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Summer boredom help


MSNative
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I started the summer full of energy and organization. We had a plan - a screen free (except for math and programming) summer of fun! 3 weeks in and now everything seems old. I still have a few standbys that work - pool, hiking, get togethers with friends, etc. but I have to admit my kids are the B word - Bored! They haven't come up and said that yet since I will give them chores if they do but they are starting to get a little short with each other. I am not one who believes I should entertain my kids all day. I'd love to tell them to go outside and not come back til dinner. That works for a few hours but then they are back to being bored and getting on each other's nerves. One problem - no other kids out in the neighborhood. I'd love some ideas that you have for day to day summer enrichment, entertainment, education, etc. FYI - my kid are 8-14 years old.

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Carboard boxes--and lots of them. Raid the pantry, linen closet, recycling and garage for all the cardboard chutes, tubes, cartons, rolls and boxes that you have lying around--Next time you're getting groceries, ask for paper bags.

 

Give them all the cardboard that you manage to find, all the art supplies you have on hand and ask them to put on a play. See what they come up with.

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At that age, my boys were start the summer by making a Summer List. They'd list things they wanted to do during the summer, and we'd tick off items all summer long.

 

They would do the library reading program, and thereby earned children's theater tickets, so we'd do that.

Pool 3-5 times a week

Bowling

Get a Slurpee (free coupon from above library program)

Movies (summer freebies and dollar movies--we don't have that here, but it's big in Dallas--or was, anyway)

Creek walking with Dad

Park

Mini-aquarium

Arboretum (they had outdoor concerts on Fridays in Dallas and we'd take a picnic)

walk around the dam and the lake nearby

 

They scrubbed ancient coins with their dad, and used the metal detector with him, too.

 

We had a lot of cheap fun those days. There were neighborhood kids, too.

 

Dd doesn't have anyone nearby. We have to arrange everything, and I have to work in the middle of the day. We end up watching Netflix--series, like LOST or Call the Midwife, or Terra Nova. She reads a lot. We make a library run every week or two. We also vacation for two weeks, and she goes with her dad to our house in the Northern Neck area of VA, where they bowl, shop, go to an amusement park/water park, do yard work, go to the pool in the neighborhood (we don't have one here that's free so it's a treat).

 

Anyway, maybe they can list some things--and maybe use some allowance or other gift $ for some activity kits or a video camera (make movies) or Legos, etc.

 

 

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