Building a fort in the house or the garden, if the weather is good enough, is a super way to get the kids imagination and engineering skills working!

Forts can be built indoors or outdoors using cardboard boxes, rugs or sheets, clothes driers, sofas, chairs, beds and tables and offer hours of fun.

For a temporary outdoor fort, use rugs, wall/fences, clothes lines etc. Or if you wanted a bigger project, get the children to design and build an outdoor fort using trees, wood or old pallets etc.

If this seems like too much and you have a tent, why not put that up and let the children decorate it to use as their Den HQ. Remember, tents can be pitched indoors too!

When my girls were young, they loved to write their own mini-plays and perform them for us. They spent hours perfecting the show, creating the costumes and props and getting the ‘stage’ set.

Encourage your kids to be creative and plan an entertaining show for you and other family members or friends to enjoy. They could write or adapt a favourite book or TV show into a play, sing, dance, play an instrument or recite a poem, the possibilities are endless.

No matter what age your children are, teaching them some basic cookery skills is something that will last a lifetime.

If they are old enough you could get them to plan a menu, create a shopping list and make a family meal during midterm break. There are so many different options for all ages. Here are some ideas to inspire you.

• Soup (chop the vegetables you want to use, fry in a small amount of oil and butter in a large saucepan, add stock, cover and boil until vegetables are soft and blend if needed.) We love this Carrot soup.
• Salad (use a packet of salad leaves, cherry tomatoes, diced cucumber and create or buy a dressing)
• Pizza (use a pre-made base and a jar of passata. Spoon the passata onto the base and spread evenly to cover. Then add everyones favourite toppings for a quick, easy and tasty pizza that just needs to be oven cooked.) Check out these inspiring recipes from Pizza da Piero.
• Risotto (once you have the vegetables chopped and softened in oil on a large non-stick pan, add the rice and once coated in oil, spoon on a ladle of stock, let it absorb and continue to add stock, one ladle at a time, until the rice is cooked) This mushroom risotto.recipe is a firm favourite in our house.
• Stirfry (use pre-sliced meat and a packet of stirfry mixed vegetables. Heat oil on a wok and cook the meat, add the vegetables and once cooked serve with noodles or rice.) Check out this Chinese Beef Stir Fry.
• S’mores Dessert Pizza (for a real treat, use a pre-made pizza base and cover with chocolate spread and marshmallows, bake until the marshmallows melt…so tasty.)
• Muffins (for a post dinner treat, these blueberry muffins are easy to make)

Get creative and active by designing your very own obstacle course. Ideal for the garden but you can also create an indoor version for days when the weather is not co-operating!

We have some ideas here for an outdoor obstacle course. You could also include a scavenger hunt as part of the challenge.

For indoors, cushions can be used to create stepping stones, stairs can be used to hop up and down, a laundry basket and soft ball make a perfect throwing challenge and you could add an indoor scavenger hunt to make it more interesting.

Create your very own home cinema with posters, tickets and cinema treats!

Get the kids to pick some films they want to watch and use their choices to design ‘cinema posters’ and tickets.

Once they have the room set up, it’s onto the cinema treats, which could include making it a pizza and movie night with microwave popcorn, drinks from re-useable sports bottles (to avoid spills) and pick’n’mix. For this just buy several different packets of sweets and place them in bowls then give everyone a bag of their own to fill with their favourites.

Check out our top picks of family favourite movies for inspiration. Or you could choose by theme e.g. Halloween, 80’s Family movies etc.

One of the benefits of the internet is the ability to explore the world…from the comfort of home. So if you are not planning a trip away this mid-term how about getting the children to plan a virtual trip instead?

Possible virtual field trips include the Arctic, the great wall of China, a chocolate factory, a space center, or how about a day at the Zoo?

You could get your child to make a travel diary of their day out to the amazing place they pick to explore. What did they eat? Who did they meet? What did they see? How did they travel there?

When was the last time you all played a board game together? From Jenga to Snakes and Ladders and Monopoly to Pictionary we all have board games that we don’t play enough.

So, this midterm get out all your board games and have a family challenge or challenge the kids to have a board game marathon to see how many they can play in a certain amount of time!

Do you have a budding magician? We have some excellent easy magic tricks for them to perfect before trying them out on you.

For those who prefer cards, check out these traditional card games and card tricks to learn and enjoy.

This one could get a bit messy. My advice would be to cover the table where the kids will be getting creative with a disposable table cloth or give them each a tray to work on.

When it comes to homemade slime, there are hundreds of different options. We have rounded up our top homemade slime recipes which include rainbow unicorn slime, safe no borax slime and glow in the dark slime!

Playdough is also easy to make and can be moulded into many different shapes for hours of enjoyment. Get our simple Playdough recipe.

Gardening is a wonderful way to teach children about the plant life-cycle as well as the eco-system of birds, insects and plants. If you don’t have a garden, it is possible to grow herbs, flowers and vegetables in pots which can be kept indoors or on a patio or balcony.

Kids that actively engage in nurturing plants also learn responsibility and the pride of seeing a tiny seed grow into something that can be consumed or shared with others.

