We have done a couple of really fun activities together as a family, though, and I thought I would share a few–just in case you’re looking for creative ways to fill your summer days.
- A “Scripture Scavenger Hunt”…I’ll leave you guessing about the details of this one, since it’s an exclusive freebie just for our newsletter list. 🙂
- Chalk-making–We found a neat recipe for sidewalk chalk, which was interesting to make and fun to use. (You can view instructions here.)
- Read-alouds–The children read independently, and we read aloud A LOT. The tail-end of our school year got really busy and I realized that it had been a while since we had gone to the library; don’t forget to do this! There is something special about “new books,” or ones that children choose for themselves. Just make sure to keep them separate from your house books. We use a milk crate–easy to pick up & go when it’s time to return.
- Audio Books–On the subject of reading aloud, don’t forget to check out sites like Project Gutenberg for free ebooks of all kinds. LibriVox offers free audiobook versions of many of the public domain works found at Project Gutenberg.
- Make-your-own audios–If you own a headset microphone for your computer (it might have come with your PC, or you can get one for about $10 at Wal-Mart), you can create your own audio files! Just download Audacity, a free MP3 recording and editing software. Older children can read aloud stories for younger children, or Mom can dictate chapter books for the big kids to listen to during long afternoons or before bed. I’m already thinking of lots of ways that I can use Audacity during school time as well…
- Popsicles–Making popsicles is as fun as eating them! We were fortunate enough to get one of those Tupperware popsicle-making sets as a gift, but you can buy sticks and paper Dixie cups at your local dollar store. Just put the cups on a cookie sheet, fill them as desired, partially freeze them, pop in a a stick, and re-freeze. When you’re ready to eat, you can try to make it come out of the cup neatly…or just tear the paper part off. We have made lemonade popsicles and yogurt popsicles using this recipe.
- Forts, jails, playscapes, stores, restaurants, and more–I don’t know about you, but it usually drives me crazy to have the children build forts and such with the kitchen chairs, couch cushions, pillows, and blankets. It is such a huge project (between the building, the dramatizations that follow, and the clean up), and we almost always have other (“educational”) things to do. So summer is a great time for the kids to kick back and imagine to their hearts’ content–and I actually suggest it!
We also are watching more movies–as many as one a week! 🙂 On the topic of movies…and free fun…we still have a copy of the “Biology 101” DVD series from Westfield Studios hanging around! It is one of two copies that was offered as an opt-in incentive when we switched newsletter providers–BUT the winner hasn’t contacted me after several email attempts. If you never thought biology could be entertaining, you definitely haven’t seen this film! The title doesn’t do it justice. Anyway, I thought it would fit in here to offer the 101, and hopefully the winner will respond this time!
Here’s how it will work: Just leave a comment with your own low-cost “summer fun” idea. I’ll randomly select one of the commenters (using random.org to generate the number) as the lucky winner. You must provide some way for me to get in touch with you (if a link to your blog or Web site, make sure I can find contact info there). Comments are open as soon as this post goes live, and will close at midnight (EST) on Friday, July 11. I’ll choose the winner over the weekend, so check your email to see if it’s you!
Have a fun summer!
Blessings,
Cindy
PS–I’ve included this post in Works for Me Wednesday over at Rocks in my Dryer–feel free to check out some helpful tips there!
Pick me-pick me–I would love to have it! Thank you!
bishopt@att.net
We would love to have the Biology 101 dvds! We too love to do read alouds. My daughter loves that special time each evening. 🙂
I love the idea of homemade popsicles!! They will have fun with that. I can send them outside to eat it!!
Since I would love the Biology 101 set, I’ll tell you some things we do.
We have two favorite low-cost summer ideas. An art museum in town charges $8.00 per adult, but no charge for kids. This helps with the hot days.
My favorite “freebie” is laying in the driveway with my kids looking at the stars. We do this at night when it’s good and dark out. We love looking at the stars and talking about them and about God who created them for us.
Thanks,
Gwen Mullins
momoftna@yahoo.com
rosegardenletters.com
Great ideas. My children also love to build forts, tents, etc. Also, visiting the library is a favorite here. Our library has a summer reading program where they can pick up free visits to the local Glow Golf, Science museum, or free ice cream treats. We enjoy participating.
