by Roxanne Laplante

Created on: May 31, 2009

Summer is fun and entertaining but with children, they can get restless and bored easily. They need to be entertained in a structured environment. Families with children can provide this entertainment with a little imagination, and very little cost. Plan activities around a theme to simplify your summer and keep it fun and educational.

A circus summer theme is always fun. Children can dress up and role play as character performers; ringmaster, tightrope walker, clowns, acrobats, etc. You can even get the family pets involved with an animal training act. Set up a circus tent in the back yard. Sew costumes. Make cotton candy. Go to the library and find books on the circus. Read about them and plan a field trip to a circus. Go on line and research job opportunities as a circus performer. Watch movies about the circus. Give your children art materials and let them make animals of clay, and paper to make a mini circus. Ideas are endless with this theme.

Studying other countries is another theme to have fun with. Choose a country or give each child a different country to study. Learn the language, play games, watch videos, cook ethnic foods, check out library books, research on the Internet, make maps. You can choose one or two nights that each child prepares a meal, and organizes a family activity involving their country. Fun and educational especially for geography and social studies skills.

Holiday themes can provide families and children with hours of fun at little or no cost. Choose a few holidays to celebrate over the summer. Christmas is always fun in the summer. Decorate a tree and if the weather is warm you can leave it outside and string popcorn on the tree for the animals. Have a gift exchange. Make decorations, sing Christmas Carols, drink hot chocolate, etc. Easter is also a fun holiday. Activities include egg hunts, basket weaving, researching rabbits, dying eggs, making Easter bonnets. Valentine's Day involves many fun activities such as making the valentines and exchanging them. Sing songs, play Hide the Valentine, make heart shaped foods. If your family celebrates other holidays, use those as a theme.

Back in the Day is a fun theme especially since it can involve grandparents in these activities. Children can find out what their grandparents, or ancestors lives were like as children. Interview them, write a report or make a power point. Then engage in some activities. Plant a garden, play Kick the can, make button toys, play Cat's Cradle, sew a quilt, learn to knit or whittle, cook old fashioned recipes. Dress up, go to history museums create a family tree. Any activity that puts children in touch with the past is excellent for history skills in addition to reading and writing especially if you encourage them to read about the past and keep a journal.

The number and type of themes to explore are endless. Many families engage in regular activities that can be made out as a summer theme such as sports, animals, travel, crafts, whatever you find enjoyable with your children. Of course activities should be age appropriate and spark an interest in each child. Small children will want to engage in activities not suitable for adolescents, but be flexible. Children can engage in different themes, they don't have to be the same. Don't forget to use the public library and other community resources to help with your children's theme projects. This will save money and put your family in touch with valuable tools and information. But the most important thing to remember is have fun! Using themes as a basis for entertainment will provide you and your children with activities they will never forget. Isn't that what summer fun is all about?

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