Growing your own is also a good way to get children interested in food and where it comes from. In my experience, my children loved growing potatoes, onions, carrots, raspberries and strawberries which we then used in cooking.

One project that is easy to achieve is to grow your own pizza garden!

I don’t know about your house, but in mine I always have a bagful of single socks with no matches!

This sock animal craft is a great way to repurpose those single socks that seem to multiply with every wash!

Here are some of the summer reading challenges that kids will enjoy. Some involve visiting the library, others can be done by downloading reading lists online.

Happy reading!

This year’s Summer Reading Challenge 2023 theme for The Reading Agency in the UK is Ready Set Read! arriving online and in your local library this summer.

Get ready for a whole load of team spirit, your fave sporty (or not!) heroes, and plenty of fun with our latest collection for the 2023 sports and games themed Summer Reading Challenge: Ready, Set, Read! Each book has been specially chosen by an expert group of readers for everybody taking part to enjoy.

The aim of the challenge is to get children to read any six books of their choice from their library during the summer holidays.

The Summer Stars reading programme runs in public libraries throughout Ireland during summer, from June until the end of August. All children throughout the country are invited to join the adventure and to enjoy the fun and pleasure of reading and writing over the summer. Summer Stars is non-competitive and every child who reads even one book / ebook is regarded as having completed the programme – and it’s all completely free!

Each child who registers for the programme at their local library joins in the fun of reading lots of exciting books during the summer.

Children can sign up for the programme in their local library at the start of the summer and are encouraged to read as many books as they can during the months of July and August.

Track your reading progress with reading cards which can be marked each time a book is read, online or in print form. These are available from your local library or for download and print here.

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Readingrockets.org has 10 Weeks of Summer Reading Adventures for you and your Kids with activities for each week on different topics from outdoors to recipes to travel.

Their Start with a Book website offers lots of book ideas by age.

The Scholastic Summer Reading Challenge is a free reading program dedicated to stopping the “Summer Slide” and encouraging kids to read every day this summer. The Summer Reading Challenge invites kids to log the minutes they spend reading as they strive to set a new world record for summer reading.

From May 4 through  September 7, kids can visit the summer zone in Scholastic Home Base, a completely free digital destination which offers stories, characters, games, and a community of readers. Home Base is moderated for safety 24/7.

PBS Parents has some good resources for parents with fun, educational activities that explore reading, writing and language. Just pick the age group you are interested in and there are also some nice tips to encourage reading every day.

Once you have picked your STEPS Engineers Week resources, the STEPS team ask that you register your activities and involvement here.

By registering you help the STEPS team to analyse the impact of STEPS Engineers Week on young people in Ireland and you gain exclusive access to a Digital Promotional Pack and Certificate of Participation for your class.

Take the Sustainable Engineering Challenge and match the ways engineers are helping achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

This activity is best suited to primary school aged children and can be found here.

Children with autism are often visual learners, and this resource was created with this in mind. Muinteoir Valerie, offers a bright and engaging resource, focusing on repetition of key words associated with engineering, matching games, and activities based on developing vocabulary.

Access and register your activity here.

Avail of 15 hands-on activities for you to get involved this STEPS Engineers Week. You can carry out one or as many activities you like! Print and copy the activity page of your choice.

Activities are best suited for primary aged children, these resources, and more, can be accessed for free here.

The STEPS team ask that you register your chosen activity here.

STEPS Engineers Week has three primary school engineering shows that teachers can screen for students in classrooms.

Streaming from Monday 6th through to Friday 10th March 2023, teachers can book into a screening of a pre-recorded fun and educational show.

The shows can be viewed on any device that normally streams videos.

Register for the shows now.

Chuir STEPS liosta de ghníomhaíochtaí le chéile do spriocluchtanna i scoileanna agus seans ann gur mhaith leat iad a chur chun feidhme. Is féidir iad a fháil anseo.

STEPS has created a list of free engineering hands-on resources for teachers that are available in Irish. Please visit the Seachtain na nInnealtóirí section of the website for more information.

For further information on how to get involved in STEPS Engineers Week 2023 visit www.engineersireland.ie/Schools/Engineers-Week/

The Engineers Ireland STEPS programme, which promotes engineering and the importance of the profession to children in Ireland, is funded by the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science and industry leaders Arup, the EPA, ESB, Intel and Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII).

Sleepover fun is the kind of childhood memory your kids will treasure – but in the moment it can be a bit daunting for parents. How will I entertain them? Will they be bored? What will I do if (when!) they don’t sleep? Why did I think this was a good idea…?!

Take it from me – they probably won’t sleep, there’ll be lots of giggling, they’ll be hunting for snacks and treats all night, and you’ll regret agreeing to host the sleepover at least a dozen times through the night. BUT your kiddo will be thrilled and the kids will go home happy and tired.

The key to a great sleepover is to have a few things planned (movies, party games, activities, etc) as a back up. The kids may be happy to just hang out and entertain themselves, but having some activities up your sleeve just in case is a good idea. These sleepover games are great fun, suitable for a range of ages, and really don’t require any preparation.

