Guide for At-Home Summer Camp

Making the Most of Summer Break

Summertime is the perfect time to connect with the kids—and reconnect with our younger selves—while making memories that will last a lifetime.

Whether you have the entire summer to fill your days with fun and inspiring activities or you only have a few weeks of homework-free evenings to enjoy, it's easy to orchestrate an epic at-home summer camp experience for the family (and their friends).

So Many Choices

There are lots of categories of activities and experiences to consider including in your summer camp. In general, you will want a mix of indoor and outdoor activities, individual and interactive activities, and exploratory and creative activities. You will also want to include quiet or restful activities, as well as activities to get the blood pumping.

If your family loves the great outdoors or arts and crafts, you may want to center your activities around those interests. Summer camp is a great opportunity to reinforce and grow the passions your kids already have, but it is also prime time to spark new areas of interest. An inclusive approach integrates many domains of play and study. Collect supplies and set aside time for STEM and science; arts and crafts; music, theater, and literature; self-care, exercise; and games.

Know Thyself (and the Kids)

The best plan for summer camp at home is to have a plan—one that works for you and yours. If you like to keep things loose and super-flexy, then you might choose to create a daily schedule. This can be as open as a simple checklist. Be sure to start with daily start-up tasks such as brushing teeth and hair, making beds, and eating breakfast. Then, add your top priorities, such as 20 to 30 minutes each of music, arts and crafts, outdoor play, and "brain play" including math puzzles and creative writing.

Maybe you prefer a more structured day? You might include blocks of time designated for particular types of activities each day. Try chunking the day by meals and snacks and designating time for certain activities during each part of the day.

For example, you could set aside 8:00 to 11:00 in the morning for breakfast, outdoor or active play, and arts and crafts; 12:00 to 3:00 in the afternoon for lunch, STEM activities, and brain play; 3:00 to 5:00 for snacks, reading or rest, and music, followed by more outdoor or other active play; 5:00 to 8:00 in the evening for dinner, screentime or free time, and interactive group games and activities.

Keep in mind that for older children, you can allot more time for each activity—perhaps as much as an hour—but very young children need more time for rest and free play, and their structured activities should last for no longer than 20 to 30 minutes. While younger children may need all of their activities to be chosen for them, older children may choose their activities from a bucket list. Their activities could also be randomly selected—simply write activities on slips and add them to categorized and labeled jars.

A Grand Vision

Many like to choose themes for each week. This is the perfect opportunity to include what you know the kids in your life love. Choose a favorite cartoon, film, or book series. Choose a favorite sport, hobby, or topic such as space, dinosaurs, mythical creatures, and superheroes. Any obsession or curiosity can become a theme. Each week's theme could lead to a related culminating event: a talent show or field day, a trip to the beach or a park, or a visit to a museum or garden. Camping, water parks, theater, and "fine dining" at home count, too.

Rather than weekly themes, some folks like to establish themes for each day of the week, sometimes following a regular cycle. Think: Musical Mondays, Tasty Tuesdays, Wise Wednesdays, Thankful Thursdays, and Field Trip Fridays. This option is a great choice whether you want to plan for one big activity each day or for exploring and having fun applying the theme in creative contexts in many ways over the course of each day. You can also apply weekly themes to your daily themes if having a routine makes the process even easier for you.

Get Ready for A Summer Full of Fun

A crucial part of planning is to determine what supplies you need and can access. Sure, having a pool is sweet, but you'll find there are tons of affordable, or free, options in every category: themed coloring sheets, word searches, and homemade Mad Libs; jumping rope and hula hooping; scavenger hunts, relay races, and obstacle courses; sidewalk chalk drawings and tie-dying; planting kidney beans and making salt crystals; baking cookies and making spaghetti necklaces; Lego construction sprints; and living room fort building. The list goes on.

When it comes to self-care and physical activity, perhaps you and the kids in your group are down for yoga and even meditation—teachers suggest using apps such as Headspace—but don't underestimate the benefits of old-school moves, including jumping jacks and floor stretches. The important point is to enjoy summer, so don't forget to just have free time and fun.

Take a hike around the neighborhood. Make friendship bracelets. Have a dance-off. Play charades or take a stab at improv. Pull out the board games or add some newbies to the collection. Create an escape room. Make a family time capsule. Act like a kid again and play under the sprinkler. At-home summer camp as a grown up means the world is in your hands, and the choices are all yours.