Summer Archives — Beating Broke

Summertime is here, and if your kids aren’t already out of school, they will be soon. Summer is the perfect time to make memories with your kids, but if your plans include the local theme park, shopping at the mall, and meals out, plan to spend a lot of money entertaining the kids. While you can enjoy summer that way, there are plenty of ways to enjoy the summer without spending a lot of money.

Here are some of our family’s favorite low-cost or free summer activities:

Have a Picnic

Pack some sandwiches, chips and some fruit, and take a drive out of town. Find a nice, rustic place to have a picnic and spend the afternoon. Kids will appreciate the adventure and change of scenery.

Go to Summer Movies

Several movie theaters, including Harkins and Regal, offer discounted movies for kids during the summer. For 10 weeks, my kids and I go to Harkins theaters once a week to see a movie. The best part? We buy a pass for each of us for $5 apiece. Yep, if you see all ten movies throughout the summer, you pay just .50 a movie. The four of us can see a movie for $2 total every week. Can’t beat that.

Attend Free Concerts

Many cities offer free evening concerts and movie showings. Just check out the happenings in your town every weekend. You may be surprised how many free events you can find.

Enjoy Summer Bowling

There is also a summer bowling program, Kids Bowl Free, that you can sign up for. While the bowling is free, you do have to pay for shoe rental.

Attend Library Programs

Every week, our local library has at least one free program for kids. This week, my son will be taking a one hour art class. Next week, my daughters will be taking a free science class where they will be erupting mini-volcanoes. While you’re there, don’t forget to check out a few books, DVDs, and CDs.

Camp in the Backyard

If your kids want the adventure of camping but you don’t want to pay the camp site fee, why not camp in the backyard? Kids get the adventure, and if they get scared during the night, the house is only a few steps away.

Go to the Beach

Is there anything better than visiting the beach on a hot summer day? Bring your sun screen and a lunch and spend the whole day playing in the water, reading a book, and getting a tan.

Have a Movie Marathon

Feeling nostalgic? Why not watch the Star Wars movies with your kids or the Back to the Future trilogy? Watch a movie a night until you finish. Enjoy popcorn and reminiscing about watching these movies in your own childhood.

Summer can be expensive, but it doesn’t have to if you know where to look to find free and cheap activities to keep the kids entertained.

What are your favorite free or cheap activities to do with the kids during the summer?

Ah, summer. A time of relaxation, heat, and. . .boredom?

Yep, boredom. When I was a child, the big activity for the summer was to go to Vacation Bible School one week of the summer. The rest of the time, well, my days stretched wide open before me.

I might read a good book, or run through the sprinkler, or eat a popsicle, or lay on the grass looking at the clouds floating by or go bike riding with my friend or play on the swing set or play with Barbies.

Those were the days of summer.

I loved every minute that I was out of school, but by mid-July, after the excitement of the 4^th of July holiday wore off and I’d been on summer break for several weeks, I often found myself bored. I mean b.o.r.e.d.

Kids are Bored this Summer — Org. Img.: Bored by Marcus Nelson on Flickr

I was actually excited and ready to go back to school.

Do kids today feel that anymore?

The answer, typically, is no, but it’s O.K. if your kids are bored this summer!

Summer Can Hit Your Wallet Hard

If you want to keep your kid busy all summer long, you can expect to spend quite a bit of money doing so. I have a friend who is paying over $1,000 for her seven year old to attend summer day camp for a few weeks. And that is just one child!

Of course, families with two working parents must find ways to make sure that their kids are cared for, so that is part of the reason why kids are overbooked. But my friend whose paying for her daughter’s summer camp is a stay-at-home mom.

Boredom Is Not a Bad Thing

However, if the parents are in a situation where they can let their kids get bored, i.e. one parent stays home to take care of the kids, boredom might not be such a bad thing. Nancy Darling, a professor of Psychology at Oberlin College, states, “From a developmental perspective, kids have very little experience learning to find things to do FOR THEMSELVES. They have been PASSIVE. Adults shape their activities. When they get to the point where they are too old for that—or there just aren’t adults to do it—the kids are at a loss. They might know what they like to do—or what they don’t—but they have little experience figuring out how to make good things happen. Boredom is okay” (Psychology Today).

Think about times when you were bored as a kid. Those times obviously didn’t last forever. You found something to do. You may have compromised and played a board game with your younger brother even though you really didn’t like playing with him, but anything was better than boredom! You may have written a story, or created a Lego invention, or made a new imaginary game.

Alyson Jones, who is a counselor, states, “Boredom is not the enemy to be conquered by action and another planned activity. Boredom can be a vehicle to creative thinking, self-awareness, empathy and compassion. When we are bored we are often alone with our thoughts—this is a great way for children to get to know themselves” (The Huffington Post).

If you have the flexibility in your schedule, why not give the kids some time to be bored this summer? Your wallet will thank you, and someday your kids might, too.

What do your kids do for the summer? Do you give them time to be bored or are they scheduled?

8 Free and Cheap Things to Do with Kids This Summer