Introduction
Summer is here, and the kids are officially out of school!
While those first few weeks of freedom feel like a total vacation for your bundle of joy, pretty soon, you will hear the dreaded words every parent fears:
“I’m bored!”
But don’t worry. We have you covered with a wide range of fun summer activities for kindergarten kids to keep your tiny tot engaged and entertained. The right summer activities will keep their minds active and prevent the chance of summer slide (the learning loss that can occur during the summer vacation break).
By adding playful learning activities into their summer days, you can boost your kid’s confidence, teach them new skills, and perhaps even discover new interests together. And the best part? You don’t need to dig deep into your pockets!
Ready to dive into the sizzling summer fun? Grab your sunscreen, and let's get started!
Also Read: Introduction to Summer Camp Activities for Kids
Outdoor Learning Activities
It’s sunny outside, so why stay cooped up inside? Take that summer fun outdoors to your backyard!
The following outdoor summer activities for kindergarten kids will have your little one master essential learning skills through play.
1. Sidewalk Chalk Word Family Ladders
Use sidewalk chalk to draw ladders on the driveway
Write a word family like "at" at the top. Take turns adding rhyming words to each rung (cat, bat, hat, etc.)
This activity helps practice and improve your child’s phonics skills. Bonus points if you can turn it into a lively physical routine by making your kid do jumping jacks as you call out each new word.
Also Read: Phonics for Kindergarten
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2. Pool Noodle Base 10
What do you get when you combine pool noodles with an introduction to base 10 numbers? A fun-filled pool party for little mathematicians! Cut those noodles into ones and tens, then let your child build, count, and create their own noodle numbers.
3. Spray Bottle Sight Word Sprinkler
Get those sight words sizzling with this wet and wild game!
Use a spray bottle filled with water and liquid chalk or paint to write simple high-frequency words all over the driveway or sidewalk
Make your child read the words as fast as they can before you spray them away with a splash from the bottle
The key is to keep switching up the spray pattern - sometimes lightly misting the words to make them harder to read, other times completely erasing them so they have to rely on memory.
Creative Arts and Crafts
When it's too hot to handle outside, bring the fun indoors with these cool crafts.
These artsy summer activities for kindergarten kids will captivate your crafty child for sure. Have a look!
1. Ice Cream Cone Addition/Subtraction
Bring math off the worksheet and into a tasty hands-on activity.
Use construction paper to make ice cream cones and pom poms as "scoops"
Write out simple addition and subtraction problems, then let your child model them by adding or removing scoops from their edible-looking cones
2. Summer-Themed DIY Crafts
Keep your child’s creative spark burning bright by setting up an endless buffet of simple crafting supplies like paper plates, tissue paper, popsicle sticks, and pipe cleaners. Encourage them to dream up their own summertime masterpieces - whether it's decorating visors or crafting ocean-themed puppets for a backyard show.
Immersing your child in open-ended, crafty summer activities goes a long way in brushing up their creativity, motor skills, and imagination.
3. Melted Crayon Suncatchers
Celebrate the sunshine with these vibrant suncatchers that double as a fun science experiment!
You'll need crayon stubs or pieces, a canvas or heavy cardstock, and a sunny window
Have your little artists arrange the crayon bits into funky patterns or designs on the canvas
Once their masterpiece is ready, carefully cover it with a piece of wax paper and head outside
Place the canvas in a sunny spot and watch as the crayon pieces slowly melt into a pool of colorful wax! When cooled, they'll be left with a translucent suncatcher to hang and admire
Also Read: Art Ideas for Kids: Outdoor Line Drawing
Educational Games
Alright, time for a little secret: keeping those brains sharp doesn't have to be a drag. Peep these clever tricks up our sleeve!
These playful summer activities for kindergarten kids will sharpen their cognitive skills through shrieks of laughter.
1. Summer Sounds
This easy word family game gets kids practicing rhyming words.
Use sidewalk chalk to draw a grid with different word families like "at", "og", "in" in each square
Call out rhyming words and have your child stomp on the matching square
They'll reinforce those word patterns while burning off energy! Turn up the excitement by doing silly victory dances when they get one right.
2. Sand Pail Sight Words
Move over bean bags; this sight word version is where it's at!
Fill a plastic pail with sight word flashcards or stones you've written simple words on.
Take turns tossing the words into the bucket from a few feet back
Let your kid catch a word and call it out and then the coach (that's you!) confirms or gently corrects the reading
3. Water Balloon Alphabet Catch
Get ready for an absolute splish-splashing time that builds necessary alphabet skills!
You'll need a pack of water balloons and a permanent marker
Before heading outside, write uppercase and lowercase letters all over the deflated balloons with the marker
Once you're set up in the yard, start tossing the balloons gently to your child one at a time. As they catch each one, have them call out the letter before launching it back to you. To keep things exciting, you can call for "only uppercase letters" or "find me a vowel!"