On afternoons that are just too hot for outside, we hae been taking advantage of the internet to watch some fun learning videos. Check out http://www.thefutureschannel.com
for videos on a variety of interests, or just do a search for a topic like ‘making a mattress’ or ‘making lollipops’ for fun factory tour videos. I let my children pick a question that’s been on their mind and we see if we can find a video to learn the answer.
Bobbi
purpleantler@hotmail.com
The kids love making popciclies and going to the library. We have also been going on walks in the evening to see what we can find out and about. Biology 101 sounds likes lots of fun.
Thank you for a great site.
melissabearm@msn.com
My kids like to paint on t-shirts. I usually buy cheap, new t-shirts for them, but you could use an older one and give it a new look!! This idea is good for a rainy summer day (inside project) or a warm sunny day (take the mess outside!!).
weadock@gmail.com
Great ideas! My dd has an mp3 player that she records stories on and this would be great idea for school things as well. Thanks for sharing!
hsmom22@gmail.com
Oh, how I remember the days of making chalk, clay and flubber! The kids enjoy drawing roads, complete with stop signs, on the driveway.
Thanks for sharing!
Jamie
hsinthecountry@gmail.com
Low-cost, summer fun – The best for our two boys has been setting up and selling lemonade! You should see some of the tips they get. Their Dad sometimes wants to toss HIS job to get paid better by the hour! Esp. on the very hottest days!
We would LOVE to have the 101 Biology, since that’s on our schedule for this next year!
Blessings,
Lynette
ljmom42@yahoo.com
Thank you for having such a wonderful, helpful site for supporting families.
My kids are working their way through the chart for the library summer reading program -they get prizes along the way and a ticket to a Diamondbacks game when they finish! We are also taking part in Summer Movie Fun at the theater where we will get to see 10 movies for $7 -one each week. We picked Tuesday as our day out and try to go to our movie, then the park for a picnic and then the library to swap books and update our prize chart.
~tracy
tmamax4@yahoo.com
These are great ideas. I especially love summer reading and there a lots out there so we get credit for 3-4 programs with 1 book.
Many theaters have free movies during the summer.
Would love the Biology 101 DVDs
susanwash at windstream dot net
My son and I love to sleep on the trampoline and watch the stars. On really hot days he loves to jump on the tramp with the sprinkler going underneath it. We also have an old-fashioned Mercantile a block away in which we can walk to and enjoy an ice cream cone.
I loved Biology in school but was not a Christian then. I hope to pass this love on to my son and so much more now that I am a child of God and absolutely love His creation and design.
Thank you for this opportunity to win these DVD’s.
May God richly bless you,
Nancy
jnlamb@q.com
Here in Florida where it is so muggy all day, we stay inside and do our read-a-louds. Then we wait until around 8pm and go for a walk (with our pet raccoon) and look for interesting wildlife or nature things. We also go to the beach, St. Augustine, and pick up shells and look at barnacles, clams, crabs and whatever else.
We would love the Biology 101, as nature study is our favorite subject!
chase.family@gmail.com
My daughters are in the 4-H dog club, and they will be participating in the county fair. If you go early enough in the morning before the ticket takers get there you can walk in and then get your hand stamped when you leave, which means you can come back later. Of course the only thing to really do in the morning is walk around and look at all the animals. Sometimes there are vendors serving breakfast. Most fairs allow you to enter no charge on Sunday until 2pm or so if you bring your church bulletin from that day. Thanks for the chance to win these DVDs. Tami
ewingcrew@juno.com
Thanks for sharing your summer ideas with us!
~L.K.~
lizkotowski@aol.com
Great ideas!
Thanks for sharing!
We love to stage our own plays or make up nonsense games. One of the kids favorite is to take an old movie they know by heart and turn off the sound and make up new dialog for it. Everyone takes a characteror two and just has fun. Muscials are the best. Hearing the kids sing and watching them think fast to keep things moving along is so much more fun than just watching tv.
Thank you for such great ideas. We love to play the card game, spoons & dominos, too.
Another thing I should have added, when it is too hot for outside we also do some of the science projects we put off the rest of the year, and we also do some of the arts and crafts. I hate to make the mess, but when it is hot and miserable, then we clean off the table and make a few messes, drawing, painting, glittering,etc.
