It's summertime but Pilot, Storm Chaser, and Little One aren't off the hook. You may have heard of 'Summer Brain Drain'. If not, read this Summerlearning.org Supposedly, by the end of summer, children have lost a significant amount of knowledge and skills they learned through the previous school year. Some ways to prevent this from happening are to read, read, read, send them to camps, and/or sign up for local activities at museums or art studios. Or...you could teach them Latin! (My kids are actually enjoying it).
You may be thinking that most of this stuff is too expensive and you would be right; however, look into these things anyway and if you don't see any information on scholarships, ASK! We were able to get a scholarship to help pay for Pilot to attend a week-long flight academy.
Also, here where I live, there is a studio that offers all kinds of activities--drawing, jewelry making, dancing, music, photography, pottery, and more--with fees ranging anywhere between $8 and $135. Maybe your town offers something similar.
Finally, check out Pinterest and do web searches for science projects or other fun activities to do. I recently set up a bottle rocket launch for the kids that required a water bottle for each kid, a cork, a long nail, paper towels, rubberbands, baking soda, and vinegar (instructions at the end of this post).
You might even consider joining a mom's club (there are dad's clubs out there, too. If not, start one!). They offer activities throughout the month and most of the time they're free since you'll be going to the park or each other's home to do crafts, book clubs, etc. Also, you'll have a chance to catch some adult conversation while the kids are playing with their new friends. I am a member of MOMS Club which is an international organization with chapters all over the place. If you want to check them out go to MOMS Club
Here are some links I've found helpful for curing boredom...
Insect Coloring Pages
Phees Coloring Pages
Creative Kids at Home
DLTK's Summer Activities (Little One and I enjoyed the Dominos game)
Or you might...
Make an indoor or outdoor (or both) treasure hunt--use scraps of paper to write clues that will take the kids all over the house or yard. The treasure can be something simple like some pretty rocks (I got some tumbled crystals from a local nature store), a few pieces of candy, or maybe even a dollar for each child. If you are feeling particularly ambitious you can even make an antique looking map of the house/yard. All you do is tear the edges of a piece of paper so they're uneven, crumple it up, straighten it out again and sprinkle a little bit of cinnamon all over it, rub the cinnamon in using a napkin, and draw your map!
Instructions for bottle rockets...
The only thing I had a hard time with was finding cork that would fit snugly in the opening of the water bottle (Those marshmallow corks you might encounter at a hobby shop don't work, btw).
1st, cut a piece of paper towel into fourths, push a long nail through each piece of cork (one for each bottle) so that if you put the cork into the water bottle, the sharp end of the nail is pointing up. This is what will secure your water bottle to the ground after you turn it upside down.
2nd, spread a couple spoonfuls of baking soda across the middle of a section of paper towel. Then roll it up. Take one end of the roll and fold it over enough so that you can secure it to the roll with a rubberband. Using the pointy end of the nail to poke holes all around your fuel packet. Now you have your fuel. Set aside for a moment.
3rd, put 1/4 to 1/2 cup of vinegar into the water bottle.
4th, place your fuel into the water bottle (Don't drop it in!) rubberband end down. Fold the other end of the fuel over the lip of the bottle and secure it with the cork. Now you're ready.
5th, flip the bottle over and plug it into the ground. Step back and watch the bottle shoot into the sky! Beware if it doesn't work right away. It might just take a minute for the vinegar to saturate the fuel packet. If you are certain it's a dud, you might add more baking soda in your next attempt. You'll have to experiment.
I hope this helps! Happy Summer!
No comments:
Post a Comment