Summertime Fun

Gather your materials. You will need some paper ( we love using grocery bags), self stick bubble wrap ( regular works too but man was the self stick awesome), paint, a plate for the paint, marker, toilet paper roll and scissors. If you are doing this with toddlers you may also want a dish scrubber with a handle. 

Start by drawing a starfish on your paper. I taped the paper bag right down to the table with painters tape to use it as a drop cloth and project all in one. I had one kid at each end of the table. Cut your bubble wrap so it wraps around your toilet paper roll. The self stick stayed on like magic. Choose your paint colors and pour into a plate. Roll it on your starfish. We never get sick of how awesome bubble wrap prints are, and we’ve made a few over the years! Let dry and cut out.

I grabbed the construction toys we usually use outside, some paint and a big roll of paper and we painted on the deck. We managed to paint and mix some colors for a while until the wind picked up.  I wasn’t sure if my 6.5 year old would still be into it but it used to be one of his very favorite activities when he was little.  As you will see it’s still fun! 

Gather your materials. You will need some fun cars, trucks or my daughter’s favorite… a bulldozer! You will also need some good washable paint, paper , paper plates and if you are doing this outside you might want some painters tape to hold the paper down.Have your kids choose a few fun color combos. This was not a strict color mixing lesson but you can use it as one if you want. I just let them choose whatever color combos they wanted. Paint and explore the colors. My son immediately started making tracks fast and furious. My daughter was more into stamping. This activity isn’t complicated but it is fun. It was just what we needed to get some fresh air and sunshine.

Gather your materials. You will need some craft paper, some small spray bottles, liquid washable paint and masking tape. 

Pour some paint into the spray bottles , add water and shake. You will want to use dark colors, because the water dilutes it . 

Tape your paper to your fence, house, garage, or wherever you are wanting it to be.

Start spraying! Your child will have fun but is also giving their pincer grasp a great workout. We had fun spraying it up close or far away, Older kids can try to make a picture or have fun watching the drips like we did. 

This activity contrasts and sorts soft and hard things, and identifies them through touch 

Gather your materials. You will need a wipes container that has a rubbery opening ( a kleenex box works well too) , soft items like cotton balls, feathers, small pieces of fleece, and harder objects like blocks, keys and toy cars.

Pop the outer lid off the box so it doesn’t scratch your little ones arm when they are reaching in.

Add the items to the container and close the lid.

Invite your child to reach in and find something hard .  Start a pile for the hard things. Reach in and find something soft. Continue sorting until all the objects are out of the box. 

This is a fun activity for a nice day! Kids love to do things they see grown ups do and the clean toys are a nice side effect!

Gather your materials. What you need for this is a bowl or bucket of water, some dish or hand soap, some wash clothes or sponges, a dish towel and the toys you are going to wash. I like to use sponges because they are easy to cut small enough for toddler hands.

Put the soap in the water, and get some bubbles going. Grab a sponge and clean those cars! After sponging them down make sure you dry them well and I let them sit upside down so no water gets stuck in any crevasses. 

What you will need:

• Water

• Food dye of your choice

• Ice cube trays

• Paper or another surface to paint on

• Optional: Paint brush(es)Instructions:

• Pour water into ice cube trays. Add food dye of your choice and mix. Freeze until solid. Remove the colors you want from the trays, place on paper or other painting surface, and let the fun begin!

Supplies:

*foam sheets

*cut up pool noodles

*straws

*hole punch 

*scissors

How to Make:

I cut out “sails”  from the foam sheets.  I used blue, green, and red colored foam sheets and cut out triangle shapes.  I then cut the straws down so they were not so long. 

I then took the hole punch and punched 2 holes in each sail.  One on top and bottom.  I used these hole to slide the straw through.  I then poked the sharp tip of the scissors into the pool noodle and put the straw in the small hole.  Now we had Pool Noodle Boats. I made the kids a Pool Noodle Water Sensory Bin for playtime.  

• 2 packages of gelatin dissolved in 2 cups of hot water

• 3/4 cup of chia seeds

• 1 1/2 cups cold water

• 3 cups of corn starch

• 1 cup of flour

• Food Coloring

Chill the mixture in the fridge overnight (or longer) to help the gelatin set. 

You may need to add extra water or flour until the sludge is the consistency that you desire.  I did a lot of eyeballing so the amount of cold water is approximate.  The flour in the recipe was unintentional.  I ran out of corn starch while experimenting, but I love how the flour made it more doughy. 

1. Find a cardboard box. I covered the box with paper bags from the grocery store.

2.  We made ours into a cake!

3. Place shaving cream to the left of the cardboard box. – aka the cake

4. Place shaving cream on the side of the box and top of the cardboard box.

5. You can use hands, paint brushes, etc

6. Decorate with buttons, pom poms, or any other crafty items

ONL

What will your kids do this summer? GET THE SUMMERTIME BUNDLE Dismiss