What to do with DD12 in June?

[Jeannne92]

DD12 finishes school for the academic year around the 10th June. DH and I will be working and DS11 will be at school until 5th July, then we will go on holiday. We live in a flat and DH works from home most of the time and I work from home 2 or 3 afternoons per week. We will get DD reading (she loves reading...but prefers TV) and doing some school type work and obviously helping out more with cooking, shopping, house choses, but this will still leave hours when she will be bored and just watch TV when unsupervised.

Her friends will be away and we cannot send her to her grandparents at the seaside as they're not well, and there aren't really any sport or summer camp type activities going on. Her sport will continue on Tuesday evenings, but her other sport will stop then too. We will organise swimming, tennis, etc. but it's not cheap. We are also looking for anywhere age-appropriate where she can help out for a day or half-day, she is very ecological so maybe something linked to that. We already asked her sport club but she is too young to help there (their insurance wouldn't be valid.) Unfortunately DH and I don't have jobs where she can come in.

Any ideas, please?

Let her get bored and watch tv and Potter

Would the local library have the summer reading challenge on that early?

There's youngsters always helping out at the summer reading challenge round here.

Even if that's too early for the challenge to start, an email to the library manager asking for work experience might be well received (although she may be too young) Worth a try.

This is a great idea. I don't think there will be any holiday activities at that time as it's still the school term but both of our local libraries will certainly be open (for older students preparing exams.) and she can find some magazines, etc. to make a change. We will also pop by the library to ask if she can help out a bit there. Thank you.

Do you mean your DD is aged 12 or is your 12th child?

Is she 12 yo? If so I suspect the library will say she is too young to help.

Are you in the UK OP? Why does her school term finish so early? What do other students do - can you set up some regular playdates and swap back - you have their DC when you are wfh - just for some company?

Through accident mainly I've found a few different holiday clubs in places I wouldn't have looked so it might be worth expanding your search.

DD goes to an outdoor pursuits centre that do kayaking, climbing, archery, bushcraft etc, but the local wildlife trust do a couple of weeks in the middle of summer, the trampoline park run all day holiday clubs and the private school a few miles away does a drama one.

Another option is volunteering in a local community centre, if you have one. We have one round here that does a community allotment, bingo for people with dementia etc etc. Might be worth contacting centres near you that offer this sort of thing to see if they'd be willing to take her on.

Her age may prove difficult and she may be too young for a DBS check (if required), but they may have something she can help out at.

Thank you. She has a 2 week residential for her sport at the start of the holidays. There won't be any activities in June as it's still technically term-time so the usual weekly classes / sessions would run. (Also we have no money left over for this.) But we'll certainly keep looking around.

I can't help thinking how shit it must be for kids who live in even smaller apartments and whose parents have even less cash (and time) to entertain them.

Yes she's 12. School closes early for the younger year groups as there are public exams (like GCSEs) for the older ones. Not in UK.
Her friends will go to their grandparents in the countryside, one is going to her family's country (not far away) and another will be working in her family restaurant which is quite far away. Her cousins are older (at uni.) I expect there will be a couple of less close friends around at some point and she's pretty sociable so will arrange picnics etc. if someeone's around.
However we just found out that her church youth club will also stop at start of June as so many parents have already said their kids will be away. A bit of a shame for DD.

At 12, I would just let her entertain herself to be honest.