creative traditions/ideas to shake up routine/fun stimulators

[time4tea]

over the Xmas days, I've been thinking about parent/child experiences/activities which I've read about which were creative and stimulating for both (Spike Milligan had a blackboard by his children's bed, while telling stories he did little drawings to illustrate, Roald Dahl made parachute lanterns during summer nights and let them off, Nigel Slater made mince pies with his mum) .... I love this kind of thing.

does anyone have ideas, or know of websites where bright sparks put theirs?

i want to have more fun in 2010, japes, larks and wander-routes of all kinds

thanks
T4T

last january, we made a list of places we wanted to visit and activities we wanted to do. It was good.

One of the best sources of ideas was the local countryside rangers website adbn their calendar of events which included things like visiting a farm during lambing season, toad rescuing and bat watches.

We'll do it again this year.

It can be hard to get some children out for walks- I'm a big fan of treasure hunts. Before you go, make a list of things for the DCs to spot when out and about (how many depends on the age of your DCs). Get them to tick them off the list when they find them.

Weirdly, this worked very well in a local very old graveyard, and got us discussing lots of issues - from death, the natural world, to social history

these are great ideas. I agree about treasure hunts - we hid some small presents around the house and looking for them was great fun on Christmas afternoon.

I've just signed up for Lonely Planet's email tips "Seize the days" which are regionally organized.

its a lovely sunny day today so feeling in the mood for this kind of thing. happy new year... X

try googling "magical childhood" the author posts frequent lists of activities, usually seasonal, on her blog.