We are officially on summer break from our homeschool year, and on the very first day my kids were already wandering around aimlessly asking for screen time. Not even a full 24 hours in, and my kids were already bored! But not for long. I have a plan for battling summer boredom, Christmas break boredom, basically any kind of boredom. And it’s really simple.
Battling Summer Boredom with a Bucket List
The very first activity for every break includes creating bucket lists. While my little (rising Kindergartener) is a too young to have an official list, he has plenty of ideas to contribute. Both my older kids make out their own list. Essentially, their bucket list is their list of ideas for what makes a successful summer break. I ask questions like what would you be disappointed that you didn’t get to do by the end of the summer? What activities have you been really wanting to do but haven’t had the time because of school?
In other words, my kids’ strategy for battling summer boredom is setting goals and expectations for their summer. Whenever they act bored or a little lost, I refer them back to their list or, in true parenting style, offer to give them some work to do.
Place to Go
This is the easy part for my kids. They always have a long list of places they’d like me to take them. By having them write it down, I’ve shown that I’m aware of their desire to do that, and that I have all summer to follow through. They understand that not everything on their list is possible (i.e. a trip to LegoLand), but in the first week, I try to get to one or two of their top places to show my commitment to them. We are going to make the most of our break. Most places are simple: the beach, a swimming pool, the park, the movies, the science museum, camping, etc. Some times, I have them rank their places to go so that I know what to make a priority. For the most part, this is my only responsibility on the list, but it eliminates the nagging when they get bored if it’s already written down somewhere.
Things to Do
My kids are always full of big ideas; its one of the upsides to ADHD. From huge lego productions and i-stop motion creations, to puppet shows and other dramatic endeavors—my kids have ideas for tons of major enterprises that require time and pooling of resources. There are also ideas like riding their bicycles or scooters, playing baseball or football with friends, having a picnic, and of course, watching particular movies or playing Wii.
Skills to Work on
I coach my kids through this section to help them set some summer goals. What desserts do you want to learn how to make this summer? What meal do you want to learn how to cook? How many new chords or songs do you want to learn on your instrument? Do you want to sketch something or paint something? Including this in their plan for battling summer boredom gives them direction and helps me make a few summer plans myself.
Interests to Pursue
In some ways, this is similar to the “skills to work on” but a little broader. Basically, was their something from this year’s school that you wish you’d had time to learn more? Is there something you’ve been wanting to explore that you haven’t had the time to explore? Maybe it’s coding or survival skills, maybe it’s bracelet making or pottery, maybe it’s looking at more things under the microscope—whatever! This can be broad, and sometimes they have something to add while other times they don’t. I don’t force the issue, but I always ask, just in case it lights a fire.
Books to Read
Of course, we all want our kids reading during the summer. Maybe your child has a series of books they want to read or reread, or maybe it’s a goal of a certain number of books or pages they want to read. For my kiddos, I keep them very busy with assigned reading during the year, good books that often become favorites for them, but there’s a lot of them. And my kids often don’t have the time they would like to pursue personal reading—until break time. I’m okay with that, because I know it adds extra motivation for them to continue reading during break. One of the things my kids get most excited about is reading whatever they want. I don’t have rules about “twaddle” or how age-appropriate or anything else. As long as the book doesn’t compromise any of our core family values, my kids can have at it. That first library trip of the summer is their favorite. And because all the rules are off, even my dyslexic daughter gets excited about reading her favorites, including her old favorites she’s read many times over.
There are a couple of fun reading challenges for the summer, if you are looking for a little extra direction or motivation. Join the Reading the World Book Club and even turn it into a missional fundraiser. Or, create a Tower of Books challenge.
We are already busy checking off some of those summer bucket list ideas and making the most of our summer break. Battling summer boredom is so much easier with our lists, and by summer’s end, my kids can measure just how awesome their summer was by what got checked off the bucket list.
