Summer Toddler Activities

Summer is usually about being outdoors and enjoying the sun. The mere mention of summer brings up ideas of tropical islands vacation, summer camps, summer games on the beach like frisbee, sand castle building or beach balls.  There aren't just lots of outdoor summer activities, but also indoor summer activities that kids of all ages will love. Here are some great summer activity ideas that kids and families can do together.

Outdoor Summer Activities

Learning a sport like swimming is always popular during this time of year. It is one of the great outdoor summer activities that incorporate fun, exercise and learning. It is also a good way of getting relief from the summer sun. Toddlers can also be taught to swim. However, their swimming lessons should only last for half an hour at most to protect them from sunburn. There are also indoor pools for swimming lessons if you want to stay away from the sun and sunburns.

Other fun summer activities include flying kites. This can be made more fun if everybody pitches in and makes a kite from scratch instead of buying one. Let your toddler paint the kite with shapes or animal figures.  Summer activities for teens can include camping outdoors, fishing or even summer camps where they can learn specialized skills for their favorite sport or hobby.  Other sports like basketball, football and baseball are also good summer activities for teens.

Who can resist going to the beach during the summer? It's fun yet relaxing at the same time. Kids can socialize with other kids and have hours of fun playing in the water or building sand castles. However, don't forget the sun block and the umbrella. Beaches are fun but it can also become very hot. Make sure your toddler spend lots of time under the shade and is kept hydrated. The best time for toddlers to be out on the beach is before 10 am and after 3 pm as the UV rays from the sun are weakest at these times.

More Summer Ideas

For some more fun summer ideas, arts and crafts are always a staple to ease boredom. Learning how to draw or paint can keep kids and toddlers entertained for hours. Summer activities for toddlers can include origami, finger painting, face painting and simple baking. You can have fun making hot cakes, brownies and other easy to bake dishes. Track the crafts or baked goodies you've done using summer worksheets labeled with your planned activities or menu so that you can move on to the next fun thing on your list easily.

Summer Activities On A Budget

If you want to save some cash during the summer, there are still fun summer activities you and your toddler can enjoy. A simple stroll in the park will easily delight the little one. This will get him out of the house plus, the park can be a good place for him to do a little exploring. Parks will usually have play grounds with monkey bars, swings and see-saws so this is an added bonus. For a change, you can read children's books to your toddler under a tree at the park.

If your city or town has a nature trail, then take him hiking. The idea is to teach him about nature during the trek. You can point out different animals, insects, trees and plants along the way.

If you have a garden hose or sprinklers then turn them on and let your toddler lose. What kid doesn't love playing with water? Let him run around for a while and you can join in the fun as well. You can combine this with some light yard work. Have your toddler pick up fallen leaves.  While it is fun, it also teaches him the value of doing house chores without making him dislike it.

You can also create summer games for toddlers to keep him entertained. Hide and seek is always a hit among kids and so is tag. These games are easy to learn. Invite your neighbor's kids over. The more the merrier.

Teaching kids the value of hard work and money is important. This is why lemonade stands are popular summer activities for kids. Lemons, sugar, ice and plastic cups are cheap so setting up a stand won't cost much. Have your toddler help in squeezing the lemons and mixing the lemonade.

The library is always fun. You can get summer activity ideas from books and magazines plus it can foster your child's love for reading. You can also stay at home and search for interesting summer activities on the Internet. There are appropriate games in kid-oriented sites like nickjr.com, kids.discovery.com and disney.go.com that are fun and educational at the same time.

Summer activities for kids are fun to do for the whole family. Thinking up new ways of keeping them entertained for the summer can become challenging, but all it takes is some creativity and a lot of imagination.