There is always a huge rush for summer but then less than a week into it the kids start bickering and screaming your name every 10 minutes. Here are ten activities you can do to cure the boredom blues:
- Teach them how to play a game you played as a kid. I taught my step daughter how to play “cartoon freeze tag” a game that is just like regular tag except you have to scream out a cartoon character to be “safe” from being frozen. You can even do “Red Light Green Light” or “Duck Duck Goose.” For the older ones you can teach them how to play a more complicated board game.
- Write stories together. You can purchase empty storybooks online or at your local teacher supply store. Write and illustrate age-level appropriate stories together.
- Read a book of your child’s choice together. The little ones love story time, but that doesn’t have to end once your child gets literate. Read the latest young adult literature with your child and meet regularly to discuss the characters, the plot and the style.
- Send them on a scavenger hunt. When my stepson turned 13, my husband and I sent him on a scavenger hunt around the city of Chicago. It was a sort of rite of passage. We identified key places around the city – all places that we had been before, and he had to reach each place on his own, take a photo on his phone and text it to us and finally get an artifact from the place. There is a diner that we love that serves amazing hot chocolate, so one of his tasks was to have a hot chocolate at the diner. He learned his directions (north vs. south), how to ask for help and how to use public transportation.
- Go hiking. Find a local trail and go for a hike. There is something about nature that encourages conversation and reflection.
- Study a culture outside of your own. Spin a globe and pick a country. Find out as much as you possible can about that country. Perhaps there is a historical society or a museum in your area that can help. You teach your child research skills while also teaching them how to appreciate diverse cultures.
- Write a review of summer TV shows, movies or video games. First, you should have your child read reviews of their favorite movies or video games and then after they view a new movie or play a new video game, have them write and upload or publish their own review. You can use a site like Fandango to upload the review or e-mail it out to your friends & family and ask for their feedback.
- Volunteer. Whether it is your local homeless shelter or even a daycare in the neighborhood – have your child volunteer their time at least once.
- Teach them how to set goals. Teach them how to set short and long term goals and check in weekly to determine progress made. Create a visual poster of the goals.
- Interview an elder family member. Have them create interview questions and then interview an elder in your family. Either record it or have them transcribe the script.
While growing up my granny always said “Boredom is an insult to your imagination…” so we try avoid insulting our imaginations in our household.
BMWK Family: How do you cure summer boredom in your household?