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Those last days of summer: How to entertain your kids before the break ends

“Oh no, I missed the deadline to sign up for day camp!” A University of Delaware expert has tips for parents this summer.

Aug 5, 2024

3 min

Roberta Golinkoff

Are you one of the parents who is panicked at the prospect of entertaining your children for those final weeks of the summer? Did you miss the day camp sign ups early in the summer? 


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University of Delaware expert Roberta Golinkoff has you covered. Golinkoff is an education professor in the fields of education and psychology with over 30 years of experience in childhood education. She is currently Unidel H. Rodney Sharp Chair and Professor in UD's School of Education as well as a member of the Departments of Psychological and Brain Sciences and Linguistics and Cognitive Science. She also directs the Child’s Play, Learning, and Development laboratory.


She gives tips on how to keep kids entertained throughout the summer, particularly this last month of summer. 


Work with others in your neighborhood in the same boat to create an at home day camp.  


What happens at day camps can be duplicated at home. Consider how they work. Peers get together under the supervision of a young adult and engage in outdoor activities such as foot races and ball games and indoor activities such as arts and crafts.


Camps are hotbeds for playful learning – the way that children learn best. Camps unwittingly nurture communication between peers and adults, collaboration in helping your team, and creative thinking of all types – during craft activities but much more. Making a tentative agenda for kids with other parents in the same boat will be invaluable. But there is no room for a rigid schedule! Time has to be flexible. During the regular year when parents are rushing hither and yon, there is little time to stop and let the action continue. But the summer changes all that. Discoveries like hungry turtles in a nearby pond can be a delight for children.


Even if you can’t find a teen helper or another parent to trade off with, you can engage your children in many activities they will love.


Limited screen time can be beneficial.  


There is nothing wrong with playing with apps or watching television as long as parents make sure the content is appropriate for the age of their children. There are shows that amuse children

and that they can learn from – Sesame Street and Reading Rainbow are prime

examples. And parents can build on these shows by asking children to design the next

episode, “What would happen if Peppa Pig couldn’t find a playmate?” or draw pictures

showing the characters at the beach!


A new website called Stories with Clever Hedgehog and designed in Ukrainian for Ukrainian children suffering from the war is also available in English. Designed by developmental psychologists – including Golinkoff herself – has numerous activities such as games, songs, art, fun facts for children to enjoy.


But media that takes place indoors should just be used as cool down periods and even

then only briefly, or on rainy days. Luxurious breezes, sunshine, and physical activities

are what summer is meant for.


Boredom is ok. 


Boredom is not a bad thing and can be a time for reflection and inner growth.

Ask children to think about what they want to do next and make a plan for the rest of the

day. Ask children to come up with a brand new activity that other kids would like. Media

is not a great solution to boredom anyway but developing strategies to consider

boredom a plus can be.


Golinkoff is available to give more tips. She also welcomes reporters to visit her lab to see what she and her group are working on. Contact her by clicking on her profile. 




Connect with:
Roberta Golinkoff

Roberta Golinkoff

Unidel H. Rodney Sharp Chair and Professor

Prof. Golinkoff studies language development, playful learning, effects of media on children, spatial development, and applying her science.

Early Childhood Education Early Spatial DevelopmentPlayful LearningBenefits of PlayEffects of Media on Children

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