With school holidays here, why not start getting ready!

Holidays can be a great time to bond with your children, but it can also be a stressful time when kids can get really bored. It’s best to put a little bit of advanced planning into the spring holidays and prepare yourself with a list of ideas.

Start by planning each week in advance. If the kids know they have things to look forward to it will make for happier more relaxed children. Make sure to get the children involved in the planning.  

They will be less likely to complain about the activities chosen if they have taken part in the decision-making. Have a range of activities to select from: stuff to do at home, in the garden, outdoors, and the odd activity that costs money to do. 

Holiday fun ideas  

• Make your own games. Get a supply of coloured cards, children’s scissors, glue and anything else you may want to make some fun games. Games like Hoopla, Pin the Tail on the Donkey or Snakes and Ladders can all be easily made at home and will keep the children occupied for some time. 
• Cooking and baking. Once a week plan a cooking or baking day. Involve the kids in the process from the beginning — let them choose from a selection of recipes that you have ingredients for. If the child can read, get them to read from the recipe book. Step by step, help them to work through the instructions. 
• Make a ninja course. Design and assemble a ninja course in the back garden. Old pieces of wood, boxes, buckets, garden chairs — anything that can be jumped over, gone under or through or around. Time each other around the ninja course. 
• Build a garden patch. Dedicate a small patch in the garden to the kids. Plant flowers, herbs, lettuce — anything that grows quickly and gives them the satisfaction of having produced something.
• Go camping. Build a tent indoors or outdoors with blankets and sheets. Once the tent is up, give them a torch and a picnic to take with them. 
• Go on picnics. You don’t have to go far to have a picnic — Head out into the garden or to the park with a picnic rug and a picnic basket full of goodies. 
• Have a treasure hunt. Make a treasure map with clues to find some treasure you have hidden somewhere in the garden.
• Create a Diary. Encourage the little ones to keep a holiday diary or scrapbook. They can take photos of special days and write about them.
• Get jamming. Grab some musical instruments — things like bongos, shakers or tambourines, and get jamming. Get your kids to sing and dance along.
• Make a movie. Using an iPad create a movie or documentary and then edit it. Preview it as a family with some popcorn. 
• Paint. One of the nicest ways to express your creativity is to use paint. Get large sheets of paper and lots of paint. You can use your hands and feet for some extra fun.
• Get into jewellery making. Go to a bead shop and stock up on beads, wire and clasps, and get busy making your own jewellery.
• Sketching. Go to a local park or down to the river to sketch. Encourage them to sketch what they see around them.