Submitted by Emily Patterson(@epatt1062) on behalf of Primrose Schools: day care committed to furthering each child's development and learning
Every parent has been in the situation where your kids have cabin fever and are looking for something fun to do. Finding fun activities for the family does not have to be a budget buster. With a little imagination and some ideas below, you can have fun, save money, and maybe even start some new family traditions. These activities are a great alternative to the Internet or video games that take up too much time in many young peoples' lives.
Below are some fun ideas for activities you can do with your family. Let this list be a starting point for you. Seeing these activities may inspire you to design some additional ones too.
1. The Activity Idea Jar: From time to time, sit down with your family and think of a number of activities that all of you enjoy taking part in. All members of the family, especially your children, should put in their own activity ideas. Kids would enjoy decorating and labeling the jar with a name like “Family Fun time Jar.” Children will feel like they are a part of the activity if they had a hand in the creation of the ideas and the idea jar. For the jar, jot down each person’s activity ideas on pieces of paper. The group can then read idea and determine which ideas will be put into the jar. Whenever someone is bored, any member of the family can extract one of the idea slips from the jar for the family to take part in.
2. Art Making Chest: For this, you will need basic supplies for art, like, child-appropriate scissors, magic markers, glue, adhesive tape, and colored construction paper. You should place these art supplies in a dedicated box. With the box, you can add paper towel rolls, empty boxes, magazines that can be cut up, aluminum foil and similar supplies. To keep it interesting, you can periodically include a surprise item, like stickers, chalk, or inked stamp pads. This way, your kids always have something different and new to use. Ask your kids what supplies they would like in the Art Chest for they probably have some ideas for it that you hadn’t thought of.
3. Family Shows: Get out your vintage costumes or clothes and put them to good use so your kids can create characters and shows and put on a play for the family. Kids like being the actors, directors, or even the producers. For the sound track, musical instruments can be fashioned from pots or pans; spoons – especially wooden and empty canisters. You can even record or make a video of the show. That way you can enjoy it over and over again or share it on the Internet with family and friends across the country. This will also become a piece of treasured family history that can be passed down to others.
4. Build a Fort: We all know that kids love to construct structures – everything from forts, small towns to castles. Making tents or forts is something that your kids will love and can keep them occupied and happy for hours on end. Children are very resourceful and can easily find whatever they need around your house, such as cushions, towels, blankets, chairs and the like. Kids take pride in what they build when they do this and it is guaranteed to be a hit with them.
5. Making things with a Cookbook: Children love making things from a cookbook. Get out your favorite cookbook and let your kids pick a recipe to try. Be sure to give everyone a part to play, from measuring ingredients to safe ingredient preparation. Of course, eating the finished product is a good part of the fun for everyone too.
6. Family Scrapbook: Everyone loves to make and look at scrapbooks. Get the materials from your local craft store. You should encourage all family members to write or draw in the scrapbook. They can draw pictures of the favorite things they have done and add photos or mementos from happy events that have occurred. Everyone loves to page through scrapbooks and share with friends and family the stories behind the pages of the scrapbook.
7. Backyard Campout: Pitch your tent in your backyard for a family campout! Make s'mores, have a campfire and live off the land! This is the best of both worlds for the convenience of your house is right there if you need it.
8. Family Scavenger Hunt: Write down a list of commonly found items from your house. Challenge everyone to find the things on the list. You can even include neighbors or friends to take part to make it a friendly competition.
It is important to keeping children stimulated with games and activities that let them use their imaginations. This helps in developing the child’s creativity, independence and social skills. The activities you choose should always be appropriate for the age of your children for you don’t want to frustrate them with things that are beyond their capabilities. Often, when children claim to be bored, it is because they were taking part in an activity that was way too easy for them or too difficult for them to accomplish.
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