Timeout – it’s school holidays!
We’ve finally reached that time of year where school is winding down for the year and kids are preoccupied with thoughts of Christmas and enjoying some time off. While it’s important to keep children learning during the break, time off is also important to let your child recharge their batteries in readiness for the new year.
Here are some ideas for how to rest, relax and enjoy your family time over the school holidays.
Getting Out & About during School Holidays
Getting out of the house is a great way to have some fun and introduce your children to a variety of unique experiences. A simple visit to a new playground could teach your children different balance, strength or ways to play. Of course, there are also a variety of different educational outings that you can use to promote learning through the holidays as well. Some of our favourite ideas include:
- Melbourne Zoo: Reading information rather than just watching the animals promotes further learning. Make sure you check out the Melbourne Zoo website before your visit and check the times for the different animal talks. These are a fantastic way to encourage fun learning!
- Melbourne Aquarium: We love the Aquarium as kids can get right up and close to the sea life. There is even a section where kids can hold and touch different sea life – a fantastic sensory experience! As with the Zoo, make sure you check the different talk and feeding times on the Melbourne Aquarium website, as these can make the visit that little more educational.
- Scienceworks is A fantastic day out which really uses the natural curiosity and creativity of children to encourage learning. These school holidays, there are several programs from planetarium shows to a meteorites touch table to get your kids thinking and learning. For a little one-on-one time with your child, check out the weekend workshops where you work together with your child to build skills in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.
- The Melbourne Museum offers a great range of school holiday activities from story time to making Christmas cards and puppet making! You can find all the activities on offer on their website.
Downtime at Home
While getting out and about can be fun and exciting for the kids, some downtime to rest and relax is also important. Allowing your child to choose a few books to read over the holidays is a great way to spend some downtime at home. Board games are also a fantastic way to encourage cooperation and participation.
Other Ideas for School Holidays
Counting the Dollars
Giving your children pocket money or a holiday budget is a great way to educate about money-management as well as encourage mathematics skills. When you go out, you can get your child to buy something with their money and let them keep track of how their own finances are going. For example, “that ice cream cost $3, how much do you have left to spend these holidays?”
Sorting
Sorting is a part of math reasoning. For younger children you can promote this skill while also getting some help around the house! For example, ask your child to sort the clean socks into pairs or the clothes into different colour piles, or tidy their room by sorting by different types of toys – dolls, cars, books, etc.
Puzzles
Puzzles are a great way to promote problem solving and shape discovery. Have a couple of age-appropriate puzzles handy to work on together over the holidays.
If you’re still short on ideas you can always check out some of our older blogs below for even more school holiday ideas:
School Holiday Reading Books for Kids
Educational Games to play with your Kids
Fun & Educational School Holiday Activities
We hope you have a fun and relaxing Christmas and look forward to seeing you back after the holidays!