Sardines is the reverse of hide and seek. One person hides while the other players count to 100, then everyone searches for the hidden person.

Whenever a person finds the hidden person, they quietly join them in their hiding spot until everyone is squeezed into the hiding place.

Last player to find the hiding place becomes “It” for the next game.

Turn off all the lights. One person is “It” and counts to 100 while the rest of the players hide. The person who is “It” has to find them without turning on any lights, and the last person found becomes “It” for the next game.

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We all remember the classic Twister game, played on a large plastic mat with rows of red, yellow, blue and green circles.

A spinner attached to a square board determines where each player has to put their hand or foot – but due to the scarcity of coloured circles, players will often be required to put themselves in unlikely or precarious (and hilarious!) positions, eventually causing someone to fall. A person is eliminated when they fall or when their elbow or knee touches the mat.

There is no limit to how many can play at once, but more than four is a tight fit.

Prepare Post It notes with names of famous people on them. E.g. pop stars, celebrities, movie stars, famous people from history.

Everyone gets a Post It note on their forehead (without seeing who they are) and each person has to figure out which famous person they are asking only questions that have a Yes or No answer. Continue until everyone has guessed who they are.

MASH stands for “Mansion, Apartment, Shack and House” and is a predict your future game. What house are you going to have, who are you going to marry, what type of car will you drive and so on.

If you’re not sure how to play, here are the rules of MASH and A Girl and a Glue Gun has free downloadable MASH sheets.

Take a beach ball and use a permanent marker to write a list of questions/talking points onto the ball.

For example,

• If you could have a superpower, what would it be?
• Describe yourself in 3 words
• Chocolate or vanilla?
• Spiders or snakes?

The ball is then passed around and when the person catches it they must answer or act out what is written below their right thumb.

Pass out glow sticks, and then each person takes it in turn to go outside and hide 5 glow sticks that the rest of the players have to find.

You can buy packs of Glow Sticks in different colours on Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com – NB if you buy through our links we get a small commission.

Go selfie mad with a photo booth and lots of fun accessories.

Make some glow in the dark bubbles and head out door for bubble fun. You’ll need:

• some glow in the dark or fluorescent paint (available from Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com)
• dish soap
• water
• bowls for mixing

For a quick and cheap idea to entertain the kids, what about a Mission Impossible-style spy mission?

Create a paper maze along your hallway using a roll of crepe paper and fasten it with tape criss-crossing across the hallway or room.

The aim is for the kids to go through the maze one at a time and get to the other end without breaking the paper.

Don’t forget, you want it to be difficult enough, but still doable so that it is fun.

How about a game of Spoons? This fast-paced, fast-moving card game is good for 4-10 players. You just need a couple of decks of cards and some spoons. Read the Rules for Spoons.

Another great game is 21 (also known as Pontoon or Blackjack) which works well for 5-8 players:

• The aim for each player is to get their hand as close as possible to 21, but not going over 21. The best hand is a Pontoon, which is 21 points in two cards – this can only consist of an ace plus a picture card or ten. Hands with more than 21 points are bust and are worthless.
• The dealer deals two cards to each player. The players examine their cards and decide if they are going to Stick or Twist. ‘Stick’ means no more cards; ‘Twist’ means getting another card. The dealer addresses the players in turn, who either Stick or Twist. If they are bust they declare ‘I’m Bust’ and put their cards down.
• When all players have been accommodated, the dealer’s hand is turned over. The dealer is free to add cards face up to it, stopping when satisfied or is bust. If the dealer and a player have equal valued hands, then the dealer wins.

Head out to your local woods, beach or park for a walk. Make your walk more fun with our free nature scavenger hunt list turning a walk into an adventure!

Family walks are a great opportunity to get out and active, have the kids run around in the fresh air and off screens. But if you need a little incentive to entice them for the walk, then games and a little competition can really help. These entertaining games to play on a family walk are suitable for a range of ages and need nothing more than a little imagination and creativity!

Create a fun obstacle course, indoors or outdoors, and test your skills in a friendly family competition.

The course possibilities are endless and you can change it around each round, becoming more challenging as the players improve their skills.

If you want to increase the motivation of the children you could award a unique medal for the ultimate winner.

Customised Award Medals can be easily created and ordered online. Use your creativity and cool graphics that the kids will love to customise a medal that can be given and treasured for years to come.

Wow your friends and family, and learn some magic tricks – here are 10 easy magic tricks for kids to master.

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Create a time capsule together. Put things in it that are happening right now and then open it in 12 months and see how things have changed.

This is a great activity for birthdays. You could create a sheet of questions that you answer annually and see how your ideas change as you grow. They could be favourite bands, foods you like, friends, goals etc.

Gardening with kids is great fun – they love to get mucky and see the results of their work. If you have room, why not assign them their own flower bed and help them plan out their planting? Here’s how to make your garden a fun place for kids.

Give them their own pot/planter. Herbs and salad leaves are quick to grow, and most kids enjoy eating what they have grown! Here’s a how to grow your own pizza garden.

Fill water balloons or buckets, and place them equally on opposite ends of the garden.

