15 Engaging & Educational Summer Bucket List Ideas for Preschoolers
Sunshine, swimming pools, and sweet and sticky watermelon—all hallmarks of summertime festivities! Summer is coming and with it, a slew of opportunities to bond with your preschooler (and keep everyone entertained on these longer days). Whether your little one is home for the summer or attending a daycare or childcare program, a summer bucket list is an excellent tool in helping you soak up all the fun in the sun! Get your little one involved, too! Research says that allowing children to choose and help plan activities encourages autonomy and builds self-confidence (source).
By coming up with ideas in advance it allows the presence of mind to be creative and to include developmentally rich activities—reinforcing important milestones in early childhood education. Additionally, making a list drastically increases the likelihood of the activities happening—and can be a saving grace on those days with free time where your creativity just refuses to work.
Looking for some inspiration? We’ve put together a creative, budget friendly and educational list of summer activities that would blend nicely into your current summer plans!
Want to find out what we have planned for the warmer months here at Summit Prep Academy? Call today to schedule a tour and see what we are all about.
1. Backyard Car Wash
Wash bikes, toy cars, or even the family vehicle with soapy water — an excellent sensory and motor skill activity. All you need is soap, a sponge, and a bucket!
Water play is so much fun and a great way to cool down on a hot day! Call us up here at Summit Prep and see what kind of fun water play we have planned.
2. Pick Your Own Fruit
Many farms have you-pick berry operations in the summer. This can be a tasty lesson in seasonal fruits and vegetables as well as an intro to where food comes from and healthy eating.
3. Make Homemade Popsicles
All you need is a popsicle mold and some fridge staples! The recipes are endless—fruit, yogurt, juice, milk, coffee (for the adults!). Check out some of our favorite recipes here: DIY Popsicles for Kids
4. Library Storytime
Reading aloud fosters language skills and social interaction. (Reading Rockets) Most libraries have a children’s library hour and if you are unable to make yours, your children’s librarian will be more than happy to recommend some lovely books for your own reading aloud adventures at home! Take these books on a picnic, a day at the park, to the beach, and more!
Want some extra inspiration? We are always reading here at Summit Prep Academy; Schedule a tour and ask our teachers what their favorite book recommendations might be!
5. Mud Kitchen
Create an outdoor “kitchen” with bowls, spoons, and dirt! The Raising Children Network affirms that messy play builds sensory processing and creativity. If you don’t have access to a yard of dirt, you can also have some messy play right at the kitchen table! Fill a rubber bin with some dirt and spoons, bowls, measuring cups and the like!
Hot tip: The dollar store or dollar bins are an excellent place to stock up on the tools!
Outdoor time is key for preschool-aged-children! Experiencing the outdoors, fresh air, and time to run and be creative are all integral pieces to early childhood development. We have daily scheduled outside time here at Summit Prep Academy and would love for you to come see us and check out our lovely outdoor play areas!
6. Nature Painting
Use leaves, pinecones, grass, flowers, sticks, etc. as paintbrushes. According to PBS Parents, not only supports a child’s fine motor skills and creativity, but also their understanding of textures and shapes.
Sensory play, nature, art…a perfect combination for an amazing preschool experience. Here at Summit Prep we love keeping our play and art dynamic–challenging the development of our students in different ways. Call today or schedule a tour to hear and see what fun things we have planned for our students!
7. Color Walk
Pick a color and go on a neighborhood hunt. Turn it into a scavenger hunt of sorts or see who can find the most items of their color! This will strengthen a preschoolers observation and categorization skills. (CDC Milestones)
8. Bubble Science Lab
This is a great into to STEM learning as children experiment with shapes and sizes of bubbles, what makes them pop and what makes them grow—you can do this in the sink, the tub, in a water table or even a kiddie pool!
Early STEM exposure is crucial within early childhood education, and we are constantly working to find new and engaging ways to share this without students here at Summit Prep Academy. Schedule a tour today to see learning in action and to find out some of our favorite ways to incorporate STEM among the different age groups.
9. Nature Murals
Go on a walk or traipse through the yard and collect interesting pieces of nature—leaves, flower petals, and feathers are all perfect ingredients for a nature art project! Here are some extra ideas, as well: Arty Crafty Kids Nature Crafts
10. Indoor Pajama Campout
Build a fort, set up a tent or even simply lay out sleeping bags on the ground for a ‘summer campout’ indoors! Keeps the AC and bathroom handy while also having a fun family adventure.
11. Visit a Splash Pad
Water play isn’t just a nice way to stay cool and beat the heat, but it supports balance, coordination, and self-regulation (source). The bonus is that most splash pads are completely free!
Hot tip: bring plastic cups, an action figure or two (not too many or they will get lost or cause a fight) or even a toy boat to enhance the splash pad fun!
12. Freeze Toys in Ice
Use ice cube trays or even a bowl to freeze toys into ice! Let your preschooler “rescue” their toys from a frozen block — fine motor and patience practice in one! (Busy Toddler) Use a dropper, a small children’s hammer, or anything they can think of to get their toys out—stretch their minds by challenging their critical thinking.
13. Visit a Farm or Petting Zoo
Having preschoolers interact with animals helps children understand and connect with nature and their world, in turn strengthening their observation and categorizing skills –both of which are essential in STEM and early childhood education.
14. Teddy Bear Picnic
Support your little ones social-emotional learning with imaginative play! Take stuffed animals and some pretend dishes if you have them out for a picnic! Use real, imaginary, pretend, or even nature ‘food’ like leaves and acorns for a fun little outing.
We know the value of imaginative play here at Summit Prep Academy and would love to show off our various centers—stirring interest and imagination for our little students daily.
15. Create a Summer Scrapbook
Snap some photos of your summer activities and either have them printed or print them yourself to add to a summer scrapbook. Let your preschooler help add drawings, stickers, and notes. This could be a fun weekly activity that also develops their memory and recall skills while commemorating your summer together! (Scholastic)
Make a List and Check it Twice
Having a Summer bucket list at hand when free time presents itself can be incredibly helpful in actually integrating new and seasonal activities, taking advantage of the moment to build relationship with your little one as well as further their early childhood education. Take this a step further and add those activities to the calendar! Really want to make an indoor ‘campout’ happen? Add it to the schedule for your next evening off! Reading outside wound like a lovely afternoon? Put it on the calendar for the next sunny day. If life happens—as it does—and you’re unable to keep the ‘schedule’ than cut yourself some grace, add the activity back to the list and incorporate it later, if you’d like. The beautiful summer sky is the limit!
Schedule a tour with us here at Summit Prep Academy! Come see our classrooms, outdoor play areas and talk to our various teachers about the plans and dreams they have for their students!