As summer rolls in, boredom can accompany it, and that can lead to excessive screen time. To prevent this, work with your kids to schedule screen free fun on a daily basis when they’re at home. Here are 15 screen free activities that spark creativity and connection, complete with easy instructions for each.
1. Build a Fort or Indoor Camp Site
Turn your living room into a magical fortress or camp ground! Use blankets, pillows, and chairs to create the structure. Drape the blankets over the furniture, secure them with clothespins, and add fairy lights or stuffed toys for extra charm.
2. At-Home Scavenger Hunt
Write a list of indoor and outdoor items for your kids to find, such as a red sock, a wooden spoon, or a flower of a certain color. Create fun clues (Chat GPT can help with that!) and have them work solo or as a team to find everything on the list. The final item, could be a coupon to the dollar store where they can pick a prize!
3. DIY Arts and Crafts
Set up a crafting station with paper, crayons, markers, glue, and scissors. Try projects like making paper masks, painting rocks, or creating homemade greeting cards. Need inspiration? Do a search on YouTube for DIY Crafts with Kids.
4. Bake and Decorate Cookies
Choose a simple recipe like cookies or cupcakes. Let the kids measure ingredients, mix the batter, and decorate the final product with icing and sprinkles. If you have littles, buy the premade dough and skip the measuring!
5. Dance Party
Create a playlist of upbeat songs and clear some floor space. Encourage the kids to show off their best moves, or teach them a simple dance routine. Make it a freeze dance by turning the music on and off and when it’s off they have to freeze in place.
6. Science Experiments
Make a baking soda volcano by mixing baking soda, vinegar, and food coloring in a bottle. Or, mix water and oil in a jar, then add food coloring for a mesmerizing lava lamp effect. YouTube is a great source for DIY Science Experiments, too!
7. Rainy Day Family Movie Marathon
Pick a theme, such as animated classics or superhero films, or let each child pick their favorite for everyone to watch. Gather blankets and popcorn, then settle in for a cozy movie day. In between movies, do exercise ABCs (A=Abs do five sit ups | B=Bench Press lay on your back and lift something heavy above your head | C = Calf Stretch, etc. Let your kids get creative with the ABCs!)
8. Create a Puppet Show
Craft puppets using socks or paper bags. Draw faces with markers or glue on buttons for eyes. Once the puppets are ready, hang a blanket between two chairs to create the theater stage and put on a show with a simple storyline.
9. DIY Obstacle Course
Use cushions, chairs, and tape to create a course. Kids can crawl under chairs, jump over pillows, and zigzag around obstacles. Time them for an added challenge.
10. Make Edible Slime
Use this recipe to make edible slime! 1. 2C mini marshmallows, melted in microwave (30-40 seconds) | 2. Mix 3T powdered sugar with 3T cornstarch | 3. Add 1/3 of the sugar/cornstarch mixture to the marshmallows and stir. Keep adding more until the mixture becomes thick like putty. To prevent stickiness, add a small amount of cooking oil (1/2t to start) and mix thoroughly. | 4. Decorate your slime by adding in food coloring, sprinkles or edible glitter. | 5. Store slime in an airtight container.
11. Board Game Championship
Each child picks one or more games and then makes a score card for win/lose/tie with each game listed. The group rotates through the games and keeps score of the winners of each game. The teachable moment is the fun of playing, not winning or losing.
12. Storytime Theater
Read a favorite book aloud and encourage your kids to act out scenes using props or costumes, or write a story together and then have the kids perform it.
13. All About Me Photo Album
Print photos of your child at different ages and let them decorate a scrapbook with stickers and captions. It’s a wonderful way to preserve memories together.
14. Indoor Bowling
Set up empty plastic water or soda bottles as pins and use a soft ball (not a softball!). Keep score to make it a friendly competition.
15. Make a Family Time Capsule
Let the kids collect small items, draw pictures, or write letters about their current lives. Seal everything in a container to be opened ten years later.
Try these activities this summer and see how much fun you can have without a screen in sight. These moments of creativity and connection will make the season all the more special!
Revved Up Kids has trained tens of thousands of children to recognize dangerous people, avoid unsafe situations, and escape attackers. Our training programs are available for boys and girls in K-12th grade, for parents, and for youth serving organizations. Contact us to discuss protecting the children you love from predators and violence, 678.526.3335.