Summer days are a great time to play with your child and do special activities together. It is a wonderful season when you can spend time with your kids because they are less occupied with homework and other activities. Even bright, active and engaged kids might get bored during the long and mundane summer months. Thus, they need something to burst their summer vacation boredom.

Fortunately, we at CMS have some creative boredom buster ideas to keep your child occupied during the hot summer. Though, there can umpteen number of creative ideas but the Montessori way takes a slightly different approach to summer boredom.

“PLAY IS THE WORK OF THE CHILD”
           — MARIA MONTESSORI

Learning doesn’t need to stop during the summer. Montessori environment is simple, organized and allow children to access all the activities they may want to complete on their own. In a Montessori summer vacation, parents can prepare the environment for their kids which will keep them engaged in different activities where they can play and still learn at the same time. This means setting up a space with Montessori inspired ideas filled with simplicity, beauty and interesting things which encourages your child’s independent play and learning.

Here are Montessori-friendly areas you might include in your child’s space to encourage independent play this summer-

Art and Craft

Art is a way for children to communicate their feelings. It is through art that children develop their fine motor skills. In the Montessori environment, we provide open-ended art activities that help children explore and use their creativity. To enhance their art and creativity during the summer break, you can designate a small shelf or corner for art.

When they’re set to choose any activity for the first time, give them a lesson about each of them. After you’ve shown them the way, set them free to choose any activity and let them wok independently whenever they want.

Young Scientists

Science in Montessori is known for introducing children to advanced topics in the early years, preparing them for a lifetime of discovery. To take away some boredom from the summer holidays, let them try some science.

A simple internet search will give you hundreds of science activities to do at home with kids of different age groups. Then, choose a small area of your home to serve as a science and nature center. This could simply be a little table in your child’s room or some corner in the garden.

Place a little basket at the table for nature collection—where they can collect all the different little pebbles, leaves and feathers they gather from outside. Also, include books about plants, animals, geography, and whatever else you notice your child is interested in to create a perfect environment for them.

Little Master Chefs

One of the many joyful aspects of a Montessori environment is food preparation. Learning how to prepare one’s own food is a critical life skill, and it has always been a part of Montessori learning.

Many children love preparing food and there are so many fun food prep activities that toddlers and older children can complete by themselves at home. A simple one to start with for young children is slicing a cucumber. Other activities include carrot slicing using a wavy chopper, barbecue, how to use the tools safely, how to clean up etc. These are all things that they can do independently.

Story time

Story time provides many extraordinary benefits for children and is often a classroom favourite. Children develop their imagination, vocabulary, and reading skills.

Time spent choosing books or reading together is time well spent. Thus, a well-stocked and cosy book corner is always a wonderful place for a child to spend time, even during the monotonous summer holidays.

You can even read aloud to each other. Experiencing a story together is a great way to build memories, and reading aloud can build a child’s confidence as it’s building their vocabulary and language.

Many other activities like involving your child in your daily chores, letting them help plan meals, make shopping lists, pick out items at the store, reorganize a kitchen cabinet can be chosen to take away boredom from the summer holidays.