Also, it is a time to try a few new recipes and make messes in the kitchen.
Chase.family@gmail.com
We like all kinds of water play. This year, I found a cute little flower sprinkler in the dollar section at Target!. We also do “bike washes” and just filling up buckets and yard toys with water to play in.
I’d love to have the Biology 101 DVD.
Thank you for the contest.
Leah
http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/lcourtneymom
Thanks for the contest! We enjoy doing all of what you mentioned.
We like to go fruit picking as a family. We pick the fruits in season(strawberries, raspberries, peaches, ect) When we get them home we use some for jams and jellies but the rest go in the freezer for smoothie time.
2 to 3 T. non-fat yogurt
4 oz. fruit juice
ice cubes
frozen fruit (at least 1 cup)
1 banana
Blend all in electric blender, pour int glass, pop in a straw, and enjoy.
Nice treat and fun learning about the different fruits.
Thanks for all you do.
Diane
siddonsclan@dls.net
Love you ideas and would love to win the Biology prize. We like to sit in a “kiddy” pool, blow bubbles and pretend we are at the beach!
A mom at church organizes a “Moms in the Park” on Tuesdays. We enjoy getting to know other families and learning about all the parks in the area. (We moved here in March.)
We’d be happy to have the Biology 101 DVDs.
Thanks
Bills Beloved
bills_beloved@yahoo.com
Hi,
Thanks for all the ideas 😉 Our local arts council sponsors a kids day every Wednesday morning and it’s free! Every week throughout the summer they rotate through different artists and mediums with displays, live demos,etc. On Wed. they have projects for the kids to do in that medium. We also go to a church camp for a week and other than the cost of the campsite it’s free and they put on activities (swimming, crafts, bible classes,etc.) all day for the kids at no cost. Otherwise sprinklers and the trampoline are favourites:-) Robyn
crazy4freekids@yahoo.ca
Your ideas are great. We like to go to the library and have picnics at the park. We would love to have the Biology 101 DVDs. Thanks! Teresa Clark drtclark@gci.net
We do lots of things…several area theaters have free movies in the morning. Our community sponsors ‘movies in the park’ and we go see an outdoor movie for free. We take the time to do arts and crafts. AC Moore has a free make and take craft. Our library has lots of educational programs that go along with the reading program. We have the kids’ friends over for sleepovers or sleep-outs. We participate in church camps and Bible schools, which are usually free. We take nature walks, watch birds, take care of the garden and go camping.
Thanks for the chance to win this dvd set.
Sherry rsna738@juno.com
Great idea for the contest. Have been interested in Biology 101 DVDs for some time…
You can try visiting your own hometown as if you were from somewhere else. Get out the phone book or search the Internet just as you would if you were visiting somewhere else. You might be surprised at how many free house tours and similar events you can find in your own area that you never knew about. You can also check with the local public library branch, which also usually have an area for local attractions and events.
The hardest part with some of these small-town local attractions is finding out when they are open, since many seem to be operated by volunteers…
Doug A.
magicref@lycos.com
We appreciate your godly wisdom and sharing your lives with us!
We enjoy going to the library, reading, playing baseball and basketball, fishing, playing in the water and dirt, and eating ice cream.
Amy
ra4folk@tm.net
Our favorite summer thing for the kids is to let them have part of our veggie garden for them to plant their own. We block off a square for each of them and then they plant and care for their veggies and track the veggies progress as well. They also have learned about what happens when plants are not cared for. This has been awesome for our kids.
-Lori http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/
henhouse
Thanks for all the great ideas!
One summer, we made our own ABC books. We went around and took pictures of animals, loved ones, household items, anything really. Printed them out on sticker paper – cut them out and stuck them on the appropriate labeled letter page. Then we stapled them together to make our books. The kids loved them and it was a neat way to learn beginning sounds of words. We took lots of pictures. We were taking pictures of things everywhere we went. Thank goodness we had a digital camera.
Thanks! Monica
We pack a picnic lunch and go on a nature walk through the trails to see how things have changed since spring. I take pictures with our digital camera and put them on the computer so we can compare them with pictures from the other seasons.
