When it comes to summertime it’s important to generate fun activities that your kids can do and learn from. The best activities that don’t even feel like learning experiences at all, but still offer a great deal of teaching. Here are some fun things that Cassidy and I have done over the last week and she’s been getting some lessons in science, math and literature.
Water Craft
Have a bathtub or a kiddie pool? Gather up the following items:
- Key
- Drinking Straw
- Rock
- Leaf
- Inflatable Ball
- Plastic Spoon
- Hard Doll
Fill the bathtub or the kiddie pool up with water, set your kiddo up so they can enjoy the water play and hand them the items. Ask them to tell you which ones sink or float. See if they can guess what the items will do before they put them into the water. Then have them test their theories and tell you the results.
It’s a basic science experiment, but it’s worth at least an hour’s amount of fun and the water play they get to indulge in won’t hurt either. If your kiddie pool is outdoors, be sure to wear plenty of sunscreen.
Fun with Flowers
This is another great and fun activity and your little ones will appreciate it. Go to the store and pick up some different food colorings. Try for at least three and select primary colors if you can find them; while you are out, pick up some white flowers – you can get white daisies or roses – it doesn’t matter so much on the type of flower so much as that they must be white flowers.
Pick three different vases and add water to them. Have your child poor the different food colorings – one color to one vase and then add some white flowers to each vase. This is going to be both about patience and experimentation – have your child check the flowers each day and see what happens. Ask them to try and explain to you why they think it happened.
Fun With Dirt
This last one is a lot of fun and my daughter was pretty tickled by the results. Again, this is for young kids, get a clear plastic cup and fill it about halfway with some potting soil. Take a popcorn kernel and have your child push it down into the dirt so that it is below the soil line. Now – each day have your son or daughter add a little bit of water to the cup each day. Make sure the soil never gets dry and don’t over water. Have your child check the cup each day as they water it – and in a week – they’ll get a surprise.