My husband and I have to work out entertainment on a very tight budget. I have two little boys, age 5 and 3. When my boys get the stir crazies, we take a walk to the closest park in the neighborhood. On the way, we use it as a learning experience. We look for special shapes, colors, textures, etc. There are endless possibilities to this game that we play on the way to the park. We play for a while and then we walk a different route home.
This is one of many different ways we get rid of the stir crazy boys. I hope this suggestion helps a lot. We save lots of money by doing it and they also get a learning experience as well.
By Lisa from Pekin, IL
Frugal living is nothing new to us as I was raised in a family of 11 kids and many foster children. We may have struggled because money was tight, but we never seemed to lack for fun things to do and there was always something going on that held our attention.
Every year before the last day of school, I obtain a copy of the coming year curriculum. I evaluate it and note any summer activities that will help my kids gain a healthy headstart.
If your kids are wanting something fun to do this summer, have them start their own paper. They can interview the neighbors that they know, and write stories about their own life.
Research shows many kids "slide" up to 30% during the summer months. Don't let that happen to you.
What can my grandson do to beat boredom this summer? He is 11 and is driving me crazy! I keep him in the daytime while his parents work. I won't let him play on the computer and he's tired of his Playstation games. (I refuse to buy him any more). Does anyone have any ideas? There aren't many kids his age that live close by for him to play with. Any ideas?
Here are several suggestions I can think of:
1. a scavenger hunt (the more difficult, the longer he stays busy!)
2. a nature walk (along a beach, in the woods, or a park are good choices)
I would recommend The American Boy's Handy Book or The Dangerous Book for Boys (links below). They have lots of outdoorsy and other really interesting activities. Is he a Boy Scout? Get him working on those merit badges! Also you could think about volunteering somewhere with him. Help him to find ways to use his time productively, not just to pass the time. Help him to learn a new skill or hobby that he can show for his time. Good luck!
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There are usually stores around where he can swap his Playstation games. He might try getting new games that way. Sometimes having a friend over is not really more work, but less work as they keep each other entertained. He can then play basketball, baseball, or ride bikes, etc.
It is vitally important in the development of boys to be forced to find their own amusement. My parents did me a great favor by kicking me out of the house, saying it's a crime to sit inside during nice weather, and boredom turned out to be very wonderful in that it made me notice my world. I went for rambles, I found new friends, I made things from the natural materials (I remember a placemat made of grass stems). Boot him out and tell him not to come back for four hours, and give him a watch to come home on time.
Oh to be a kid again and have the whole day to play! What sweetness!
Sure he will be pleased if you want to play something with him and that's fine for some times but of course you have your own things to do too.
I dont recall ever being bored as a kid. If we ever complained Mom would say 'well if youre bored you can always go to the garden and hoe" It didnt take us long to find something that would make us happier.
Of course we lived in the country and I played for so many hours all by myself. Never got lonely. And my Mom just wasnt a lot of fun anyway.
I would think any kid could find a million things to explore.
Even in the city. And at home or at least in the neighborhood. I dont know where you live.
Some activity books like Annaid suggests. Or ask him to go out and study something. You pick or he picks. And ask him to find 20 things he can say about it. Or as many things as he can find.
I could spend hours watching a spider even. Show him how amazing his world is if he begins to look at it. Discovery is such a wonderful thing for humans and especially kids.
This is such a precious time for him, if only he can discover that. Many of us would kill to have the whole day to play just as we choose. All kids are incredibly creative with even the simplest of materials.
Let him find out, expand his mind, his world. What a lucky young man.
Go to the library. Look for books to read or books that show you how to make stuff. I think there are books that show you how to make things with duct tape--he might like that.
Volunteer at an animal shelter or soup kitchen together.
Go to garage sales on Fridays.
Play board games.
Let him have some friends over.
Teach him how to cook a simple meal, then he can make it for his parents later that week.
A lot of learning can happen on a computer, especially with the internet. I don't understand why his parents let him play video games but not use a computer. If it's inappropriate content they're worried about, there are filters available to help avoid that stuff. I used a computer program called Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing to learn to type when I was about that age and that ability served me well through high school, college, and now as a teacher.
Volunteer at local hospital or nursing home, etc.
"Rent" videos, play station games and the like at your local library free of charge
Condition for a sport-swim, run, lift weightd at your local school
find FREE entertainment in your neighborhood
Adopt an area roadway near your home and pick up the trash
Do something nice for a neighbor (walk the dog, weed their flower beds)
READ-I have my children read and write essays, book reports, etc and then "pay" them with spending money for new school cloths, Toss in a few treats too-like movies, icecreams, etc to make it less like school
Lear to cook-select a few dishes he enjoys eating. A woman loves a man who cah cook
Teach him to do laundry and to iron his own clothes
Have him wash your car
Learn a new craft
Have him clean your house-teach him the right way to do things (and then send him over to my house!)
Have fun with it and good luck!
What to do for free and fun during summer? Can't go wrong with reading and being rewarded. Check with your local library to see if you can participate in summer reading - this is available for kids and adults!
What is a good schedule for a mother with 2 kids starting with the morning time. I feel so tired and clueless on what I have to do when I wake up and throughout the day. What can I do to keep my kids busy and entertained? What is a good schedule to keep busy? My son is 9 years old and my daughter is 7 weeks old.
Get free movies to watch from local library. This is especially great for kids over the summer. Make one day a week a movie day.
Family activities don't have to be elaborate or costly to be enjoyable. Often the simplest activities are the ones kids enjoy the most. We've taken our kids to Walt Disney World and a host of other extravagant vacations, but the things they seem to enjoy the most are going on picnics and having family game night.
To keep kids entertained, look for free events. Sometimes programs offer 1 free class with no obligation. Gymboree, Little Gym, and Stroller Strides do this. Additionally, some churches have open play times for a minimal fee.
