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At-Home Indoor and Outdoor Fun Activity Ideas From GetKidsInternetSafe

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We at GetKidsInternetSafe love fun, educational, and safe screen time. But even better than that? We love creative offscreen play activities that help family members get to know and bond with each other, teach initiative and problem solving, and make forever memories. Sometimes great ideas are hard to dream up on-the-run with busy families. Enjoy these fun at-home indoors or outdoors activities that we at GKIS are sure your kids will love!

Indoor Fun

Let Your Kid be the Media Star

  • Record your kid as their favorite video star doing fun activities
  • Create an old movie recorder from cardboard boxes and black paint, don’t forget the director’s board so you or your kids get to yell “cut!”
  • If your kids like do it yourself videos, set up a station and let them surprise you with the results
  • If your child wants to be a movie star, let their imagination run wild and have them do small skits of their favorite scenes
  • Share videos with friends and family and have them comment and let them “like” the videos as fans
  • Don’t forget to follow up on their roles and nominate them in their own awards show for a later idea.
  • A thank you speech from your kid is highly encouraged

Up-Cycle Old Games

  • Give your old board games new meaning by breaking them apart and making a new game
  • Create cards with inside jokes that only friends and family will know
  • Use a Jenga game and tape truth or dares to pull out for twice the amount of fun
  • Create fun Loteria cards! Customize cards to make up members of your family such as the overprotective father or the daughter who says “like” in every sentence
  • Update trivia games and have your kids teach you a thing or two about new pop culture words and celebrities
  • Need Inspiration? A blogpost by Claire Harmeyer demonstrates how games are currently being reused with an old Guess Who game!

At Home Art Gallery

  • Let your child show their artistic creativity in a variety of ways by hosting an art gallery!
  • Remember that there are various forms of creating art, encourage them to complete at least three different “sections” to their gallery which may include the following:
    • The painting room
    • Play-dough or moon sand sculptures room
    • Origami room
    • The Barbie fashion showcase room
    • Photography room
    • The popsicle architecture room
    • Live art with temporary tattoos or a henna kit
    • Food art room
  • As the art critique, give reassuring feedback to encourage their creativity

Home Lab

Have your kids play mad scientist with some of these fun science creations

  • Follow scientist Joe and create a storm in a glass. 
    • You’ll need: shaving cream, large glass, water food coloring, and a spoon
  • Help your kids create a baking soda volcano by following Science Bob’s easy steps
    • Something to put the liquids in, baking soda, liquid dish soap, food coloring, water, vinegar
  • Create a tornado in a bottle by looking at the young Youtuber Ryan lay out the steps with his dad
    • You’ll need: 2-liter soda bottles (same shape), duct tape or connector, water, lamp oil (any color)
  • Make a sundial and practice reading times 
    • You’ll need: Stones, a pencil, and a piece of clay

Outdoor Fun

Backyard Scavenger Hunt

  • Set up an imaginary scenario that will fit your child’s interests whether that be finding a treasure chest to a vial that will cure the zombie apocalypse
  • Entice your child: add something of interest to their treasure 
  • Set up a list of instructions that may include:
    • Riddles 
    • Math problems
    • Guessing an image outline
    • Word association games
    • DIY puzzles
    • Connect the dots images
    • Phone a Friend! (have them call a loved one for their next clue)
  • Create steps such as stacking stones or doing cartwheels to unlock the next set of instructions
  • If you’d like to play along, act as a helping hand and create a character that will help them 

Balcony Garden

  • For those in apartments, set up a small garden for your child if you have a balcony available.
  • Be sure everything is easily accessible so that there is no need for leaning or climbing on the railing
  • Consider easy to maintain plants such as succulents 
  • Customize pots with markers/paint or give them name tags to personalize
  • Make paper insects like butterflies and prop them into the plants for decoration
  • Use stick skewers for food or popsicle sticks to glue to your paper insects and stick them into the edge of the pots 
  • Color skewers green to act as plant stems
  • Set up Christmas lights around the balcony so your child can admire their plant friends at night

