Aaaah, the holidays are over and winter break is on! But these days off can suddenly seem very very long. So how can we make winter break not only fun, but survivable for parents too? Try out our four ideas of how to keep kids having fun and learning over winter break.
Assign Duties
As much as they may say they don’t love it, kids really do like helping around the house. Create a list of chores for kids to do each day. There can be standard items (make bed, wash dishes, etc) and individual items each day (wash windows, vacuum floor). Create a chore chart to keep track, or a daily list that kids can check off as they go. Studies show that kids to a better job at chores when given the freedom to do them in the order they want and with little oversight. So consider giving them the list and letting them work in their order – with a goal of finishing at a certain time. Here’s a list of appropriate chores by age.
Schedule in Some Fun
Having special events every day is likely not in the cards, but scheduling in a few simple activities to look forward to are great for both kids and parents. Free activities like trips to the library or the park for a picnic, or inexpensive activities like an afternoon at a museum or indoor activity place are the perfect amount of fun. Schedule in a swap day with friends or family, your family hosts their children one day, their family hosts yours another day.
Take a Day Trip
Make good use of time off of school by planning a day trip. Search for fun, interesting and or educational destinations within a few hours of home. Let your kids do research on your destination ahead of time so they can get excited and understand what they are experiencing.
Stay On Top of School
Don’t let bad habits slip in during winter break! Create a daily reading log for kids to complete. Look for free apps online to practice spelling, typing, or math and set aside time each day to work on those skills. Make a game out of practice by writing letters to family members or reading to younger siblings or pets!
Need more ideas? Click on over to our Fun INDOOR Activities post!
