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Make a Wind Chime

The sound of a wind time in the summer breeze is very relaxing and making one can occupy the children for an afternoon. The materials you will need are items that will make a pretty sound when they rub against each other (shells, beads, or even old utensils), something sharp to poke a hole through each item, a hammer, string, a round item (a lid or piece of wood) for the top, and a hook to hang the wind chime.

Once all the items are collected the adult should use the hammer and sharp object (such as a screwdriver) to make a hole in each object. If the item is too hard to make a hole in (like a rock) tie string around it several times until it is secured. After the holes are made tie a piece of string to each item.

Take your tools again and punch holes in the round lid that you are going to use, one for each item that will be hanging from the wind chime. Thread the string through the hole and tie a knot so that it will not fall back through. Poke two more holes in the lid and tie one piece of string through both holes and attach the hook.

All that is left is to find the perfect spot for your wind chime. Place it close enough so that it can be heard through an open window on a breezy day. If the items do not knock against each other when the wind blows you may have to adjust the lengths of the string a few times until you get it just right. Keep an eye on the wind chime to make sure it doesn’t lose any of the pieces. If it does be sure to pick them up as they can pose a choking hazard to young children.

Summer Memory Jars

Instead of keeping a journal or starting a scrap book a child may be interested in making their own memory jar from the summer. If all the memories will not fit into one jar, they may want to make several for special days or outings that happened during the summer break.

What you will need is a large clear glass jar with a lid. This can be used from an empty pickle jar or other food container that is empty and has been cleaned out. If you are having trouble getting the entire label off, you can use nail polish remover to dissolve the glue and paper that is still stuck.

Have the child collect small mementos or other meaningful objects that will fit inside a jar. They can be photographs, a special rock found, something they made, a friendship bracelet, the options are really only limited to their imagination. A good example for a day trip memory jar is one from the beach. Fill the bottom part of the jar with sand or pebbles that were collected from the beach, add in some shells and other interesting finds.

Take a picture of your child at the beach and they can use it as a backdrop for the items.

As time goes on the children may want to open their jars and rearrange them and as long as they are careful with the glass that is fine. Put up a shelf in their room and they can have a collection of memory jars. Put a label on the top of the jar with the date or date range and the location of where the items were collected. These can be kept for years as a lasting reminder of the fun they had growing up and going to special places with mom and dad.

Gardening for Kids

Here is a summer activity that can last the entire summer. Helping the kids grow their own garden is fun and they will be able to reap the benefits before school starts again by harvesting their own vegetables.

This activity will require some pre-planning and most likely should be started before school is out. The best way to start a garden for children is to germinate the seeds indoors. After it is decided what type of vegetables to grow, get the plants ready inside so they have a better chance of success when they are moved to the outdoors.

Beans, radishes, and carrots are all easy vegetables to grow. Strawberries are a popular alternative to vegetables and are also considered an easy plant to take care of. Have the children make home-made row markers for their vegetable garden using paper and Popsicle sticks. You can have the pictures laminated or do-it-yourself with some clear packing tape to protect them from rain.

Make the garden the child’s responsibility, if there is already a garden plot in your yard give them a section to call their own. Most children can be in charge of their own weeding and watering. This is another good activity that fosters independence and will give the children a sense of accomplishment come the end of the summer – eating vegetables that they grew themselves in their own backyard.

If fruit and vegetables do not interest your child, try a different kind of plant. Growing sunflowers is very rewarding. They can grow up to 8-12 feet tall and the seeds are edible. Or go to the garden center together and let them pick out a small plant or seeds that they want to take care of for the summer or maybe for longer if they pick a perennial plant.