Home Triathlon

    • Set up a backyard triathlon using whatever sports equipment you have or can make.
    • The idea is to do each obstacle non-stop until they reach the finish line
    • Get creative and work with what you have!
    • Ideas for challenges include:
  • Pitch up a tarp/sheet and have your kid’s army crawl under
  • Draw a challenging hopscotch segment
  • Set a designated amount of hula hoops swirls
  • Have two volunteers be ready with a double dutch jump rope obstacle
  • How low can you limbo station
  • Basketball into a hoop
  • Making a soccer ball into a goal that’s
  • guarded
  • Jumping jacks
  • Backward walking
  • Set up a finish line using items such as ribbon or even tied up rags

Outside Movie Nights

  • Pull up some chairs, snacks, and whatever else you’ll need to be comfortable
  • If you have a projector get a flat white surface to hang to a wall 
    • If you’re trying this on a balcony, prop the backdrop on the sliding door
  • No projector? No worries, this idea will work fine with a device that’s big enough for you and your kids to see
  • Watch your favorite films under the night sky
  • Or make your own movie story
    • Grab a flashlight and have the family show their storytelling skills.
    • Give the group a movie genre they can work with
    • In a bowl you can add random folded words they will need to incorporate into their story
    • Set a timer that works for everyone
    • Deem the new storytelling king or queen of the night
    • The newest king or queen will get to be the judge for the next game
  • Added bonus! Stargazing till your kids are pooped and ready for bed
    • Wrap-up: These stars have a story, share a one constellation story and have them excited for the next one


Special thanks to Aroni Garcia for researching and co-writing this article. If you liked these fun tips and want to stay updated on new fun ways to keep your kids entertained follow GKIS on social media! Follow our @GetKidsInternetSafe Instagram and Facebook pages and @drtracybennett Twitter for our latest posts! And, as always, thanks for sharing us with friends and family. Cheers to happy memory making!

 

 

Onward to More Awesome Parenting, 

Tracy S. Bennett, Ph.D.
Mom, Clinical Psychologist, CSUCI Adjunct Faculty
GetKidsInternetSafe

Work Cited

[1] Haymeyer, C. (2020).”You can buy Friends-themed Guess Who-so could game night be any better?” Retrieved from https://hellogiggles.com/news/friends-guess-who-game/

[2] SFFE. (2017). “Storm in a Glass”. Retrieved from http://www.sciencefun.org/kidszone/experiments/storm-in-a-glass/

[3] ScienceBob. (2008).“Make an Erupting Volcano with Science Bob”. [Video] Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vNz4DyUOsAw

[4] Ryan’sWorld. (2019). “Ryan create Tornado in the bottle science experiments for Kids!!!”. [Video] Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=21joF6lt0aY

[5] Yeats, W. (2010). “Otherwise Educating: Sundial”. Retrieved from http://otherwiseeducating.blogspot.com/2010/12/sundial.html

Photo Credits

  1. Photo by Bob_Dmyt on Pixabay
  2. Photo by ponce_photography on Pixabay
  3. Photo by StockSnap on Pixabay
  4. Photo by finelightarts on Pixabay
  5. Photo by Vladvictoria on Pixabay
  6. Photo by Pexels on Pixabay
  7. Photo by ROverhate on Pixabay
  8. Photo by 12019 on Pixabay
  9. Photo by dbreen on Pixabay

Reconnecting with Your Child in 3 Easy Steps

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I was lucky enough to have a Dad who was “my person.” In other words, I always went to him when I was happy, upset, confused, angry, or just wanted to feel loved. He’s been gone for over two years now and I still miss him everyday. That kind of parent-child connection makes a profound impact for generations. How would your rate your connection with your kids?

As a clinical psychologist, one of the most important things I do is help repair relationships between parents and kids. Connection can be broken or strained by a variety of factors, including stressful circumstance, conflict, substance abuse, developmental stages, distraction, or even personality variables. Once strained, a parent-child connection is not always easy to repair. But with consistent effort, it can be done.

Below are three easy strategies for repairing a strained or broken parent-child connection:

  1. Spend time:

I know this sounds obvious, but it isn’t always easy with competing schedules. It’s important to regularly carve out time to hang out and have fun. Sharing an activity like a meal or riding in the car is fine, but co-watching screen media isn’t ideal. Try to share activities where conversation and shared laughter is possible. Sitting together at the dinner table several times a week is the perfect scenario. Make sure however that ALL screen media is turned off at meal time.

