Summer vacation is an exciting time for any child, no school and an abundance of free time gives any child a chance to learn and experience things they would never experience in school. Unfortunately, not all of these experiences are positive, often children are at risk of spending their entire vacation in front of the tv or playing video games. The best way to counter this is by creating a summer program for your children.
What Is A “Summer Program”?
A summer program can be compared to a school timetable or a sports program. Every week you can set up daily activities to help keep their minds stimulated, by helping them to continue learning, remain social and keep active throughout vacation. The important trick here is to remember not to overwhelm your children and run out of ideas before vacation ends, and to make sure the activities don’t feel like a chore and engages your children. If they feel bored, or forced to participate, they will begin to lose enthusiasm for future activities.
A Few Ideas For A Summer Program
At our summer camp, we have our own program with activities that can be easily adjusted to fit a program at home. We like to put an emphasis on being active, and the best way to do this is with sports and games. Whether your child is interested in group sports like soccer and football or are more into individual sports like gymnastics and swimming, it is important to encourage them to participate in these activities. This doesn’t mean they need to join a specific club, many sports can be played at home. A game of baseball only requires a field, a few bats, a ball and gloves. Talk to other parents in the community and arrange your own game of baseball, and this extends to other games like soccer and kickball.
Day trips are a great way to spend a day. Trips to the water park, amusement park, or local pool are another great way to keep your children active and can give them a chance to find a new interest, such as learning to swim, or learning about roller coasters and the g-force. Trips to the museums may spark an interest in art or history, trips to zoos and national parks could lead to an interest in zoology, conservation and biology.
If your child has had their interest peaked in an activity it is important to support this at home with educational activities. If the zoo peaked your child’s interest, consider buying them books, letting them watch documentaries and explore the neighborhood to find out what’s native to their home. If the theme park was an inspiration for your child, educational books, videos and toys like Lego bricks will further help them understand mechanics and could lead to a life in engineering. Having themed activities is another great way to support your child’s interests. Planning an activity at home around themes like “American Idol” and having talent competitions with their friends is a great way to build confidence.
What If My Children Are Too Young To Do Activities Alone And I Work?
You are not alone in facing this problem, as many families are put into this situation around vacation time, and that is why we offer a summer camp program for any child aged between 5 and 12. Our camp is based in South Florida, and is staffed with best qualified people, who will make your child feel welcomed, and will ensure that your child’s safety is of the utmost importance. Our summer camp ensures children make lifelong friendships and they will have the opportunity to connect with nature and become more resilient as they experience new things and push themselves in a safe environment.
Our activities include sports, games, supervised water sports, arts and crafts, music and movement, and trips to movies, bowling alley and Chuck E. Cheese. On these trips each child is given a Parkland Summer Camp T-shirt so they can be identified as part of our group. Just as mentioned previously, we do have themed activities, which encourage everyone to participate in. Should you have any questions about our summer camp or would like more information on activities for your own summer program, please contact us at 954-688-5877.