Summer vacations are here, and kids with idle time can become bored easily. They need some exciting and fun activities that can hold their interests. We have some engaging activities that your kids will enjoy and keep them busy. 

Science Activities

Many science experiments can keep the little ones engrossed for hours. Most of these are simple and can be done with minimal supervision. You can search for exciting and safe ideas online and print out the instructions for them to follow.

• Make a sparkling volcano by mixing vinegar, baking soda, and glitter.
• Grow a money plant or a bean plant by placing it in a clear glass of water.
• Create a lava lamp by adding vegetable oil, water, 2 drops of food colouring, and any fizzy tablet or Eno.
• Make an amplifier for the phone using paper cups and a toilet paper roll
• Make homemade slime using shampoo, cornstarch, and food colour.
• Make invisible ink using salt and lemon juice.

If your kid is really into science experiments, you can also buy science experiment kits. They have detailed instructions with the content required.

 

Art & Craft Activities

There is a wide range of variety for art and craft activities. These can be as simple as finger painting. Some of the popular art and craft activities include:

 

• Marble painting - take an empty shoebox or a metal box. Put thick sheets of poster paper at the bottom. Take some marbles, dip them in poster or acrylic paint, and drop them in the box. Close the lid and shake the box and you have interesting patterns. Wash the marbles and repeat with different colours.
• Paint the plant pots - If you have clay or plastic flower pots, let your kids paint them as they want. Your garden will have an inspiring look. Don't worry about them being messy. Kids are kids after all. Cocomo Hand Wash easily removes all the stains without drying off their skin.
• Old keys windchime - give them old keys that you don't use anymore. Let them paint each key as they want, attach these to strings, and tie these to a sturdy stick. You have a DIY wind chime ready.
• Bookmarks - Trace cute outlines on thick chart paper. Cut them out and let the kids paint or decorate them with craft decorations, ribbons, and buttons. They can also write some cute quotations. Punch a hole at one side and tie a small ribbon. 

For more interesting ideas, you can search online. You will also get age-appropriate craft activities.

 

Cooking

Cooking is a life skill, and there is no better time than summer vacation for your kids to learn to cook. Kids can learn to make desserts and snacks. They can also learn simple baking. Simple recipes include making sandwiches, assembling veggie rolls, making popsicles, rolling out chapatis, and helping with basic prep like whipping, mixing, and making a grocery list that needs replenishing.

 

Have a Friends Get Together

Interacting with friends is a stress-buster for kids. You can plan a get together at your house for your kids and their friends. It can be an afternoon movie at home, a fun indoor picnic, or a sleepover party.

 

To keep them engaged and busy, it is best to involve them in planning and execution. Some of the activities kids will love to do are:

• Make a planning sheet of all the steps needed to host a party.
• Create an invite list of friends they would like to call over.
• Make paper invites or design an online invite (using apps like Canva)
• Create a menu and take your help in finalizing.
• Decide on the games to be played during the get-together.
• Help in collecting and organizing the things needed to play the games. 
• Select gifts and help in wrapping.

 

Create a Family Tree

 

A family tree is a visual documentary of family ancestry. Most of us live in nuclear family setups, and the kids might not get to meet extended family members often. Creating a family tree will help them to know about relatives on both sides. Kids can use a scrapbook, blank drawing book, or chart paper to make this. They can take photos from social media or even ask the members to send their photos. This activity can be made simple or complex as per the age of the kids. Younger kids can make a tree with names, photos, and relationships. Kids aged 9 years or above can add details like birth, death, and other interesting information as well.

 

Fun Chores

It is also a good time to involve the little ones to do chores. The idea is to make it a fun activity for them. You can give them the responsibility of simple chores.

 

Some of these can be:

• Filling water bottles at designated hours in the morning and evening.
• Put away the folded clothes in the right place.
• Managing their toys including keeping them away after playing.
• Watering the plants. Give them clear instructions on how much to water every day.
• You can also hold car washing for them. Give them a sponge and a bucket and ask them to help you clean the car. 

 

Family time

Summer vacations are also great for family bonding. Besides a vacation trip, there are other ways to spend quality time. You can plan to watch a movie or dedicate an hour with your kids to play board games, Jenga, dumb charade, or Pictionary. The kids will remember the fun time they had with you together.

 

Kids look forward to summer vacations with excitement. It is a period of leisure, entertainment, and fun for them. However, they can also get bored easily if left idle all the time. Keep them engaged with the interesting activities and summer vacations will be over with a breeze for you and them! Just remember to put on a sunscreen before heading out.