Category Archives: Fun Activities

Child Safety, Fun Activities, Martial Arts, SYN Digital Enrollment Director

Three After-school Activities That Encourage Cognitive Development

Leslie Mason, guest contributor

Any parent wants their child to be constantly learning, growing and developing, whether school is in session or not. With school starting up again, it’s time to start thinking about extracurricular and other after-school activities—hopefully choosing one that will encourage healthy cognitive development. Of course your child will have to choose for themselves, but here are three fun activities to suggest that will encourage their cognitive development:

 

Theater/Acting ClassesThere are many extracurricular activities that grow cognitive abilities the obvious way—intellectually.

There’s nothing like acting to spur cognitive development. Kids have to learn lines, react naturally in contrived situations, and reconsider their presumptions about the world. Acting, when properly directed, forces kids to become the character, putting themselves into the mind of a character with possibly different prejudices, thoughts, morals, and ideas than their own, forcing them to acknowledge that other mindsets exist.

This puts their cognitive development into what Piaget called a state of disequilibrium, which forces them to learn more about their world and helps to jump-start their cognitive development.

Maybe there’s a good children’s theater program or workshop in your area. Maybe the local high school or junior high needs one or more young children for a production. Maybe the elementary school is putting on a play. Who knows—you may be raising the next Tom Hiddleston or Meryl Streep!

 

Team or Individual Sports

Yes, you heard right—sports encourage your child’s cognitive development. It is all about finding a sport that your child is not only enthusiastic about, but also one that they are willing to stick with and become proficient in.

Sports will bring your child together with other children from all walks of life, and in most cases, they’ll have to work toward a common goal with these kids. Or they may have to learn to compete against them in a sportsmanlike way and continually adapt to improve their own performance.

It may take a little trial and error on your part to find a sport your child is willing to dedicate that much effort to, but when they find one it will be a blessing to them, their cognitive powers, and their future (say it with me now, “scholarships”).

 

Intellectual Pursuits

There are many extracurricular activities that grow cognitive abilities the obvious way—intellectually. Think scholastic decathlon, chess club, and science fair. These will get your children out there meeting youngsters of their own intellectual level and force them to recall massive amounts of information while solving problems in real time, whether it be on a team, over chess boards, or while experimenting.

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About the Author

Leslie Mason is a homemaker and garden expert. Leslie enjoys writing, gardening, do-it-yourself projects, and fixing up the house.

Child Fitness, Discipline, Fun Activities, SYN Digital Enrollment Director

Summer Games To Play With Kids In The Garden And Pool

Mark, guest contributor

When the temperature rises and the sun makes you feel like you’re about to melt, a dip in the pool is the best way to cool yourself and enjoy the holiday with the family. And if you think that the pool can’t be used for anything but swimming, think again, as both the pool and the garden can represent great playing fields for summer games in which fun is guaranteed.

Just make sure to secure your garden by removing anything you can step on – from small garden tools to rakes. Also, it is advisable to secure your pool with pool fencing (which is mandatory in Australia mind you) and to make sure no one can slip around the pool, all of which is done in order to avoid any unnecessary accidents, especially for children.

Next, we’ll show you 10 games that can be played in these two environments. These games are intended to help you and your child stay fit, all the while bonding and having fun:

1. Filling Buckets

For those who are fans of competitions, this game just can’t be ignored. You will need at least two players without counting yourself. Each child or team will be provided with one empty bucket of water and one plastic cup in advance. The challenge is to fill the empty bucket with water from the plastic cup. The first team that fills their bucket wins.

2. Limbo Under Running Water

The garden hose will be of great help in this situation: turn on the water and set the jet to its strongest setting. The little ones will have to go under running water without touching it. Slowly, lower the hose down. The winner will be the one who will be able to go on running without touching the hose, or rather without getting wet. The losing team will be easy to spot – they will all be wet!

3. The Wet Sponge Game

Wet a bigger sponge and offer it to your children as ball to play with. One child, designated by you, will have to throw the sponge at the others. The child or family member touched by the sponge will be next in line to take it and start targeting the others. This is a summer variant of “tag, your it” game.

4. Ducks vs. Hunters – The Garden Version

The wet sponge can also serve for a game of “ducks vs. hunters”. In this case, two children will be sitting on the opposite sides (they are the hunters) and throw the sponge at each other while trying to hit the children that are between them (they are the ducks). The first and last “ducks” touched by the sponge become hunters in the next game. This, as you may have recognized, is dogeball – but a safe, fun, and refreshing version of dogeball!

5. Ducks vs. Hunters – The Pool Version

Ducks vs. hunters can also be played in the pool using sponge or a ball. The rules are the same, only the environment changes.

6. Marco Polo

A version of “hide and seek” played in the water. One of the children will be Marco Polo. He will have to shut his eyes and count to 10 while the other players spread around the pool. After Marco Polo finishes counting, he has to touch another player with his eyes closed. He will yell “Marco” and the other participants must respond with “Polo”, so he can estimate where they are at the moment. When another child is reached, he or she becomes Marco.

7. Treasure Hunt

Spread the coins at the bottom of a swimming pool and give your children a back story for the epic treasure hunt. Until you count to 10, they must return to you with as many coins as possible. The one who gathered the most coins wins.

8. Baton (version 1)

For children who already know how to swim, teaching them baton will be easy as 1-2-3. The game is another version of the popular relay race, but played in the water. The two teams line up at the entrance to the pool, and when they are given the green light to start, one child from each team jumps into the water with a little ball in his hand (or the other relay set) and swims to the other side of the pool. The other two competitors start after the first are done. The team with the highest amount of victories is declared winner.

