Any child always suffers from the absence of a mom and dad nearby, from a lack of attention and care. They may not show their true feelings. Parents should always remember that every child wants to be the center of attention. If relatives are absent for a long time, and the child remains left to themselves, this leaves an unpleasant imprint in the soul of a small human being. No one wants, having matured, to remember their childhood years as lonely and uninteresting. Only the love and attention of parents can fill the life of a child with happiness and joy. No toys in the world can replace this. There is only one conclusion: you need to spend enough time with your child. Then, as an adult, they will remember only good things about their childhood and about you. Weekends spent with your children are a good family tradition that will benefit both kids and adults. This is an opportunity to get close to the child, talk heart to heart, discuss exciting topics and solve problems.
What are the activities you can do with the child on the weekend? Today we want to offer you some interesting ideas for family leisure during days off. Classes are always chosen depending on the weather, season, health conditions and opportunities. However, despite the circumstances, you can always find a way to spend time with children in a fun, interesting and useful way. Joint leisure will remain in your memory as the happiest time, so you will not regret it.
We offer you 30+ ideas for children from 8 to 14 years old that both they and their parents will enjoy.
Have a picnic in the park
What could be better than lying on the grass, inhaling the fresh air and basking in the warm rays? Sunbathing is useful for everyone, regardless of age, and especially for modern “recluses” of offices and apartments. You can have a picnic in the yard, or go to the city park, to the river bank, to the nearest forest. Do not forget to bring delicious treats, as well as a ball or a frisbee.
Become a "jolly postman"
Oftentimes we do not have enough time to communicate with relatives and friends, so we can arrange a small marathon with acquaintances. Prepare beautiful drawings with your child in advance for each addressee - grandmothers, aunts or friends. While the child is busy drawing, call the addressees and find out if they will be at home, warn them about the arrival - let them prepare a symbolic reward for the “postman”, for example, candy or fruit. If you have a car, then in just a couple of hours you will have time to spread postcards to many acquaintances - just don’t linger anywhere.
Visit a zoo, dolphinarium or aquarium
Here we have combined different options for exploring the world of wildlife - depending on what you have in your city. Such trips are perceived with enthusiasm by children. Maybe the child will like some section in the zoo - the problem of how to occupy the free time will be solved. See also: The largest aquariums in the world for your children.
Feed the animals and birds in the park
In the zoo, you can only look at animals, but in a park, you can also feed them. It can be ducks in the pond, squirrels, and, of course pigeons. Do not forget to take treats for the animals you are visiting.
Go to the pool or water park
Such water activities are good for everyone: in summer, a trip to a water park can compensate for the inability to escape to the sea, and in winter it will remind you of the warm months and kicking back. See also: Trip to a waterpark, or How to avoid unpleasant surprises.
Try VR
An unusual format for a children's holiday in virtual reality is unique gaming locations and a huge number of different plots and worlds for teleportation.
The journey begins with a virtual reality headset and provides complete immersion in exciting games of different genres, in the exploration of the depths of the oceans, the secrets of distant planets and the secrets of the human body.
Read more: https://www.arenastem.com/activities/vr-zone
Go watch a play
If you have never been to the theater yet, it's time to make up for this omission! Usually, all information on performances can be found on city posters or on theater websites. Study the repertoire in advance to find something that matches the age and interests of the child.
Visit an amusement park or an arcade
This is both a "summer" and "winter" option for recreation. Of course, there are usually more attractions in a theme park, but it only works during the warm season. Rooms with arcade machines for children are always available. Here you can not only shoot and run, but also go to the popular 5D attractions. You just need to carefully choose a movie - small and sensitive kids can be scared of a realistic picture.
Arrange a ride, swim or flight
Today, children's toy stores sell cars, helicopters, and radio-controlled boats. Many of these toys are quite affordable, and they will cause genuine delight in the child. Such games captivate not only children, but also adults, so be prepared to spend more than one hour driving your machinery. Aqua Zone, from the fun of remote control powerboat racing to the graceful handling of model yachts! It is a favorite pastime for all ages!
Arrange a photo or a video shoot for your child
The most unforgettable weekends often end with the phrase “What a pity we didn’t take any pictures.” A separate entertainment can be a photo session, for example, in a park, on a playground. In order for the child not to get tired, let them change outfits, make faces, and take a variety of poses. You can give the child their own camera.
Handcraft and fly a kite
If you have at least a modest ability to create things with your own hands, invite your child to make a kite. You are in charge of the "engineering" part, and the child can decorate the kite as they wish. On the right day, fly your kite into the sky.
