Schools are closed for two months and the vacay mode is on. You wish you can sleep for an extra hour in the morning, take long baths, relax and recharge. But wait, before you make any plans for yourself, don’t forget that your kids have a lot of extra time on their hands, which means they need you now more than ever.
Which is why today I am sharing with you, my summer survival DIY games and activities, that will keep the kids busy and occupied so you can have some time for yourself.
So let’s get started with the top 18 DIYs to try this summer:
- Building Structures
We tried this activity while traveling during the last summer holidays. We did not have any toys so we got some toothpicks and some gummies while shopping for grocery and used them to make structures. While my older one (4 years old) was making them, little younger one (15 months old) was happily taking the toothpicks out.
The chupa chup gummies were very soft and couldn’t hold the structures for long but soft jellies which were not so soft where better to play with. The older one understood the difference between a square and a cube and also learned the 3 dimensional triangle.
- Spinning spiral
In this activity cut out spiral spins as the air around the hot candle gets heated up and rises.
We tried with big candle, small candle and table lamps and realised the greater the heat source the faster it moved.
Tell us which heat source worked for you better.
- DIY colours
It’s always a fun idea to incorporate some
colourful activities for the kids. For this,
All you need is
• Cornflour
• Food Colours
• water
• Gram flour or Besan
• Turmeric
Follow the video and make some organic colours
at home for the children.
- Splash Painting (16 months
old and up)
Splash painting is just as fun as it sounds. You could take any size of basket and as many rubber bands as you want.
Pulling the bands is also a great fine motor skill activity for the 16 months old and up.
- Paper cup phones
The simple science behind paper phones is sound vibrations being transmitted by the tightly-pulled string.
Love how the kids and daddy are constantly trying to talk only through this. Follow the link below for steps and a demonstration.
- DIY Bird Feeder lacing Motor Skill craft
Have you noticed, the number of birds that used
to come when we were younger were much more than that coming now to your
windows or garden. We have a really big garden at home but sadly don’t see many
birds these days.
It’s getting hot and most of the birds die
because of no water and food. This is our way to teach the kids the importance
of thinking about the small creatures and doing something for them and nature.
We made a bird feeder with the take away boxes.
All you have to do is,
- Cut the cover out and stuck some popsicle sticks to make it look pretty.
- Then we made some holes on the corners and tied jute ribbons to hang it. My older one used loops to lace them in the threads a great MOTOR SKILL lacing activity for him.
- You can now pour some water
in it and some food too for the little birds
It’s our responsibility to teach our kids about nature and about saving it and also thinking about helping the beautiful creatures in it.
Save the world, make it a better place 🙂
- DIY
Bubble Mixture
My kid really wanted to blow bubbles and play with his brother and we had run out of bubble mixture so made this mixture with stuffs in the kitchen.
Steps - Mix 2 table spoon of dish soap and 1 table spoon of powdered sugar in 5 ounce of water.
- Take a pipette( we got ours from the food colouring boxes) and cut the top of it as shown in the video (link below).
- Put some mixture on the table and spread it with your hands and then dip the pipette in the mixture and blow the bubbles . You could also blow bubbles inside another one. https://www.instagram.com/p/BuI8iG_H96o/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link
- Air Pressure Fun
This post is completely inspired by our visit to @olioliuae Musuem in Dubai.
We were thinking of ordering a blower or something big to blow out balls and paper and got this idea while the vacuum cleaner was in use. My kid who is learning about air pressure was super excited to see another fun experiment with it. It was a fun sensory play for our little boy. We have used balls and made cones from paper, sealing off the top with tape.
This simple air pressure experiment made the kids jump with excitement. Only thing we are trying to do now is to switch off the vacuum cleaner.
Simple tools at home can be so entertaining and learning sometimes.
Switch on your cleaners mommies and follow the link below for details on this activity:
- Spinning Heart Card
We had a parent-student interaction in school today and took these spinning hearts card for children to colour.
We got the string from a place where you get cloth fabrics and other items. And the paper is Fabriano paper from @starmarkemami .
Swipe to see how the heart spins or watch IGTV to see the full video of us making the card.
- Potpourri Tree
We got this potpourri in
parents race at the sports day at school and my older one has been wanting to
make a tree with it to keep it in his bathroom.
The corner of the bathroom looks prettier with a
tree and smells so good. This is a great idea to break the monotony of keeping
the potpourri in a bowl.
- Popsicle Stick Harmonica
All you need to make a fun musical harmonica is
- fat popsicle sticks
- wrapper from a chocolate or cereal bar
- toothpicks and scissors
Follow the link below and swipe to see how we made
it.
Let your child exercise some oral motor skills
and have fun.
- Motor skills fun
The grass in our zoo has grown a lot and it
needs some cutting. Our zookeeper ‘R’ gave it some shape.
