So, it's August. Kids and Teens: hopefully you've enjoyed the beginning of summer, and now the school year is quickly approaching. Are you bored yet? Here are 10 ideas to keep you going until school starts. Some of the ideas require help from your parents, so be sure to ask!
Kids (through 6th grade and parents)
1. Bake something with your parents. Try sugar cookies that you can cut or mold into different shapes. For an easy sugar cookie recipe, try this one from Allrecipes.com. Try sprinkling on different toppings to make your own design. Use your imagination!
2. Ask your parents for some magazines that they're planning to recycle. Find a bunch of words and pictures that describe you and your interests. Cut them out, arrange them into a collage, and glue them to a piece of paper. Decorate as you wish.
3. Make a Crayon Resist drawing. What's that? A Crayon Resist drawing. Get a blank piece of paper and some crayons. Draw a design on the paper with the crayons. You should press down with the crayons while coloring so that lots of wax goes onto the paper. Then, get some black or other color tempura paint (watered down) and gently paint on top of the whole piece of paper. The paint won't show up on top of the colored parts of the paper!
4. Make a ball catcher with an empty plastic milk or juice container. With your parents, rinse out the container(s). With sharp scissors -- again, with your parents -- cut off the bottom, then cut out a U-shape on the side with the handle. Decorate with stickers or tape. If you make two, grab a friend and play catch with a tennis or other ball! You can find the project on this crafting website.
5. Grab some friends and make up a game. Create an obstacle course and make up your own rules. Run! Tag! You're it!
6. Build a time capsule with friends. Find a waterproof container, and collect whatever you'd like to put in. Maybe a sticker from your favorite band, a napkin from your favorite ice cream place, a hat, a copy of your report card, a birthday card, a mix CD. Whatever you'd like. With permission, bury it in the backyard or put it somewhere in the house where you don't normally access. Decide on a date in the future to open it. At that time, laugh at what's in there!
7. READ. Ask a Youth Services Librarian for book recommendations. You like fantasy? We have it! You like mysteries? We have them! Tell us what you enjoy reading, and we'll suggest some books.
8. Sell something. Make lemonade. Chocolate chip cookies. Brownies. Make a great sign. Tape it to a table in front of your house. Practice your best sales pitch, money math skills, and make a couple bucks.
9. Make your own Playdough. Dig up some ingredients you may already have around the house and make one of these Playdough recipes. Then play for hours!
10. Dig out your inner "Wimpy Kid" and write a journal like Greg Heffley in the Diary of a Wimpy Kid Books. Tell what you did over the beginning of the summer and draw pictures to go with your story.
10. Dig out your inner "Wimpy Kid" and write a journal like Greg Heffley in the Diary of a Wimpy Kid Books. Tell what you did over the beginning of the summer and draw pictures to go with your story.
Teens (7th-12th grades)
1. Start a month-long photo project. Get yourself a Flickr or other free image sharing site. Use a digital camera or phone to take at least one picture per day for 30 days. Post daily to the image sharing site. Get friends to do the same, and become friends on the image sharing site. Share your photos!
2. READ! Like the younger kids, you can also enjoy your August by reading even more than you already have this summer. Ask a Youth Services Librarian for help finding your next book. Maybe you'll discover something new?
3. Have a clothing swap. Do you and your friends wear a similar size? Are you sick of your clothes? Hold a clothing swap. Gather at someone's house with some snacks and bring the clothing items that you don't want to wear anymore. Have fun shopping in your friends' closets and go home with a new wardrobe. New to you, anyway.4. Start a blog using a free blogging software such as Wordpress or Blogger. Be careful about posting personal information since it's viewable to everyone, but tell stories, share jokes, share videos, practice your creative writing. You may discover your inner writer.
5. Make jewelry out of everyday things. Grab a book, such as Junk Jewelry: 25 Extraordinary Designs to Create from Ordinary Objects by Jane Eldershaw and try something out.
6. Learn some basic cooking techniques and cook a dinner or two for your parents. Try one of our cookbooks.
7. Borrow an iPod dock or speakers, grab some snacks, and invite your friends and their iPods over to listen to music. Maybe they love a group you've never heard before? Maybe you've found a singer they don't know? Share your favorite music.
8. Go old school. Go roller skating or bowling! You may need to ask for some cash for either of these activities, but both involve good old fashioned fun.
9. Start an ultimate frisbee game at a local park. It's free! It's fun!
10. Ask your parents their permission for a guys' or girls' sleepover. Try some activities like having a movie marathon, play with makeup, paint your nails, play video games, eat pizza and snacks, share stories, break out a Ouija board. Have fun!
And if you need more ideas to beat the Dog Day boredom, ask a Youth Services Librarian for suggestions.
Posted by ws (formerly wk)
7. Borrow an iPod dock or speakers, grab some snacks, and invite your friends and their iPods over to listen to music. Maybe they love a group you've never heard before? Maybe you've found a singer they don't know? Share your favorite music.8. Go old school. Go roller skating or bowling! You may need to ask for some cash for either of these activities, but both involve good old fashioned fun.
9. Start an ultimate frisbee game at a local park. It's free! It's fun!
10. Ask your parents their permission for a guys' or girls' sleepover. Try some activities like having a movie marathon, play with makeup, paint your nails, play video games, eat pizza and snacks, share stories, break out a Ouija board. Have fun!And if you need more ideas to beat the Dog Day boredom, ask a Youth Services Librarian for suggestions.
Posted by ws (formerly wk)
