in the kid days of summer: (cheap or free!) activities to do with kids
Thought some of you might enjoy reading about how I keep my dance students active, creative, engaged, and (mostly ;)) happy during the summer! Some of these things can also work in winter time, but I'll probably do another post on that when it comes around again.
So. You're a babysitter. Or a daycare provider. Or a stay-at-home mom. Or a cool older sibling. WHATEVER: You've got kids around and nothing to do, they're driving you nuts and vice versa. Here. Use this list. Add on to it in the comments, if you can. Write each idea down on a post-it, crumple it up and put it in the "Not Bored Anymore" jar. Print off the list and hang it on the fridge, crossing each off as you go. Try it out, and let me know how it goes!
Supplies needed: music with options to pause/play, remote (optional) For freeze dance, I always remind my kids what the two rules are: Stop dancing when the music starts, and no talking! If you're talking, you can't hear the music turn off or on. It's way more fun if you can join in and dance too-- for this you'll need a remote. If you've got more than one kid, it's fine if you just stand near your iPod/computer and hit pause. I love doing this outside, but it's perfect for a rainy day, too. Skills practiced: Spacial awareness, rhythm, listening, tempo, balance Tip: Give the kids a few long dance sessions (10 seconds), then hit pause every two seconds a few times-- it cracks them up!
Supplies needed: Ice cubes (bagged or in a tray) OR marshmallows (cold) I try starting this with a story. Like "Oh my GOSH, you won't believe what I found! Cloud seeds! We have to plant them to make clouds grow!(if I'm using ice cubes, I tell them they're diamonds)" The kids love telling adults they're wrong. I started using ice cubes instead of marshmallows when the heat melted the bag into a huge blob, but as long as they are cold (stick them in the freezer), they work fine. Have the kids sit on their bum with legs crossed (crisscross applesauce) and tell them you're playing a game to see who can hold the ice cube or marshmallow on their head the longest. HELLO quiet, still children. Where have you been all my life?! Then tell them to try standing up without losing it. Give them challenges-- "Try to balance the ice cube on your elbow while standing on one foot! How would you carry the ice cube around on your back? Your belly? Your shoulder?" Ask silly things too, they love finding solutions. "Balance it on your nose! Your bum! What about your knee? Can you hop around without it falling off?" Skills practiced: Body awareness, balance, patience, calming their body, acceptable vs. unacceptable reactions (tantrums when marshmallow won't balance)
Supplies needed: Hula hoops space to play Possibilities are endless here. Use them as hoops to jump through, as a big bubble wand (you'll need a kiddie pool and soap for that), or try to race them (tossing them so they spin forward). You can also make a caterpillar line if you've got more than two-- everyone stands in the middle of their hoop and holds on to the hoop of the person in front of them. Hula hoops are awesome for quiet time, too. Balanced on a few bar stools, they make the perfect fort ceiling. Skills practiced: Spacial awareness, patience, hand-eye coordination
Supplies Needed: Bubbles, fan (optional)
So I learned the hard way that the easiest way for a group of kids to play in bubbles is to either:
- Not buy a cheap bubble machine that is going to break the first day and/or
- Use a fan.
I turn on the ceiling fans to keep the bubbles down towards the kiddos, and then I used a standing fan on the side to get the bubbles everywhere. I usually have a little bit of a mess from the bubble liquid in front of the fan from the wand slopping. Other than that, clean up is pretty much nonexistent. Before we play with the actual bubbles, I have the kids dance to a slow-ish song as I call out questions. It's important here for them to understand that I will ask with my voice, but they need to respond with their bodies. Questions I like: What would you look like if you were....
-floating on top of a bubble?
-inside a bubble?
-in a big bubble with the whole class (/with all these friends)?
-a bubble yourself?
Tip:This is a great activity to do if you have kids in wheelchairs or something similar. I push the wheelchair around the space and have the child "pop" all the other kids (pretending to be bubbles).
\Then I sit beside a fan with the bubble wand towards the outside edge, then have the kids spread out and pop the bubbles with certain body parts-- "Pop the bubbles with your elbows! Head! Nose! Bottom of your foot! Ankle! Shoulder!" Younger ones need more generalized instructions, like arms and legs vs. elbows and ankles. It's also fun to use specific movements to pop the bubbles (froggy jumps, big kicks/battements, bunny hops, crabwalks, etc)
Skills practiced: Spacial awareness, body parts, imagination, distance, strength
Hope this helps with playtime, for both you and the kids! It seems to wear them out; I've had great results with doing these activities after snack/lunch and before nap time. Freeze dance is the only game you really need music for, but everything seems to go a lot more smoothly if you've got fun music playing for any of the above activities. Let me know if you're interested in other games we like to play in Creative Movement!
So I learned the hard way that the easiest way for a group of kids to play in bubbles is to either:
- Not buy a cheap bubble machine that is going to break the first day and/or
- Use a fan.
I turn on the ceiling fans to keep the bubbles down towards the kiddos, and then I used a standing fan on the side to get the bubbles everywhere. I usually have a little bit of a mess from the bubble liquid in front of the fan from the wand slopping. Other than that, clean up is pretty much nonexistent. Before we play with the actual bubbles, I have the kids dance to a slow-ish song as I call out questions. It's important here for them to understand that I will ask with my voice, but they need to respond with their bodies. Questions I like: What would you look like if you were....
-floating on top of a bubble?
-inside a bubble?
-in a big bubble with the whole class (/with all these friends)?
-a bubble yourself?
Tip:This is a great activity to do if you have kids in wheelchairs or something similar. I push the wheelchair around the space and have the child "pop" all the other kids (pretending to be bubbles).
\Then I sit beside a fan with the bubble wand towards the outside edge, then have the kids spread out and pop the bubbles with certain body parts-- "Pop the bubbles with your elbows! Head! Nose! Bottom of your foot! Ankle! Shoulder!" Younger ones need more generalized instructions, like arms and legs vs. elbows and ankles. It's also fun to use specific movements to pop the bubbles (froggy jumps, big kicks/battements, bunny hops, crabwalks, etc)
Skills practiced: Spacial awareness, body parts, imagination, distance, strength
Hope this helps with playtime, for both you and the kids! It seems to wear them out; I've had great results with doing these activities after snack/lunch and before nap time. Freeze dance is the only game you really need music for, but everything seems to go a lot more smoothly if you've got fun music playing for any of the above activities. Let me know if you're interested in other games we like to play in Creative Movement!
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