One of my favourite summer activities when I was a kid was pulling out a tarp, covering it with soap and water and seeing if we could slide all the way to the end. Summer is a great time to get the kids outside and active. The longer days and warm nights should be utilised and enjoyed! In the evenings, when the sun isn't as harsh, get the kids outside and get moving! There are some fantastic, cost-effective activities that the whole family can enjoy!

Scavenger Hunt

Hide items around the yard and have the kids work together to find them. Place an emphasis on the team work! You can make it as easy or as hard as you like. You can also sneak in a few outdoor chores that they need to complete and hints or clues that will lead them to the items. Have a fun reward at the end – water balloons, an ice block or some craft stuff!

Get Dirty

Choose a patch in the yard and have the kids help you prepare it for a garden. Let them choose what they'd like to plant and get them involved in raising the seeds! They'll love the reward of eating something they've grown themselves!

Go For A Picnic

Let the kids choose the food (Fairy bread, cupcakes, sausage sandwiches) and have a kids/fairy/teddy bear picnic. Get them involved in making the food and let them choose where you go for your picnic

Turn On The Sprinklers

Let them run around under the sprinkler. Simple, cheap and the kids will be entertained for hours. Give them a few balloons and fill them up with water. Play catch, trying to make the balloon last as long as possible without bursting.

SHARK!

Did you ever jump from couch to couch, pretending that the floor was lava? Shark is similar, except outdoors. It's great for kids parties or family barbeques. Put hoola hoops or beach towels on the ground and choose one kid to be a shark. The hoola hoops act as a 'den' or 'haven' for the fish. When the shark calls "Fishie, fishie, fishie, cross my ocean" the fish have to find a new den without the shark catching them. If they're caught, they become a shark as well. The last fish remaining is the first shark in the next round.

Get Creative

Purchase some butchers paper and acryllic poster paint and lay it out on a tarp in the back yard. Let them walk through the paint, so their footprints create the artwork… use their imagination! They'll have a blast. Then get the hose out and they can have a water fight to get the paint off before they come in the house. 

There's hundreds of things for kids to do outside. The wetter, messier and dirtier – the better! Kids will love being able to run free with the hose. They have unbelievable imaginations if left to think of ways to entertain themselves! It's sad that increasingly sedentary lifestyles are seeing kids less able to entertain themselves. Unplug the TV and encourage them to think! They'll have more fun and I can guarantee they'll sleep well from all the exercise, too! Remember to keep up the fluids and sunprotection though! 

What were your favourite activies in the summer? Were you left to entertain yourself, but still found that you had a blast? 

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Lucy Gilkison

Lucy Gilkison is a 19 year old nursing student living in Sydney, Australia. She aspires to work in pediatrics/adolescent mental health when she graduates. Spending most of her time reading or writing, she thrives on any opportunity to build on her ideas and opinions. Currently recovering from severe depression, bulimia nervosa and an anxiety disorder, she's passionate about raising awareness of mental health and reducing the stigma.

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