We love half term and school holidays in our home, not only does it give the kids a chance to play at home and do new things but it also gives the list maker in me the chance to organise something for each day. It may only be something as simple as baking cakes but as long as we have something different for each day they feel as though they are having an adventure and I feel like we are doing something more than watching TV and playing on their computer games.
I have listed below 7 things to do to banish those holiday blues, one for each day and they can still have the weekend to play on their games so not totally deprived of screen time!
Get outdoors!
We have planned a visit to a farm for this coming week and the kids are so excited, they will get to feed baby lambs, hold baby chicks and wash the pigs! Its worth checking websites first to make sure all the activities are scheduled as a lot of places have seasonal offers too.
Afternoon tea!
Who doesn’t love cake and what better way to spend an afternoon than over cute little sandwiches and a tray of cakes! I am taking my mum and both girls for afternoon tea on Monday, it will be lovely to have all 3 generations together for some girly bonding time and at the same time the boys are going to play football with their dad! Before anyone jumps in with a comment, we don’t tend to gender stereotype but sometimes it just works out that way! Sorry not sorry!
Go hunting!
We have lots of fabulous woodland areas near us and coming on Friday is the Gruffalo Trail – all the kids are so excited as you stand near pixelated signs and when photos are taken images appear. If you take photographs via the app, The Gruffalo will be standing right beside you! Got to love technology at times!
Crafts!
For the cost of some paper and paint you can have a fun filled day at home making your own artwork. To create mess free play pop a little paint inside sealable bags and kids then push the paint around using their fingers – no mess and such a fabulous effect. Cut open the bag and press one side onto paper to create a reverse image of the effect. Ideal for background use if you are a crafter or scrapbooker too! We will be waiting until it dries then draw around the kids hands to make keepsakes of the day. Of course you could go the other route and just let them loose with the paint!
Gardening!
Now this might not sound like much fun but it can be made into a game while being educational and productive at the same time. Not only will the garden be getting tidied (child labor before the planting begins) but the kids will love to watch their ‘project’ grow throughout the year. You can buy small plant pots and childrens garden tools from most good garden centres (I think even the likes of Pound shops have them in). All you need are some seeds and a little soil for a project that can help them learn how to make things grow and also how to take care of the plants/vegetables too with watering etc.
Rattan Direct have created a survey to find out how you keep your children entertained. Do you leave them to create their own amusement or do you like to have your days scheduled? We have never limited the childrens time on games but hope that they are sensible enough to want to do other things too – they do however need a nudge in the right direction some of the time so I love being prepped with a list of things to do!
Whatever you have planned for half term I hope its a good one!
Happy Holidays!
XOXO
Debbie
This post is in collaboration with Rattan Direct