• Split up into teams and stand facing each other.
• When the signal is given, begin throwing water balloons at the other team.
• When a player is hit, the other team scores a point.
• Play until all the balloons are gone, the members of one team have all been hit, or a certain number of points have been reached.

Get out the blankets and cushions, make and deliver the invitations and decide on whether your picnic will be indoors or outdoors.

Cut out some teddy bear footprints from pieces of paper and put these on the floor leading to the picnic area. Footprints could also lead to other activities if you are having them. You could include a teddy bear themed pass the parcel game or even dance with your teddy bear.

Take turns saying these fun tongue twisters and see who can say them the best. Tongue twisters like “If two witches were watching two watches, which witch would watch which watch?” will surely leave you in fits of giggles!

Let your kids make a camp/den  using old blankets/duvets, cushions and chairs for props. Or gather some sturdy sticks from the wood and use some old tarpaulin as a roof.

Set up a home cinema and settle down to watch some fun family movies together.

Wondering what to watch? Try these feel-good movies, introduce your kids to some 80s classics, or work your way through our A to Z of fab family movies!

Create your very own hairdressing studio and take turns doing each other’s hair. No scissors needed for this one!

Scavenger hunts are great fun for kids as they adore the thrill of hunting. It’s also a great excuse to get them active outdoors, so a win-win for everyone! But we know that the weather doesn’t always play ball, so we’ve also got lots of indoor options to make sure you can enjoy the fun whenever the mood takes. Here are some mega fun scavenger hunt ideas for kids to turn your little darlings into mini-explorers!

From sounds and colours to shapes and nature, we’ve got printable scavenger hunt downloads all ready for you.

Strap on the helmets, grab the bikes, and go for a cycle. Cycling is a great activity that the whole family can do together – it’s an opportunity to get out with the kids and get some exercise and fresh air. But being cycle-safe is important too, so here are 9 essential tips for safer cycling and bike safety for kids that you should keep in mind.

Homemade science experiments can get messy, so if weather permits, move the “lab” outside. Here are some ideas:

• 5 fun science experiments for kids
• 18 easy science experiments for preschoolers
• How to have fun with kitchen chemistry
• How to make playdough
• How to make honeycomb
• How to make slime

Kids love to mess around in the sand, particularly at home in the garden. Even if you don’t have a sand table, it’s easy to make your own, with a large shallow plastic container, and some play sand. We’ve got lots of great sand play ideas for kids – just remember to cover when finished, to keep the cats away.

Love them or hate them, bugs are fascinating to kids! Download our free Big Bug Scavenger Hunt List to search for critters in the park, woods or closer to home.

We all love to dine alfresco, and kids especially love a picnic. Pack a basket of homemade goodies, a flask with tea for yourself, and a waterproof blanket. Why not try our easy recipes for homemade sausages and homemade lemonade?

This cheddar and bacon quiche is delicious hot or cold, while these baked berry squares are a tasty treat with oaty goodness for all that running around!

Picnics are such a fun way to enjoy food casually, and kids particularly love the fun that goes with eating outdoors. Whether you’re planning to picnic in the garden at home or out and about this summer, these practical picnic ideas for the perfect day out, will help keep the focus on the fun and family time that it’s all about.

Going to the playground is a great way to get the kids active outdoors. Most towns have a local playground, but for a change, why not try a different playground in a nearby town? Pack a picnic and make a day out of it.

Design and build a LEGO or plastic brick structure. It could be a castle, a house, a fire station, or maybe a small town. Or have building competitions, where have to make structures using only one colour brick.

Give your creativity and imagination a boost with more than 50+ LEGO instructions and how-to videos that are sure to turn you into a Master Builder. Our list of LEGO instructions has it all – from Yoda and Minion favourites to chocolate cake, hot air balloons and vintage cars!

And don’t miss our 30 Day LEGO Challenge or fun LEGO Bingo Challenge if you need even more ideas!

Kids love to run and jump in puddles. Dress them in their wet gear and head out for some rainy day fun! Take some inspiration from these fun outdoor rainy day games.

We asked Mykidstime parents for their favourite outdoor childhood games when they were young – you know those games that occupied our free time and summer days, before computer games? Here are their 20 great childhood games, perfect for parties, weekends or to play in the garden.

Teach your child some of your favourite childhood games – from Bulldog and What’s the Time Mr Wolf? to rounders and elastics, these outdoor games are lots of fun!

The best bit? You can play too!

Wait for a windy day, and head to an open space to fly a kite. You could even try your hand at making the kites.

Host a mini fun sports day, with obstacle courses, long-jump, and novelty races like 3-legged, sack, and egg and spoon.

Hours of fun and exhausted kids guaranteed!

Take a trip to your local park, river or lake, and feed the ducks or swans. But please don’t take bread, as this isn’t good for birds. Other options that are better for them include grapes cut in half, cracked corn/barley/oats/birdseed, frozen peas or corn kernels (defrosted, but no need to cook) or duck feed pellets available from pet shops.

Play a game of dominoes or for something even more creative, set up a huge long line of dominoes and then have fun knocking them down!

