Summer has arrived, and your kids will be out of school soon, and craving some summer fun and adventure. Instead of sending them away to a day camp, or an overnight camp where they will miss you, this summer, try setting up your own summer camp, right in your own backyard! Enjoy spending time with your children and watching them enjoy the summer with these summer camp themed backyard activities.
Host a Neighbourhood Water Fight
Regardless of their age, kids and adults alike enjoy a good round of water fighting to cool off in the hot summer months. This summer, make your backyard feel like a water sport camp, and host a neighbourhood water fight with all your family, friends, and neighbours. Provide different sources of splashing for the kids, like water balloons, water guns, hoses, buckets, and sprinklers, and enjoy the fun that ensues. Not only will this be fun for your kids, it will also encourage socialization between families in the area.
Do a Nature Scavenger Hunt
One of the simplest ways to keep your kids occupied in the summer time, while still having fun in their own backyard is to give them a scavenger hunt. Send them on a search through the yard, looking for different nature inspired items, or get them to find and identify the different flowers in the garden. Regardless of what you send them searching for, a scavenger hunt is the perfect backyard summer camp activity to keep them occupied.
Create Different Theme Days
Part of the fun of a summer camp is participating in different themed days. Whether it is pyjama day, wacky hair day, or super hero day, children always enjoy getting dressed up for that special theme. Make the theme day extra fun, and play different games that are related to it, or provide colouring pages and crafts that are centered around the theme you choose. Making meals for the day that also match the theme will make your kids feel like the day is extra special, and it will make it more exciting for everyone involved.
Have Outdoor Arts and Crafts
Part of summer camp is creating beautiful art under the canopy of the trees, then taking it home as a memento. Make your backyard seem just like a summer camp, and provide an outdoor table with all the craft supplies a child could dream of. To make it extra special, try pairing it with one of your themes, or provide an educational component beforehand, and encourage your kids to use items from the nature of the backyard. Making arts and crafts is fun for children, but even more exciting when they get to do it outside.
Provide Alternate Sleeping Arrangements
Make your backyard summer camp really feel special, and instead of having your kids sleep in their beds, have them sleep in a tent in the backyard. If the weather isn’t nice, or your children are younger, try setting up a sleep over in the living room, or a different room of the house than what they normally sleep in. Taking this step will really make them feel like they have a summer camp, right in the comfort of their own home.
Have a Backyard Movie Night
In the evenings before your children go to bed, having nightly entertainment will make your backyard summer camp seem more exciting. As an extra special evening, set up a large screen in your backyard, with a projector, and host an outdoor movie night. Make popcorn, and allow the kids to bring pillows and blankets out to snuggle up and watch their favourite film. For instructions on how to make a backyard screen, follow this tutorial. Having a backyard movie night will add that extra element of fun to their day, and make your backyard summer camp seem more realistic
Whether it is enjoying the sun while spraying your friends, or making a piece of art that was created with nature, summer camp has a lot of fun activities that can be done right in the comfort of your own backyard. For more ideas on how to make your backyard into a summer camp for your kids, visit the Falconcrest Homes Blog.
Tags: Backyard Activities for Kids, Falconcrest Homes, Home Builder in Toronto, New Home, Summer Camp Themed Ideas in Your Backyard, Summertime activities for kids