6 Educational Activities Kids Will Actually Like
June 15, 2022
If you were to ask your kids what they’re most excited about for summer vacation, it’s very possible that educational activities might not even make the list. School may be out, but that doesn’t mean the learning has to end. At Holly Springs Pediatrics, we understand the importance of education all year round. These activities will get their brains and bodies moving without them realizing it! Try out these six learning activities for a family-fun summer:
- Cook a Family Dinner
Start a weekly tradition of cooking family dinner together this summer. Knowing your way around the kitchen is a skill most schools won’t teach your child. Making dinner together will allow you to teach fun cooking techniques while simultaneously introducing your kids to new foods. This is a great way to open up their brains and palette, especially if you have a picky eater on your hands! You can try a new recipe each week, rate them after each meal and start compiling them into your own cookbook. At the end of the summer, you’ll be able to look back at all the new food they tried and what you created together!
- Make an Obstacle Course
This is a fun one that’s sure to make those wheels in their heads start turning! Task your children with building an obstacle course, or you can build one for them and watch them try to safely navigate through it. Whether it’s indoors or outdoors, it’s bound to serve as a huge problem-solving activity for your kids. You could even make it a friendly competition and race to see who gets to the finish line first!
- Create a Word Search
If your children are just learning to read and write, a word search can vastly help their spelling. Completing a puzzle each day is also a great way to kickstart your morning. Next time you’re brainstorming how to spend your summer afternoon, build a word search puzzle for your kids compiled with fun activities you already know they enjoy. Whichever word they find first is what you’ll go do as a family together!
Or you could make it even more educational by filling the puzzle with their previous vocabulary words, and once the word search is completed, your child has the power to schedule the day. There’s nothing wrong with a little healthy bribery!
- Start a Summer Journal
Having a summer journal is another great tactic for improving writing skills. Journaling has many benefits, even if it’s only for 10 minutes a day. It can serve as a daily activity each day of the summer, or if you’re taking a family trip, it can become a vacation journal. Whichever way you decide to introduce this activity into your summer, it will be a great educational tool as well as a fun memory to look back on years from now.
- Decorate a T-Shirt
Letting your children express themselves creatively is so important. Educational activities don’t have to be strictly reading or writing – sometimes tapping into your artistic side can be equally beneficial. Have a t-shirt decorating day with your kids where they can draw or paint and wear their creations proudly. Who knows, you may have a real artist on your hands!
- Watch a Documentary
It’s a no-brainer that suggesting television will likely earn you a parent-of-the-year award. We all need a break sometimes, especially as parents, but there’s no need to feel wrong about that. With all the different streaming platforms at our fingertips, tons of kid-friendly documentaries are available these days. TV can be educational too! Save this activity for a rainy day.
As you can see, there are more educational activities for kids besides their summer reading. A healthy, growing mind is just as important as a healthy, growing body. All of our providers want to be a resource for you and your children. Contact us today for more advice on educational activities.