paint them to use as paperweights or pet rocks.<\/li>\n
  60. Go roller skating.<\/li>\n
  61. Visit a zoo or aquarium to learn about animals.<\/li>\n
  62. Run through the sprinklers.<\/li>\n
  63. Blend your own smoothie<\/a>.<\/li>\n
  64. Set up a bike wash and raise money for a local charity.<\/li>\n
  65. Batter up at a batting cage.<\/li>\n
  66. Let kids paint the sidewalk or patio with plain old water and sponge brushes. When their creation dries, they can begin again.<\/li>\n
  67. Bake cupcakes in ice cream cones and then decorate them.<\/li>\n
  68. Assemble a family cookbook with all your favorite recipes.<\/li>\n
  69. Go horseback riding.<\/li>\n
  70. Make popsicles in Dixie cups using fruit juices.<\/li>\n
  71. Catch fireflies in a jar (and let them go at the end of the night).<\/li>\n
  72. Stage\u00a0your own Summer Olympics<\/a>\u00a0with races, hurdles and relays.<\/li>\n
  73. Create a backyard circus — kids can pretend to be animals and dress up as clowns.<\/li>\n
  74. Decorate bikes and have a neighborhood Fourth of July parade.<\/li>\n
  75. Take a sewing\/crochet\/knitting class.<\/li>\n
  76. Make Mexican paper flowers using different colored tissue paper.<\/li>\n
  77. Go to a flea market.<\/li>\n
  78. Volunteer at an animal adoption organization.<\/li>\n
  79. Visit a retirement home and read stories to residents.<\/li>\n
  80. Attend an outdoor festival or concert.<\/li>\n
  81. Pick a nearby town to visit for the day.<\/li>\n
  82. Visit a cave.<\/li>\n
  83. Get a map of your area, mark off all the local parks — then visit them, take pictures and vote for your favorite.<\/li>\n
  84. Take in a fireworks exhibit.<\/li>\n
  85. Make\u00a0crafts with recyclable items<\/a>\u00a0like stickers using old photos, magazines and repositionable glue.<\/li>\n
  86. Make your own hard-to-pop bubbles with 1 cup of distilled water, 2 tablespoons of Dawn dish soap and 1 tablespoon of glycerin.<\/li>\n
  87. Paint canvas sneakers with fabric paint pens or acrylic paint.<\/li>\n
  88. Create three dimensional buildings using toothpicks and mini marshmallows.<\/li>\n
  89. Make bird feeders by covering pine cones with peanut butter and rolling in birdseed.<\/li>\n
  90. Paint with ice by freezing ice cube trays with washable tempera paint.<\/li>\n
  91. Create unusual s’mores by experimenting with ingredients like cookies, bananas, flavored marshmallows and white chocolate.<\/li>\n
  92. Have a fancy tea party.<\/li>\n
  93. Make a giant slip-n-slide with a painter’s tarp and shaving cream.<\/li>\n
  94. Go camping in the backyard or at a campsite. Follow\u00a0these tips for camping with kids<\/a>.<\/li>\n
  95. Let kids paint each other with washable tempera paint, then wash it off in the sprinklers.<\/li>\n
  96. Visit a\u00a0national park<\/a>\u00a0and help the kids earn a junior ranger badge.<\/li>\n
  97. Go to a ballgame and teach your kids (and yourself!) how to keep a scorecard.<\/li>\n
  98. Set up a tent in the backyard to use as a summer playhouse.<\/li>\n
  99. Take a free kid’s workshop at stores like Lowe’s, Home Depot or Pottery Barn.<\/li>\n
  100. Have a game night with charades, Pictionary and bingo.<\/li>\n
  101. Take a boring brown paper bag and have kids brainstorm creative things to do with it — you’ll be surprised at how many things you can come up with.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Do you need help thinking of kid-friendly activities for summer? Here are some great ideas to get you started. Summer may be a time to relax, but tell that to kids who are bouncing off the walls or shrieking “I’m bored<\/a>.” We want each summer to be more memorable than the next, and with Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":82,"featured_media":0,"parent":68,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-97","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"yoast_head":"\nAugust Connection -101 Fun Things to Do With Kids This Summer - Ana's Au Pair in America Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"August Connection -101 Fun Things to Do With Kids This Summer - Ana's Au Pair in America Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Do you need help thinking of kid-friendly activities for summer? Here are some great ideas to get you started. 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