We made the grass with green crepe paper and the
tree with some toilet rolls, crepe paper and some pompom balls that he decided
to stick as apples.
The inside is rice husk sprinkled to make
ground.
Follow the link for the details: https://www.instagram.com/p/Bsu2ZXinyyS/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link
- DIY scratch art
It’s weekend and we need to
practice our newly learnt 3 letter words at home. My older one refuses to do
worksheets but was very excited to write in this scratch paper we made.
All you need is crayons and black water colour
and sheet of paper.
- Colour the paper wit bright colourful colours.
- Put a thick coat of water colour. Do not add water to the colour and let it dry fully
- Take a pencil and let your child write, doodle, draw and have lots of fun.
- Combining motor skill and sensory activities
A simple activity like
picking up small pieces of paper balls and sticking them is a fine motor skill
activity, and letting the child use the glue, mess his hands and feel it while
doing the craft is a sensory activity.
Sensory activities are very important as they
create a base for better eating for toddlers who are willing to touch and
explore food.
1. Paper ball eggs – 18 months and up
Here, we have used some colorful crepe paper and
made it into balls with the help of my 4 year old. Then we spread some glue on
a piece of paper and let the 18 month old stick the colorful paper balls on it.
2. Fine motor skill activity – 3 years and
up
Here we have used tissue paper to make a
sun-catcher. It is a very good idea to give the 3 year old a child-friendly
scissor, though I gave mine when he was but 2 and a half years. Let them cut
the tissue paper into squares and stick it on a paper, which we later cut into
the shape of an egg and stuck on the window pane where the sunlight comes.
What a beautiful sun-catcher and a treat for the eyes for adults and children alike.
- Seed Bombs
This nature inspired activity is very interesting and worth an attempt.
What you need:
- Construction paper
- Water
- Food processor
- Seeds
Cut the construction paper into square and make it into a motor-skill activity. - Then soak the papers in water just enough to cover them.
- Grind it in a food processor and make small circles and put some seeds in them.
- This is a great way to teach the children about the planet, about the nature and about preserving it, nurturing it by saving and planting more trees.
- DIY Fluffy Slime
Slime, slime, slime…
Kids of all ages love a
slime! My 19 months old loves it too.
What you need:
– White glue
– Borax
– Shaving foam
– Hot water
– Contact lens solution
– Food colouring
* Mix 1
cup warm water and 1 tablespoon borax and keep it aside.
* Add 1
cup glue, 1/2 cup water and about 4 cups of shaving cream, 2 tablespoon contact
lens
solution
and then slowly add borax, one tablespoon at a time. Continue stirring.
* Put some food color and keep mixing till the slime is ready.
Slime play is a great sensory activity and
that’s the only and only reason why I recommend it.
- STEAM: Dancing magnets
Dancing Magnet is a simple
hands-on learning STEAM activity which can be practiced with a 15-month-old as
well as a 4-year-old at the same time. It helps to increase focus and patience,
as the children can sit for hours exploring in amazement how the magnet works.
Here, the kids created a freestyle painting
mural with a magnetic wand and a couple of other supplies, including a basket
(any size would work), an A4 size paper, some paint colors and paper pins.
Directions:
– Place the A4 size sheet in the basket and pour
painting colors on it
– Now place the paper pins on top of it and let
your child use the magnet wand from under the basket and see the magic happen.
We even tried this with some magnetic toy balls
which were super-fun. (Be careful with toddlers, they shouldn’t try to consume
these!!)
This activity should be supervised.
Click on the link below:
- Fluffy painting
Arts and crafts are always a go-to activity
for children. But what if you add a bit more fun to it by making the paint
colors from scratch and a whole lot of fluff.
We tried this new fluffy paint activity. It is
easy to make, and is an applied colour therapy for both the kids and adults.
The best part is that it is not expensive at all.
All you need is:
– 1 cup flour
– 3+ cups of shaving cream
– 1 cup glue (Fevicol)
– Food coloring or paint
– Empty bowl and some zip lock bags
Steps:
• Put 1 cup flour in a bowl
• Add 3+ cups of shaving cream and mix
• Now add 1 cup glue (Fevicol) and mix well.
• You can add a little bit of water until you
get a smooth consistency.
• Divide the mixture into 3-4 different small
bowls and add food color or paint colors to it.
• Now take few zip lock bags and insert puffy
paint colors in individual bags.
• Take a sturdy paper such as paper plates or
paint paper or cardboard and let the children draw on it.
• Leave it for a few hours and see the magic
happen.
You can also give your children a spray bottle
with water and ask them to spray on a glass. Then stick these fluffy paints on
it and it’ll easily come off without making any mess.
With all this summertime inspiration, this vacation is sure to be filled with a lot of fun and giggles!
