Summer is here and if you are anything like me you are wondering what to do with your kids on those long summer days. Here are some ideas of summer activities for kids.

Take advantage of free summer fun activities for kids. Many cities offer free activities during the summer. Use the Internet to look up local parks and recreation or city websites to see what is offered. When I searched I found a variety of activities offered near our home:

• Weekly movies in the park. After dark they play family movies on a giant screen. You can bring a blanket and enjoy a free movie.
• Every weekend there are free outdoor concerts. They feature a variety of music genres and artists.
• Our library has a summer reading program. Not only do they offer rewards for children who read or are read to 20 minutes a day, but they also have weekly activities that go along with the theme.
• Join a playgroup or start one of your own with mothers from your neighborhood or church. During the summer the playgroup I belong to gets together at a different park once a week.

• Go for a bike ride as a family.
• Take a walk around the neighborhood or drive into the country or mountains.
• Play a sport. Try using local tennis courts or basketball courts.
• Go on a picnic.
• Take a hike.
• Fly a kite.
• Go skating.

• Visit your local zoo or museum.
• Take advantage of local fairs, festivals, or rodeos. If you live in a more metropolitan area check out festivals in other towns as well as your own.
• Go to an outdoor play. I love the outdoor theatre near our home. They mix music and humor for entertainment enjoyed by all ages.
• Visit your local orchard or berry patch and pick strawberries, blueberries, or cherries.

• Visit your local pool and go for a swim. Considering buying a family or punch pass.
• Run through the sprinklers in your own backyard.
• Rent a canoe, raft, or paddleboat on a local lake or river.
• Go fishing.
• Wash yours or your neighbor’s car.

• Draw pictures or a hopscotch game with chalk.
• Make homemade ice cream or popsicles.
• Set up a lemonade stand.
• Play outside games like kick the can, sardines, and pom-pom pull-away.
• Plant a garden.
• Blow bubbles.

• a homeless shelter
• the humane society
• hospital
• nursing home
• childcare center
• community organization.