Summer holidays are here
The long and often dreaded school summer holidays is on, and for many we’re right at the height of it. Well, height depending on how you look at it. For some kids they’re at the height of the “I’m bored” phase. For some parents they’re at the height of, “aaargh, these kids will eat me out of house and home”, coupled with “if I don’t find something for these kids to do I’ll go crazy”.
So howz’ it going for you? Are you sinking or surviving? Outside of going away on holiday, finding activities to keep the kids entertained or busy can be tricky. We’ve been scouting around to see what’s going on in different places (not just UK). Do you follow us on Instagram, Facebook or Pinterest? If you don’t you’re missing out, as we’ve been sharing some great activities we’ve stumbled across. From ideas and activities organised by big organisations, to smaller initiatives, but with a lot of heart and planned not just to entertain, but also educate your kids. Some are still going on so check them out via our other platforms. You’ll find some links too at the end of this post.
Tips for surviving summer holidays
In no particular order. Please free to add your tips in the comments.
- Have a plan – This doesn’t have to be detailed, hour by hour, day by day (unless planning is your passion), but have some idea or game plan for how you and your family will spend the time. Otherwise you might find that summer holiday has come and gone without you achieving anything concrete for you or your kids.
- Keep your eyes open for creative ideas – It can be boring doing the same things over and over again so look out for new and interesting ideas for things happening close to you or you would consider travelling to for a day out. That museum, market, park, bike trail, farm, local beach, the list is endless. Not only can you stumble across free events and activities, but you could discover what could become your new favourite activity or hangout spot for the family. (Don’t forget to check out the ones we’ve shared on Facebook or Instagram).
- Stock up on healthy options – We all know kids become like little hunters during the summer holidays, searching out and eating everything in sight. As much as possible stock up on fruit, vegetables, yoghurt and healthy snacks (wholegrain, reduced sugar etc.). This is a great opportunity to try and teach and enforce better eating habits, and it helps stabilise their energy levels too.
- Active kids are better kids – For real they are. These days its all about tech games on the Wii, PS4 (and all those other ones), games on tablets, laptops and phones. If you leave the kids they’ll play tech games all day or watch TV. Limit their time on those so that they can get imvolved in physical activities too. You can sign them uo for activities that involve physical movement, or include as part of your plan in no 1. 30 mins to 1 hour of physical activity. Don’t forget educational activities too. Some schoolwork should be built in keep their brains active. 6 weeks is a long time to be on a dry fast from school work.
- Give them some “you” time – This is super super important. Even if you’re working all through the holiday, your kids will love any time you carve out especially for them. It could be for a “day out” as suggested in no. 2, or even something as simple as family game night. Board games are your friends, so are made up games. Just anything that gets you and your family together for bonding time will build and store up memories they’ll never forget. When my kids were younger we had Friday game times where we would play Monopoly. True sometimes the game would end in tears because someone got upset that they lost all their houses and money, but they would always want to play again the following week. Today the quickest thing my kids will agree on is having family game night.
Some activity and event ideas
There is so much going on around, below are just a handful. We know there’s lots lots more just waiting to be discovered. If you know of anything interesting happening around you please let us know by leaving a comment or emailing us at [email protected] so we can share with others. Come on parents we can survive summer, and make it one to remember.
Kids Free August at London theatre
Young Readers Library August 30 books challenge