45 Fun Family Activities to do this Summer (Free Printable!)

School is out and all the kids are ready for…
No, let’s be honest here. They’re already bored, aren’t they? After all, what’s there to do at home?!

SO MUCH. There’s so much you can do.

Now, I’m a big fan of boredom. Truly. It’s through boredom that you discover so much about yourself or find new talents that were hidden underneath the busy schedules and preplanned activities. Boredom means busting out a new book and discovering halfway through that if it keeps going like this, it’s going to make your Top 3 Favorite Novels of All Time list. Boredom means learning what all the hype is with sourdough bread and then realizing that you’ll never buy a loaf of bland, store bought bread ever again. Boredom is trying a new workout because you might as well do something productive & good for your body and finding out that you not only love it but want to teach it at your local gym.

You get it.

BUT, just in case you need some extra ideas to cross off your list of summertime fun, here’s what I came up with:

45 Things To Do This Summer

Make a Summer Scrapbook Journal (buy composition notebooks & have fun decorating the cover with papers, stickers, etc.)
Make friendship bracelets
Learn a dance and put on a social media recital 😉 (Thriller, anyone?)
Host the Backyard Olympics (and yes, you get medals.)
Do a summer themed puzzle.
Write a letter to someone you love and mail it.
Homemade ice cream for dessert (or dinner. We won’t judge.)
Fly a kite. (Or if it’s not windy enough, “fly” helium balloons. Make the string extra long and tie them tight.)
Family picnic/ Read Aloud Time
Throw a Harry Potter party. (Craft idea: Make your own wands, dress up as characters, serve Butter Beer, play games on House teams.)
S’mores Night
Backyard frisbee
Go to a free outdoor concert (search FB Events!)
Drive-In Movie Night
Paint each other’s portraits (Keep it a secret til the end! Bonus points if you hang them in your home and act like you think they’re good when guests are there.)
Go on a scavenger hunt around town.
Spend a morning at the Farmer’s Market.
Join a new workout class or find one on YouTube. Invite friends to do it together!
Take 10 minutes a day to learn something new. (ex. a new song on piano, kids *finally* learn to write in cursive, etc.)
Yard Sale day! (Have one yourself or drive around and find one.)
Go to a street fair and have your caricature drawn.
Take a long walk. Longer than you’d normally take. Enjoy the heck out of it.
Paint cards to share with family and friends. (Or make a set of cards and wrap them in twine as a gift.)
Make a book of poetry with your family. (Everyone writes a word or theme on a scrap of paper & puts it into a hat. Write about what you choose. If you do this multiple times throughout the summer, you’ll have enough to bind into a ridiculous family book of *likely hilarious and horrible* poetry. Bonus points if you draw pictures, Shel Silverstein style.)
Go strawberry picking & make a treat to share with a neighbor or friend.
Movie marathon day
Watch fireworks together
Go mini golfing or go-kart racing
Karaoke night (at home!)— You can get a microphone and speaker set for kids on Amazon fairly cheap. Plenty of free karaoke songs on Youtube. Trust me, this is fun.
Beach day (for us, that means the lake!)
Make homemade popsicles
Document an entire day in Polaroids (or get a disposable camera)
Go thrifting or find a vintage market
Find a movie theater that offers free movies during the summer. Go see them all.
Family game night (with prizes)
Paint rocks for the garden.
Visit a state park for the day.
Keep a small journal in your bag. Write down quotes you see or funny things you hear.
Go flower picking.
Make a collage of all the things you love that make you happy.
Re-read a favorite novel or two.
Have fun at a County Fair!
Photoshoot day— hire a professional photographer to capture you and your family or if you’ve got a camera, take photos of someone you love. Just because.
Wake up early before sunrise and stretch as it rises.
Make Family T-Shirts together. (Tie dye is fun, but so is puffy paint, fabric markers, or if you’re crafty, making them with vinyl & a Cricut.)

Save this list and print it for those days (and weeks!) where you’re running low on your own ideas and need something to do together as a family. Some of these will require more planning but others can be spontaneous and things you likely can do for cheap (or free!).

If you want to make your own list, I gotchu. (Save and print the papers below.)