The dog days of summer fall between July 3 and August 11 — the warmest days in the Northern Hemisphere. You can go to the pool or enjoy your own. You can set up Slip’n Slides and sprinklers. And then you can let the kids have fun with cool DIY activities for kids on hot days. Here are 7 fun DIY outdoor activities in between sprinkler dousings!
Cool DIY Activities for Kids on Hot Days
ICY EXCAVATIONS
Freeze plastic toys into a a block of ice for the kids to excavate! To prepare for this activity, fill plastic cups or small food storage containers about two-thirds full with water, then drop one or two small toys into each container. Freeze each filled container until the water is a solid block of ice, then remove the ice block and place outside in a large plastic bowl or metal baking tin. Now, let the kids figure out how to get the toys out of the ice. Offer options such as squirt guns filled with warm water, salt, or cups of warm water. Older kids can chip away at the ice with metal forks or butter knives. For a fun twist, try tinting the water blue with food color and using ocean-themed toys, or pair green water with tiny dinosaur toys.
SODA BOTTLE SPRINKLER
Turn a two-liter soda bottle into a sprinkler! Take a clean, two-liter plastic bottle and drill holes all over the sides of the bottle using a handheld drill. You can use a smaller bit and drill lots of tiny holes, or use a larger bit and drill fewer holes. Next, attach a hose connector to the end of a garden hose. Attach the bottle to the hose by screwing it into the connector. Turn on the hose and let the kids play! This sprinkler is fun on its side on the grass, or toss the hose with the attached sprinkler over the swingset or a tree branch to make a “shower.”
LIQUID CHALK PAINT (Do Red, White and Blue for the Fourth!)
For outdoor art that is a step above sidewalk chalk, try making your own liquid chalk paint.
• Purchase jumbo-sized washable chalk from your local dollar store and break up the chalk into a powder. (Seal in a plastic bag and pulverize with a hammer or use a cheese grater to grate the chalk).
• Add the powdered chalk to a food storage container, and mix in water. (About one-half cup of water per jumbo size piece of chalk). You will have a few chunks, but the mixture should be mostly liquified.
• Repeat the process with different colored chalk until you have several different colors of chalk paint, each in it’s own container. Give the kids paint brushes and let them paint the driveway, fence, concrete porch, or sidewalk. Hose water will wash it away!
SQUIRT GUN TARGET PRACTICE
When the kids get tired of squirting each other, set up targets for them to aim at! One way is to simply draw targets with washable sidewalk chalk onto a fence. Draw several circles, starting with a small “bullseye” in the center, then add three or four more circles around the bullseye, each one bigger than the last. Assign each circle a point value and let the kids compete to see who can hit the most points! Plastic disposable drinking cups also make great targets. Line up plastic cups side-by-side onto a deck railing or stack upside down into a pyramid shape and shoot away!
WATER PINATAS AND WATER BALLOONS
Let the kids release some pent-up energy and cool off with a pinata filled with water! Take a plastic sack — or large balloons — and fill about halfway with water. Place your balloon insidethe plastic sack and, using the handles of the bag, tie the water-filled bag over a tree branch. The bag doesn’t need to be sealed. Let the kids hit the water bag with tennis rackets, plastic bats or a cardboard wrapping paper tube. What a great way to recycle those plastic grocery bags (though you may need to double them). These water pinatas won’t last long, but getting wet is the point of this activity, so who cares? You can also just let the kids have fun with water balloons!
Have fun with these DIY cool activities in between sprays from the sprinkler.
SPONGE BOBS
Make fun “sponge bobs” from dollar store sponges. Cut two rectangular sponges lengthwise into four pieces each, then stack the strips into two layers of four pieces each. Wrap a rubber band tightly around the midpoint of the stacked sponges. “Fluff” and pull the sponge strips until you have a ball shape. To play, give kids a bowl or bucket of water to dip the sponge balls into. Wet sponge balls are great for tag, target practice, or just tossing back and forth between kids!
LAZY RIVER
Make a lazy river by shaping aluminum foil into a gutter shape and put directly on the grass in a place where the ground gently slopes. Use a hose to create the waterway, or let the kids pour water down the “river” with a cup or bucket. Then they can “float” items down the river like dandelions, leaves, etc.
Discover More Great Things to Do!
