Four Fun Activities for Children

By Colleen Bernardis, Youth Programs Coordinator

Here is a list of four different activities you can do with your children before they go back to school to help make this summer a memorable one!! Most of these fun summer activities can be done with supplies you will already have at home! Just help your kiddos get set up with these activities and then let their imaginations run free.

1. Make ice cream in a bag!

- Ingredients:
  - 1 cup of half and half
  - ¼ cup of salt
  - 1 tbsp sugar
  - Ice
  - 5 tsp vanilla extract
  - Ziploc bags- 1 sandwich, 1 gallon
- Instructions:
  - Pour 1 cup of half and half into a small Ziploc bag
  - Add 1.5 teaspoons of vanilla extract and 1 tablespoon of sugar to small Ziploc bag
  - Seal the bag and squeeze to get any excess air out
  - In the larger Ziploc bag, fill about ½ way with ice. Add ¼ cup of salt.
  - Add your small bag to the inside of the larger bag and fill with extra ice on top. Seal the large bag.
  - Get gloves and shake the bag for 6 minutes- gloves are needed since the salt makes the ice super cold
  - Take the small bag out of the large bag, and rinse the outside of the small bag with cold water
  - Once done rinsing, open small bag and try not to get any remaining salt from outside of the bag inside the smaller bag
  - The ice cream will be a little bit icy looking to start, but all you need to do is use a spoon to mix it around and soften it up
  - Scoop it out, add your favorite toppings, and ENJOY!

2. Paint the sidewalk and driveway with chalk paint!

- - Supplies:
    - 1 cup corn starch
    - 1 cup water
    - Food coloring
    - Plastic squeeze bottles
    - Small containers or cups
    - Paintbrushes
  - What to do:
    - Get a large bowl
    - Add one cup of water and one cup of corn starch to bowl
    - Add about 10 drops of your favorite colors of food coloring
    - Stir well and pour the mixture into the squeeze bottle
    - Shake well before using!
    - Squeeze mixture into a small cup or container
    - Using paintbrushes, paint the sidewalk with the chalk paint!

3. Have a car wash!

- - - What you need:
      - A car (pretend cars or toys would work, too!)
      - Water
      - ¼ cup baking soda
      - ¼ dishwashing soap
    - What to do:
      - Grab a bucket, and fill it with ¼ cup baking soda and ¼ cup dishwashing soap
      - After you add these ingredients to the bucket, fill the bucket up with water
      - Grab a sponge and wash your car!
      - For extra fun, have the kids use the hose to spray the car down after they get it all soapy and clean

4. Make your own bubbles and bubble wands!

- - - - What you need for the wands:
        
        Pipe cleaners
        
        Wooden dowels or sticks
        
        Assorted beads
        
        Hot glue gun (optional)
      - How to make the wand:
        
        String beads on the pipe cleaner to make bubble wand heads
        
        Twist pipe cleaner into a circle and then twist the end of the pipe cleaner’s around dowel ends, add hot glue from glue gun to help ensure the wand stays in place
      - What you need for the bubbles:
        
        4 cups of warm water
        
        ½ cup sugar
        
        ½ cup of Dawn dish soap
      - How to make the bubbles:
        
        Step one: Whisk the sugar into the warm water until the sugar dissolves
        
        Step two: Add the dish soap and whisk to combine
        
        Step three: Let sit (if you have time, letting the bubble solution sit for a little helps them to work better)
        
        Step four: Use the bubble wand that you created and go outside and blow bubbles! Enjoy!!

Colleen Bernardis

Colleen graduated in 2017 from the University of Colorado, Boulder with a Bachelor of Science in Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences. She began her career at Club Greenwood in 2013, as a Camp Counselor. In 2016, she was a Camp Lead and in April of 2019 she was promoted to Youth Programs Coordinator. Colleen’s passion is working with children and she loves spending time with them, and brightening their days. In her free time, Colleen enjoys hanging out with her friends and family or spending time outdoors.

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