  1. Stay mindful:

This simply means stay in the present and don’t let yourself get distracted from the task at hand – connecting with your child. No stressing about what you just did or what you need to do. Notice and feel everything as though it’s your last play date for the next year. Nothing will be as rejuvenating as soaking in this precious time with your babies, so take advantage of it. They will be off to college before you know it!

  1. Create mutually interesting conversation:

What should you talk about? Anything that your kid wants to talk about! The most powerful topics will be situations immediately present in your child’s world (e.g., friends, teachers, activities, events). Below are some conversation ideas to get you started:

Ask open ended questions to elicit light conversation. The more specific the questions, the better.

  • “So how was Tiffany today? Still difficult?”
  • “Was that history test as hard as you thought it would be?”
  • “Kick ball or hand ball today?”

Share a story or teach her about something you think she would like. The funnier the story the better.

  • “Once when I was 13 years old there was this kid…”
  • “Check out this hilarious cat video!”
  • “Watch this catchy dance move I made up!” (Eye-rolls are still attention!)

In the spirit of getting tech savvy, get involved in their digital worlds (remember to keep it light-hearted).

  • “Which penguin are you?”
  • “Show me this lava castle you’ve been working so hard on.”
  • “Honey, I can’t figure out my privacy settings, can you help?”

Thanks for staying connected to GKIS and cheers to being the most awesome parent you can be! Share your last favorite memory of connecting time in the comment section below!

I’m the mom psychologist who will help you GetKidsInternetSafe.

Onward to More Awesome Parenting,

Tracy S. Bennett, Ph.D.
Mom, Clinical Psychologist, CSUCI Adjunct Faculty
GetKidsInternetSafe.com

Want to get sucked into some perfectly timed photo viewing? Click here

10 Fun Technology-Assisted Activities for Parents & Kids

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Tired of parent #techpanic? There are situations that warrant concern, but let’s face it, technology is here to stay and has huge learning application. Retire the lectures already and take a few fun hours to join ‘em!

  1. Watch educational TV then co-surf the Internet for deeper learning in various learning formats (articles, videos, images).

     

  2. Google Earth somewhere fascinating and plan a #FakeVacay. Sky’s the limit!

     

  3. Find craft or decorating recipes then do them: coloring books, origami, paper airplanes! Pinterest is an awesome resource.

     

  4. Find food recipes: ice cream, decorating cookies, veggie snacks!

     

  5. Find science experiment recipes: bubble solution, playdough, milk/food coloring designs!

     

  6. Fun apps: Study space science fun facts and download a star-gazing app for a night hike!

     

  7. Nature: find a plant or a bug outside, then identify it online!

     

  8. Make a movie – complete with music, still-image slides, videos, and graphics.

     

  9. Build a family website with photos, illustrations, and funny stories (e.g., “Dad’s most embarrassing moment”).

     

  10. Google “fun internet activities for parents”.

 

Onward To More Awesome Parenting,

Tracy S. Bennett, Ph.D.
Mom, Clinical Psychologist, CSUCI Adjunct Faculty
GetKidsInternetSafe.com

For some awesome sites that promote creative tech activity, click here

7 GetKidsInternetSafe Tips for Summer

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Summer has arrived and parents everywhere are alight with anticipation and dread. It’s your job to be a good-enough parent, not a perfect one. Here are 7 GetKidsInternetSafe guidelines to help.

We are a week into summer at our house, and it has started already; that nagging guilt I feel to keep my kids happy while juggling my job, marriage, friendships, and sanity. The dreaded “bored” word hangs over my head like a dead tree limb ready to snap. Help!

There are always the über moms who had it together two months ago and scheduled Cantonese class, violin lessons, and sailing camp. Having a twenty year-old and being in session with the übers, I am over the fantasy that I am that mom. And frankly, I’m happy to say so, because that impossible expectation leads these beautiful, ambitious souls to have two gigantic glasses of wine every night and chases their husbands into the garage, as her resentment poisons the room. The sadly ironic fact is that a mother’s love for her children inspires her intensity. One or two activities at a time, please. Unscheduled time is valuable for healthy development.

And please know, writing these pieces makes me gag a little. Because I am the first to say I’m a good-enough mom, but far from perfect. I do and say things often that I have to apologize for and wish I could take back. But there are other times when I grin at myself because my babies are giddy little souls who wrestle puppies, build sky castles of hot lava on their computers, and climb trees.