Sharon
Our boys love watergun wars outside. Inside, their favorite game recently is Racoon Hunt. It’s just like hide and seek, but the hiders are racoons and the seeker is the hunter. The boys have been very clever with their hiding spots. Thanks for the opportunity to enter the drawing for the Biology 101 DVD’s.
God Bless,
Ginger Hutto
j_hutto@bellsouth.net
We make a tent outside for the kids to play in. I put some sheets on the clothes line and make a tent out of them.
Occasionally the kids are allowed to sleep in the living room for the night.
The kids love to play in the rain also.
We are also on school holidays. But here in Australia it is Winter. My daughter and I are spending some time looking over builders’ display homes. The homes are always a comfortable temperature (whether Winter or Summer) and give some great ideas for decorating. We also look at the floor plans and then think how we could modify them (either in our heads, on paper or on the computer)to suit our needs.
Jeanette
phinette at gmail dot com
thanks for these ideas. My family will try the chalk making and popsicles. looks like it’ll be alot of fun.
Thanks for the opportunity to enter the drawing for biology 101 dvds.
My kids LOVE good old water balloon fun! We also taught the 7 year olds 4-Square and they love it!
Thanks for the chance to win the Biology 101 dvds!
Kelley
dk4max@tds.net
Thanks so very very much for the chalk post! We go through sidewalk chalk like it’s going out of style. Now the children can make their own and get school credit! LOL
Thanks for some really great ideas! We just printed out the scavenger hunt! Here is an idea for low cost fun…tonight we are headed to the beach to watch the sea turtles lay their eggs! What an experience! Have fun! The Sawtelle Family (alohaswat@yahoo.com)
Many of our local county parks have small streams running through them. My kids love to get together with friends and try to catch, fish, crayfish tadpoles. Of course after the fun, they release them again.
It’s a chance to stay cool, get dirty, fellowship and have some fun!!!
Thanks for all the great ideas!! I actually just looked at the Biology 101 set on Answers in Genesis website today!
Have a blessed day!!
Mary
m_bhiggins@yahoo.com
My daughter has been making hollyhock dolls, and dressing up empty water bottles with scraps of fabric.
This is great. Our favorite free thing to do is for the kids to play with our neighbors and for me to talk with their moms while sitting in the shade.
At our house we play in the sand building cities, and strange buildings, and country lanes. When it is to hot out we go inside and fill the tub and play with boats, or foam letters and shapes. We also love to read and watch movies together.
Thank you for your wonderful ministry. I only recently found your site and we have enjoyed it very much. This summer we have spent time helping a friend with her horses and we have had a great time! Thanks for all of the ideas!
Yolanda
villashelties@gmail.com
Oops I forgot to say that we love going and visiting some of the elderly women from church to.
ml-dr-mully@comcast.net
I love your blog!
we do:
popsicles
library reading programs
tents in the living room
movies from the library (free)
skating on the deck after it rains
My children love to climb trees and chase frogs, play frisbee golf and toss bean bags made from old socks at…well…everything. They like helping with home projects… really, they like it. Thanks for a chance at that Biology DVD.
Our low cost, fun idea: Put all of our lunch supplies in a box and head outside to eat on a blanket on the lawn.
brianamy10@hotmail.com
This summer project involves making massive repairs on our “fort”. We’re gathering free lumber from various places and designing from there.
oddfox1@juno.com
We have enjoyed many similar activities that others have mentioned: picking raspberries, cherries, apples later this fall, playing in the river near our home on hot days, playing kickball in the yard, playing lots of games in the evening that we don’t seem to take time for during our school year, and reading, reading, reading. Thanks for reading our ideas.
Andrea
We have a playhouse built above our sandbox. We blow up an air mattress and sleep out (did I mention it has an air conditioner?). We usually like to take along a book or two to read. Sometimes we just talk and act silly.
We also enjoy our library’s summer reading program.
Faith – kotabel at verizon dot net
We have always enjoyed making and playing with playdough, making refrigerator cookies and having tea parties with the neighbor children. You can find many recipes on my website at http://www.cuddlebaby.com/hearthnhome.html
Now that the children are older, they set up our large tent in the backyard and host sleepovers.
