Summer Fun with kids...

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The public schools will soon be on summer break, and most homeschoolers are getting ready to shut things down for the summer too, so how do you help make the summer fun for your kids???

We have a bit of a schedule. While they do their normal chores every day, and do some school work each day also, the other things we do switch each day. We have a pool which keeps them pretty occupied each day also!!

Monday is major work day. This is when we will do any big projects and do a thorough cleaning of the house. Once this is accomplished, Tuesday is "Fun Day." We try to think up something different to do each Tuesday. We might go to the beach, go rollerblading, on a picnic, to the pool, a movie, go bowling, or go to a park or museum close by. We try not to spend much money. The kids love these fun days, and will work very hard on Monday to get to go!! Wednesday is library day, I am in charge of the summer reading program which is held every other week, and on the weeks we don't do it, we usually still go to the library and clean, or do volunteer work. Thursday we usually go shopping for groceries. Since Cale does not work on Friday our weekend is 3 days long, and who knows what we might do????

I love summer!!!!

-- Melissa in SE Ohio (me@home.net), April 26, 2002

Answers

even when we lived in outer suburbia, my kiddos each had their own summer garden..they chose and planted their own seeds, did all the tending, etc. and truly enjoyed daily checking on the progress (or lack of it....a favorite summer place was the zoo..we used to go once a week..that way we could spend alot of time at each part instead of a whirlwind tour of the entire place..BTW, in those days the St. Louis zoo was free..I think it still is.. we also used to have picnics on the lawn....it didn't matter that we only went a few feet outside, LOL it was stil fun packing up the baskets and spreading out blankets, etc.....when the kids were small, i used to get second hand paint brushes and old buckets,,I'd fill the buckets with water and let the kids "paint " the house....for some reason they loved it! summertime was always the time for chalk drawings on the sidewalk or the driveway..they would spend hours and hours drawing to their hearts content....cheap and easy fun! Old sheets set up like tents in the yard are always fun too..yard sale stuff goes a long way over the summer months..the kids used to make tents and then bring out books, etc. and spend the day there....scavenger hunts when the kids are older are always fun...make a list of common items to be found around your property..crow feather, black rock, pine cone, purple wild flower, 15 pine needles, whatever....come lunch time, all kids gather with their treasures at the kitchen table and add them up..winner gets to choose and help make family's desert for that evening.....I MISS having a bunch of little guys around!!!! Summer can be so much FUN!!!!!

-- lesley (martchas@bellsouth.net), April 26, 2002.

We do almost the same thing, but I must say I like your schedule! I may try that this summer. I don't believe in having structured things all summer long. This summer the only structured activity will be Vacation Bible school. We are also going to work on a different scout badge each week.

We have a fire circle on the farm and will try to do different kinds of cooking there, maybe camp out a little if we can stand the 'squitos.

I hope to do some hiking--that's free.

They will also spend a little time each day working on some school things they struggle with--for one it is handwriting. All will spend some time doing Math computer games.

We do the summer reading program but find the summer activity/learning programs too jammed.

A few of us mothers are going to host arts and crafts afternoons a few times this summer and meet at the park at the lake for play.

-- Ann Markson (tngreenacres@hotmail.com), April 26, 2002.


Summer Break? What's That? The kids will go to summer camp at school all summer. They do get two weeks off at the end of summer, where they will probably have to go too my moms. I am going to try to fenagle a couple of days off to go somewhere. I have used most of my vacation time this winter on the kids being sick. I guess it is business as usual.

-- Melinda (speciallady104@hotmail.com), April 26, 2002.

Well my kids are all grown and doing there own thing. But in the summer here on our homestead, there is always kids. I have a in ground pool. Quite lg. and ten foot deep at one end. This year we put in a slide. I have the pool fenced. The rules are all children must call on phone for permission. If they can't swim, they must have life jackets on. I always stay out there with them. I have a nice comfy swing I sit in, I am a excellent swimmer. Now this is the only pool for miles. It cost quite a bit to maintain, But the enjoyment that every one has had, it has been worth it. I also carrie a big insurance policy on the pool. In case of accidents. But so far over 14 years, we have never had any trouble.

-- Irene texas (tkorsborn@cs.com), April 26, 2002.

Lesley I love all of your ideas! My kids do most all of them. We like tohit the yard salea too. Brady built a tee-pee last year out of long poles, we left it there and all he has to do is recover it. They also have a log cabin.

The kids have lots of friends over too, and they hike and horseback ride a lot. Sometimes it is like a zoo!! But I like having lots of kids, only stipulation, they all have to work and do the chores just like the ones that live here. They don't mind and usually beg to come back. The most we ever had, all night was 24 girls for an all night swim/slumber party!!!! Took a while to recover from that one!!!

Also Cale and I usually have a big party every few years with a band, and a few hundred people. It is a lot of work, but we really look forward to it and everyone loves to come... I think we may do it this summer, we haven't reserved a band yet though, so we had better get on that soon...

-- Melissa in SE Ohio (me@home.net), April 26, 2002.



My poor child was just as weird as I was--ha!-----we lived in the country way out in the boonies on a dead end road--we were the last house on the road---when my daughter was young----

She use to paint rocks!!!! Yes /she was an artist & she painted rocks- -then she would have a lemon aid stand----now/ we got about one car a month-down our road--(usually some one lost--or if we could sucker the mail man!!)-ha!-but it kept her really busy----when I thought she was giveing up---- I'd say---listen do I hear a car???????? We drank a lot of lemon aid /as we listened for a lot of cars-----ha!!

Sometimes when I knew a friend from the city was comming to visit-- I'd tell the friend /that my daughter would be haveing an art sale when she arrived--- & to come thirsty/ as she would also be selling lemon aid-----my daughter would be soooo excited/ as some times she would sell out-! ha!

This is the same small daughter who would sing & dance with me/ if someone would shine a flash light on us!! ha!

My daughter now has two small boys & a baby----I have taught the boys to paint rocks---& have a lemon aid stand---we have soo much fun--- but they live in town--which really has helped with business!! ha!

All of us /will break out into a song/ or dance if someone /by mistake puts a flash light on us!!! ha!!

Life is way tooo short to not have a lot of fun along the way--even painting rocks!!!

I wonder if I need to buy more paint??????? And batteries for the flashlight?????? ha!---Sonda

-- Sonda in Ks. (sgbruce@birch.net), April 26, 2002.


We usually make our blanket tents in the living room,and have a picnic and watch a movie under there.Or make a campfire by the pond,and fish all night.Sometimes we take a large piece of plastic,spray it down with the hose and use it for a slip-n-slide.

Oh,making homemade ice cream on the porch in the evenings is fun. We re-paint the henhouse every year with an outlandish mural by the kids...neighbors get a kick out of this.Or just put old clothes on the kiddos and fingerpaint outside.

Oh,can't forget the squirtgun fights...those get downright ruthless at times.Even 'mom'gets no mercy from the dousing.Is nothing sacred anymore?? lol

I love the idea of scavenger hunts,we'll have to try that!

-- Johna (in central TX) (marcnjohna@aol.com), April 26, 2002.


My kids love the slip and slide too. They have a long piece of plastic that they leave set up all summer. Makes a big mud hole and kills all the grass, but it always grows back... When things get really interesting is when they get a bottle of dish soap to help slick it up a bit... Wow, I don't know how they keep from breaking bones!!! They stick those foam "noodles" around the bottom to make a little "pool" to land in. They have a lot of fun with that piece of plastic!!!

-- Melissa in SE Ohio (me@home.net), April 27, 2002.

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