My GetKidsInternetSafe guidelines should be read as they are intended; to give you permission to be happy outside of your parenting role while being proud and delighted with what you do pull off. And know that these are guidelines. Adopt what you want, how you want. Nothing is more valuable than your organic parenting instinct.

Practice mindfulness.

Stop, attend to the present, breathe from your diaphragm with a 6-second exhale, and fill your heart with the love of your children. This will help you set your priorities and keep you from becoming a screeching, bossy lunatic.

DJ.

Nothing gets the house rockin’ like some Elton John and a parent who sings badly. A little Earth, Wind, and Fire also inspires the spirit to soar through clumsy interpretive dance. As my dad used to say while we happily hustled around his knees, “It isn’t dancin’ unless your shoulders are movin!”

12:00-3:00 no screen time.

Be warned, the first couple days they will sit on the couch moaning in agony and run through every manipulative strategy they have in their brilliant cognitive toolboxes. Don’t cave! Eventually they will climb trees, read books, and wrestle until lamps break, as kids should. <note Brady Bunch reference>

One educational lesson a day.

It doesn’t have to be a kill and drill workbook though. Maybe 10 minutes on an educational or exploratory app like Google Earth or a TED talk. My kids like TED talks, and they give us something to discuss other than “kid stuff” that makes my eyes glaze over.

Kids need sun and run.

Schedule a nature event at least once a week, if not every day. Maybe you can’t pull off the beach or the mountains, but you certainly can take a walk around the block or visit a park to have a picnic.

When they beg not to go with, make them anyway.

We went to a concert in the park last night with our kids sulking in tow, and heck if they didn’t have a wildly fabulous time sitting on the blanket, playing tag, and eating chicken tostada salads and popcorn. Glow sticks, not to mention the horror of your parents dancing with a clumsy herd of friends in front of EVERYBODY, were a bonus. By the end they were spinning and hopping with us as well. My heart burst a bunch of times and my soul paid rapt attention and soaked it in. These moments are precious, but they sometimes have to be staged.

Treat the word “bored” as a cuss word.

It’s not allowed in our house and will immediately result in a consequence. Because first of all, that’s not MY problem. And secondly, the stinkin’ thinkin’ will make them miserable. So nip it in the bud.

Make sure you’ve subscribed to www.GetKidsInternetSafe.com for your free copy of “The Top 10 Mistakes Parents Make With Internet Safety (and How to Recover!). And please share your summer ideas with the GetKidsInternetSafe village. Cheers to making sunbaked, juicy life memories with your babies. (That tree pic is my son in the tree before school. I took it from my bedroom window). 🙂

I’m the mom psychologist who will help you GetKidsInternetSafe.

Onward to More Awesome Parenting,

Tracy S. Bennett, Ph.D.
Mom, Clinical Psychologist, CSUCI Adjunct Faculty
GetKidsInternetSafe.com

Love this one:

And let this be your inspiration (it totally cracks me up):

Is There a Secret to Awesome Parenting?

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All of us find it challenging sometimes to meet our obligations AND be an awesome parent. I hope this blog inspires you to be present and engaged with your kids today in a way that fills your heart and soul.

There is a secret to being an awesome parent! It also comes with a bonus feature of being the secret to life. It takes deliberate effort, but it’s fun and easy and requires you to fill your heart like you did as a child.

FLOOD YOUR BRAIN WITH HAPPINESS

AND

SHARE IT!!

 

Immediately upon reading this, did you…

A. Nod knowingly with a gentle, celebratory smile?
OR
B. Roll your eyes back with an exhale of defeat?

Your reaction determines which camp cabin you’ll create today, A) Camp Champion or B) Camp Naysayer?

Did you go to summer camp when you were little? If not, I bet you wanted to. Summer camp is every child’s dream; camp counselors with silly names like Skeeter, dirty sneakers, chili burgers, adventurous hikes, giggling skits, flashlight duels, and scary midnight sounds. Summer camp is a regular, magic-child-day multiplied by extra special. As a parent, you design and model which camp cabin your kids dwell in everyday. It’s all about how you “skeeter” it. Today, make it extra special.

