If you’re anything like me, the summer holidays start with a tentative plan of events and then the days just start blending together! Surprisingly, I absolutely love the lack of routine and apart from a week or two of summer camps and activities, the rest of the 8-week break is usually a spontaneous mix of everything and nothing. That said, it’s nice to have a few activities up your sleeve that can be called on when the need arises.

Over the last few years, my daughter and I compiled a list of summer activities we wanted to do. We make a bingo chart and fill them all in. Once an activity has been done, we mark it off and a completed line means we go for ice cream or buy a new book.

Some of the ideas are things we would really do anyway (go to the playground, go swimming, arts and crafts, make pizza, etc) but the list usually challenges us to try something new as well – this year, we’ve added ‘learn to cook something by myself’, ‘try a yoga class’ and ‘make unicorn ice cream’.

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You’ll find more information on some of our summer ideas below, and you can also download our screen-free summer activities checklist here. Just print it off and let’s get started!

1. Draw a self-portrait
2. Create a secret code
3. Visit the library
4. Create an obstacle course
5. Have a picnic
6. Make a sun catcher
7. Do a word search
8. Go for a cycle, skate or scoot
9. Make a bird feeder
10. Research your family tree
11. Go bowling
12. Read a book or try a summer reading challenge
13. Design your own comic book
14. Make playdough
15. Go on a treasure hunt
16. Learn some new jokes
17. Donate 5 things to charity
18. Conduct a science experiment
19. Practice face painting
20. Play hide and seek
21. Make giant bubbles in the garden
22. Do some gardening
23. Design paper airplanes
24. Learn how to make an omelette
25. Look at the stars
26. Teach the dog a new trick
27. Make a collage
28. Listen to a podcast
29. Learn to hula hoop
30. Build a bug hotel
31. Play in the sprinkler
32. Go to a funfair or festival
33. Make origami animals
34. Decorate cupcakes
35. Make a time capsule
36. Collect shells at the beach
37. Make sock puppets
38. Go geocaching
39. Learn a magic trick
40. Do a random act of kindness
41. Make homemade pizza
42. Play a board game
43. Learn to juggle
44. Visit a museum
45. Climb a tree
46. Play a card game
47. Go berry picking
48. Make bead jewellery
49. Draw or paint a picture
50. Make a friendship bracelet
51. Go to a concert
52. Have an at-home spa day and paint your nails
53. Learn how to count to 10 in French
54. Go for a walk in the woods
55. Visit a family member
56. Tie-dye a t-shirt
57. Have a family game night
58. Go for a walk or run
59. Make ice cream sundaes
60. Have a water balloon fight
61. Go to the playground – or try a new one
62. Write a letter to someone
63. Make salt dough ornaments
64. Build a sandcastle
65. Make a summer scrapbook
66. Have a teddy bear’s tea party
67. Make your own stop-motion animation movie
68. Go swimming
69. Make slime
70. Visit an art gallery
71. Write a story
72. Design a fairy garden
73. Do a puzzle
74. Visit a farm
75. Do some chalk drawings
76. Play a ball game
77. Take a road trip
78. Make smoothies
79. Try yoga
80. Build a fort
81. Visit a theme park
82. Bake a cake
83. Learn to knit
84. Put on a show
85. Tidy your room
86. Play frisbee
87. Camp in the backyard
88. Have a sleepover
89. Make s’mores
90. Play hopscotch
91. Try a new hobby
92. Make a marble run
93. Fly a kite
94. Plant a pizza garden
95. Paint rocks
96. Visit the zoo
97. Make pancakes
98. Go on a train ride
99. Have a disco
100. Watch the sunrise
101. Go horse-riding