A much loved activity in my house, treasure hunts are great fun! All you need are some pens, paper and of course, treasures! Here’s some tips on setting up a kid’s treasure hunt.

A night out in a tent is definitely a must for all kids – I still remember my first night out camping, and having to run back inside when the worst ever thunderstorm erupted!

Even if you don’t get away, you can set up the tent in the back garden, and enjoy sleeping outdoors.

Here are some essential tips for first-time camping with kids, and some delicious ideas for camping meals that are more than just s’mores!

All you need is some sand, water and a desire to get mucky!

Head out the nearby park or woods, with a ruler and tape-measure, and measure a tree. See who can find the tallest tree.

Fishing is a great outdoor activity, but remember, it requires lots of patience on your part. Gear the day/expedition to their level, and assume they will want to get wet, and look for everything else but fish!

However, it can be a great way to spend time with your child, and you might even bring home dinner!

Fishing nets on the beach are ideal for catching crabs in rock pools, and a lot easier too!

On a clear night, bring the kids outside for some star gazing. If you have a telescope all the better, but is not necessary.

See if you can recognise any of the well-known constellations with our tips on fun astronomy for kids.

Let the kids loose on your pavement or driveway, with some pavement chalk, and stand back and watch their creations unfold!

Watching clouds is a very relaxing way to spend time, for all ages. Get the kids to lie on a blanket in the garden or at the park. Clouds all look the same but yet can be so different as they morph into different shapes and objects.

A lovely summer’s activity and a great way for your kids to learn about money. All they need is a table/box, sign, paper cups, jug, and lemonade.

Help them make homemade lemonade instead of buying lemonade. Alternatively, they could sell some cupcakes they have made themselves.

Washing the car = fun for kids! They most likely will get wet, have a chance at using the hose, and might even earn some pocket money! They could even do a neighbourhood car wash.

Skipping can be done individually, or if there are a few friends around, get a large rope, and get the kids doing some skipping games.

Jump Elastics are also great fun. Do you remember them from childhood? Inside, Outside on the rails? All you need is a long piece of elastic, stitched together at the ends.

Let the kids make a temporary waterfall in the garden, using large stones, hose, plastic tubing, and any other props they might require.

They could also make a marble-run but use water instead of marbles.

Provide some treats for our feathered friends and help the kids make some bird feeders.

• Gather any old welly boots your children have outgrown.
• Poke a few drainage holes in the bottom of them and then fill them with some compost.
• Choose which flower seeds you would like to plant. Sunflowers are a favourite among kids as they grow very quickly and are very easy to grow.
• Place them along your path or outside your front door. Your kids will love to see their old wellies blooming!

Get the kids to let their imaginations run wild, and set up a crazy golf course in the garden, using buckets, plastic cups/glasses, ramps, car tracks, boxes etc. Anything will work, to make the hole as crazy as possible!

Aim for 3 or 4 holes minimum in their course, and then have a competition, counting lowest number of shots to reach hole as a win.

This is a lovely project for the kids to do, particularly if they have helped you with the gardening. And even if the scarecrow is never used in the garden, it’s a fun project to do. All you need is some old clothes, hat, canes, straw or old newspapers for stuffing, needle and thread, and plastic bag. Here’s how to make a simple scarecrow.

Kids love painting. How about moving it outdoors if the weather is good?

Use lots of outdoor interesting shapes for painting, like grass blades, or sticks, or unusual plant leaves. Get them to gather some leaves and do leaf patterns.

If you need more ideas, try these easy painting ideas for kids.

A great beach activity, enjoyed by kids, time after time. As well as using the bucket and shovel, why not use some flat knives and spoons to help carve out their structures. Collect shells and stones to decorate your amazing castles!

Blowing bubbles should lead to giggles! Make your own bubble mixture at home, then use different blowers for a range of bubbly fun. When all the bubbles are used up, why not try making your own using washing-up liquid, sugar and water?

Why spend money on a slip ‘n’ slide, when you can easily make your own, with strong refuse bags or a large plastic sheet, washing-up liquid, and a hose.

Guaranteed hours of fun!

Look around your garden or if you are out for a walk, and see if you can spot any animal tracks. Borrow a book from the library to help you identify the different animal/bird tracks.

Most houses have a toy box full of cars. Bring it outside and let the kids have car races down the driveway, seeing which car goes furthest. They could even award “cups” to the winners!

Use tape or chalk outside to make roads, race courses, roundabouts and parking spaces.

We all know that when you give a child a toy, they often have more fun playing with the box!

There are lots of great cardboard box ideas to make with kids – from a doll’s house to a jack-in-the-box, the only limit is your imagination!

Great fun for older kids. Head outside with torches to play chase or tip the can in the dark – amazing how the whole game can change when played in the dark.

For this, you will need:

• Sunshine
• Nature items e.g. leaves, twigs, flowers
• Construction paper – darker colours work better

What to do

1. Find a sunny spot outside late morning. Arrange the items on a sheet of paper.
2. You might need a stone for each corner to keep it from blowing away if it’s breezy.
3. Leave the paper for several hours in direct sunlight.
4. The sun will fade the construction paper, it will create silhouettes where your items are located.

