1. Set up a "restaurant" and serve real food.
My girls fixed salad with yummy toppings, decorated small tables with school placemats (the only ones we have) and used I Spy books as menus. Plus a small jar for tips. This kept them occupied for several hours, taking turns being the waitress, collecting coins, etc.
2. Dig in the dirt.
This is fun for all age children. My oldest two shoveled manure over our garden space. The younger ones used their hands and carried big chunks and chopped at hunks. Most likely more enjoyable for the littles, but the bigger two like to impress each other with arm muscle bulges and this will build those up!
3. Make and eat a fun snack.
Munching popcorn on a beanbag is pure delight, especially if you have a sibling to share with! (Looking at books and playing with baby dolls is pretty great too.)
4. Plant seeds.
My third child grew a small garden last year. Not much survived except several snap pea plants, so this year she is trying flowers instead of vegetables. One of her favorite books is Zinnia's Flower Garden. Monica Wellington makes it sound so easy to grow huge areas of lovely plants.
These are our first tray of indoor seed starts...nasturtium, sunflower, hollyhock, marigolds, cosmos -for her, cabbage and lettuce -for me.
5. Ride four-wheelers.
6. Go Rollerskating.
On the park sidewalks, in a paved lot, or at the rink, it's lots of tumbles and giggles!
We spent a couple hours together with other homeschoolers exercising, stretching, and bending around the cups, and under the limbo pole. Did I mention Hokey Pokey?
We also ate a healthy snack afterward. (reinforces #3)
7. Swing
8. Have an experienced friend over to teach the children a creative skill.
All the girls spent an afternoon with crochet hook and yarn in hand as a dear widow tutored them in a lost/being revived homemaking skill. They mostly had chain hooking length competitions, but some learned to single crochet, and made a square coaster.
9. Practice and perform a show.
These girlies spent several afternoons banging & singing and setting up for a grandiose 5 minute musical.
10. Play with pets.
We are raising meat birds to butcher again this year. Last time we tried this venture was probably close to 10 years ago. So now we have 26 adorable little fluffy chicks for the children to cuddle, squeeze, and chase.
11. Help in the kitchen.
This little miss always wants to stir the dough. Here she is mixing up seasoning into hamburgers before they're shaped and grilled. Yes, she helped "pat" them too!
12. Have a Treasure Hunt using Easter goodies.
It was an exciting day when the mail carrier brought a box to the door bearing treats for the whole family. Pens, pencils, coloring books, owl erasers, bracelets, alligator jerky, Taco Bell gift cards, candy, and more candy! After the package contents were sorted and exclaimed over, the children wrote clue notes for each other and their parents several times to discover the gifted candy. Movie night is also candy night and most recently treasure hunt night, so it's nice when our stash gets replenished.
That wraps up 12 activities that our children have tested to be tried and true.
How about you?
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