June 21, 2020
Now the weather is finally cooperating, the days are longer, the air warmer and the kids are eager to spend time outside.
Summer is our favourite season as the whole family can partake in backyard activities; whether it’s planting and tending to a small vegetable garden, playing lawn games or a game night with the neighbours and their little ones.
Step up your DIY game-making action
Whether you have access to nearby parks or a little patch of grass in the backyard, here some easy interactive ways to get the family together:
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Backyard Mini Golf
Create a 9-hole course across the terrain of your yard adding fun challenges throughout using the natural elements of your landscape (think sandy pits, treacherous rocky terrains and uphill sidewalks) or add upside down saucers or bowls for cups and craft simple flags from poster board and dowel rods.
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Lawn Scrabble
A life size version of their favourite indoor game. DIY your own letters by painting or writing the letters with a thick marker on wood or cardboard squares.
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Lawn Bowling
Introduce the family to a bit of nostalgia. To set up the game, recycle old soda bottles, paint numbers (1-10) on each pin and find a small, weighted (unbreakable) sphere to use as the ball and roll away.
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Ring Toss Game
A classic carnival game that can be easily designed using empty bottles from around your house. Add a few rings and let the family competition begin!
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Lawn Twister
Make your own spinner using cardboard; then spray-paint red, yellow, green, and blue dots on the grass to create your very own lawn twister.
Checkers, Giant Plinko, oversized Jenga, and tic-tac-toe using outdoor painted rocks as game pieces are fun to play and easy to set up
Power of play
As a parent, it’s important we provide a better way of life for our children and encourage them to be their best while making meaningful connections in their lives.
To support your child’s growth and development, they need a healthy mix of recreational sports as it teaches the basic rules of fairness, teamwork and introduces good sportsmanship skills. Whether signing them up on a local community team or just spending time at the local courts, fields and outdoor facilities, sports are a great tool for kids to socialize and learn to play with others.
Participating in activities is a way to get your kids out in the fresh air, exercising and having fun. While most professional athletes began playing in recreational leagues, it is important to remember that play benefits all kids — not just budding future pro-athletes.
Playing sports is a fun learning experience that develops their cognitive and physical abilities, teaches life skills and builds their self-esteem affecting all areas of their life
Regardless of their age or ability, sports are a great, inclusive avenue to develop kids physically and socially, establishing healthy lifestyle habits they will carry into adulthood.
