Does your tween aged child get bored easily during the summer months?  Being a Tween is a tricky age (usually defined as a child between the ages of 9 and 12).  They often want to do grown up things, but younger child things appeal to them, too.  It kind of depends on their mood, and that always seems to be changing.

One of my pet peeves is seeing kids sitting around the house with their noses in a device of some kind all day long throughout the summer.  I don’t mind it for short bits of time, but don’t be trying it all day long.  In an effort to give my Tween aged children some ideas of what to do, I came up with this list of fun things to do throughout the summer months.  Some of them are more girly and some of them are obviously slated toward the boys, but many of them are unisex.  Feel free to pick and choose ideas that will work for YOUR Tween.  Hopefully these will get your kids excited about doing something that’s not on an electronic device for a change!  And do me a favor, if you find something not on this list, leave a comment below so we can add to it.

1. Start a Book Club (in person or online)
2. Write a Letter
3. Explore Nature Around Your House, taking photos and sketching what you see
4. Take a Babysitting Class
5. Write a Story or a Poem
6. Read a Book
7. Make a Scrapbook of Childhood Pictures
8. Entertain Your Siblings by Making a “Camp” for them to attend
9. Go Camping in Your Back Yard
10. Take a Bubble Bath
11. Record Your Own Radio Show or Movie
12. Interview Your Siblings and write a Family Newsletter about your “findings”
13. Make Jewelry – Paracord Bracelets are pretty easy to learn
14. Start a Business (mowing?, pet sitting, odd jobs, baby sitting, etc.)
15. Make Popsicles for your Family
16. Bake Something for a Friend
17. Have a Picnic
18. Play Charades
19. Wash the Car and Play in the Hose
20. Have a Tea Party (or a sports party!)
21. Learn How to Hula Hoop
22. Host a Scavenger Hunt or better yet, a Video Scavenger Hunt
23. Decide on Something You’d Like to Improve About Yourself and Do it.
24. Write a Play (and act it out?)
25. Play Frisbee (or better yet, play night frisbee using a light up frisbee)
26. Get a book about Braiding Hair and Learn How to Do Several New Braids.
27. Shoot a BB Gun in the Back Yard (if you have the space and your community allows it)
28. Play Catch
29. Learn How to Make a Killer Paper Airplane
30. Plant Something (and take care of it as it grows)
31. Make a Marshmallow Gun (and have fun shooting it at your friends or siblings)
32. Have a Water Gun Fight
33. Play Croquet
34. Go Geo-Caching using a GPS
35. Take a Hunter’s Safety Course
36. Build a Lego Masterpiece
37. Play Dominoes, see how long you can make a domino train
38. Craft with Duct Tape (Have you tried making a duct tape wallet yet?)
39. Try Simple Woodworking Projects
40. Play Board Games
41. Volunteer Somewhere (church, library, animal shelter, etc. – this may require a parental volunteer as well)
42. Learn Photography
43. Learn to Play Guitar
44. Try Science Experiments (You could use this cool book)
45. Go Star Gazing
46. Plan a Hike
47. Make S’mores Over a Camp Fire
48. Fly a Kite
49. Try Wood Burning (with supervision, using this inexpensive wood burning pen)
50. Go to the Zoo
51. Make Your Family a Meal
52. Go Fishing in a Nearby Pond or Stream
53. Go Swimming
54. Host a Fashion Show with Your Friends
55. Get Your Ears Pierced
56. Paint Your Nails Crazy Summery Colors (offer to paint your friend’s, too)
57. Bake Cookies in Your Car!
58. Make Ice Cream
59. Go Canoeing
60. Have a Water Balloon Fight
61. Go Biking on a Trail
62. Have a Mud Fight (get parent approval first!)
63. Go Rock Skipping
64. Go Fossil Hunting
65. Host a Turtle Race
66. Run or Walk in a 5k with your Parents
67. Learn to Sew
68. Go Garage Saling
69. Brainstorm Ways to Turn $10 into $20
70. Make Bouncy Balls
71. Go Bowling
72. Go Horseback Riding
73. Visit a Flea Market
74. Have a Relay Race with your friends
75. Make a Sidewalk Chalk Mural
76. Make a Box Maze (out of appliance boxes you collect from a local store)
77. Go to the Beach (even if it’s at the lake and not the ocean)
78. Create a New Food Dish Using 5 Preset Ingredients
79. Tie Dye T-shirts
80. Paint a Picture
81. Design Your Own Clothes (by drawing them)
82. Write a Summer Bucket List
83. Feed the Ducks (or the Sea Gulls – ever tried throwing bread in the air to them?)
84. Visit a Museum
85. Shoot Air Soft Guns with Friends or Family

I hope this gives you a good starting point!  We really do love summer!  I hope you and your kids will embrace summer with me, get way from the devices and just enjoy being kids for a change!

I’m Sure I Left Something Off.  What Summer Activities Do Your Tween Aged Children Enjoy?