Visit an exhibition, quest or some kind of master class
Weekends can be not only interesting, but also educational if you go to a museum or gallery. Various masters-classes for children are becoming more and more popular among mothers: one day you can learn how to cook pizza or make chocolate candy, handcraft some kind of toy or take a drawing class. In Arena STEM you can attend real intellectual workshops https://www.arenastem.com/classes ranging from 3D modeling to building robots.
Gather mushrooms, berries or go fishing together
If the child is old enough, take them on a hike for the gifts of the forest. Such an adventure will be remembered for a long time, and sound sleep after a day in nature is guaranteed.
Drift and off-road racing using remote-controlled cars
Such activities are full of excitement and can develop technical skills and new interests for your child. Race or drift your car around our exciting track and see who will rise to the top in your group! A truly great activity especially for a birthday party.
Go to a circus with your child
This place is associated with a holiday, fun, laughter and joy. Surely the child will receive a lot of positive emotions.
Visit a library, bookstore or exhibition
Introducing a book to a child is the responsibility of every parent. An interesting book is a ticket to a magical world of adventure.
Go to sports competitions
It can be football games of your favorite team, hockey, basketball or baseball competitions. Perhaps your child will like one of these sports so much that they will seriously take a great interest in it.
Build a sand castle
There is nothing more interesting than building castles, digging sand trenches, sculpting sand cakes. Help your child build something grand, like a castle for dolls or soldiers. We hope that among all the options presented, you will find something useful and give your child a wonderful weekend filled with emotions and pleasant events. And for those parents who are planning the weekend or the next vacation with their children, we recommend that you familiarize yourself with our unique collections of family resorts and children's entertainment around the world. Perhaps on one of the pages of our website, you will find the resort and the entertainment activities that you will certainly want to visit with your child.
Operate a quadcopter
Another option to have a fun time is to launch a drone and control it. And if you turn on the camera at the same time, you can get beautiful photos and videos from a bird's eye view. You can make a cool video about summer holidays in the country. This is a great way to introduce your child to the skills of filming and editing and create an interest for technology. You can do it in Arena STEM: https://www.arenastem.com/activities/flying-field Here you can both fly a quadcopter and learn how to program it and perform aerial tricks with the whole family.
Watch the stars
Clear summer sky creates a great opportunity to play astronomer. You can put a blanket or a sleeping bag on the grass in your yard, lie down and study the stars together. This is a great way to create emotional bond and forget about daytime conflicts and problems. For a child, such an evening will be one of the warmest memories.
Watch movies and cartoons with a projector
Treat your child to an outdoor cinema so that they can watch their favorite movies or cartoons in the fresh air. It could be a family night where you all snuggle up on a warm blanket with ice cream, fruit, or other favorite snacks. You can also make it a part of a cozy sleepover. The projector can be connected to a smartphone and controlled remotely. There is a screen mirroring function - it allows you to project photos from the phone's gallery onto a wall.
Capture your adventures with an action camera
The camera will help keep the memories of your weekend. The experience of controlling an action camera will be very useful in future adventures.
Jump on a trampoline
Explore trampoline parks in your area, nowadays there are plenty of those everywhere. It’s a fun activity that will allow kids to spend their energy and get to play with new friends from the area.
Ride a scooter
You can arrange races with friends, get to the ice cream shop or a beach quickly. It’s a great way to exercise as well.
Arrange a battle on radio-controlled cars or bots:
Swim in the pool
An inflatable warm water pool in your backyard is one of the best summer activities. You can place it under a canopy or tree with dense foliage to protect from direct sunlight and splash around all day. You can also use different toys like rubber ducks, water guns or pool noodles.
Ride the swing
A swing is not only one of the favorite children's activities, but also a way for a child to develop. Rocking develops strength, agility and coordination of movements, and also helps children overcome fear, which is important for personal development. The swing also perfectly trains the vestibular apparatus, which is responsible for the sense of balance.
You can easily make them yourself using strong ropes to secure to a tree. An ordinary wooden plank, an old tire or a skateboard will work great as a seat. The main thing is to securely fasten the seat and ropes for safety. If there is no suitable tree, you can weld a metal structure or purchase a finished one.
Go to the mall
There is plenty of entertainment in modern malls children will find interesting. Mazes, trampolines, movie theaters, arcades and playgrounds, don’t even plan in advance. You can decide when you’re there. If you want to celebrate a birthday party, you can organize an entertainment program with animators, master classes and shows, along with playful activities. Garden State Plaza in Paramus is a great location for such a trip. We have a lot of super interesting activities for children of all ages and their parents: https://www.arenastem.com/activities/
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