Best DIY Activities & Games for Kids to Enjoy This Summer

Now that summer vacation is here, kids have more time to play, explore, and learn! Even when they offer basic entertainment, excessive usage of screens and devices can inhibit creativity and physical activity. While summer vacation is a time to relax and have fun, it's important to balance screen time with engaging, educational activities that promote brain growth and creativity. If your children are using their phones or TVs excessively, this blog is for you. Let's look at the best do-it-yourself educational games and activities to keep kids interested, involved, and connected to their families. 

Why DIY Activities Matter For Your Kids

According to several studies, children nowadays spend an average of 4 to 7 hours a day in front of screens, which is detrimental to both parents and children. The National Institute of Health (NIH Government) claims that too much screen time might harm kids' development. Additionally, they assert that children's excessive screen time has created major public health concerns since it may impair their social-emotional, linguistic, and cognitive development. Children can be inspired to think imaginatively, acquire new skills, and have hands-on fun with do-it-yourself activities. Doing practical activities at home benefits your child in the following ways:

• Helps enhance memory and focus
• Develop your motor abilities.
• Encourages the ability to solve problems
• Develop your self-confidence by expressing yourself creatively.
• Minimize reliance on screens
• Strengthen the link between parents and children

STEM Learning DIY games are easy to attempt at home and are reasonably priced due to their straightforward setups and reused components. let's dive into the unique DIY activities for kids to enjoy this summer:

1. Outdoor Adventure Game

Backyard Obstacle Course 

Materials needed:

• Hula hoops
• Ropes for jumping
• Chalk cones made of plastic
• old pillows

Using things you already have around the house, make an entertaining obstacle course. Create a leaping space, add a crawling place beneath a table, and draw a hopscotch pattern using chalk. Time each run and set a goal for the youngsters to surpass!

Nature Scavenger Hunt

Materials needed:

• Paper or sheets 
• Markers or crayons
• A little pouch to gather things

Make a list of natural objects to look for, such as five different leaves, a Y-shaped stick, something soft, and anything red. This practice encourages children to move while teaching them to pay attention to their environment. Ideal for your lawn or parks!

2. Unique and Creative Indoor Games

Sensory Play with STEM Learning Kits

A Sensory DIY Kit is among the greatest options for indoor play in the summer. These kits are trending because of their entertaining themes, including Construction Site, Ocean Life, Dinosaur Land, Butterfly Garden, and etc are made for children ages three and up.

Advantages of Kits for Sensory Play:

• Improves fine motor abilities
• Encourages creativity
• promotes learning by practical investigation
• Perfect for parent-child activities or alone play

DIY Slime Workshop

Materials needed:

• White school glue
• Baking soda
• Solution for contact lenses
• Food coloring
• Mix-ins (tiny beads, glitter)
• Spoons and bowls

Slime serves as a sensory play activity as well as a scientific education. Youngsters like combining materials and observing how they react chemically. Additionally, the stretching and squishing offer fantastic sensory input that soothes restless minds!

Parent Tip: For a mess-free experience, check out our Space Adventure Sensory Kit with Pre-Measured Ingredients, which comes with five more sensory activities and all the supplies you need to make your child learning experience joyful.

Recycled Materials Building Challenge

Materials needed:

• Cereal boxes that are empty
• Tubes of paper towels
• boxes of eggs
• Glue or tape 
• (Unsupervised) scissors

Encourage children to use repurposed materials to construct the strongest bridge, tallest skyscraper, or most inventive robot. This STEM project reuses objects that would otherwise be thrown away while teaching engineering fundamentals.

Kitchen Science Experiments: Volcano Eruption

Materials needed:

• Baking soda
• Vinegar
• Food coloring
• Dish soap
• Small container or clay volcano

This timeless experiment is always entertaining! Children like learning about chemical reactions while watching the "lava" flow. Inquire as to why bubbles form and what occurs when materials combine.

Indoor Camping on Weekends

 Materials needed:

• Sheets and blankets
• Clips or clothespins
• Using flashlights
• Pillows

Create an indoor camping experience by erecting a tent or fort in the living room. Make s'mores in the microwave, tell tales, and make crafts with a camping theme. This pastime offers a unique change of environment and stimulates the imagination. It was one of the craziest game activities the whole family can experience with their kids to make them future-ready for traveling. 

You may also like to read- How to Create the Ultimate Kids Activity Pack for Travel

Advantages of STEM Education DIY Activities

Kids are learning vital lifelong skills when they participate in do-it-yourself projects:

• Science knowledge gained from observation and experimentation
• Concepts of technology using cause and effect
• Engineering concepts via construction and problem-solving
• Using patterns, counting, and measuring to improve math abilities

With many ready-to-use projects, our Complete STEM Learning Activity Kit brings math and scientific ideas to life via practical investigation!

Conclusion

You don't have to use screens to keep your kids entertained this summer. You may enhance their brain growth and help them make enduring memories by combining sensory activities with do-it-yourself learning games.

For this purpose, Playful Plunge crafts the Sensory DIY Kits carefully for kids so that they can improve their cognitive skills during their summer vacation time. Start the journey now by selecting a topic your youngster enjoys!