101 Summer Bucket List Ideas to Keep Your Kids Busy

Summer can be a wonderful time to de-stress and relax but It can be a nightmare for parents with kids at home all day, with unbridled energy but not enough productive ways to channel it. Parents often get annoyed with the over-enthusiasm of the kids and run out of fun task ideas or chores to keep the kids busy. So what do you do in the summer?

Make a bucket list! Here are 101 summer bucket list ideas, all of them pretty easy and do-able. These activities would serve as a family bonding exercise because most of these are group activities.  You can space out these activities over the course of one and a half or two months according to what suits your schedule. Also remember, this is NOT a to-do list where you HAVE to cover every activity with perfect detail.  Think of this as an idea board where you have a variety of options to do. That way, even if you do not execute all the plans, there is no stress!

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Summer Bucket List for Kids: 101 Things to Do

Let’s jump into the fun list of possible activities!

Places to Go

Summer is the only time you can relax and take a few vacations. Hence

1. Spend time at the beach, build a sandcastle, and collect seashells!
2. Go fishing with your kids
3. Take your kids out to the park to play
4. Catch a beautiful sunset at a nearby lake
5. Take your kids to a children’s museum- maybe a doll or car one!
6. Be a tourist in your own city and have a day out- ice cream, pictures and all!
7. Go to an amusement park and enjoy the rides!
8. Visit the nearest zoo or national park to learn more about nature!
9. Visit a Saturday/Sunday Farmer’s market- introduce them to small businesses and fresh produce!
10. Take your kids to work one day, introduce them to the office.
11. Pack a tent, supplies, and go out camping!
12. Go to a nearby fair and ride a Ferris wheel, enjoy the games!
13. Try a new restaurant you have been planning to!
14. Attend an outdoor play or a music concert with your kids.
15. Go to a baseball game!
16. Chart out a plan for a road trip and have a small picnic lunch in a park on the route.
17. Watch a movie at the theatre.

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Things to make and eat!

Summer is a really good time to introduce your kids to some cooking. All these recipes are easily available and suitable for kids to make.

18. Teach them how to make fresh lemonade
19. Make fresh pizza
20. Make and eat popsicles together!
21. Make some s’mores
22. Cut and eat fresh summer fruits together
23. Eat breakfast for dinner- pancakes, waffles!
24. Make a milkshake
25. Get a treat from the ice cream truck!
26. Make a dessert together!
27. Let your kids plan the menu for a day.
28. Make your own bread with your kids!
29. Bake cookies together
30. Bake a cake together for dessert!

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Indoor Fun

The good thing about kids- they find a lot of simple ideas interesting. If your kid is interested in art or science-

31. Make dream catchers
32. Make friendship bracelets
33. Read a book together
34. Write a story together, in parts
35. Do a fun science experiment
36. Built a kaleidoscope!
37. Pick up rocks and finger paint them!
38. Make bookmarks for your family and friends
39. Draw each other!
40. Learn simple origami figures
41. Start a journal
42. Build a pillow fort
43. Solve a crossword puzzle together
44. Write an actual letter and mail it, with stamps, to someone you know
45. Make a poster for your kid’s door
46. Redecorate your kid’s room- let him choose curtains and an item of furniture.
47. Finish a jigsaw puzzle together.
48. Make paper planes and have a race!
49. Host a talent show exclusively for the family
50. Put on a puppet show
51. Enact a small play
52. Compose a song together
53. Play a new board game
54. Teach them chess
55. Teach them a few simple card games
56. Have a movie marathon with one family member choosing one movie

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Some outdoor fun ideas!

57. Go rock hunting and collect interesting ones.
58. Have a bonfire night
59. Make and fly a kite together
60. Catch fireflies in a glass jar
61. Blow bubbles together
62. Climb a tree
63. Make and bury a time capsule
64. Play Frisbee
65. Plant a few seeds- could be flower or fruit trees!
66. Watch a thunderstorm together
67. Have a bonfire night
68. Play hide and seek
69. Go on a bike ride
70. Make an obstacle race
71. Have an egg and spoon race
72. Make a bird feeder
73. Repaint your mailbox
74. Clean your car together
75. Clean your yard together
76. Run a lemonade stand and go out to dinner with the funds!
77. Go out bird watching
78. Go out photographing the neighborhood
79. Invite your neighbors over to dinner
80. Identify trees
81. Identify flowers
82. Identify birds
83. Identify insects

Some fun ideas to do at night!

84. Buy a few fireworks and watch!
85. Find constellations
86. Try to identify shapes in clouds
87. Have a slumber party
88. Camp out in your backyard

Some messy fun!

89. Make tie-die handkerchiefs
90. Inflate a pool and take a bath
91. Finger paint a t shirt
92. Run through a lawn sprinkler
93. Have a water balloon fight
94. Make paper water boats and race them
95. Have a water gun fight
96. Have a 3-legged race
97. Have a sack race

Some other ideas

98. Volunteer at an orphanage
99. Read books under the covers
100. Play a favourite song and dance!
101. Spend your whole day in pajamas.