Last Camp Out of the Summer

When camping at home, here are some ideas to make your close-to-home adventure an extra special time:

Tent Building

A relaxing Saturday in your backyard is the perfect time to teach the kids how to put up a tent.  There is no hurry and no pressure.  Sit back, put your feet up, and let your kids take their time until they are able to assemble it themselves.  It is a great confidence and self-esteem booster when kids can succeed by themselves in a new, challenging task.

Scavenger Hunt

A great activity for the kids is to discover the nature in their own neighborhood with a scavenger hunt.  Give each kid a grocery bag and thirty minutes to collect as many different items as they can:

• Acorn
• Bark
• Berry
• Feather
• Pine cone
• Pine needles
• Y-shaped stick
• Tall piece of grass
• 3 leaf clover
• Moss
• Leaf (different shapes and colors)
• Rock (different shapes and colors)
• Wild flower
• Coin
• Can
• Piece of litter

Neighborhood Games

One great advantage to a camp out at home is all of the neighborhood kids will be around to play.  It is a perfect time to organize some fun games with lots of kids.  Also a fun day of running around will burn off your kids energy and keep them from keeping you up all night.  Some popular games are:

• Relay races
• Tag
• Duck Duck Goose
• Frisbee Football
• Hide and Seek
• Kick the Can

Grilling Marshmallows

Any camp out would not be complete without S’mores.  But unless you live in a more rural suburb, you probably are not able to legally have a campfire in your yard.  The one thing you likely can do is grill.  A small, portable charcoal grill makes for a great impromptu fire pit in a pinch.  The kids will have a fun learning to think outside of the box as they roast their sweet mallows over a glowing coals.

Group Bedtime Stories

As the sun goes down and you settle into the tent for the night, it is the perfect time for bedtime stories.  One fun way is to take turns telling the story together.  Hold the flashlight and get the story started.  After a minute or two, pass the flashlight to the next person so that they can continue the story where you left off.  Then keep passing the light every few minutes until you get tired.

Written by Benjamin Ellefson, who is an experienced camper and author of the children’s book The Land without Color. Learn more at http://www.benjaminellefson.com/Land-without-Color/