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Forum -> Parenting our children -> School age children
Help me make my own camp!
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amother
OP


 

Post Wed, May 29 2019, 9:58 pm
My girls are going to 2 different camps this summer and will have a 2 week break between.

Hanging around the house is not an option. They will drive each other and me crazy.

I am trying to plan a really fun "mommy camp" with activities planned out. I am planning to schedule private dance lessons as part of it and do some baking lessons as well.

What other lessons/ activities do you think would appeal to girls going in to 5th & 6th grade?

They work really hard in school, have so much homework and never do extracurricular activities so I want them to have a chance to try new things and really have fun.

Also, one is struggling with her weight so anything physically active is a plus!
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yksraya




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, May 29 2019, 10:03 pm
Maybe call down an instructor for zumba or aerobics etc or with a dvd etc.

Hoola hoop can be fun, do a competition who can the longest.

Art and painting.
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aricelli




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, May 29 2019, 10:07 pm
Kangoo shoes are fun! Also step it up dance pad - you can hook up two at a time for a competition
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2gether




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, May 30 2019, 7:42 am
-make a (mini) long term project, something that will take time every day for 2 weeks: gardening, a succah decoration, a&c,
-get an exercise dvd and do it together daily
-plan a menu and cook with them
all these things add structure to the day

-Invite some friends, sleepovers, one day at your house-one day at mine
-trips, look for free ideas in you neighborhood, hikes etc. or not expensive things
-do you have a pool in your neighborhood? can you have one in your backyard?
-visit family, visit family that live far away that you don't usually see (if relevant)
-chesed, visit elderly etc.
-do some project together, paint a room, etc.

-ask them what they want to do! have fun planning it!, build up the excitment, make a calandar
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ddmom




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, May 30 2019, 9:20 am
Scavenger hunt at the mall
Arts and craft, needlepoint project
Try to find a couple of other families on same schedule as you, it's so much easier to entertain when the are friends around
All you need is a ball to organize a game in a park(or backyard if you have one!)
Rent bikes (if theres one near you!)
Pedal boats
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2gether




 
 
    
 

Post Fri, May 31 2019, 1:51 am
If you do some project together, you can look back on the summer and say "thats the yr. we did x!", so some more ideas: build a tree house, sew some doll clothes, sort your pics

more ideas:
-have a bored game day (or a few days), pull out all your old ones or buy/borrow some new ones, the classics monopoly, clue, etc.
-pictionary, card games
-rent videos online (you can download kosher things for a few $)
-spend one day buying school supplies

-take pics every day and the last day create a scrapbook/digital album

-you can also organize like what people do with toddlers and preschoolers: have a traveling camp, one day each week at each girls house, get together like 5-6 girls and then you only have to plan 2 days
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2gether




 
 
    
 

Post Fri, May 31 2019, 4:04 am
check this out:
https://www.imamother.com/foru.....rt=80

can you tell I really like this kinda stuff?...
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WhatFor




 
 
    
 

Post Fri, May 31 2019, 4:34 am
Where are you located, OP? We might be able to give day trip ideas.
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dankbar




 
 
    
 

Post Fri, May 31 2019, 9:35 am
Every day
A craft.
Making something out of food like baking & food decorating.
Swimming.
Outdoor activities or fun races/games with other girls.
Some free time where they do their own thing or hang out with neighbors/friends just schmoozing/playing.

Projects they can do like scrapbooking.
Organizing your photos.
Major sukkah decoration.
Baking for yom tov.
Shopping for fall/yom tov clothes.
Organizing all recipes.
Hook rug/ needlepoint/ crocheting

Volunteering
Mommy helper
With twins
With sick child not attending school
Special needs child

Outings
Hikes/trails
Nice parks/scenic views
Picnics/bbq
Boating/biking/roller blading
Kangoo jumping/backyard trampolines or indoor trampoline park
Pottery/ plaster painting/ canvas painting
Soap making/candle making/glass fusing/ string art/ making potpourri/ bear building/ balloon sculpting/ jewelery making/ face painting
( OR ON OWN)

Ziplining/ropes course
Amusement parks
Science museums

Libraries/reading/watching kosher DVD with performances take long time

They can make backyard daycamp for all the younger kids in neighborhood
They can set up performances & puppet shows for neighbors to watch
Set up carnivals on the block
Sell stuff for tzedaka causes
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dankbar




 
 
    
 

Post Fri, May 31 2019, 10:02 am
It's more fun when it's themed.

Last summer I did for my little kids with numbers.
We decorated a number 3 with triangle stickers
For #3 we did:
Paper Triangle hunt on lawn.
Then we created our own art using those paper triangles
Everyone created their own thing like houses, ice cream cones, tents. I gave them art supplies to decorate.

Then we did create your own pizza with different toppings for triangle slice
( bought small ind pie doughs rolled out from freezer section)
Baked it & ate it for lunch

Then we did ice cream bar with different flavors ice cream & different toppings. Everyone created their own. Cone triangle shape. Had that for dessert after dinner.

Another day was Purim day=hamantashen & clown hats are triangular shaped.
We created our own clown hats from colored paper.
We put on some music & disco lights & did some dancing & they created Purim mobile trucks with their bikes.

