Ways to Cool off this Summer

[Christina72684]

I would love some suggestions on ways to keep my kids cool this summer. I have 6 month old up to 12 year olds (20+ total but in 2 different daycares next door to each other that share the same yard). We do popsicles daily (the liquid kind that you freeze, can't think of the name right now), but that's about it. We have a water table but haven't used it yet this year (heat wasn't really an issue last summer but will be this one!) and not sure how much of a pain it will be with the toddlers getting soaked every day. Oh, and we're not allowed any types of pools at all, not even the little plastic ones What do you guys use?

[MamaBearCanada]

Make sure you have some areas with shade if you don't have natural shade you can buy shade sails at Walmart.

What about sprinklers? Or sprinkle arches they can run under or drive toy cars through?

http://m.instructables.com/id/KidWash%3A-PVC-Sprinkler-Water-Toy/

http://www.momfluential.net/2011/06/27/tutorial-drive-through-kid-bike-wash-sprinkler-diy/

We use our water table a lot. Could you do some sensory bins with frozen (colored?) ice cubes or chunks of ice with small items frozen inside?

Also you can make sponge speakers for water fights for the older kids.

http://www.thetipgarden.com/2012/05/sponge-balls.html?m=1

[MsLaura529]

I was going to suggest doing toys frozen in ice and then they chip away at it.

I've also recently seen freezing paint in ice cube trays and then they draw with the ice cubes.

Buckets of water and big paint brushes to "paint" the fence/deck/swing set/etc.

What about buying some dollar store spray bottles and they can either spray each other or just themselves when they need a cool down, it would just be a light mist.

[melilley]

We can have pools here, but the ratio is 1:1 so that's not an option. I worked in a center and we had a sprinkler. It was the one that looked like a long hose and had little hoses coming out of it. Some of the kids loved it and some didn't. I too had the toddler class and the character type sprinklers seemed to scare most of the toddlers. Also, we only had 1-2 days designated as water day. It takes forever to get bathing suits and sunscreen on so 1-2 days was plenty!

Water tables outside is fun too. I would let them play in it when we first went out and would keep it out for about half of the time then put it away for the rest of the outside time so that they had time to dry off.

MsLaura529's idea of spray bottles is also a great idea! The kids may not be able to figure out how to spray them-the younger toddlers seem to have trouble figuring out how to spray them, but they (most) love to be sprayed! Also her water painting idea was always a hit.

The only thing that I have tried is the sensory table filled with water outside and the kids had a blast! They also liked being sprayed with the hose ( I just sprayed it in the air and they ran through the mist)! I haven't tried any other ideas yet, I just opened my fcc in Jan and it hasn't really been warm enough or has been raining!
Great post though! I'll have to keep checking back for new ideas!

[melilley]

Make sure you have some areas with shade if you don't have natural shade you can buy shade sails at Walmart.

What about sprinklers? Or sprinkle arches they can run under or drive toy cars through?

http://m.instructables.com/id/KidWash%3A-PVC-Sprinkler-Water-Toy/

http://www.momfluential.net/2011/06/27/tutorial-drive-through-kid-bike-wash-sprinkler-diy/

We use our water table a lot. Could you do some sensory bins with frozen (colored?) ice cubes or chunks of ice with small items frozen inside?

Also you can make sponge speakers for water fights for the older kids.
http://www.thetipgarden.com/2012/05/...balls.html?m=1

These are all super awesome ideas! I'll have to show the second drive through sprinkler to my husband...

[kitkat]

This probably wouldn't be of interest to any SAs, but the littles would enjoy it. Take a big plastic tarp, lay it on the ground and run the hose over. The water will create puddles for the kids to stomp and splash in.

[JoseyJo]

We eat homemade popsicles made out of juice as a "bribe" when we have to come inside because everyone is getting too hot but doesn't want to come in yet

When i serve canned fruit I save the juice (100% juice packed kind, pineapple and tropical fruit are the best!) and make popsicles out of it. If we run out I sometimes make them out of regular juice (apple, grape, etc). A little healthier than regular popsicles and the kids love that they stay a little soft and can be bitten.