Summer Boredom Buster

We are in week two of summer vacation.  Although I've only heard it a few times so far, the words "I'm bored" have already been stated in this house.  Usually, when I hear that uttered my response is "well, I do have a toilet or two that need to be cleaned."  That does the trick and they seem to go find something else to occupy them.  The toilet really only needs to be cleaned so many times. At the same time, I am attempting to limit the screen time because they could easily all veg out in front of one all of their wakeful hours and what a waste that would be (AHEM teen daughter).  So this morning I decided to write a list  that could give them ideas about some things that would be creative or fun and they could mostly do on their own (that would be my hope at least!) My kids are 13, 9 and 6.  Some of the ideas are not going to work for the 6 year old, and my 13 year old would not be caught dead doing a few of them, but there is something for everyone on here.   Here is the list I came up with:

Instead of Saying “I’m Bored” this Summer:

Read a book (or TEN books!) …Write out your goals for something you would like to be able to do this year, five years from now, or when you are a grown up…Create something from things you find around the house…Write a story…Design a building…Draw a map of a place you would like to visit (it can be an imaginary place)…Draw a favorite movie or book character…Lay on your bed and dream with your eyes open…Build something with Legos…Think of something you can make out of recyclables and make it…Invent something to help with a common problem…Practice your math skills…Use your flashcards…Write and solve word problems…Use common household objects to make a math or science project…Look at the house from the perspective of an ant (what do they see?)…Keep a personal journal…Go Outside! …Look at the sky…Use a magnifying glass and inspect the yard…Create art out of something in nature…Ride your bike…Ride your scooter…Write a letter to your Grandparents or to one of your cousins…Make a list of places you would like to visit someday…Watch a youtube video about your favorite animal…Create a travel brochure…Watch your favorite movie and write a movie review…Cook something and then eat it…Look at recipe books and write out a few that you would like to try to make…Make a home video that explains something that you know how to do well…Take some pictures…Clean something (I will make a separate list of options)…Be helpful…Think of something you can secretly do for someone else and make it happen…Make a fort…Organize something…Plant a garden…Make a fairy village under our tree using things found in nature…Make a scrapbook of things you did in school this year…Look at the stars with the telescope…Work on Handwriting…Practice skills you want to get better at…Sort your toys and plan to get rid of some…Play with your toys! ...Make up a new board game…Invite someone to play a game with you…Brush the dog and give her some attention …Research something you are interested in learning about …Make popsicles…Count how many steps it takes to get to different places in the house or outside and make a chart that shows the distances…Design a t-shirt…Make a collage…Create something that you could give as a gift to someone…Make jewelry…Make a list of your favorite foods…Pull weeds…Improve your computer skills…Ask someone to teach you how to do something new…Read a story to someone younger than you…Plan a trip somewhere local (find out how long it will take to get there, what it will cost, what is there to see or do)…Write a Thank You note to someone for doing something for you…Visit the school garden… Paint a picture…Write a Poem…Finish something you have started…

These are just a few suggestions of things you can do with your time instead of being “BORED”. Find something to do and have a good time MAKING or DOING or BEING…Enjoy your SUMMER!
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This is now printed and posted on the fridge.  So far today I have helped work on an unfinished story on the computer, started making a board game, helped the youngest read eight books to the dog and right now the dog is getting brushed whether she likes it or not.  If you happen to make a list like this, just realize that your participation may be required on many if not all of the activities...it may not buy you the down time that you are hoping for.  There may be a million messes to clean up. The kids may  even fight over the dog that is usually all but ignored.  But, hopefully, your kids will use it to do something worthwhile this summer. They might even learn something about the world or themselves. They may even think of some things to add to the list for next year.  That is my hope. 

Last year we also made a list of 100 things to do as a family...if you read that post, you may recall that we were able to accomplish a little more than half of them.  So this year instead of having such lofty plans, each of us are coming up with ten things we would like to do.   That makes fifty things which I think is a lot more doable. So far we've already knocked a few off the list.  I will let you know another day exactly what that list is (we haven't written it all down yet).  I. SO. LOVE. SUMMER!  I hope this is a great one! So far so good.