Of course, all of those fabulous family-friendly activities that are all around us and available in the Summer months apply to single parent families too, but when you are a solo parent looking for something to do with your child or children, you DO have some special considerations. For example, we may need activities that are easy on the budget, that take place during non-work hours, or ones where we can keep track of our children relatively easily if there is only one parent.
Many summer activities for kids happen during the day, but there are still plenty of evening and weekend activities (even if you do have to deal with more crowds.) Start by checking to see if your city or community has free summer events in parks and open spaces. Many towns and cities have free concerts, plays, and other activities on weeknights during the warm summer months. These can be great single parent family activities—you can take a picnic, and gather as a family or with other friends and be entertained for free.
While activities like fairs and festivals can be a lot of fun, they can also be expensive and crowded—this can make it hard for a single parent to both afford and keep track of children if he or she has more than one. Smaller gatherings like a farmer’s market or a neighborhood block party might be better suited or consider going to the fair or festival during the “off hours” when it won’t be so crowded.
Don’t overlook nature activities like picking berries, fishing, or riding bikes—these are great activities that may be relatively free and make for a great deal of “together time.” Finally, matinees are another great single parent family activity—whether it is at the movie theatre to get out of the heat, or a play, dance performance or puppet show—often matinees cost less and are geared toward a family demographic.