Tuesday, April 07, 2009

Summer Vacation - Activities and fun time

Be it dancing, arts, skating or computers - Summer Vacations are so much fun for kids that kids seem to be learning everything with exhaustive classes! Parents are more conscious of their child's extra curricular activities since last many years as lifestyles have changed with competitive edge.



As Swagat announces Creative classes this summer, it might be a motivating idea to many to start creative activities in their own locality. Moreover, explore the NIE Tips section and Projects for Kids - I am sure, children will love to hop and jump with glee with various Internet activities and Resources apart from playing outdoor games, singing, dancing or Reading - Fairyland stories or draw, color, paste stickers and make posters that you can hang on paste board.


Children possess unexpected perceptions that we can think of as they express their Imaginations in many different ways. It is a parental role to Nurture a Genius in a child and provide them environment to feel free to indulge in their chosen activity and rather, not force the child to select an activity as per your choice.

Here are some tips that parents or teachers can follow to help a child be Creative:

1. Provide Opportunity : If opportunity knocks the door, children can do wonders. Give them a chance to choose their own activity and let them be free to engage in it.


2. Provide Time : Summer time is ample time for children. However, if your lifestyle is busier, make some space to spare time with kids. Arrange your own schedule and take out time. Children like to have fun with parents.


3. Provide Space : Children like colors and all that glitters gold. Give them good space - green environment, fresh morning and evening hours that can have activities outdoors and afternoons can be cozy and cool, in-house. Do not hang or nag on what they do and do not even insist that the child complete the drawing or coloring. Next day is always there for unfinished work. Also, allow them to be with friends too.


4. Provide Material / or any other : Make available material for Arts, Sports or any other Activity. As such children like fancy things. So, let them have tools that can soar their imagination. Eg. for drawing and coloring, give them all the fancy pencils and colors, if making a project on fairyland stories, provide Scrap book, story books, review sheet, stickers, etc.


5. Provide your Interest : Your Interest in a child's activity is very important. The nearest person to a child is You. Show your Interest, express your views, talk about your childhood activities. Children love to hear your stories and sure, they want you to take interest in what they do and will open up and express their joy in what they are doing. Eg. If a child has read a story, encourage him to narrate it or if he plays a game on computer, listen to his excited talks about it. Do not pin him down over small matters.


6. Provide Occasion : Summer is Party time. Take children for excursions or tours to places. They love to go for picnics and love traveling. You can also organize 'Theme based parties' like Barbie doll party or 'Game party' - Even Literature parties go great where a group of friends make Literature projects and set the theme, call all friends and share knowledge or maybe ''worksheets and grammar fun.


7. Set up Days : For busy schedules, spare time with kids by setting up days. Saturday can be an outing, sunday set for Fun Time together watching a movie or cooking a meal. Monday can be reading sessions, tuesday set for arts and crafts, wednesday for music and friday can be computing and playing games on computer and Internet. Apart from this, plan for projects, creativity like poetry writing or story writing. Just Plan activities.

Btw, click to Ziggityzoom and it's a Fun Place to zoom around! You can play games, color pictures, read and listen to stories and even mini videos and have fun around. The site also has freebies, worksheets, articles and kids printables. The site has easier navigation and appears in ALA Great sites for kids too. Created by Mother-daughter as a team, Kristine Fitch and Sharon Pierce McCullough, indeed have made all efforts to provide resources for kids and parents as well. Enjoy.

- ilaxi patel
Editor, www.kidsfreesouls.com
Newspaper for Kids

1 comment:

Dr. Alice said...

Here is a wonderful vacation, do-together or gift idea for parents who are interested in keeping your child involved in literacy activities that are fun, creative and empowering. Go to www.thinkitinkitpublishing.com for professionally illustrated wordless picture books - kids write the story and become authors. Your child will feel such pride from writing one of these books!