Mumsnet users share with Sky Cinema how they keep their children entertained during the summer holidays

[EllieMumsnet]

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Keeping your children entertained throughout the summer holidays can be a bit of a challenge, there's only so many play-dates and fun day trips a parent can bear to go on. Tell us how you keep your children entertained and what your chill-out pastimes are over the summer holidays.

Perhaps you find that arts and crafts or mini science experiments help keep your DC occupied for a while? Do you clear the kitchen table, sit down to an afternoon of LEGO building and create a world that rivals LEGO Ninjago? Maybe you're roped into tea parties with a gazillion teddies, Buzz Lightyear, Woody and the gang; or you're persuaded to act out your world-famous rendition of 'Shake it off' a la Rosita in Sing as part of a front room talent show?

"When you need some down time after a busy summer's day, Sky Cinema has tons of unmissable family movies, available on demand, ready whenever you are this summer. With over 1,000 movies to choose from including the new Lego Ninjago Movie, Cars 3, Despicable Me 3 there will always be a movie to suit any mood."

However you entertain your children during the summer holidays, post them on the thread and everyone will be entered into a prize draw where one MNer will win a £300 voucher of their choice (from a list).

Thanks and good luck
MNHQ

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We try and do one little thing most days but have a day at home every week too , we go to the library or the park a lot and have a few bigger trips too.

A nice mixture of things to do for free and then paying a little extra for a special day out. We love taking a trip into London to visit the museums, meeting up with friends for a bike ride or picnic at the park, swimming, a pizza and best of all visiting nanny and grandad at the seaside!

1. Den making in garden with tarpaulin sheets, clothes horse, pegs etc.

1. Free swimming / picnic.

1. Sleeping outside on blankets under mosquito nets.

1. Camping in tents in back garden/grandparents garden.

1. Making ice lollies

1. Day trip on the bus to the seaside.

1. Chalk art competition on the fence/walls/pavement

1. Library summer reading challenge

1. Holiday diary.

10. Pick your own strawberries/raspberries farm

11.helping with wine making

12. ice cube making with added lemon/berries

13. bonfire/marshmallows on skewer ends.

14. clearing out the shed.

15. holiday club workshops for dance/music/drama/sports.

We try to do a different activity each day

I try and make use of the free parks, and we collect things from the local woods and beaches and get crafty in the garden, the kids love it and its pretty cost free...

breaks my heart as miss him like crazy
But he spends alot of time down caravan with my inlaws as so much more for him to do when he feels like

I try and plan in as much as possible alongside rest or PJ days (tv, movies, colouring at home)! We try and get out as much as possible and take advantage of free activities, visiting friends, garden centres, parks, going for walks, fruit picking and then splurge on a few activities such as visiting a farm or wildlife park. I try and make sure we have new activities to do at home, jewelry making, candle making etc as I loved things like this as a child.

My sons loves a games championship where we choose a few classic games like connect 4, dominoes, monopoly and have knock out matches to find an overall winner

I get on to the 'interweb' and find out what free events are going on around in my area, I try to keep them busy (easier than them arguing all day at home). I will take a packed lunch, buy a weekly family bus pass and away we go (sometimes a ride on the top deck of a bus is such a 'wicked' experience) it's money well spent. If rain is on the cards - it's home made popcorn and a movie day.

I go to the pound shop and buy lots of chocolate and rice crispies (for buns) paper, paint, glitter, bun cases and toys which can be 'prizes' for fabulous paintings. It's a cheap basketfull of joy. An afternoon 'baking rice krispie buns is also a distraction. We put the TV on in the evening and watch a good movie to unwind before bed.

We get out all of the outdoor toys, ride on, sandpit, we build our trampoline which we store away for the winter, and on hot days it's factor 50 on and the paddling pool out - being outdoors and keeping busy is the key to a night on front of sky cinema - taking turns picking a movie before bed.

We spend a morning a week at my allotment, weeding. watering and cutting back - watching food grow is an amazing experience for children, other days we go to the park, take a bus to the library and sit down for storytime, I am lucky enough to have a garden with a gated drive - so it's out with the ride on toys, hazzard cones and they ride around until it's time for lunch or tea. It the weather is bad we get the sky remote and pick a great family movie and snuggle up with a film.

Occasional days out and fun experiments to do at home

we keep track of local activities and day trips and try and go outside as much as possible.

Our children work so hard all year and when they return on September they are not where they were in July. I have my dc write a summer holiday diary, just a sentence a day to keep them on track for when they go back.

if the weather is nice lots of trips to the beach, if its rainy movies in the house or a trip to the cinema

We spend a lot of time outdoors. We love walking the dogs and exploring. We do a lot more fbarts and crafts and spend raining days having movie days xx

We begin Christmas cards and presents 🤣

A planned itinerary is what’s needed during the summer holidays
I usually spend 3 weeks away on holiday where the kids love being in the pool then the other three is spent going to the
1)Park
2)Museums
3)Cinema
4)Adventure play
5)zoo

We go for lots of local days out. Lots of arts and crafts at home and playing out in the garden, baking and getting the kids involved in cooking dinner..

Den building, walks around local trails, vesch , woods, park. Repeat