Summer, summer, summer….what does it mean to you? Holidays? The Beach? Warm weather? Relaxation?

Chances are that, if you are a mum, Summer also means Kids at home 24/7 , and that your google searches from the end of May until the end of August are mostly focused on finding cool, entertaining, educational, fun and, yes, affordable, summer activities to do with kids.Am I right? Are you like me?

Then this blog post is for you!

As I mentioned before, Luka and Zoe are not going to Summer school this year, nor are we going on holidays because of my husband’s work, so this has meant finding TONS of activities to keep their energetic little minds and bodies active, stimulated and entertained.  Summer in Cyprus is very, very hot, so it is not possible for us to spend all day outside and, since we live in an apartment, several activities have to adapted, but we make it work!

In following posts I will tell you all about how we are planning each day (schedules, schedules!) and I will share with you specific ideas, activities and resources for our “Summer themes” but, for today, here’s a list of general books I have found more useful in this process. With these resources on hand I know I’ll never run out of ideas for fun summer activities!

Here they are:

6 great resouces for fun Summer activities 

1)The Pre-schoolers busy book: 365 creative games & activities to occupy 3-6 year olds: This is a wonderful general resource book that you can use all year long, for many years.   What I love about this book is that it has resources for everything: rainy days, cooking with children, outdoor adventures, drama and music, arts and crafts, and even holiday activities. It also included lists of material to buy and recycle, lists of age-appropriate books and home-made recipes for things such as play-dough and bubble solution. If your child is smaller than 3 years, you may want to know that we had the previous one too (The Toddler’s busy book) and it is also great!

2) Camp mom: Summer activities pack: This is an ebook created by 20 blogger mums, full of guidance on how to plan, schedule and execute tons of super fun activities in three main themes: water, art and nature. Many of the ideas can be used all year long, and it also contains an area called “sensory play every day” which is great for emergencies (a.k.a I need an idea FAST!) and which includes links to sensory activities.

3) Self-Esteem games: 300 activities that make children feel good about themselves: I really love this book and it has been a wonderful resource for encouraging a sense of self in Luka and Zoe. The games help children focus on the things they do well, learn to love their names, getting to know themselves (their bodies, their feelings and emotions, their reactions) and learning how to be with others, how to trust and express affection. If you have a child who has been bullied or who has gone through a difficult first socialization experience, this is a beautiful book to add to your library.

4) Science is Simple: Over 250 activities for pre-schoolers: Children are naturally curious about the World around them and the early years are a great time to teach them to think scientifically: to question, to observe, to hypothesize, to draw conclusions. This book teaches children (and the adults teaching them) to be mindful about the world and think about things such as why do tree leaves change color, how to seeds grow, what is melting, what can the wind do, where do trees come from, how to explore the unknown and many, many others. What I love about this book is that it teaches children to find their own answers to the multiple whats, whys and hows they encounter everyday, and to be active in the finding of knowledge and not mere receptacles of the ideas of others.

5) Montessori Geography curriculum: This ebook was originally conceived to help Montessori teachers, but I have found wonderful ideas in it as well (and it’s free!). The main idea of the Montessori Geography curriculum is to help children develop spatial awareness and understand themselves as part of a bigger group that includes neighbourhood, city, country, continent and, ultimately, our planet. The instructions are detailed and the activities are, even though the country geography lessons are US-specific, they are easily adaptable.

6) Art not craft ebook: I love this ebook! I was not a creative person before having children and their artistic explorations opened a whole new world for me. This book provides instructions, ideas and resources for drawing, painting, printmaking, collage and even making sculptures, as well as ideas on  how to prepare a creative space,  how to store art materials and how to store artwork. (Note: the ebook I bought is no longer available for purchase and has been replaced by a book called “Time to create”, which is very similar)

In my next blog posts I will share with you our Summer themes (you may have guessed them from my book descriptions!) as well as the specific activities and resources that I have planned for each of them, so make sure to come back for more ideas. Or even better, subscribe to this blog in the pink box below to receive them all directly in your inbox!

Now it’s your turn: how are you planning your kid’s summer and what are your favourite resources for doing so? Let me know in the comments below!

NOTE: The links above ARE NOT affiliate ones. If you want to purchase these books using my affiliate link, you can go to The Celebration Girl’s amazon store