Our motto at Kids Yoga Stories is “moving, learning, and having fun.” This is especially important during the summer months, considering research shows the impact of summer months on learning loss and weight gain.
As a former teacher and now as a mom, I also know how important it is to “keep it simple” when planning your kids’ learning experiences. Here are a few other things to consider when deciding how to get your children learning and active this summer:
- Choose activities that are easy to set up
- Cater to your child’s learning style and interests
- Allow the learning to happen organically
- Encourage movement, which naturally activates the brain
- Get involved yourself if they need a boost
- Give them free time to explore and play
I asked a few Kid Blogger friends for fun and healthy summer activities. Below you’ll find their ideas under the categories of language, mathematics, first concepts, and physical education.
28 Healthy Activities to Move, Learn, and Have Fun This Summer:
LANGUAGE ARTS
Nine fun and healthy activities to learn about the alphabet, letter sounds, sight words, and reading:
Hop, skip, and jump to all the alphabet chalk letters, It’s a Long Story
Learn to identify sounds with this soccer interactive reading game, JDaniel4’s Mom
Learn the alphabet with yoga poses for kids, Kids Yoga Stories
Learn letters with summer ice bowling, Therapy Fun Zone
Read Eric Carle’s The Very Busy Spider and throw magnetic letters into a spiderweb, Growing Book by Book
Read Eric Carle’s The Very Busy Spider and create a yarn spiderweb, Rainy Day Mum
Practice sight words through a water balloon phonetics game, Mess for Less
Review letter sounds and recognition with this Bean Bag Toss letter game, True Aim Education
Learn about the garden with Eric Carle books and garden yoga poses for kids, Kids Yoga Stories
MATHEMATICS
Six fun and healthy activities to learn about numbers:
Learn numbers with a water balloon number blast game, Little Bins for Little Hands
Practice numbers with this number nature scavenger hunt, Makeovers & Motherhood
Get kids moving with these fun exercise games for kids involving counting and paper plates, Meaningful Mama
Practice numbers with this outdoor number recognition game, Danya Banya
Have fun with numbers, Denise Fleming books, and yoga poses for kids, Kids Yoga Stories
Practice counting with this Human Board Game, True Aim Education
FIRST CONCEPTS
Four fun and healthy activities to learn about colors, prepositions, and senses:
Learn colors with these simple Ping-Pong ball throwing games, Craftulate
Practice propositions with this motor skills game, Tot Schooling
Learn colors with this grow motor color game using plastic cones, Simple Fun for Kids
Gather flowers to create a sensory bin and then make natural perfume, Camilla and Roman
PHYSICAL EDUCATION
Nine fun and healthy activities to get children into action:
Create an outdoor activity jar with various activities painted on rocks, KCEventures
Learn about farm animals through farmyard-themed outdoor party games, Adventures of Adam
Learn about zoo animals through yoga poses for kids, Kids Yoga Stories
Set up your own Toddler Olympics in the backyard, Rainy Day Mum
Play water balloon games with your children, Artsy Momma
Learn about your child’s animal friends through yoga poses for kids, Kids Yoga Stories
Enjoy this list of nine gross motor activities, Mosswood Connections
Jump, skip, and hop on this Pirate Treasure Hunt, Life with Moore Babies
Take a pretend trip to Africa and act out African animals through yoga poses for kids, Kids Yoga Stories
What are some of your favorite ways to combine movement, learning, and having fun?!
For more yoga ideas, sign up for our weekly Kids Yoga Stories newsletter (simply add your email address to the subscription box at the top of the page). Or check out our yoga stories for kids – perfect for active summer reading:
Other Fun Kids Activities
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