What are your older dcks doing tomorrow?

[Josiegirl]

I need some inspiration. Last Monday and Tuesday were horrendous with some of the older ones. I was just wondering if anybody has some genius ideas. Cause I sure as heck don't.

[bklsmum]

I need some inspiration. Last Monday and Tuesday were horrendous with some of the older ones. I was just wondering if anybody has some genius ideas. Cause I sure as heck don't.

Tomorrow is going to be rainy and gross so we are going to bake. We are going to bake bread and cookies and muffins and make some homemade butter. The bigs will obviously get to do more of it but we are doing it as a group.

[Laurel]

I need some inspiration. Last Monday and Tuesday were horrendous with some of the older ones. I was just wondering if anybody has some genius ideas. Cause I sure as heck don't.

How old? What I used to have my own children do and also older daycare kids when they would say they were bored was to give them a paper and pencil and have them make a list of possible things they could do. Then I'd tell them to pick one and do it and later another one and so on.

School aged:

-Play card games or board games. Make their own board game.
-Make puppets and do a puppet show.
-One time mine made up their own commercials and then performed them. It was pretty cute.
-Simple cooking. The older ones could make plain cookies and the younger ones could just decorate them. Show them how to make colored sugar by putting a few drops of food coloring onto white sugar in a bowl and then using the back of the spoon to press the coloring into the sugar until it is the desired color. They 'love' this.
-Scavenger Hunt-indoors or outdoors on a walk. They have to find everything on the list.
-Easter Egg Hunt-When it wasn't Easter we used any old thing to find such as wadded up aluminum foil balls.
-Playdough- Just vary the utensils from time to time. I like to make my own as warm playdough feels so good.
-Outside old fashioned games like tag, freeze tag, hide and seek, duck duck goose, London Bridges and ring around the rosey for the littles.
-Set up a croquet game outside if you have one.
-Odds and ends art supplies so they can create whatever they want. Scotch tape (from dollar store), hole punches and staplers along with scissors are especially popular.
-Make believe centers such as post office, library, grocery store, office, etc.
-Someone here suggested something and my kids loved it. Give them plastic flowers and flower pots, let them dig and play garden/flower shop. Or let them arrange artificial flowers in containers inside and then place around the room.
-Darken room and do flashlight play. Littles can join in with a game. You pick one child at a time and then shine the light on the floor and then stand on the spot and then you move it around and they jump/run from spot to spot.
-Put a big sheet or bedspread over a table to make a tent.

Younger
-Play with bean bags. The older kids could actually make real ones or child sized socks filled with beans and with a tight knot work great. Then make bean bag games like throwing them in a bucket or whatever.
-Follow the Leader game.
-Dance party
-Liquid water color painting.
-Sorting things
-Game called "Bring Me...." Bring me something in the room that is soft, something that is red, something with stripes, something with wheels, etc. This is also a way to get kiddies to pick up the toys. Put away something that is red, soft, etc.
-Do something different on your outside walk. While older kids are finding something on their scavenger hunt list and checking them off the younger ones can push a doll stroller with a doll or stuffed animal in it, or push a play lawn mower or Fisher Price corn popper, etc.

Laurel

[Josiegirl]

Wow, thanks for all the wonderful ideas! I really need to write them down. When the time comes sometimes my mind goes blank and that's when trouble starts. It helps to be prepared and sometimes I'm just not. Little ones are so easy to entertain compared to the older ones.
My older kids are 7-12. And they're all so different. Some love to help, some HAVE to win, some are always BO R E D...

I've been hitting yard sales and picking up games for the older kids but so far they haven't been all that interested. There are a couple card games they love, Bluff and Spoons.

[childcaremom]

Wow, thanks for all the wonderful ideas! I really need to write them down. When the time comes sometimes my mind goes blank and that's when trouble starts. It helps to be prepared and sometimes I'm just not. Little ones are so easy to entertain compared to the older ones.
My older kids are 7-12. And they're all so different. Some love to help, some HAVE to win, some are always BO R E D...

I've been hitting yard sales and picking up games for the older kids but so far they haven't been all that interested. There are a couple card games they love, Bluff and Spoons.

I love spoons! Another one that is good is spit. It's a 2 player game but they could have a tournament. Seriously fun. My after school group could play this all the time.

[Laurel]

Wow, thanks for all the wonderful ideas! I really need to write them down. When the time comes sometimes my mind goes blank and that's when trouble starts. It helps to be prepared and sometimes I'm just not. Little ones are so easy to entertain compared to the older ones.
My older kids are 7-12. And they're all so different. Some love to help, some HAVE to win, some are always BO R E D...

I've been hitting yard sales and picking up games for the older kids but so far they haven't been all that interested. There are a couple card games they love, Bluff and Spoons.

You're welcome!

A card game I learned as a child we called Stealing Casino. Kids love it and the nice thing is that when younger children are playing they only need to hold 4 cards in their hand at a time. Each round 4 new cards are dealt out again. Here are the rules but they call it something different. Same game. http://www.ehow.com/how_8455545_play...teal-pile.html You get to steal each others piles throughout the game and at the end the person with the largest pile is the winner. Very easy to learn also.

Laurel

P.S. I'm not sure why they call the cards in the center of the table 'piles' as they are only single cards (just saying that so you don't think you are doing anything wrong)

[daycare]

last week was disney camp and this week we are having cooking camp.

made a pizza today
tomorrow fruit salad
Wednesday birthday cake for all July B-day
Thursday- home made play-dough
Friday- egg plant bread

we give them play dough factory in the off time that we are not cooking and they will cook up a storm with it. provide lots of salt containers, measuring cups, spoons, flour, aprons and a little bit of oil and water. it will keep them busy for hours.

I just got done printing up pretend menus. and we will make chef hats tomorrow to go along with our aprons we made out of paper bags.

I have a kids choice camp during the summer each family chooses a theme. Most of them donate the supplies needed for the camp idea and even some come in and volunteer with us when we have their theme.

so much fun and super exciting!!