These can be as simple as you like, just blend your favourite fruit and pour mixture into ice pop moulds. Freeze until firm and enjoy!

If you want some more inspiration, try these healthy ice pops that kids will lick clean.

Let the kids and the adults swap roles and clothes for the day- or at least an hour or two. It will be lots of fun choosing what to wear as well as trying to find children’s clothes to fit the adults!

Upcycle old jam jars by painting them to use as pretty vases on your window sills.

With some simple ingredients, the kids can enjoy helping make homemade pizza and pizza dough (you could use ready made pizza bases too if you want).

Chop up some vegetables and other toppings, and let each person arrange on their own pizzas. Make some funny or scary faces out of your pizzas. Pop in the oven and serve for dinner.

Cut up old jeans to make shorts or an old T-shirt to make a sleeveless top, then design and decorate as you like. Adorn them with sequins, add buttons, or tie-dye them for something unique.

Root out any toy at home that works using a remote control. This could be a car, a dog, dinosaur or anything at all. Let your children choose which toy will be theirs for the race and line them up at a chalked out start line. Then let the race begin as each toy must compete to cross the finish line first. The toys can be swapped around for each race.

Kids love to bake and nothing beats the smell of home cooking. Enjoy some quality time baking a cake, be it for a birthday, a special occasion or just for fun.

If you’re looking for some ideas, you could try:

• Lemon bars
• Easy homemade Swiss Roll
• Upside-down ice cream cone cupcakes
• No butter and no eggs needed for this ‘Depression’ cake
• Easy bunny cupcakes
• Classic homemade flapjacks
• The always-popular lemon drizzle cake
• Melt in the mouth chocolate brownies
• A versatile vanilla traybake
• Berry muffins for breakfast or snacks

My children love to design their own jewellery using penne pasta. This is a great way to pass a few hours on a rainy day.

First the children paint the pasta. Once dry, thread some string through various coloured pasta to make bracelets and necklaces.

Perhaps there’s an old tin whistle or piano lying around at home. You could download some instructions and simple songs to learn too. You could also make some cheap instruments, using kitchen utensils (most popular in our house are pots, wooden spoons, tins, spatula) and form a band – check out our tips here.

A trip to the beach is always a fun day out, no matter what the season! If it’s a nice sunny day, you might want to check out our summer beach checklist, to make sure you don’t forget to pack an essential item!

Why not collect some stones and shells, and paint them when you return home to make some garden decorations? Try these beach craft ideas and 50 fun things to do at the beach with kids.

Play some games together. Parents recommend their top 20 board games for families, or you could try one of these unusual board games that are lots of fun!

Alternatively, enjoy more traditional ‘parlour’ games such as Consequences.

• Use old bottles that have a screw top, such as a water bottle. Remove any labels from the bottle.
• Paint the outside of the bottle using some fun coloured paints.
• When dry, fill the bottle with rice or lentils or beans. Each item you use to fill inside will make a different sound.
• Close the lid and add some stickers to the outside and your shaker is ready to use.

The art of daisy chain making is one that should be passed down to your children. Put a small slit in the stem of a daisy with your nail, and thread a stem of another daisy through it, and repeat to extend length. “Fashion” into necklaces and bracelets, or challenge the kids to see who can make the longest.

Have a story writing competition or write a play for puppets or for you all to perform. Help younger ones who may be unable to write but can still make up their own story. Let them illustrate their story with pictures.

Or create your own stories playing Chinese Whispers. See how different the story is by the time it reaches the end!

This is a great activity for older kids – set a challenge to see how many books/chapters can be read during the day. During summer, encourage your kids take part in a summer reading challenge.

Visit your local library to stock up on books, and if you need some suggestions we’ve got plenty!

• 20 Top Dinosaur Books for Your Little Bookasaurus
• 15 Weird and Wonderful Neil Gaiman Books Your Child Will Love
• These Humorous Books for Kids Are All Good for a Giggle
• 14 Epic Stories with Giants for Kids Who Love an Adventure!
• 30 Amazing Books for Kids Who Love David Walliams
• 23 Fantastic Books Like Harry Potter Your Child Might Enjoy

Remember playing Miss Mary Mack? Or A Sailor Went to Sea? Play these and make up some of your own ones too. More nursery rhyme activities here.

Many local museums are free to visit, they can be inspirational places and provide a learning experience. Often they have kids activities such as treasure hunts or activity sheets. Or join a tour to find out more about some of the objects in the museum.

A trip to the Library can pass a few hours as they often have colouring sheets and toys for children to play with. They sometimes have storytime too, which is great for younger children.

All you need is a drawing pad, and pencil. Draw an image in the same corner of the book on each page, and that each image changes only slightly. Stickmen are a good starting point, in different poses. Then you flip through the pages and watch their character start to move.

Wind chimes are a fun craft activity to do with your child, and can be made from a variety of materials you probably already have at home. If you want to have a go at making your own homemade wind chimes, we’ve got some tips and inspiration to get you started!

Not only will you be creating something completely unique to display at home, you can also upcycle and reuse items you would otherwise have thrown out.

