Looking for summer activities that will keep your young ones entertained over the holidays without leaving you strained and exhausted? Check out a few suggestions we have collected from parents who were or are exactly where you are today, wanting to give their children stimulating and challenging ways to pass their time without passing on their own need for rest!
1) Kids love taking photos. But forget about smartphones for a minute. We suggest getting a cheap digital camera with a good amount of memory space and giving it to them to use as their own. Show them the camera’s basic functions and give them little projects to complete, like capturing their favourite summer moments, photographing their favourite toys, taking close-ups of sandcastles and nature at the beach. When the holidays are over, you can print some photos out and make an album together so you can remember summer 2022 forever. 
2) Make up your very own treasure hunt at home, with various stops along the way that will eventually lead to a prize or small present. Each stop will include clues that lead to the next, which should not be very easy but also, should not be so difficult that it will make them lose interest or ask you for the answer each time.  
3) During your next roadtrip, make sure you place an activity kit in the back seat with all their favourite toys, small puzzles, plasticine, colouring books puzzles and anything else that sparks their imagination and keeps them busy for a while. 
4) Make a time capsule together. Start it off yourself but adding photos and items that remind you of special family moments and ask your children to join in by drawing or writing about their favourite moments too. They can also collect their own photos, toys and other items for the capsule, and once they are ready you can seal it up. Agree on a future ‘open date’ and hide it well. 
5) Learn something together! Something that everyone is interested to know about! For example, you could download a night sky app about stars and spend the evening looking for summer constellations and learning their names. 
As with all things, balance is key. Avoid overwhelming your young ones with things of activities they should be doing over the holidays. Let them use their imagination and fill up their time creatively in their own way, before suggesting something yourself. You never know, they may just surprise you!