Looking for the ultimate kids summer bucket list?! Do you remember Summers when you were a kid? I was an 80’s baby and Summers were different then. They felt long and slow, in a good way. We didn’t have screen time or much at all to entertain ourselves besides our imaginations. My sisters and I would have a great time playing outside all day long. We would stay out after dark playing flashlight tag with the neighborhood kids.On really hot days we would set up a lemonade stand and make surprisingly large amounts of money. After we moved out to the country, we would ride our bikes miles down the road to a camp that opened its swimming pool to the public in the Summer and we would stay there all day. No parents required.
As old as it makes me feel to say this, times are much different now. But I still want those kinds of memories for my kids. These days, Summer feels like it’s over shortly after it begins. We have to be intentional about slowing down and finding ways to enjoy each moment while we have them. Summer is the perfect time to slow down and be intentional about doing the fun things, and repeat traditions you loved from last year and years before.
I love a good list, so creating our own summer bucket list sounded like a great way to make sure we fill our Summer with lasting memories and tons of summer fun. Our list has plenty of activities for the kids to do together and entertain each other, plus some things for the whole family to do together. If you’re looking for fun Summer activities, then look no further. Check out this list I put together and don’t forget to grab your free printable Summer bucket list and a bonus Summer time capsule sheet.
The Ultimate Kids’ Summer Bucket List:
This list of fun ideas is perfect for sunny days, rainy days, and everything in between on your summer break. Complete with indoor and outdoor activities, easy ideas and things good for older kids, every family member can find things to do on this list that will be a good time! You can do a lot of these ideas whether you take a summer vacation, or not! Have your kids read this list for inspiration, and then challenge them to create their own bucket list . They can start right at the end of the school year, so they have plenty of time to complete this list of fun activities.
- Play in the sprinklers
- Chase down an ice cream truck
- Go camping
- Make tie-dye t-shirts
- Build a sandcastle
- Attend a fair
- Make root beer floats
- Go to a water park
- Make lemonade
- Take a road trip
- Go strawberry picking
- Watch fireworks
- Go rollerblading/roller skating
- Have a picnic
- Get matching sunglasses
- Make friendship bracelets
- Climb a tree
- Blow bubbles
- Make s’mores
- Bake cookies
- Pull out all of your random art supplies and recyclable materials for craft projects
- Make ice cream sundaes
- Go to the beach or lake
- Get temporary tattoos
- Draw with sidewalk chalk
- Play card games
- Play tag with water balloons or have a water balloon fight
- Host a BBQ
- Plant a garden
- Go to the pool
- Make some duct tape creations (seriously, Google duct tape crafts people)
- Visit the zoo
- Set up a water slide on an incline in your yard
- Have a homemade pizza party
- Make homemade popsicles
- Explore a museum
- Go to a concert
- Have fun at a street festival
- Make a summer time capsule
- Go to a drive-in movie theater
- Go to a baseball game
- Have a slumber party
- Go for a boat ride
- Make paper bag puppets and put on a puppet show
- Create an obstacle course
- Go bowling
- Make sponge water bombs
- Jump on a trampoline
- Bury a time capsule
- Have a pillow fight
- Visit a zoo
- Explore one new place each week
- Bake cookies for a neighbor
- Start a Summer journal
- Go fishing
- Try new foods
- Go to story time at a local library
- Make a blanket fort
- Host a scavenger hunt
- Go rock hunting
- Take a day trip
- Ride a ferris wheel
- Make homemade ice cream or your own popsicles
- Use a magnifying glass to carve your names in pieces of wood (my son’s friend did this, so cool!)
- Try out a new board game the whole family will love
- Have a battle with water guns
- Design and write your own comic book
- Explore science projects that use baking soda (there are tons of them)
- Play in a kiddie pool with bubbles
- Explore your local farmer’s market
- Make paper airplanes
- Put on some music and have a dance party
- Do a random acts of kindness day
- Have a yes day
- Go on a family bike ride
- Have a movie night
- Write a poem
- Do a science experiment
- Volunteer as a family
- Explore a new local park
- Write a story
- Challenge your friends or siblings to building something out of popsicle sticks
- Start a rock collection of rocks you collect wherever you go all summer
- Plant an herb garden
- Visit a local nature center
- Fill up a reading log
- Write a letter
- Make homemade pizza
- Collect sea shells
- Play in the rain
- Go berry picking
- Explore a state park
- Visit a local farm
- Have a hula hoop contest
- Pick a wildflower bouquet
- Hand a birdhouse
- Have a water gun fight
Putting the Summer Bucket List to Use
Okay, moms, let’s talk about using these Summer bucket list ideas. Recovering perfectionist here (picture me raising my hand). This is not a to-list that needs all the things checked off. It’s just a guide, so in my humble opinion, you should probably present it to your kids like that. You don’t want to turn your Summer into a frenzy to check all the things off the list. I would pull this out weekly and see if there are bigger, whole family activities you might be able to do that week. Then on those days you want the kids to entertain themselves and use their imaginations, tell them to go over the list and choose something they can do together and without you.
Summer can be a magical time of the year for quality time. If you can, try to document your family’s summer adventures in a journal or photo album, so you can look back on your summer days and remember how much fun you had, reminiscing on your favorite things.
If you like the idea of having a list of just the things you really want to do in those Summer months so you can check everything off, you could make your own (possibly shorter) list of experiences you would like your kids to have that won’t get out of control. However you choose to do it, you’re sure to make some Summer memories your family will cherish forever. Don’t forget to get your free printables! Happy planning!
Kids Summer Memories Printable and Summer Time Capsule Printable
Use the button below to download this free printable summer memories checklist and summer time capsule free printable.
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