Next day we continued with dress up costumes & face painting.
We made hamantashen created out of fruit leathers & filled with different things like jam, marshmallow cream, Choco lentils, Choco chips etc.
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dankbar




 
 
    
 

Post Fri, May 31 2019, 10:14 am
For #4
We decorated a number 4 with square stickers
We created art using different size squares & rectangles
Like kites, cityscape with huge buildings & little windows, school bus with little windows etc.

You can play connect 4.

The kids can create 4 season posters.
Do different things for different seaons.
Marshmallow snowmen.
Things with shaving cream or crumbled foam for snow.

Spring activities like flower picking/ berry picking
Create jumpropes from straws.
Make super balls with a kit etc.
Eta: Also crafts with butterflies ( maybe string art)
Floral crafts ( like tissue paper flowers or pressed flower crafts or potpourri)
I am just thinking what older kids might enjoy.

For summer
Swimming/ beach/ make ices/make slush/make ice cream.

Create seashell crafts
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dankbar




 
 
    
 

Post Fri, May 31 2019, 12:17 pm
The year before we did intro to numbers:

Telephone numbers.
We created rotary phones with fruit loop cereal stuck onto a phone template with marshmallow cream.
Emergency numbers:
We created wooden model kits for police cars, firetrucks etc.

For #1
You're one in the world crown.
All about myself booklet
Beaded name bracelets & keychains for boys
Created door signs for their rooms with their names. For younger: construction paper & foam letters. For older you can do wooden plaques.
We painted & decorated photo frames to put photo of yourself

For #2
You can do twin day.
Rely races competition between 2 people
Activities you need two people for like chatterbox, board games, water fights etc.
Ahavas yisroel/chesed activities like doing favors for others.
You can tie two people together by legs or hands & try to do some thing like that
You can do matching/set games like memory or things that go together by association.
Activities with pairs like eyeglasses crafts.
Musical shoes.
Mitten/sock matching games.
( everyone wears two different ones on hand. Hide hands in back, one person asks for surys right hand & leah left hand till you get a pair. )
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dankbar




 
 
    
 

Post Fri, May 31 2019, 12:20 pm
For number 2 you can do popsticks crafts as it has two ends.
Yarn string hunt & whoever has longest string tied together as it has two ends.
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dankbar




 
 
    
 

Post Fri, May 31 2019, 12:24 pm
For #2 you can do Frienship stuff like cards/letters to friends.
Friendship bracelets/ bff heart necklaces etc
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L25




 
 
    
 

Post Fri, May 31 2019, 12:47 pm
dankbar- how much time did you put in to this ?!?!?!
may I ask your kids age range?
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dankbar




 
 
    
 

Post Fri, May 31 2019, 1:18 pm
For people that have all their kids home all summer it is worth it to have a plan.
Buy lots of basic craft supplies beforehand so then you can create many different things from the basic supplies you've got at home.

You don't need expensive craft kids all the time.
If there's is a theme any simple activity, can be interesting even for older kids if it's tied into the theme.
If you have the ideas, plan, then it's simple to make sure you have what you need beforehand.
Not every day needs to be a full day if theyre home all summer.
Mom can do her stuff. She can do one special thing with them every day. They can entertain themselves on own or with friends as well.
Older ones can entertain younger ones.


I was years ago a preschool teacher & daycamp counselor for diff ages

My kids weren't home all summer. I did have one child home from school for some time where I tried to keep him busy in times that he wasn't entertained.

These things I did either in between daycamp & school or last year I was away for a week/ two where I did mommy camp where my kids didn't go off.
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dankbar




 
 
    
 

Post Fri, May 31 2019, 1:23 pm
I'm trying to give ideas for OP for older kids not all activities did we do with my little kids.

My kids last year were boy 7, boy 5.5, girl 2.5, one week my nieces nephews of diff ages joined. One year my cousins kids joined. In the catskills, all the kids there came joining.

Yes it was for free unofficial daycamp after hours sometimes
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amother
OP


 

Post Fri, May 31 2019, 1:25 pm
Wow, thank you for the many, many amazing ideas!

You all sound like amazing and fun moms. I should have stated in my original post that I try to avoid crafts. I'm not good at them and I hate messes. My girls hate this about me, but I do send them to an art camp for part of the summer to compensate.

Also, we live in FL so some of the activities we are already spoiled with year round. We have bikes, we have a pool, etc.

But you all gave me a lot of food for thought. I think the idea of a theme for the week or even for each day is a great one. And I LOVE the idea of incorporating some chessed projects - maybe looking for volunteer opportunities, perhaps a lemonade stand to raise $$ for their tzedakah of choice, etc.

And the kangoo jump shoes look awesome. Hope I can find a place to rent them and hope I don't come back to post that I broke some bones, lol!
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dankbar




 
 
    
 

Post Fri, May 31 2019, 1:32 pm
You can make a loose schedule like one day outing, one day baking, one day craft, one day swimming if you have to go elsewhere. If you have pool at your home they can go every day for half a day to fill the time & other half a day do something else.
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2gether




 
 
    
 

Post Tue, Aug 27 2019, 9:15 am
Would you mind to update us how it went?
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