Indoor Summer Activities for Kids

Indoor Summer Activities for Kids

Indoor Summer Activities for kids – Summer usually coincides with outdoor fun like pool time and sports, or even camping and hikes. But sometimes, going outside just isn’t an option. Not to worry! There are plenty of fun activities kids can take part in from the comfort of home, no matter the weather or circumstances!

Tie Dye

Tie dye shirts, shorts, scrunchies and other items are often associated with summer camps and other outdoor activities. Even if your kids are stuck indoors or are limited to just the backyard, tie dye can still happen! Whether you buy a kit or make your own, tie dying old t-shirts and having fun with the designs is a great lesson in color theory and pattern making. Plus, seeing the end result is always fun!

Fresh Fruit Popsicles

With no ice cream truck to run to, you can always make your own popsicles, ice cream and other frozen treats! Using ingredients like fruit juice, yogurt, fresh fruit and other items like cream and food coloring, kids can create their own popsicle sticks or even create their own colorful ice cream. There are plenty of easy to make recipes available online, many of which are much healthier alternatives to the things your kids might choose at the ice cream shop – it’s a win win for everyone!

Indoor Camping

Just because you can’t go outside doesn’t mean you can’t go camping. Clear a space in your living room and set up a tent with flashlights and sleeping bags. Hanging out in the house has never been more fun! You can make the night even more camp-themed with s’mores and hotdogs, but you’re not limited to outdoor related activities only. Even playing board games or having a movie night from inside the camping tent can make a night at home feel more fun.

Sandy Crafts

Can’t visit the ocean? Bring the ocean to you! Plenty of craft stores carry sand, seashells or even special sands like magnetic sand, colored sand, or other sculpting sands you can play around with from the comforts of home. You can go beyond simply playing and create ocean-themed crafts as well. Create cool patterns with different colored sand in unique-shaped bottles, paint sea shells or arrange them in mosaics, the possibilities are endless!

Scavenger Hunt

This adaptable activity can be enjoyed all year round and can easily be changed to suit different themes, items and more. Whether you create your own rules or find a guide online, a scavenger hunt is a great way to engage kids’ imaginations and sense of exploration – all without leaving the house!

These indoor summer activities for kids will get your kids intrigued with what they can do indoors. It can truly create a bond and memories that will last a lifetime.

Teaching Kids About Money

Teaching Kids About Money

Teaching Kids About Money

Teaching kids about money can be a strange concept for children. Many kids eventually develop an understanding that things cost money and money is needed for certain goods and services. However, they may not know where that money comes from or what its value really is. Teaching your kids even just the basics about money can help them with simple math. This knowledge will also help mold them into young savvy savers.

First Thing’s First: Money Doesn’t Grow on Trees

Many kids might think that in order to get money, all you have to do is go to the bank and ask for some. Take the time to explain where and how money comes from. You need to work hard to make money and the types of jobs they can obtain.  This will help them better understand that there is more to money than it simply being at a bank. Depending on how old your children are, you can provide them money or other forms of payment. This can be such as snacks in exchange for completing chores or helping around the house.

Giving Them the Goods

Whether you decide to give your children money in exchange for chores or as an allowance, you can use this as an opportunity to teach them budgeting. The best way to teach kids how to manage their money is to give them some. If they decide to spend their allowance on a new toy, then they won’t have enough left over for when the ice cream truck rolls around. This may sound like a hassle to deal with at first. However, first-hand experience is a great teacher and it is more likely to be a lesson they will remember.

Teaching Kids About Money and Responsibility

Spending vs. Saving

This can be a family activity that you do together, whether your child is helping you go grocery shopping or you are helping them look for the best deal on a toy they want. Looking at coupons, comparing prices, and making a budget together can be really helpful for forging good spending habits in the future. Plus, it can help teach them valuable, and thrifty, saving and spending skills.

Incorporating Fun Activities

There are many activities out there that can teach kids about money while at the same time helping with their math skills. These activities can be based around basic financial principles, including charitable giving, delayed gratification, budgeting, saving money, and compounding interest.  For more in-depth reading on how these fun activities can be implemented read here.

Helping Kids Learn to Write

Helping Kids Learn to Write

Helping Kids Learn to Write

Writing is a valuable skill. Though formal letter writing on paper has died out, correspondence via email and other mediums is just as strong as ever. Helping kids learn to write well, or at least convey a thought or idea effectively, is necessary no matter what your profession.

For kids, learning to write well can be incredibly useful in their academic career. Especially since they will surely have to write papers and complete their homework effectively. However, writing can also lead to a hobby as well as increase their reading skills.

As we all know reading and writing are intrinsically linked. Being able to read well and understand concepts can help kids become better and more effective writers, and vice versa. With young kids, it helps to start small and simple, just like you would with reading. Here are some practical tips parents and guardians can try to get their kids into writing and make them better writers.

The Right Instruments

Just like how introducing babies to cardboard or fabric books can get kids acquainted with books as objects, picking out big, fun writing instruments can have the same effect.  You’ll first want to get kids acquainted with writing out or tracing letters. Safe options for younger children can include big pieces of chalk to draw with on the sidewalk or board. You can even get a little messy with paintbrushes or finger paints. Making this fun can be a great introduction to writing.

Start Small

Once your child has gotten the grasp of writing, they can move onto other writing tools. Golf pencils (smaller and easier to grip for small hands) or crayons are a great beginning. These tools are generally easier for kids to work with while they get used to the act of writing.

Personalized Activity Books

Getting the Hang of Things

As kids learn how to write out full sentences, they may need practice keeping their letters uniform and their spaces between words consistent. There are special kinds of paper that have traceable letters and other helpful tools such as personalized activity books for kids to get used to. To help with spaces between letters, they can use stamps, their fingers, or even colored crayons they aren’t using to act as placeholders while they write.

Becoming Better Writers

As kids get older, their homework may include instructions for providing long-form answers whether they be a single sentence to a paragraph. When kids are at this age or writing level, it helps to boost their communication skills. Encourage them to keep a journal or to write their own stories. This can help them develop effective communication skills via writing, and they can get used to expressing their thoughts, feelings, and ideas through written words.