Ideas to tire out my v active 9-year-old tomorrow?

[Tireoutrrr]

DS goes back to school on Wednesday (inset days!) and he is a very high energy child and we didn’t do enough today. He’s 9.

What can I to tomorrow to tire him out? Was thinking trampolining but our local is currently closed. There’s lots to see in the cinema, but none of that would tire him out!

We live in London, he doesn’t like museums (also doesn’t have to be a London tourist thing; we do plenty of those - but saying London if anyone has any good ideas of active stuff to do!).

Please give me some ideas!

Take some bread and feed the birds at St James Park flowed by trip to Hamleys to play with the toys?

Use a stopwatch and see how many laps of the local playground he can do.

Swimming always tires my 9 year old out.

My son has adhd so rarely gets tired 🙈. Things that help for him are climbing, bouncing (do any local soft play places have the odd trampoline), inflatables, swimming, bike riding?

Not bread. Bird seed or peas.

Trampoline park?
Swimming?
Climbing?

I’d go for swimming and a decent walk.
Then something like scrabble afterwards to calm him down whilst working his brain! (a bit like a collie!)

Sledging? (If you have snow). We spent all Sunday and today (school was closed) doing that and I am now in bed exhausted.

Yep he has ADHD!

I wish! No snow here. It’s going to be verrrry cold though!

I’m tempted by swimming but he’ll only enjoy it if there’s play stuff there or other friends - I’ll see if I can find a fun place like that! (He isn’t interested in general calm swimming!)

long walk along the south bank or along one of the canal towpaths in north London?

climb primrose hill / walk past London zoo (you can spot giraffes and penguins from outside the fence if you look carefully)

peter pan playground in kensington gardens

Oh I feel you
its like having a golden retriever in human form

choose no less than four of the following:

swimming

at home:
epic pillow fight
making a den but with getting all the bedding from upstairs so lots of lugging stuff
nerf gun fight or laser tag
rugby passes using soft toys which are rugby ball shaped
tug of war with Pilates bands

if not too freezing:
walk to the park and then
park exercise equipment or basketball or cricket nets or football or climbing frames or swings

good luck.

@Tireoutrrr I feel your pain! So lovely but it's like living with the Duracell bunny 😂. We were told that making them walk with a heavy ish backpack was a good thing for them too.

Any orienteering courses nearish you?

I know you said no museums but would he like something like the Twist museum or the Paradox museum? The latter is a bit pricey but my DS enjoyed running around it (and its inside!). They're both not typical museums. Most people I know are back to school tomorrow so it might be a little bit quieter too.

Climbing - see if there’s an indoor bouldering wall near you that has junior sessions.
Go Ape
laser tag
The Science Museum has an interactive gaming exhibition that sounds fun
A long walk (if the weather’s okay), themed around his interests - there are loads of self guided walk podcasts for central London or if you have a phone he could use you could make it into a street photography session? Or head to the Heath/Epping Forest for more green space.
Does he have a bike/scooter you could take to the BMX track?

Which bit of London? Could you do one of those text based treasure hunts? There is a pretty decent clip and climb in SE London but no good depending on location.

Geocaching!

Indoor climbing wall.

Ice skating?

Haha yes!!! A golden retriever of a human is exactly right 🤣

In the end we went swimming, to the soft play at the leisure centre (which is huge and not really like a soft play - fun for older kids), then I bribed him with a croissant at the cafe to walk around the local park with me and he and the dog did races across the very wet and boggy grass. We’re home and now he’s watching the Ninjago movie and I’m fine with it because I’m exhausted and it’s only 1:30pm! But when it ends… the need for activity will begin again!

I’m saving all these suggestions in my notes app for next time! Thank you everyone!