Are you dreading that, “I’m bored!” comment you are sure to hear from your young ones this summer? If you plan ahead you can come up with dozens of ideas to keep them busy. Here are 15 of the many I have used in the past:

1. Color - Get a fresh coloring book and new HUGE box of crayons. Challenge your kids to color the entire book, page by page. If you have 2 kids, they can each take a page and do this together.

2. Blow Bubbles – Put together a basket of really fun bubble toys. They are inexpensive and can really go a long way to entertain kids.

3. Sprinkler Fun – Get a funky sprinkler and watch your kids have the time of their lives with friends. My daughter, at age 15, will still do this with her best friend, Molly, this summer and the dog! They can be out there for hours. Don’t forget the sunscreen. (Just keep in mind if there is a water shortage in your area, you will not want to waste water.)

4. Summer Olympics – Have the kids design their own games they can play with friends for a Summer Olympics. Ideas include hopscotch, basketball, ring toss, running, jump rope, hoola hoop, swimming and more. Participants can even make medals out of foil and ribbon for the winners.

5. Acting – Ask your kids to practice putting on a play for you. You may suggest they take their favorite book or movie for inspiration. Encourage them to get creative putting together costumes and props. I promise you will be thoroughly entertained with the results.

6. Board Game Marathon – Have the kids gather their 5 favorite games and suggest they play one after the other in a marathon. They will think this is fun, and it will take up a nice chunk of time.

7. Helping Others – Ask your kids to make cheerful cards for lonely senior citizens at a nursing home in your area. They can draw pictures and write silly jokes and tell them to just have a great day. It would be a double bonus if they could deliver them with you in person.

8. Toy Tidy – My daughter actually enjoyed doing this in the summer, and it was a big help for me. She would go through all her toys and art supplies and reorganize them. The exciting part of all this is that she would find toys she forgot she had, and old toys seemed new again.

9. Make a Time Capsule – This has to be one of the most exciting activities of all time for kids. Give them a plastic jar with a lid or a sturdy box. Have them fill it with little trinkets and notes that will remind them of the past year. Or pick a theme (like sports, books, travel, etc) and have them will the jar with treasures new and old. They can bury it somewhere in the yard and dig it up in next summer.

10. Make a Fort - This can be inside or out. My daughter used to make forts out of chairs and a sheet and play in it for hours with friends. You can serve lunch in there for them to really make it exciting.

11. Bug Adventure – Ask the kids to search the backyard for insects. They can use a magnifying glass to look at them and take pictures with a digital camera. Then ask them to go to the computer or look in a reference book to identify what type of creepy crawlies they have discovered. They can also read to learn more about the bugs they find.

12. Puppet Show – Have the kids practice putting on a puppet show for you. If you want to keep them really busy they can make their own puppets out of old socks or paper bags.

13. Car Wash – Ask your kids to wash your car. You can pay them a small amount or reward them with cookies.

14. Botanical Press – Encourage your kids to take a few flower and leaf samples from the yard or alley and press them in paper towels in a thick book. In a few weeks they can use the dried flowers to make a craft.

15. Recycle Crafts – Challenge your little ones to make some sort of craft out of items from your recycling bin, such as plastic bottles, cans or cartons. Make sure you clean the container before they use it.

Send me your ideas for fun summer activities!

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