As a child psychologist, I’ve learned how to capture, delight, and light up my little patients the minute they walk in the waiting room. My husband calls it my “sunshine” and often comments on the evident power of providing a ray of light to my patients. Once I capture their little hearts by showing them how they throw a sparkle into my day, they become deeply engaged in the alliance and work hard to meet their goals. After a session, Camp Champion parents feel the momentum, take the baton, and lead their children to victory. The sunshine is easy to elicit and it invigorates me. Honestly, I’m blessed to have my heart flooded with it many times a day. Psychologists call this being mindful and engaged. blogawesomeparenting1-683x1024

 

Children thrive in Camp Champion, where wonder, delight, and magic blossom spontaneously. Beds get made by leprechauns, toothbrushes create swirls of sparkling fairy dust, pop songs get belted out with grand flourish, zigzag paths spring between rooms, and a lurching zombie cooks breakfast and pack lunches while dramatically dragging his broken foot behind him.

During magic moments, creative conversation blossoms and allows you to become fully aware of your children and what is important to them. The material from your mutual delight will seed private jokes and silly shticks that will provide delightful hits of entertainment to sprinkle throughout a day, everyday.

With so much to do and distractions pulling at your attention, it is easy for the home/cabin to become Camp Naysayer. If you get sucked into the vortex of business, your kids will find things to do on their own, complain of being bored when really they’re lonely, and they’ll seek solace with too much screen time. Some independent play and screen time is awesome, but every day, all day is too much. And I suspect that if you’re the leader of the Naysayer cabin, you too are lost behind your screen and also feeling busy, but bored…and lonely.

As a Mom, I’m aware that it’s impossible to spend all day in magical playtime. At this very moment while I’m writing this blog, The Babies (what we call the little ones even though they are now 12 and 10 years old) are orbiting me like long-legged chattering planets. My daughter is sitting on the stool next to me happily prattling about the visit I just promised her to the lamb barn this afternoon where we will volunteer time shoveling hay and feeding bottles to tiny lambs. Meanwhile, my 10 year-old son, not quite as infatuated with shoveling, is negotiating a pre-adventure visit to the shaved ice spot complete with rainbow flavors. My thoughts are engaged in no fewer than four different places. But I’m taking my own advice. When they talk I stop my activity, look them straight in the eye, and share a smile. Work can wait for this precious moment. With my oldest away at college now, I’m aware these moments are fleeting. My soul holds on to our magic moment memories like a direct feed to my life source.

Today be Camp Champion and skeeter your daily activities. When the kids aren’t around, block off some time to do your work and accomplish it without distraction. THEN, block off playtime with your kids. When you first lay eyes on them, soak them in with gratefulness and let them see your enthusiasm for the magic they bring into the room. Throw your sunshine, get amped, smile big, and challenge them to an adventure for champions!! They will buzz with excitement.

If you have a friend who is excellent at Camp Champion or who has earned a precious day with his/her babies, pass on GetKidsInternetSafe.com. I’d also love to hear about your magic moments in the comments!

Love makes us happy and time brings us love. Honor it. Cheers to a day of engagement with your kids rather than your technology.

 

Onward to More Awesome Parenting,

Tracy S. Bennett, Ph.D.
Mom, Clinical Psychologist, CSUCI Adjunct Faculty
GetKidsInternetSafe.com

Photo credit:

Love by Shena Pamela, CC by-NC-by-SA 2.0

“But MOM, There’s NOTHING Else to Doooooo”: 12 Fun Family Activities That Don’t Involve Electronics

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Last week I challenged you to take an accounting of each family member’s technology use in preparation for seeking more technology/family time balance. If you are looking for ways to spend more time together, here are some fun family activities that even the most technologically-dependent child or teen will enjoy.

1. Take a two-hour trail ride on horseback.

2. Go bowling.

3. Take a bus or train to a neighboring community for a day trip.

4. Go roller skating or ice skating.

5. Visit a museum.

6. Take a local hike.

7. Rent bicycles and search out a new bike path.

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8. Go to the zoo.

9. Volunteer at the local animal shelter.

10. Serve a meal at a homeless shelter.

11. Take a firehouse tour.

12. Eat at a new restaurant, maybe even with food from a different culture.

13. Make a fort!!! (Rebelling again: why stop at 12)

Onward To More Awesome Parenting,

Tracy S. Bennett, Ph.D.
Mom, Clinical Psychologist, CSUCI Adjunct Faculty
GetKidsInternetSafe.com

When all else fails, you can alway torment your children for fun at home. BatDad is our fav.

 

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