How to Plan Summer Activities for Kids

    If you are trying to find something to do on a rainy holiday or for entire summer vacation, you need to be imaginative and creative to keep your kids engaged and entertained. Because kids mostly feel bored sitting idle at home or they will start doing mischievous things which will irritate you. Following tips will help you plan fun and entertaining activities for your kids so that you can keep them out of boredom and give them something to enjoy their long summer break. 

• Ask for your kids' interests: If your kid’s love to draw, buy art supplies and set up a work station in the drawing room or in their living room. If they enjoy reading, buy books which are informative and useful for their future academics. 
• Brainstorm ideas: You might have seen your kids enjoying a few activities earlier, think about them. Drawing and coloring, art projects, sketching, singing, dancing, playing and creating different shapes and models with colorful clay etc. So now it’s better that you design activities for them based on these hobbies which they were doing earlier. 
• Give Ideas: Give your kids ideas about exciting activities like paper craft, wood craft, coloring, sketching, collage making, tell them about the fun activities through the DIY kits. 
• Remember age-appropriateness: If a task is very much difficult for a younger child, he/she will get discouraged and won’t participate in that activity. Similarly if you plan an activity that is easy, the older children will be bored and will leave it in mid. If you have a group of children of different ages, try to modify different activities for different age groups. For instance, you can give them to make a collage on the theme of nature or my school. Younger children can draw images and older children can color them and also can cut and paste pictures if they need them on the collage. This way it will be all fun doing the activity for both age groups. 
• Plan a game day: Offer them different types of board games to play, or ask them to play Hide-and-Seek. Let every kid in the group choose a game so that each one has a turn to do and enjoy something they want. 
• Let the kids do the planning: Give every child in the group a chance to express his or her interests through games and activities. This way they will feel valued and will enjoy playing in the group. 
• Create a schedule: Stay organized by creating a detailed schedule allotting time for each activity, cleanup, snacks, and quiet time. Post the schedule in a place where everyone can view it. So that everyone can get himself/herself prepared in advance for performing or taking part in that activity. 
• Gather supplies: Create a list of all the supplies you will need for your activities and go to the store if necessary or opt for a convenient option by buying them from an online store. Keep in mind how many children are in your group and obtain enough supplies for everyone. 
• Arranging Competition and Giving Prizes: To make children delight you can arrange for a drawing competition in a group of kids, and can give small prizes like set of color pencils, set of crayons, a drawing book, a football, a basketball or something like that which will make kids happy.

Benefits of Creative Activities for Kids

Doing creative activities with children is a healthy way to help them grow and learn. A child is engaged on a creative level every time he draws, paints, make sketches, builds with blocks, plays games, reads and engages in a myriad of other creative activities. 

• Imagination: A child's imagination is engaged by creative activities and it also inspires his thoughts and perceptions. For example, reading helps a child to experience a world outside of his own, and further he can express that world in his drawings and paintings. This way his thinking, reading and comprehension skills will improve. 
• Problem-Solving: Creative activities give ample opportunities to kids to solve problems, challenging a child's thinking, expanding his perspective and rewarding his initiatives. 
• Skill Development: Creative activities can help children build both fine motor skills and gross motor skills. Games such as volley ball, basketball, football etc., help children develop their gross motor skills, while painting and drawing strengthen their fine motor skills. 
• Bonding Time: When parents and older siblings work with children on creative projects and activities, they strengthen their relationship and bonding by spending quality and invested time together. A game of riddles or game of puzzles offers opportunities to talk, laugh and enjoy each other's company. 
• Teamwork: Creative group activities teach children how to work together toward a common goal, building both their individual self-confidence as well as their ability to contribute as a member of a team. For example, the game of cricket or football infuses team spirit in the kids and also builds self confidence in them.
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