120 Fun & Easy Summer Activities For Kids (To Banish Boredom)
I love summer with the kids, but they repeat three little words so often that by July, I’ve got an involuntary eye twitch.
Can you guess them? I wonder if they drive you nuts too.
“Mom, I’m bored” – said in a ridiculously whiny, nasal voice.
I swear they use an entirely different set of vocal cords when saying these things! Ugh, my eye is twitching right now. Just thinking about it!
So what can we do to keep these terrible words at bay? Fun & easy summer activities for the kids of course!
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Whether it’s during the day, weeknights, or weekends we could all use extra ideas to keep the screens away.
Additionally, all of these are cheap, easy to do, and easy to clean up. Because mama doesn’t have time to clean up messes!
120 Fun & Easy Summer Activities Your Kids Will Love
And finally, the activities below are split up into 6 sections so that you can go to the list that feels right for what you need that day.
Out and About Summer Activities for Kids Near Me
Some days, we just NEED to get out of the house! But, I need it to be easy, and I usually don’t want to spend much money! These activities do the trick!
1. Visit a park. Bring a picnic!
2. Visit a splash park
3. Go camping
4. Go bowling
5. Play at Chik Fil A for lunch or snack
6. Have a reading picnic in a fun new place
7. Take a night walk or bike ride
8. Go to the library (Record books on a printable summer reading log)
9. Go fishing with dad
10. Visit a relative or friend
11. Go out to eat – meet a family member for lunch one day!
12. Run errands that need to be done anyways
13. Walk around the mall
14. Go to the pool
15. Try a discounted summer movie
16. Go to the free lunch that’s offered to families in the summer
17. Grab the free breakfast at Chik Fil A. We like to check it out and watch people that are dressed up!
18. Try some library classes. We’ve done cereal robots, book camping, and lego challenges there.
19. Schedule playdates with friends and neighbors
20. Visit the local farmstead
21. Go to a state park: camping, cabin, beach
(See: free kids camping packing checklist, and free beach scavenger hunts)
22. Visit the zoo
23. Visit a nature park
24. Go to the local drive-in movie theater
25. Stop at a garage sale and let the kids bring their money
26. Visit the fair. Our county fair takes place in August.
27. Go to the local arboretum
28. Walk a 5k together
29. Do a free craft at the local children’s learning store (Lakehouse Learning is wonderful!)
30. Spend a night in a hotel (not cheap, but if we have no vacations planned, the kids LOVE it!)
31. Go to a local sporting venue (baseball, soccer, etc)
32. Have a sunset picnic at a park (find more picnic date ideas for families)
33. Try a Whole Foods cooking class
34. Visit one of our local Scheels/Bass Pro/Cabellas to play and watch fish!
35. Go to a concert or movie in the park
36. Listen to storytime at the library
37. Go to the Farmers Market and play on the playground
38. Do a “Me and Mini Me” Swim at the local community center
39. Walk to our local coffee shop and play games (try out free summer bingo)
Outside Fun Things To Do At Home
If the weather is decent, these easy summer activities for kids will take advantage of it! Often, these are my favorite because we’re out in the sunshine, yet it isn’t a commitment to pack up the whole crew.
40. Play in the backyard: catch bugs, etc.
41. Blow bubbles or do poppers
42. Draw a chalk picture on the driveway
43. Clean up the nearby trail/playground
44. Fly a kite
45. Do some garden work
46. Play a sport: soccer, frisbee, baseball outside
47. Get out the squirt guns
48. Take an evening or full moon walk
49. Do a firepit with friends
50. Have a family bike ride
51. Walk to the local elementary school playground
52. Have a water balloon fight
53. Look through the telescope
54. Collect things on a walk to turn into an art or craft project
55. Paint rocks
56. Pick wildflowers
57. Water the rocks and plants
58. Play in water! Get out the sprinkler, slip in slide, water table
59. Walk up to school and exchange a book in the library swap box
Activity-Based Summer Learning For Kids
Summer is the BEST time to teach kids important skills because we all have a little extra time! So, don’t forget to utilize the extra moments!
What do you want to teach your kids this summer? Try out these fun learning activities!