Michelle
m_nelson @ cuddlebaby.com
I love your blog!!! Here’s our favorite freebie: the library! We love doing the summer reading programs and earning great prizes.
Susan
sparky_1212@yahoo.com
bams7503@comcast.net
Thanks for your fun ideas! Your timing was perfect for me – I was just online looking for some ideas for me and my kids today. Two of my children are involved in a theater program this summer (1 on stage & 1 behind the scenes) and will be performing “Seussical” for the rest of July – it’s been great fun but a lot of work! I think they are ready for some less intense activity! lol
Have a wonderful summer!
Kerri
We recently moved from an apartment to a house with a fenced backyard, and WOW that would have to be my tip, get a fenced backyard! we spend nearly all our time there, bbq’ing playing pop ups, ball, running around, etc.
Thanks for the freebies. Enjoyed the chalk recipe. PICK US!
joyinktm-at-yahoo.com
Besides listening to “You Need A Story” audios, we read a lot, visit the library, organize home and garden for a smooth transition when school begins (projects put off till more time) and our favorite…a homemade slip and slide!
We run through the sprinklers and put a shower curtain on the grass with one end under the plastic slide we have. Then we hook the hose up on top of the slide so that the water runs down the slide and onto the shower curtain ($1 at the dollar store). Then feet or head first, we have a version of a slip and slide for some soggy and cool play!
And of course, there’s watermelon.
Heather
heather@nextleveldental.com
Such great fun ideas!
We like to draw plants & animals, garden, make jellies and jams, gather wildflowers for a big arrangement for the table, learn about a new elible plant. Go camping, canoeing (the younguns love to jump out of the canoes and swim, too.)
we set up a volleyball net in backyard.
I have the Biology 101 on my wish list. Thanks!
Alaska Bea Psalm 100
buzzzybea@yahoo.com
Great ideas! We take extra time for reading over the summer, too. We’ve also been watching more family movies, which we’re able to borrow (free) from our library.
Things we love to do in summer:
Read alouds, long walks, swimming at the beach and digging in the sand, making and eating popsicles, watching the stars, and playing games outside in the long summer evenings.
Local libraries often have free summer reading programs where they offer prizes and incentives to the kids to read. We usually sign up for those! It’s great encouragement to my young readers.
Cynthia
robandcindy@actrix.co.nz
In the summer we do a lot of reading. The kids are doing two reading programs: A local one at our library and one online at http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/summerreadingsplash
the boys are really enjoying them.
We also love to grill out and spend time together taking walks (if it is not to hot), playing boccie in our backyard, or playing board games.
This summer we are also preparing for our Middle Ages study by constructing three cardboard models of Middle ages structures that we purchased, they come in a book and you cut them out and glue them together.
dlphsmom@aim.com
When it’s too hot to even go outside, I let my toddler make little paper boats and then play with them in the bathtub. This is a supervised activity, of course, but well worth it.
Tip: I bring home big boxes from my work, and my 8 & 5 year olds go to town! Totally FREE, totally fun, and after all these years, it still hasn’t worn off.
Pick us, pick us, please?!? We’d LOVE the DVD!!!
Thank you for the freebie and the opportunity to win the Biology DVDs. My low cost summer fun idea… when the heat goes above 100 and the kids are all “dying” I put a big stack of blank paper in the center of the dining room table, print some building models on card stock, add markers, pencils and crayons, then add “How to draw books” of all kinds and the 22 volume animal encyclopedia. I never say anything, just let the kids find it. One by one they find it and soon while the sun blazes outside my dining room is transformed! There will be books made, villages made, zoos with exotic creatures, works of art created and tons of fun had! The best part for Mom? Hours of hushed voices and sometimes even quiet! Then I get to go in an view all their wonderful creations!
thank you for this contest and great ideas from you and others.
our biggest coping mechanism is a pool! as soon as we put one up the kids were so happy and i’m happy that they are getting so much exercise.
but we actually homeschool in high gear in the summer since there are so few distractions – no field trips, co-ops, no big dinner holidays etc. so no friends before noon – which contributes to my summer sanity.
misskitty914@gmail.com
We love the Summer Reading Program at our library. The kids read books (either 20 picture books or 1000 pages) and get prizes for each set they turn in. We use the coupons to do things we normally wouldn’t. They’ve gotten pizza, ice cream, visit to our local art museum with a kids area, and so on. Check your library for something similar 🙂
We’d love the Bio 101 dvd too!
