Who doesn’t love summer? When I think of summer, I think of activities that are truly fun, engaging and enjoyable. At this time in our world there is the health crisis of Covid-19, so many schools that offer summer camps are doing activities outdoors! Remember that children need the security of the routine and schedules that are predictable. They feel safe when they know what is expected of them and what is next. So as you plan your daily activities, try to create an organization of what to expect on each day. Perhaps Mondays are for introducing songs and books on the topic you will be discussing during your group times, Tuesdays are for Arts and Crafts, Wednesdays perhaps Science Experiments, Thursdays could be cooking days and Fridays are great for water fun outdoors. This type of organization simplifies the lives of teachers and parents. Everyone knows how to dress and what to expect each day of the week. My activities are planned well in advance so that I can gather the materials I need and my environment is truly a prepared environment. I believe that it is important to maintain the children’s skills and the mechanics of the classroom, so there is always a Montessori worktime, even though in some schools or home schools it is abbreviated.
For many years I have kept a Calendar Guide that has a set of directions detailing how to create each craft, recipe and play each game. Yes, I know that is labor intensive but the summer is when many teachers want to take time off to go on vacation. When you have great lesson plans and directions prepared ahead of time, whoever takes your place in the classroom feels secure and will be able to keep the learning and fun going!
So, what are some great activities to include in your summer fun agenda? Activities that they may not experience at home, here are just a few:
1. Make homemade ice cream! - We have a peach tree and love making ice cream with fresh fruit!
2. Beach Activities – Create an indoor sandbox with a plastic wading pool full of sand from your local hardware store. Bury coins or shells then give the children shovels to dig for them or teach them how to make a sandcastle. This was placed in our multipurpose room on a tarp and it was a favorite! (It was always clean since it was inside and easily swept up.)
3. Play Water Hose Games – Limbo is great fun with a water hose!
4. Make fresh squeezed lemonade or instant powered lemonade with a slice of lemon. Allow the children to decorate a table in the building then sell lemonade to parents and children as they are leaving the building. This is a tremendous amount of fun and teaches all about money! Be sure to tell parents ahead of time so they will have money ready. Create a goal of what your class will purchase with the money earned.
5. Grow vegetables in a garden and allow the children to sell just as with the lemonade stand.
6. Cook and make individual pizzas. This is always a favorite.
7. Put up a tent in your classroom and read inside or allow some children to work inside the tent. I purchased a simple tent for ten dollars and it is really easy to put up.
8. Make s’mores with marshmallows, graham crackers and Hershey bars. Just use a microwave.
9. Make bird feeders to hang outside and watch the birds eat. We once had a very determined squirrel eat the bird seed off the pine cone, it was fun to watch the squirrel’s aerobatics as he stole the bird seed!
10. Have an outdoor 4th of July Parade, allowing children/parents to decorate and bring bicycles, tricycles or wagons. We did this for many years. If it is too hot, you may decorate hats and have an indoor parade with music by John Phillip Sousa and wave flags! This is a must do fun activity.
11. Paint outside, simply use clothes pins and clip the paper to the fence and paint! (Tip: pour a little paint in plastic or paper cups with only one paint brush per cup and the children share the cups. Only a few children at a time during recess, works well.)
12. Use shaving cream and “write on your tables,” then wash them clean. Smells great and is fun to practice how to correctly write letters and associate the sounds, or write numbers.
13. Use sidewalk chalk and draw roads and houses, create your own community in chalk. Each child has a small car and a home. This will be lots of fun! Draw hospitals, parks, stores, etc. This is a beginning map skill that is a learning activity and fun.
14. Take balloons and fill them with water and freeze! Then conduct ice experiments. One thing we do almost every summer is create a Texas Ice Man! (We rarely have snow for a true snowman!) See the photos. Each balloon is filled with water increasing in size. They are laid in the freezer overnight and try to make each a little flat on top. Add rock salt to the top as you stack the layers so they will stick together. Very cool!!! Takes about day to melt. Discuss how a liquid turns to into a solid!
15. Pool Noodle Games- These are cheap and a lot of fun! I cut each pool noodle in half so that every child has one and we begin with balancing activities. Demonstrate how to balance in your hand, on your shoulder, try on your head, lean over and balance on your neck. Sit on the floor and try balancing on your toes, ankles and knees. Use one large pool noodle for the entire class and play Pool Noodle Limbo! You can also “bat” balloons between each other or one balloon for the group to keep afloat. Just google pool noodle activities.
The list of activities to do with children in the summer is endless. Just remember if you are having fun they are too. Families may not be able to travel much this summer but we can still have fun and learn! Keep safe and enjoy the children in your life. They are a blessing!