The school year is almost over and you haven’t even had a chance to think about what to do with your kids this summer.

Maybe your vacation budget is tight or even non-existent this year. But you still want to create fun family memories that your children will cherish for a long time.

What can you do?

Well, here are 5 fun activity ideas you can do that won’t cost you a fortune:

1. Treasure hunt

Children love treasure hunts. The beauty of a scavenger hunt is that they can be modified to fit just about any theme and age level. The basis of a scavenger hunt is that each child or team has a list of things that they need to find and the first team to bring back all the items on the list is the winner.

How to create a treasure hunt:

Decide what kinds of things you will include on your scavenger hunt, and make a list. Give out a list for each team, lay out the ground rules (ie stay in the yard, no entry, etc.) and let them search for the items!

2. Obstacle Course

An obstacle course requires children to overcome a series of challenges that you have created for them. The obstacle course should be age-appropriate so the kids can have fun with a bit of a challenge and if you have kids of a wide range of ages try to make the elements to suit each child.

Ideas for Barriers:

or shooting practice. Use a hose to knock empty milk jugs off a table.

o Egg and spoon race. Carry an egg on a spoon from point A to point B.

o Launch of water balloons. Fill a bunch of water balloons and have the kids launch them at each other or at a target.

or Slide. Be sure to use your swing set or slide if you have one – run around it three times. Go down the slide. Do a somersault in the rings, etc.

o Shuttle race. Have two lines about ten yards apart. On one line have one bean bag and on the other have two. Kids start in line with a bean bag, run to the next line and pick up a bean bag. Then they run back, take it down and take the one that’s there. They go back to the other line, pick up the last beanbag, put down the one they have, and run back to the line.

or bucket of sand. Have the children fill a small bucket with sand using a spoon or small measuring cup before they can continue.

or limbo. Set up a limbo station and ask them to go over or under the bar without touching it.

o Balance beam. Set up a two by four (either on the ground or on bricks or benches depending on the age of your kids) and have them balance for this obstacle.

3. Celebrity chef

Let your child be the celebrity chef of the family dinner. You can plan the entire meal and then serve it to the rest of the family.

How to create a celebrity chef meal:

Have your child choose the main dish, sides, and dessert. Together, look at the recipes and make a shopping list. Spend the afternoon preparing the food and setting the table. Enjoy the dinner!

Variations:

o If you have more than one child, have each child plan and prepare a course.

o Give them a theme and let them discover the foods that go with it.

o Challenge them by giving them a certain food to use for each meal they prepare.

o Help your child come up with their own dessert recipe.

o Teach your child some basic cake decorating skills and then decorate a cake together.

4.Video production

Kids love seeing themselves on the big screen (ie their TV)! This is a great activity for dramatic actors and even those who aren’t dramatic enough to do behind the scenes work for the production.

How to create a video production:

Talk to your children about planning the type of production they will make: a short film, a public service announcement, a commercial, a music video, etc. Then write a script (or at least describe what they will say and do). Finally, discuss and organize costumes and accessories.

5. Library Detective

This is an interesting twist on a treasure hunt.

How to create a library detective event:

Set up your tracks ahead of time, and then, if necessary, have the kids look at books in the library while you set up (or, if possible, go a few minutes early and have someone else bring them over).

Their clues may require them to explore different ways to search for books (by author, by subject, and by title), as well as how to find books once they’ve searched.

Give them the first clue. This clue should lead them to a book that contains the second clue, and so on. The clues should be written on colored paper and placed inside the book on a certain page so that they are easy to find once the book is found.

Create memories that will last longer than a trip to the mall!