Also Read: Top 10 Things Parents Can Do to Help Kids Get the Best Education
Literacy and Math Review
While embracing summer freedom, it's still important to keep those little minds engaged in focused skill practice. But have no fear - we've got some fun options that won't feel like homework!
1. Math and Literacy Review Materials
We're talking colorful math worksheets filled with images of ice cream scoops and beach balls and literacy pages that put an exciting summertime spin on sight words, rhyming, and reading comprehension. Simply print as needed for those "Okay, it's learning time!" moments.
Psst...many of these summer-themed print resources come with QR codes that launch games and activities right on your digital device too!
2. Summer Boom Cards
Boom Cards are interactive, self-grading digital task cards that provide instant feedback and motivation as your child practices everything from counting to color words.
With hundreds of summer-themed decks across all kindergarten subjects, you can easily add 10-15 minutes of game time into their day. Just whip out the tablet or laptop, launch a deck, and watch your child race through their review without even realizing they're hard at work!
3. Summer Learning Bingo
Who doesn't love a rousing game of bingo, especially when it's been given a fun summer spin? With this portable version, you can reinforce a wealth of skills wherever the sunny adventures take your child.
Start by printing out bingo card templates filled with sight words, math facts, letters, shapes, and more - basically any focus areas your child could use extra practice with. Laminate the cards or slip them into dry-erase pockets for on-the-go dry-erase marker play
Get ready to call out bingo prompts tailored to each card's content. (E.g. Letter cards can prompt "Find the alphabet letter that makes the /k/ sound!")
It's the perfect way to squeeze in some important review and practice without compromising on that fun, carefree summer spirit!
If your little genius is an aspiring math wizard, they'll be hooked on the math puzzles and lightning-fast mental math games in Vedantu’s Mental Math series! Let your kids discover basic arithmetic tricks and engage in hands-on activities that make learning math an epic adventure.
Writing Activities
Inculcating a love of creative writing is one of the greatest gifts you can give your young child. Here are some entertaining summer story starters and prompts to inspire your little author =weave words into imaginative tales.
1. Silly Summer Stories
You know those laugh-out-loud summertime moments that make funny family memories? Use them as inspiration for some creative writing projects! Did your kid’s popsicle take an unexpected dive into the pool? Did they befriend a tree on the sidewalk? Turn it into a whimsical narrative writing prompt by asking, "What do you think happened next?" and watch their hilarious story come into action!
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2. Summer Sensory Story Starters
This multi-sensory approach to story writing will engage all of your child's senses and spark their imagination like nothing else!
Start by gathering an assortment of summer-themed items like sunscreen, seashells, flip-flops, sunglasses, etc
Then, let your budding author explore the items through touch, smell, sight, and even taste (for food-related props). As they examine each object, encourage them to make detailed observations using descriptive language. What does the sunscreen smell like? How do the sunglasses feel on their nose?
Once they've experienced the items through their senses, put them in creative writing motion by providing open-ended story starters like: "Sara twisted open the sunscreen tube and was instantly transported to a magical land where..."
3. Time Capsule Letters
Creating a time capsule letter is an inspiring writing activity that makes kindergartens think about their present and wonder about their future selves.
Here’s how to carry out this unique writing project:
Start by explaining to your child what a time capsule is — a special container that holds items and messages to be discovered in the future
Pick a container that can be sealed and preserved
Help your child compose a letter to their future self. They can write about their favorite activities, friends, what they love about school, and what they hope to be doing when they are older. If writing is challenging, they can dictate the letter to you as you write it down
Once the letter and items are ready, place them in the capsule and seal it. Discuss with your child when they would like to open their time capsule
Truly a wonderful way to capture memories and see how much your kid has grown when the time capsule is finally reopened.
Tips for Parents and Educators
Now that your creative juices are flowing with summer activity ideas, we want to leave you with some quick cherry-on-the-cake tips for your child’s sunshine-filled days:
Adding Summer Activities into Daily Routines- Set aside 20-30 minutes each day for a fun, focused activity. You can kick off the morning with a literacy game to engage their minds, then sprinkle in crafts and writing projects throughout the day. Cap off the evening by reviewing a few math Boom Cards before bedtime stories
Adapting Activities for Different Skill Levels and Interests- You know your child best, so feel free to adjust these activities based on their specific strengths, challenges, and interests. If they're zooming ahead in math, check out first-grade resources. If writing is their happy place, brainstorm extra prompts and story lines just for them. Customizing the activities for your child will maximize their engagement
Conclusion
As the long summer days have started filling up the calendar, take this opportunity to encourage your kindergartener's natural curiosity and love of learning.
Let them get outside and hop into those sidewalk chalk word family ladders. Have them create quirky critters from recycled materials gathered on a nature walk or spend lazy afternoons dreaming up stories and capturing them on paper.
Taking this playful learning to the next level, Vedantu gives your child a transformative and personalized educational experience that prepares them for future success.
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