60. Follow a simple recipe and have kids measure out ingredients
61. Do a craft project with random craft items: googly eyes, pipe cleaners, felt, etc. (find craft books for kids)
62. Color in stained glass coloring books for kids and put them up everywhere – We love THIS pack, (1 for each gender)
63. Draw a city on a huge piece of paper
64. Create a unique recipe
65. Build something with dad
66. Count out money and talk about money management. Open a bank account or do some comparison shopping!
67. Make something out of recycling (Example: Can you make something that holds pencils and is also a musical instrument?)
68. Make something to give to someone: cards, muffins, gifts, etc.
69. Do some problem-solving – what would you do if ___? (you have mud on your shoes, you step in poop, you go to buy something but you don’t have enough money….) practice different scenarios and critical thinking.
70. Paint with objects (twigs, rocks, legos, etc)
71. Try super easy science experiments. We love baking soda and vinegar!
72. Do puzzles and mazes, or make a maze for someone to solve
73. Create a play or a story and act it out
74. Match alphabet spoons or locks. We received this as a gift several years ago, and it has kept ALL of my kids busy for HOURS (even the older one).
75. Make bracelets or necklaces with beads
76. Make a scene with dinosaurs and rocks
77. Color or paint a new picture of something you see
78. Make a picture or words with magnets on the fridge
79. Do a simple sensory box or have crunchy time by smashing uncooked noodles in a tub
Related Post: 37 Ways to Become More Playful
Rainy Day Activities for Summer
On rainy days or as it gets hotter, I’m always looking for things to do in the summer while the kids are stuck inside. Truthfully, it becomes increasingly easy to let them spend time on screens!
These are an extension of the activity-based learning activities above, but they can do more of them on their own.
80. Play with playdoh
81. Make jello – It’s on our summer fun bucket list!
82. Have an indoor storytime picnic
83. Read books in a fun new place or our reading corner (see books for 3 year olds to read)
84. Play a game: ex. Hide & seek, Uno, Old Maid, Pass The Message Game
85. Make a fort
86. Make an obstacle course
87. Have someone over for dinner
88. Do brain breaks or a dance party. We LOVE cosmic kids yoga!
89. Have a pillow fight or tickle fight
90. Find stuff to donate
91. Build a cardboard castle with appliance boxes
92. Learn some riddles to tell
93. Have a tea party with a friend
94. Invite others over for a playdate
95. Build paper airplanes
96. Learn some magic tricks
97. Build something: legos, Lincoln logs, etc.
98. Make noodle necklaces
99. Pour water into different types of containers (in the bathtub)
100. Make a marble run
101. Ask fun summer questions!
102. Have an open mic with funny jokes and puns (find a great joke book for your kids!)
103. Read a new book about summer
104. Listen to a new podcast
105. Complete a directed drawing
106. Play Battleship
107. Have a kids trivia challenge!
108. Create a kids vision board
109. Join a reading challenge! (Find more books for your child’s age to keep them entertained.)
Related Post: 75 Epic Activities for Kids at Home
Fun Summer Activities for Teens
Finally, get your teen out of their room and participate in some fun summer activities too. Let them invite a friend to make these summer activities more fun.
110. Experiment with origami
111. Start a scrapbook or journal (or a fun reading journal)
112. Have an at-home spa day
113. Redecorate their bedroom (let them paint!)
114. Challenge your teen to trivia questions for their age
115. Use these fun questions to get your teen to talk more
116. Pick a debate topic to learn about and then hold a debate
117. Make a new playlist (and try introducing them to some music you love)
118. Try a new activity (frisbee golf, rock wall climbing or photography)
119. Invent a signature sandwich or pizza
120. Learn to play the ukulele (or some other instrument)
Try Bored Sticks
Lastly, two out of my three kids are to the age where I should not be entertaining them all of the time.
So, I put many of these easy summer activities on craft sticks to pull out when they inevitably tell me they’re bored.
If they don’t want to do an activity from the jar, they can do a chore instead. That usually works!
Watch The Video For How We Make a Summer Bucket List + Ideas
What’s Next?
I hope this list helps you as much as it does me. Keep it handy through July and August for a little boredom inspiration.
What would you add? What fun and easy summer activities for kids do you love to do?
Check out these other summer fun kid posts:
- 5 Ways to Get the Most Out of Summer With The Kids
- How To Encourage Reading To Beat The Summer Slide
- 10 of the Best 4th of July Traditions to Start Now