You will need some paints and 2 large sheets of cardboard (or use A4 paper) and willing hands.

1. Working from the biggest to smallest hands, have each person dip her hands in her chosen paint and print them on the page, overlapping the handprints slightly as the group moves up the tree.
2. Use a paintbrush to add a tree trunk and then let all the paint dry.
3. Identify each set of handprints with a permanent marker.
4. Cut out the tree and glue it to the page. You could then date and frame this family handprint tree.

Set up a little grocery/mini supermarket with tins and packets. If you have a play till set up a checkout table and they can take it in turns to be the checkout person or the shopper. The ironing board made a great checkout in my youth! Have some bags ready to put the purchases in.

All you need is some balloons, and either table-tennis bats, or make your own bats using paper plates and sticks for handles. Clear some space in the hall and off they go.

Get a large roll of paper, like you use on easels/boards, and draw the outline of your child(ren) on the paper. They can then colour in, adding features, clothes etc. This is also a great winner at parties.

You could do each portraits of each other once the outline is drawn. Or if you don’t have paper, then draw the outline in chalk outside and decorate afterwards.

If you have a giant cardboard box, why not draw a town on the bottom of the box, with roads, tracks, bridges, parks, car-parks, etc. Add some wooden building blocks, cars, trains and some wooden/plastic animals.

Older kids could help with decorating/creating the scene. Or convert an old shoe box into a dolls house or garage.

Apparently skimming stones is a skill! But if you can find a small rounded, flat stone you should manage to skim it enough to impress your little ones.

All you need for this ingenious activity is some string or wool (preferably red), sticky tape, and a hallway. You need to create a grid using the string/wool that the kids will then attempt to pass through without touching the string or “laser”. Anyone who does touch the laser has to return to the start line again.

You can begin with an easy grid and increase the level of difficulty with age and ability. It will occupy them for hours! And you may want to have a go yourself!

Browse through your phone, camera or your pictures on the computer and print off your favourite family photos. Then let the kids arrange them in a photo album.

Or use them to create a collage of a special family time.

Give kids old magazines/catalogues and get them to cut out pictures of heads, bodies, legs and shoes. They can then have some fun mixing them up, and gluing on blank sheets of paper.

The movie will be a delight to watch when your small ones have grown up and guaranteed to bring a smile to your face. The movie can be about everyday tasks or you could dress up and bring out the inner actors in you and yours!

There are some great movie maker downloads for tablets and mobile phones, if you don’t have a video camera.

Alternatively, here’s how to make a stop motion movie, which kids will also enjoy.

A great way to get rid of unused toys, have your friends or neighbours do a toy clear out and then gather to swap your old toys for something new.

Tell some jokes you love. The classic “Knock Knock” jokes or perhaps “Why Did the Chicken Cross the Road”? Find out who is the wittiest in your house!

Check out all our jokes here!

There’s nothing better than the smell of cookies wafting through the house! Set their little hands to work with one of these easy cookie recipes to follow or join in the fun too.

Jigsaws are a whole-family activity that can work well between differently-aged siblings.

Set each member of the family up with a puzzle to suit their skill level, all helping each other finish, or create teams to work on large puzzle together.

You can even make your own family-photo jigsaws using an enlarged photo printed onto plain paper from your computer.

Juggling is a fun activity, albeit a challenge to learn. Juggling helps your hand/eye coordination, encourages brain growth and is also a great way to de-stress.

Bean bags are a better choice to start with for beginners as otherwise you will tire yourself out running around after tennis balls or other bouncy balls.

With your Hulas at the ready, get those hips moving and try to control your hoop longer than everyone else.

Whistling can seem a bit hard at first, but practice makes perfect. Once that mastered why not try whistling through a blade of grass. Not as easy as it sounds, place the flat grass leaf between your 2 thumbs and blow through, to make a most unusual sound.

Pick some flowers and place them either in a flower press or between 2 sheets of paper in the middle of a big book. Put some more heavy books on top of the book if using and leave for a few days.

Once the flowers have dried and are pressed, you can use them to decorate craft projects, homemade bookmarks, or for cards to give to friends and family.

Take a large jar, or cut the top off a large plastic water bottle, and put outside in the rain. At regular intervals or when the rain has stopped, measure the height of the rain that day or hour and make a chart of the rainfall over time.

Can you reach 4 or more levels of your card house? Check out this video showing a cool card house technique!

Set your alarm clock and wake your children in time to watch the sun rise. Then get out the paints later and have them paint the sunrise they saw.

Glam up your summer shoes by adding sequins, ribbons and buttons to them. Use craft glue and any items you have lying around at home. Or use beads and paint to upcycle your trainers.

Hold a family game of football in the garden or ask your neighbours to join in and choose teams. If stuck indoors have a family tournament using a smaller soft ball.

Have the kids participate in your own boot camp. Ease them in to it by having them walk 2 laps of the garden. Next let them jog around. Throw in some jumping jacks, lunges, squats and leg lifts. Are they sweating yet? Try the What’s Your Name Exercise Challenge! Or how about some hula hooping, frog jumping or skipping. Cool down afterwards.

