The days are getting longer and summer has officially arrived. That means that the days will be spent with children as they are out of school. Even with all the great amenities and open outdoor spaces provided by our Liv community, parents know that if they don’t provide enough summer activities for kids, the summer months lead to bored children dreaming up ways to get themselves into trouble.
Most kids will enjoy summer camps, which are one way to keep your kids busy through the long hot summer. Summer camps can be pricey, may provide logistical difficulties with getting them back and forth to camp, and simply aren't a good fit for all children. If summer camp is not a possibility for your family, don’t worry — there are still plenty of fun summer activities for your kids.
Now is the time to start planning summer activities for children that will keep their minds and bodies active and engaged in the world around them. Here are just a few summer activities to take advantage of for your kids.
Give Them an Up-Close View of the World Around Them
Give your kids a magnifying glass or pocket microscope and encourage them to take a close look at the world around them. From the patterns on tree bark to the inner workings of earthworms, there is so much to learn when you take an attentive and magnified view of the everyday world around us.
The veins in a tree leaf are unique and fascinating to track, while the wings of a butterfly look completely different when viewed under magnification. These up-close looks will not only entertain your children but also may help them develop a deeper respect for the world in which they live.
If the weather doesn't cooperate, no worries. There is plenty more to explore inside your apartment home. Encourage your children to look at their own skin or someone else's to see the pores and lines. A close study of the drapes may reveal hidden wonders in the stitching. Even a glass of juice may reveal its secrets when looked at through a magnifying glass.
Make a Water Blob
With some inexpensive materials and an iron or hair straightener, you can create a water blob to delight and entertain your children. You will need several sheets of industrial-strength plastic sheeting (the type used by painters to cover furniture), duct tape, baking paper, a heat source, and a hose.
Before getting started, be sure that there's a level area to use the water blob that won't get damaged if the blob springs a leak. Also, be sure that any escaped water will not find its way onto public walkways or private patios.
Fold the plastic sheets into a square. Using the baking paper and the heat source, seal all of the seams except for a small opening to fill it through. Use the hose to fill the sealed square, being careful not to overfill. Seal the small opening with duct tape and it's ready to use. Small children will delight in crawling and rolling around on the water-filled pillow.
Have a Sponge Bomb Fight
So much easier to fill and clean up after than a water balloon fight, a sponge bomb fight is still just as fun and refreshing. All you need is a bucket or two filled with water and several soft sponges. Kids will love throwing soaked sponges at each other and there won’t be any popped balloon pieces scattered around for you to pick up later. Plus, it's environmentally friendly, since the plastic from the water balloons won't get thrown away.
Encourage Artistic Growth
Sidewalk chalk may be one of the best ideas ever created for a parent with young children. It's non-toxic and easy to clean up, and there's a clean slate with every rainstorm or a quick hosing. Be careful allowing your children to use sidewalk chalk on public walkways, though, as not everyone may share your love of their artwork. Your children can still have a great time decorating the patio or the balcony floor.
Plan a Scavenger Hunt
This is a great idea for kids of all ages, although you will need to adjust the difficulty for children at different life stages. These are more fun when done in groups, so invite all the kids in the neighborhood to participate. Planning the event and hiding the objects to be found is also a great way for you to spend time getting to know your neighbor better.
Once the objects have been hidden and the clues have been written, turn the kids loose to explore the surrounding area and hone their problem-solving skills.
Have an Ice Cream Sundae Party
This is an activity that is probably best done outside as it can get a bit messy, especially for younger children. All you need to do is pick up a couple of half gallons of ice cream, some toppings (don’t forget the multicolored sprinkles), some paper bowls, and plastic spoons.
Place bowls filled with the toppings on a low table or bench that all of the kids can reach easily. Put an adult in charge of giving each child a bowl with a scoop of ice cream and let the kids apply their own toppings. If you want to have whipped cream, it's best to let an adult handle that as well.
Once the sundaes have been made and eaten, you can have a sponge bomb fight to begin to clean up the sticky hands and faces and help the kids to burn off the sugar-charged energy.
Have a Duel
With a pool noodle or two, you can let your kids pretend they're knights in the midst of an epic sword fight. The noodles are too floppy to cause any real harm, no matter how hard they swing at each other. This is another summer fun idea that is best done outdoors, far away from vases, picture frames, and other breakable objects.
There are endless summer activities for kids at Liv. To find out more about the child-friendly amenities featured in our Liv communities, fun ideas to keep them occupied, or to find out how to join our neighborhoods of apartment homes, contact us at Liv.
