This time of year is a time of change, and also a great time to make memories. Yes, bonfires and pumpkin spice lattes are lovely, but we’ve compiled a list of kid-friendly activities you can plan for your kids this season.
Whether you’re looking for arts & crafts ideas or some kid-friendly recipes, we’ve got you covered!
Let them help decorate the house
It seems like kids these days have an infinite supply of energy that many adults envy. Put that energy to good use by incentivizing them to contribute help with decorating the home for the fall. Remember, not all kids will be interested in spending time sprucing up the home with autumn décor but encouraging them to do so won’t hurt.
Here are a few activities the kids can pitch in for your fall decoration activities:
- Picking out home décor items like rugs and centerpieces at affordable retail stores.
- Assisting with dusting or cleaning different areas of the house to make room for any décor you buy.
- Helping hang up or place easy to carry décor items like couch pillows and throws/blankets.
Go apple picking
A valuable opportunity to show the kids just how much work goes into putting food on the table and that produce doesn’t magically show up in the grocery store. Do a simple internet search for ‘Apple picking near [your city],’ to get a list of the nearest apple orchards. You might have to spend some time driving to get there, but this is an experience the kids will remember. Who knows, they might still be talking about it when Christmas rolls around!
According to TheKitchn, here are a few tips to organize your apple-picking day:
- Invite friends and family
- Dress in layers
- Pack a picnic
- Do your research on the orchard you pick
Arts and craft ideas
Whether it’s as simple as painting an autumn-themed drawing and hanging it on the fridge, or if the kids go above and beyond, letting the kids express their creativity is a great way to make them feel like valued members of the household.
Here are some artsy fall craft ideas for the kids:
- Pick up some pinecones to paint them different shades of orange, yellow, and red.
- Glue crumpled up pieces of colored tissue paper onto cardboard in the shape of a pumpkin or apple. See more on this idea here: Tissue Paper Craft.
- Make a hand print apple tree by using the flat surface of a cut apple as painting sponge and letting the kids paint your tracing of their hand on the same piece of paper.
- Cut construction paper and glue it on the sides of a tissue box in the shape of a school bus. Bonus points for gluing pictures of family members as passengers in the ‘windows’ of the bus.
Go on a weekend road trip
Looking for an excellent getaway destination? Read our article on US destinations to visit to get your ideas flowing. Although taking a road trip might sound exhausting and perhaps even expensive, there are benefits to taking a road trip with the kids while they’re still young:
- Exposure and education: it’s easy for kids to forget that there is so much to explore in neighboring towns and cities, as the familiarity and routine of their daily lives are all they know.
- Opportunities for learning: having trouble getting them motivated to read as often as their teacher wants them to? Get the younger ones to read signs and billboards on the road. As for the bigger ones, try to stop at local bookstores and have them pick out a book they’d enjoy reading. Associating the book with a fun road trip experience will make it more likely that they take the time to read.
- Packing and organization skills: what’s the fun of going on a road trip if you don’t get to do the activities that you find enjoyable on the trip? Your children aren’t any different from you, so include them during the planning process to help them develop their planning skills. Don’t forget to encourage independence by getting them to pack their clothes. (Unless they’re too young to do so.)
- Less expensive: As summer tourist crowds thin in popular cities, pricing for fall lodging and flights tends to drop, meaning more savings for you!
Use their helping hands in the kitchen!
Thanksgiving is around the corner, which means you’ll be spending time preparing what might be the biggest dinner of the year. Perhaps a special holiday might not be an ideal occasion for planning messy cooking activities with the kids. However, they might still enjoy participating in cooking activities on other days, instead of standing on the sidelines.
Have any family recipes you’d like to teach them? Maybe an apple pie or a pancake recipe?
Some other options are shown below:
- Chicken parm sliders
- Pancake poppers (made in a muffin tin)
- Mini pepper pizzas
- Chicken avocado roll-ups
- Donut apples
As the weather gets chillier and the holidays approach, fall is a special time of year that presents new opportunities to build lasting memories with the family. While you spend time among loved ones, Infinity Insurance is always there to provide peace of mind with an affordable car insurance quote. Get in touch by calling 1-800-INFINITY or get a free online quote today.