Take turns painting each other’s faces. You can say what you want to be, as in a tiger or let your face painter surprise you. Take photos of the handiwork!

Or have each child ask questions about what they could be and let them guess what you have painted them as.

One person thinks of a thing or a person and the others have to guess what it is but are only allowed to ask questions that get a Yes or a No answer. The others must guess by the 20th question. First one to guess gets to pick the next item to be guessed.

Or write something on a piece of paper and each person sticks it on their head and has to ask questions to help them guess what they are.

Gather up some of your old socks, and some items for eyes, mouths, and noses, to make some sock puppets.

If your kids can sew, they can add the decorating with needle and thread, but for younger kids use glue. You could create a puppet theatre in a cardboard box, and let the kids put on a puppet show for you – be sure to record it though.

Stare at your opponent while trying not to blink. Whoever closed their eyes first loses.

Charades can be played with any type of word or phrase, but with kids you may find that movie titles work best. Most kids are familiar with many simple movie titles such as Sleeping Beauty or The Lion King. And even the youngest can act out Pinocchio!

All you need is plastic bottles, filled with rice, and paints and a ball. Fill the bottles with rice, and tightly close/glue the lid back on. Next paint the bottles, with some funny faces and bodies, patterns and numbers etc. Grab a ball and all set to play.

One person kicks off a story saying something like “One day a man was in the jungle. Unfortunately he met a lion”. The next person has to be the Fortunately person, so e.g. “Fortunately the man was a lion tamer”. And so on.

To have a bit of family fun (and sneak in some activities for the kids at the same time!), we have teamed up with Müller Corner, proud sponsors of RTÉ’s Dancing with the Stars, and created a very special DWTS activity bingo card, absolutely free to download here.

When you download your bingo card all you need to do is watch, listen and get active! So next time you hear Arthur say “J’adore” get ready to leap high in the air 10 times, or if Jen’s dress is red, get twirling!

Who will be first in your house to complete all the activities and fill in their whole bingo card?

Don’t forget to have your very own special edition DWTS Müllerlicious multipack ready to enjoy between moves. Full of your favourite flavours – Strawberry, Vanilla Chocolate Balls and Chocolate Digestive packs are available to purchase in stores nationwide.

PLUS Get your special edition pack and you could also be in with a chance to win tickets to the show and an overnight stay in Dublin all compliments of Müller Corner.

Be sure to join in the fun on social media too, using #DWTSIRL #Müllerlicious #MüllerCorner

To have a bit of family fun (and sneak in some activities for the kids at the same time!), we have teamed up with Müller Corner, proud sponsors of RTÉ’s Dancing with the Stars, and created a very special DWTS scorecard, absolutely free to download here.

When you download your scorecard all you need to do is watch and keep track of the scores for each dancing couple.

Fill in this week’s dancing couples’ names and then as their scores get announced, keep track of who scores what and if they get through to the next round.

Don’t forget to have your very own special edition DWTS Müllerlicious multipack ready to enjoy between moves. Full of your favourite flavours – Strawberry, Vanilla Chocolate Balls and Chocolate Digestive packs are available to purchase in stores nationwide.

PLUS Get your special edition pack and you could also be in with a chance to win tickets to the show and an overnight stay in Dublin all compliments of Müller Corner.

Be sure to join in the fun on social media too, using #DWTSIRL #Müllerlicious #MüllerCorner

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A scavenger hunt is super fun for your children, they get to hunt for things and you can even time them if you want to make it extra fun!

This scavenger hunt is a little bit unusual in that it is also about finding the things that they can be grateful about.

This scavenger hunt is fun for all ages. Preschoolers will enjoy hunting for favourite items, and you can also make it more challenging for older children by setting a time limit!

You can download our gratitude scavenger hunt here – simply print it out and let the kids loose for some super scavenging and hunting fun!

And if you need more ideas for kids activities, check out our 50 Fun Things to Do with Your Child to give you even more options for amusing them.

Don’t forget to let us know how you get on!

Get our best content direct to your inbox! You’ll receive quick and easy recipes, fun ideas to entertain the kids, parenting tips, great competitions, as well as offers from brands we trust.

Scavenger hunts are great fun for kids as they adore the thrill of hunting. It’s also a great excuse to get them active outdoors, so a win-win for everyone! But we know that the weather doesn’t always play ball, so we’ve also got lots of indoor options to make sure you can enjoy the fun whenever the mood takes. Here are some mega fun scavenger hunt ideas for kids to turn your little darlings into mini-explorers!

• How about something completely different? Instead of searching for things, go on a hunt for sounds!
• It’s a fact, kids love bugs. So get organised and hold our Big Bug Scavenger Hunt.
• Kids, young and old, will enjoy trying to think of words that rhyme with the words on our rhyming scavenger hunt list.
• How about heading outside for a fun nature scavenger hunt that can be done in the garden, in the park or while out for a walk.
• When the weather just doesn’t allow for an outdoor experience, you can still have fun with an indoor scavenger hunt. Why not try out our sheet and then get the kids to make up their own version?

You can see all our fun scavenger hunts here!