One of the great things about summer is the freedom from the school day requirements. We use our summer days for all those fun things we just didn’t have time for during the year–extra read-alouds, finishing craft projects, trying something new that just doesn’t fit into our regular schoolwork. Last summer my daughter worked on learning to use the sewing machine. This summer we hope to finish a very small quilt to be used as a wall hanging. Last week a friend taught us how to do “stick weaving” and they made belts and a headband using yarn and a few straws!
While not FUN per say, we also use summer to train on specific chores, including cooking and baking (which is fun since you get to eat it). There just isn’t always time to focus on these during the rest of the year in our busy home.
Hope to hear from you soon about the contest!
psalm121@btes.tv
My kids love to paint or use chalk on the driveway. I have boys, so they make roads and buildings and anything else they can think of. Then they get their cars and trucks out and play for hours.
My 9 years old also enjoys going out in the garden and picking the new veggies that are ready to be picked. He even pulls weeds without being asked!
adamsdd1@hotmail.com
We enjoy playing the Free Rice game and the How Many Countries Can You Name in 5 Minutes game tha I have linked on my blog. http://shipfullofpirates.com/?p=249
We do a lot that has already been mentioned but we also love to try new recipes and look for inexpensive, quick and easy menus that will help us through the busy school year. My daughter loves to cook!!
We have learned new games that don’t cost anything but a little imagination!!
One is:
Go through the alphabet and choose a geographical location, and animal and a adjective to describe them.
Ex: I went to Atlanta and saw a angry alligator.
Next person: I went to Boston and saw a blue buffalo.
etc……….
Another is all about geographical locations ~~ A person chooses a location and the next person has to say a location that starts with the LAST letter of the previous location spoken.
EX:
1st person says New York
Next person has to use a location that starts with K
Ex: Kentucky
Next person has to use a location that starts with Y
and so on
These games can bring MUCH laughter into your home and they don’t cost anything!!!!
Thanks for the opportunity to win Biology DVD’s. My son will actually be taking Biology this school year and we’ve not bought out curriculum yet!!
Blessings and have fun with those games everyone!!
Debi
My daughter loves poetry and music, so nearly every day we do something that involves one or both of those things. Sometimes we pick a book that we haven’t read yet, and make up a poem about what we think it might be about. (btw my daughter is 5 so it gets VERY silly sometimes) Other times we sing a song about an upcoming event, like swimming in the pool, or going to church. My daughter’s other favorite low cost thing she likes to do is play in a dishpan of water with all of my measuring spoons and cups.
Thanks for sharing your ideas and letting me share mine!
-Rachel (raecpoe at yahoo dot com)
Sitting in the shade with our books, or running through the sprinkler.Even on the hot days of Summer it’s a wonderful time to be outdoors. Sit back and learn by watching and listening to nature. Air conditioning is nice, but don’t let it keep you inside.
Debbie
autumn1175@yahoo.com
One of our favorite ways to spend summer days is exploring nature and nature journaling. We also like to play family Jeopardy, a game my husband and I came up with almost 20 years ago when we first started homeschooling. We usually center questions around areas of recent study, and it’s a great reinforcement exercise!
~Rebecca
We love going fishing on our farm dam, or swimming at a neighbours pool. We also love making homemade icecream, Especially on a hot day it makes for lots of fun. Shaking all that ice around is cool fun.
Heidemarie
koumis@telkomsa.net
Thanks for the different ideas! We like to watch some of the baseball/softball games in town.
We also like to invite friends over, make a campfire, and make smores!
Dyane
emerald_ireland@hotmail.com
Thank you, I would love to win the dvds. Thanks also for the great summer ideas!
Vikki
leavengs@peak.org
Great ideas for summer fun!
One thing that we do is go to 7-11 and get $1 refills in our huge slurpee cups.
By the way today is free slurpee day at 7-11. It is their birthday!
We also join the library summer reading program.
I would love the free Biology 101 DVDs.
Thank you for your ministry!
Belinda
Belinda@HomesatHelper.com