I’m not sure who first said, “Boredom is an attitude,” but I remember my mother saying something close to it as she shooed me and my three siblings out of the house on a hot summer day. Later, after becoming a parent, I read that quote somewhere and passed it right on to my kids every time they slinked around the house moaning, “I’m SO boooooooored.” As Becca Hall, director of Carnation-based Frog Hollow School, once said: “Boredom is positive emptiness.”
Invite your kids to fill that positive emptiness with their imagination. There’s a whole world of fun and games in a child’s imagination. With little imagination and little to no purchasing, they can make up games, write and act out a play in the backyard or a nearby park, or create a neighborhood pet parade. Not to mention, their boredom can also benefit the house: invite them to create a contest out of who can clean and rearrange their sleeping space fastest and best, the only rules being they have to help each other, and the prize cannot cost money. Any household task can become a fun and engaging antidote to boredom.
Our grandparents were bored as kids. We were bored. You can’t fault the kids for feeling it, but shrug off any guilt you feel about entertaining them. Our grandparents survived a little lull in the summer excitement; we survived it; they will survive it, too. Instead, when your kids pull out the what-do-we-do-now whine this summer, tell them about these age-old gems — and maybe even join them to reconnect with the kid that still lives within you.
All of these fun summer ideas for kids at home use what you already have — cardboard boxes, blankets, paint, even tin cans — to unlock hours of play.
Build a fort
Build a fort indoors or outdoors using blankets, sheets, sticks, cardboard, or anything found around the house (with a parent’s approval). Get creative by giving it several rooms. Pull out the holiday lights to light it up, add stuffed animals or pillows and books, and make up a story about where or what it is. Is it a pirate’s ship? A castle? A tent in the woods? A library? A place off limits to parents?
Make a tire or rope swing
Do you have an old tire or a strong rope in the garage and some teens in your family? Making a rope or tire swing is an excellent gift for younger siblings. A swing can also be a nice spot to “hang” with friends. All you need is a strong tree branch and an old tire or sturdy rope. Be sure they Google “swing hitch,” which is the best knot for either swing.
Make a lemonade stand
For a time-honored entrepreneurial rite of passage, behold the lemonade stand. A stand can be easily created with an old moving box or other large box, cardboard for a sign, a lemon squeezer (or very strong hands), and something to put cash in (and hand back change). Of course, they can jeuje up the stand for appeal, but the basics will get the job done. Park it out on the parking strip in your neighborhood, and they’ll be open for business. The best lemonade recipe: 6 cups water, 1 cup granulated sugar, 1 cup squeezed lemon juice with seeds removed. Mix.
Create a homemade obstacle course
Grab your friends and load up your wagons with blankets, hula hoops, and other easily portable items for an obstacle course, then roll down to your local playground or park. Working together, create the course — don’t forget to include playground equipment in your challenge. Once set up, kids go through one at a time, timed on every try. The goal is to beat your first time by your third time through. Bring water and snacks.
Make a scavenger hunt
If you have older kids (10 and above), creating a scavenger hunt can be as complicated or straightforward as their imaginations want to make it, and hunts are fun for both the creators and the hunters. Just print out the instructions from “How to Create a Scavenger Hunt” and let them go.
Make old-fashioned tin can stilts and race
Back in the day… your kids may not know that when their great-grandparents were kids, they likely had few toys and had to make do with what they had. Thus, tin can stilts. But they are still fun today. All it takes is two tin cans (old paint or coffee cans work well), a hammer and nail, and string. Have them watch the video “How to Make Stilts Out of Old Cans.” They can invite their friends to make them too, and have a race across the yard or park.
Paint rock messages
Painted rocks can be found all over Seattle, and they are a great way to offer others a moment of happiness or reflection. All you need are rocks, acrylic paint, and brushes. Once you’ve painted as many as you like, walk around your neighborhood and place them in well-trafficked or surprising places to bring a little joy to others.
You don’t need fancy camps or outings to create lasting memories. These fun summer ideas for kids at home can reconnect your kids with creativity — and you with your own childhood.
