6 Amazing Summer Camp Alternatives for Kids at Home
/Normally the end of the school year comes with a bustling excitement. The sun is shining brighter, the weather warms up, and schools and families prepare to kick off a summer of community and camp activities.
Our new normal, however, requires a bit of change and adjustment. But doesn’t all transformation come from uncomfortable change?
This summer, as towns, cities, and neighborhoods decide when it will be safe to reopen, we can assume that our “normal” summer camp schedules will not resume as planned. So we’re equipping you with 6 summer camp alternatives for kids at home!
1. Virtual Summer Camp with My Summer Passport
If your family is feeling down about missing summer camp this year, we have an awesome solution for you: virtual summer camp! Take advantage of arts, cooking, music, theatre, and yoga activities with a virtual summer camp like My Summer Passport.
My Summer Passport is a 5-day virtual enrichment experience created by four of NYC’s top early childhood programs. The best part about this program is you get 2+ hours of activities each day, and can repeat at your leisure throughout the summer for no extra cost.
2. Watch Live Library Programs
Have you checked out the live program schedule from your local library? Libraries around the country are teaming up with educators and enrichment programs to bring live activities that keep your child learning, engaged, and of course — having fun!
We particularly love the Jersey City Free Public Library’s daily Facebook Live schedule. From reading to language learning, music, and movement, there’s plenty to watch throughout the day. Yo Re Mi teaching artist, John shares free musical yoga on Tuesdays with JCFPL as part of our Online Learning Program.
3. Create a Kids Book Club
Make summer reading fun and enriching by helping facilitate a book club for your kids (and maybe even their friends, virtually!) It is a great way to keep them learning, entertained, and using their imaginations! The more children that participate, the better.
Some book club resources you’ll find useful:
4. Enjoy Musical Yoga Videos
One of our favorite things to do during the year is bring musical yoga fun to classrooms, summer camps, libraries, and more! Though in-person classes have halted this year due to COVID-19, we still offer a virtual library of themed learning for families, homeschoolers, and online classrooms!
The Yo Re Mi App offers fun themes like Beach and Garden Adventures, explores STEM with Dinosaur and Space Adventures, and promotes mindfulness and good health with Eye Yoga exercises and Stress Relief series. You can even try the app free for 14-days.
5. Try Mindful Nature Walking
Some neighborhoods are lucky enough to have backyards, large parks, and widespread spaces, where people can safely keep their distance and go outside as advised by their city officials. If this sounds like your family, consider integrating mindful nature walking to your alternative summer camp list.
Research shows that spending time in nature not only calms the mind, but can also have physical health benefits simply from grounding our feet into the earth and breathing fresh air.
6. Take Virtual Field Trips
Museums and field trip attractions may not be open in the way we are used to, but they’ve taken the leap to provide some pretty awesome opportunities for kids everywhere.
Here is a list of museums, zoos, and landmarks that have gone virtual for an adventurous field trip from home.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art (MetKids) lets you browse works of art by choosing a time period and destination to begin your journey.
Mount Rushmore welcomes you with a virtual tour of its landmark.
The Denver Zoo (and plenty others around the US) offers lots of videos for a virtual tour of their animal residents.
NASA gives a 5-minute virtual tour of the moon.
Which alternative summer camp adventure will you try first?
With mindful planning, you can try them all, in fact! We hope these suggestions have sparked a few great ideas for your family’s social distancing summer and can’t wait to connect again when the time is right.
If you are looking for more educational activities for your child, be sure to check out our guide to online learning tools and websites for kids.
Save this article for later and don’t forget to download the Yo Re Mi app for children’s mindfulness and musical yoga videos.
