10 Summer Activity Ideas for Kids, Teens, and Parents: What Am I Supposed To Do This Summer??
The kids are at home (still), summer camps are maybe re-opening, and all the ways you normally fill your summer time look a lot different, thanks to COVID.
So, what’s a parent to do?
This week, we put together a list of some ways to fill up summer - while still building skills for anxiety management, frustration tolerance, and relationship building (kind of the three big things we most care about here at Compassionate Counseling St. Louis!)
Recommendations Across the Board:
We love the idea of using summer as a time to work on bigger, more free form activities as a family. Of course, many times you’ll be busy with work and stuff at home - but how you set up activities as a parent can be really helpful for setting your kids up, then, for success.
And, we definitely encourage you to give your kids responsibilities with these activities, too. Collaborate on ideas as a family, when possible. Encourage independence while still keeping an eye on things, and tailor this to their age and developmental level.
10 Summer Activity Ideas for Kids, Teens, and Parents:
Plant a Garden
It’s not too late to start planting! Work with your family to figure out flowers and vegetables to grow. The older your child is, the more independence you can give them, but it’s so nice to have this thing you take care of regularly, and you reap some pretty delicious rewards.
Create an Obstacle Course
Get creative with this one. You can even make an inside obstacle course when it’s rainy out! Climb over chairs, do jumping jacks at a stop point, hop in and out of hula hoops, toss a water balloon as high as you can. For anxious kids, it may be overwhelming to be timed - but it’s also a great way to practice anxiety management.
Cooking Club
Assign different nights to different kids and family members. With your younger children, you’ll want to do a lot more hands on prep, but pre-teens and teens may be able to handle the chopping and cooking by themselves. You can even set a theme for the week: All comfort food one week, food from Mexico the next, grill week, etc. Everyone should refrain from criticism, and offer lots of praise of what you like. For picky eaters, you’ll still want to give them their preferred food, but have them make something within the theme for the whole family, even if they say they don’t want to eat it.
Afternoon Movies
My favorite thing to do in summer is check out a movie in the afternoon. With coronavirus, we’re not able to go to the movie theaters - so why not bring the theater experience to you? Turn off the lights after lunch, make popcorn, and get cozy with a blanket. If you can take time off from work, even better.
Yoga and Meditation Time
Relaxation skills work so much better when you use them really regularly. Set up a yoga and/or meditation practice for the whole family, once or twice a week. There are tons of free videos on youtube.
Museum Tours - Online!
Many museums are offering free online tours during the pandemic. Take a virtual field trip as a family. Attention time may vary based on age, so it’s also really helpful to look at consider creating an activity to accompany these tours. Maybe go on an online tour of an art museum, and then everyone does a sketch of someone in the family (including the family pet!)
Water Sports
Summer is time for water play! Beyond the regular water fight and sprinkler set up - classics - you can add in a water balloon toss, water painting the driveway with sponges, and the water bucket game. To set up, divide in to two teams. Each team has two buckets - one at the start, and one at the end of the yard. Fill up one bucket with water, get big sponges, and each team runs back and forth, trying to fill up their far bucket first by squeezing out that sponge, running back to get their sponge all soaked, and then doing it again.
Family Olympics
You can find a ton of “Minute to Win It” challenges online. I love when every family member suggests one or two competitions. Try competing to make the tallest marshmallow tower, timing who can hop on one foot the longest, and seeing who can army crawl to the other side of the room the fastest.
Scavenger Hunts
When you’re able to walk outside, have your kids look for specific items. Everyone goes on the nature scavenger hunt and has to find, for example, something red, something soft, something hard, and something that they think is really interesting. Or set up a scavenger hunt inside with clues, and hide certain fun toys or treats around the house. If you have older kids and younger kids, have your pre-teens or teens hide the items and come up with clues.
Team Meeting: Get Suggestions From the Kids
Ultimately, the best resource for you is going to be your own children. Set up a family meeting and talk about how this summer is going to feel so different from any other summer, and share that you would love their help to come up with ideas of fun things to do. Make some suggestions (share this list!) and be open to what your kids say. And share any awesome ideas with us!
Ultimately, even when summer doesn’t look the way we thought it would, we’re going to get through it. We have to.
It’s tough, and it’s nowhere near as relaxing as a summer away from school. Our stress levels are still rising. Anxiety and anger are at all time highs.
But as a family, you’re going to get through this tough period - and if you can use some fun, big activities to get through it, your children are going to have great memories of this stressful time.
If you need extra support, consider counseling.
Not every family needs therapy. But sometimes, it can feel super helpful to bring an outside person into the fold and get an expert opinion on your child’s behaviors, emotions, and your family dynamic. Our therapists are trained anxiety specialists, meaning we work with tons of kids, teens, and college students with overwhelming anxiety. We’re happy to talk with you to see if you and your family are at that point where you need some help. Schedule a free phone consult right here.
Kelsey Torgerson Dunn, MSW, LCSW specializes in child and adolescent anxiety counseling, and is the owner of Compassionate Counseling St. Louis.
Curious to hear more, or are wondering if an increase in therapy is something you should consider? Compassionate Counseling St. Louis provides specialized anxiety and anger management therapy for kids, teens, and college students. We work in Clayton, MO and serve kids, teens, and college students throughout St. Louis City, St. Louis County, Ladue, University City, Town and Country, Webster Groves, Creve Coeur, Kirkwood, Richmond Heights, and Brentwood. You can set up your free phone screening to see if we’re a good fit for your needs right on our website.
Thumbnail Image Credit: Jude Beck