9. Baton (version 2)

Another way to play relay race is by placing the children at set distances along the pool. Each team will basically form a “column”. Whoever gets to start first has to swim along the pool with the ball in their hand until they reach a teammate and pass the ball over. In turn, the other kid has to do the same thing, and so on until the last member of the team reaches the pool’s end with the ball in hand. The team that gets the ball to the pool’s end first wins the game.

10. Water Basketball

Find or improvise a ring which will float on water. Make sure that its size is a little larger than the ball you choose for the game. Children will be divided into several teams and the team who manages to throw the ball in the ring most of the times win. The fun part here is that the ring moves over the water but the game may be though of as water basketball.

I hope you will have awesome family fun with the help of these tips for great summer games. I know I will!

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Mark is a father of two great kids whom he wants to grow up in equally great people, so he teaches them important life lessons while he still has influence on their development.

Child Fitness, Fun Activities, Martial Arts, SYN Digital Enrollment Director

Tie Dye With Kids

Long hot summers can be hard to fill, with children on your hands and most activities costing way too much to make a regular occurrence it can be hard to think of exciting things to fill their days.

Bonding with children is unique and special, and something necessary to forge a happy familial relationship. It shouldn’t need to cost money, simple things like going for a walk, cooking together or just eating together can be great to build memories, what’s more they are both fun and healthy.

Sometimes though, the weather can affect certain free activities, as can children’s concentration. They can enjoy lots of things, but do need variation and change to grow and develop. So, creative crafts are a great way to develop children’s interest in different activities and help them find what they enjoy and are good at.

Tie dying is simple, easy, fun, and creative! What’s more the result is something you can use or wear, meaning your child has a great time and a great object at the end of it.

Equipment List

Garment

dye

rubber bands

rubber gloves

a plastic bag

a bucket

salt (can increase intensity of the color)

For the garment always go for plain, it can be anything, but I usually opt for a plain white t-shirt as the effect looks great, it’s a good size and there is nearly always one lying around.

The clothing dye you buy depends on what colors you’d like to create.

You can buy dye at a supermarket, at a specialty craft shop or online, but it is available for just a few dollars and shouldn’t cost the earth. You can buy specially pre-mixed dye from shops if you would prefer. Always make sure you read your dye label to check for specific instructions as there may be some equipment it requires not listed here. 

Once you have your equipment you’re ready to go and get creative.

Wash your garment before you begin so there is a clean surface for the dye to sink into.

Fold and tie your garment as desired. Do this by tying sections of the t-shirt with rubber bands and twisting the garment. There is no right or wrong way to tie dye, it is about having fun and being unique so don’t get too tied up with getting a perfect circle in the center. If your child wants a certain pattern you might want to do some small test strips on unwanted fabrics to work out how that pattern is achieved.

Once your dyes are prepared from the packets instructions, you are ready to get going. If you are going for a mix of colors it is best to start with the lightest first, then either rinse or wait between different colors depending on the dye instructions. The actual dying doesn’t take long but some dyes need to be left for 24 hours until they are ready to be rinsed. 

The glorious thing is that every item you tie dye, no matter if you use the same technique and the same dye, will turn out different. It is a great way to teach your children about how they are unique and everyone is different. It is also great to learn about different colors, science behind chemical reactions and color combinations as well as being an arty and creative activity. Meaning, there is something of interest to practically every child.

Birthday Party, Discipline, Fun Activities, SYN Digital Enrollment Director

How To Save Money On Kids Birthday Parties

When it comes to their offspring, especially so with first born children, parents can go a little overboard when it comes to spending on birthday party supplies. They feel the need to make it bigger and better each year, so this makes it a near impossible job if you create a huge birthday party for their first ever one! Kids won’t really remember them for the first few years and there are ways to save a few pennies once they get older too. As long as they have their friends, family, cake and presents they will no doubt be happy so here are a few tips when organizing your next little ones birthday party:

First of all plan your invites. If your daughter is friends with a girl who has 8 brothers and sisters try to make it clear that they are not all invited, in the nicest possible way of course! Having siblings joining will up the spending and also be a nightmare if they all turn up when you are hosting the party in your house when pushed for space.

When it comes to entertaining children, the younger they are the easier it is. If you are having a party for your 4 year old there is no need in hiring an expensive entertainer or clown for a couple of hours. Simple games involving prizes and food will keep them happy. You can find a great range of fun games at “All You Need To Party” such as pin the tail on the donkey and for kids who are a bit older, piñatas, which will keep them occupied for a while. These come in all different shapes too so will fit a theme if you decide to have one.

When it comes to birthday cakes they have become so much more extravagant nowadays. Having a giant penguin or cupcakes stacked up the ceiling that resemble a zoo, is becoming more the norm even though it sounds out of the ordinary! There is nothing wrong with buying a really cool cake although I would wait until they are older so they can really appreciate it. There is also nothing wrong with a budget supermarket cake, or if you enjoy baking, why not try and make one yourself? Kids will be really excited to just see the cake being cut up so they can eat it anyway and forget very quickly what it actually looked like, especially if they don’t get to enjoy sweet treats too often.

Make sure to plan ahead, the key to having a successful and not over expensive party is to plan. Do it week’s, maybe even a month or so, in advance so you are well prepared, this will help to avoid last minute panic buys too. Make the most of the day, have fun and take lots of photos, the kids are sure to have a great time and you will enjoy seeing them all happy!