Wednesday, June 12, 2013

101 Things to do with your kids this summer!

I found this on-line and thought it was wonderful!  Just a few ideas for you.  Enjoy!
 




1. Sort and match the socks from the laundry.

2. Count the number of times your dog fetches a ball/frisbee.

3. Pick up seashells at the beach, then sort and count them.

4. Visit www.allaboutbirds.com and find birds that live near you. Look at photos and listen to their calls.

5. Describe the items of laundry you are folding - color, size, person it belongs to.

6. Ask your kiddo to chew each bite 10 times and count.

7. Play Chutes and Ladders.

8. Draw lines on paper (straight, curvy and jagged) and have your child cut on the lines.

9. Ride bikes together.

10. Ask your child to pick up a number of toys before you count to 10.

11. Build something with Legos or blocks.

12. Make faces at your kiddo and ask her what she thinks you are feeling.

13. Make a 4x4 grid on paper. Give your child a number of different items (such as coins, buttons). Ask him to put one item in each square. Older children can put like items together to make a graph.

14. Visit the library and go to the nonfiction section. Find a few books on a subject in which your child has interest.

15. Collect leaves and identify them.

16. Make a nature scavenger hunt list (rock, pointy leaf, bug, etc.) and go on a nature hunt.

17. Blow bubbles.

18. Play "Mother, May I?" to practice gross motor skills.

19. Have running races with friends or siblings.

20. Play games with dice - help her learn to recognize the patterns of dots instead of having to count.

21. Practice name writing...all upper case, all lower case, with an initial upper case letter.

22. Write your last name with a yellow highlighter then have your child trace it.

23. Count something that you are cooking or eating - "How many strawberries have you eaten?" or "How many green beans are going in the pot?"

24. Gather a collection of similar small toys (Legos, matchbox cars, Littlest Pet Shop, etc.) and have him count the toys.

25. Look at family photos and practice family words - not only the usual ones (mother, sister, etc.) but also things like aunt, uncle, cousin, grandmother.

26. Teach your child to write the names of siblings and friends.

27. Give your kiddo a list of phone numbers and your cell phone (turned off) and have him practice dialing the right numbers.

28. Practice "Stop, Drop & Roll".

29. Have a family fire drill.

30. Talk about what 911 is for and when to use it.

31. Climb - a ladder, a tree, on the play set, at the park.

32. Begin teaching her how to tie her shoes.

33. Look through binoculars.

34. Use a magnifying glass with a book or a newspaper.

35. Read a story, then have him tell you what happened at the beginning, in the middle and at the end.

36. Have her retell a familiar fairy tale.

37. Recite nursery rhymes -" Jack and Jill," "Humpty Dumpty."

38. Play school and let your child be the teacher.

39. Get out the dress up box. Let her tell you a story about how you are dressed.

40. Sing "Mary Had a Little Lamb".

41. Give him three similar objects of different sizes (measuring spoons, blocks, stuffed animals) and have him put them in order from smallest to largest.

42. Reenact a familiar story/fairy tale with puppets or stuffed animals.

43. Count how many steps - up the stairs, from the car to the door, from the kitchen to the bedroom, etc.

44. Listen to an audio book in the car.

45. Bake cookies, letting her help measure and stir.

46. Have a family taste test. Try something sweet, salty, sour and bitter.

47. Smell different spices and describe the smells.

48. Let your child help wash the car. Using a sponge helps them develop hand strength.

49. Ask what letter each item on his plate begins with.

50. Tell them a letter and ask what sound it makes.

51. Sing a song with the days of the week in order.

52. Have her sort small items by color, size or shape.

53. Play with playdough; have them sculpt a masterpiece!

54. Practice snipping with scissors.

55. Read letters on box labels at the grocery store.

56. Have him sort the groceries in the cart into healthy and not-so-healthy piles.

57. Read a book together. Follow along with your finger to teach that writing goes from left to right, top to bottom.

58. Play "I Spy" using colors or shapes - "I spy...something that is a circle."

59. Find 10 things in your house that are a given shape.

60. In the produce section at the grocery store, have your child tell you the color of each fruit or vegetable.

61. Swing at the park/in the backyard, teaching her to pump her legs.

62. Have a skipping race around the house.

63. Ask your child to write various letters in the sandbox or at the beach.

64. Using a paintbrush and water, paint letters on your sidewalk or driveway or at the pool.

65. Count cars as they pass you on the highway.

66. Tell the colors of the passing cars.

67. Have your child count how long he can do certain things - hold his breath, stand on one foot, jump up and down, etc.

68. Say each letter and ask her to give you an animal that starts with that letter.

69. Find an anthill and look at the ants with a magnifying glass.

70. Capture some bugs and look closely at them.

71. Look at the stars at night - download an astronomy app!

72. Find 10 of the same small item (coins, crayons, paper clips). Make two piles, then ask which has more or which has less. Ask for an addition sentence describing your piles, for example, 2 + 4 = 6.

73. Sing the ABCs three times.

74. Sing Happy Birthday twice to teach her how long to wash hands.

75. Practice writing his first name five times.

76. Play a game of dominoes.

77. Paint an outside scene with watercolors.

78. Pretend to be rabbits and hop around on two feet.

79. Pretend to be flamingos and balance on one foot.

80. Ride a pretend horse and practice galloping.

81. Have him spell his first name out loud for you.

82. Make a pattern with snack food - rainbow goldfish or Chex Mix work well.

83. Make a pattern with coins; ask her to tell you the pattern.

84. Have him make an AB pattern. Then AAB, ABB, ABC, AABB, etc.

85. Count by 10s to 100, by 5s to 100, or by 2s to 30.

86. Count to 50.

87. Check out the Bob books or books by Margaret Hillert at the library.

88. Have your kiddo tell you the letters in a newspaper headline or a book title.

89. Make a list of words that start with a given letter.

90. Write upper case ABCs and then lower case ABCs.

91. Play a number card game like War or Go Fish!

92. While driving, have him tell you the letters he sees on signs.

93. Look at the calendar and read/count the numbers.

94. Count backwards from 10 to zero or 20 to zero.

95. Read a simple map together (ones from tourist destinations are easy and colorful).

96. Ask what sound a given letter makes.

97. Use chopsticks to pick up cotton balls or pompoms.

98. Blow through a straw.

99. Draw a person and color it.

100. Plant a seed and nurture it.

101. Write numbers 0-10 on lined paper.