Camping is a family tradition in my family and when I was growing up we would go camping every summer. This is a list of the best camping activities for kids from my own personal experiences as a child.
Swimming-
When people go camping they usually choose a camping location near a body of water whether it be a lake or the ocean. Either way swimming is a fun activity for kids to pass the time during the day. Most kids love water, and most parents appreciate the fact the swimming uses up their child’s energy for a more restless sleep at night. Just remember to always supervise the children, provide flotation devices (kids love pool toys), require the children to use sun block to protect their delicate skin from the harsh rays of the sun, and keep an ice chest full of non-sugary drinks (preferably water) and a beach bag full of snacks as the kids should burn off a lot of energy quickly. It is also recommended to bring plenty of hats for the children to protect their heads from getting sun burned.
Roast Marshmallows and Make S’mores-
This is the part of camping that all kids look forward to, roasting marshmallows and making s’mores. Children enjoy this activity as it gives them the sense of cooking their own desert and then enjoying the fruits of their labor. Remember to ALWAYS supervise the children during this activity to make sure they do not get too close the fire, and to make sure they are not abusing the fire in a way that could end up causing a forest fire. See below for instructions.
Open the bag of marshmallows (regular sized and NOT the mini marshmallows) and insert the tip if the stick through the marshmallow.
Place marshmallow into the fire (do Not let go of the stick)
Once the marshmallow catches fire remove from the fire and blow out the marshmallow (brown marshmallow to desired color and crispiness)
*Caution* Marshmallow will be VERY hot. Do NOT shake the stick to put out the fire on the marshmallow as the marshmallow could fly off and hurt someone.
How to make S’mores:
Open the package of graham crackers and remove chocolate bar from wrapper
Break the graham cracker in half and place the chocolate bar on the bottom half of the graham cracker
Roast marshmallow per instructions above
Place marshmallow on top of the chocolate bar
Place 2nd half of graham cracker on top and enjoy!
This activity may not be suitable for every child but there are some children who actually do enjoy this camping activity. Once the fire is built and the sun has gone down gather the children in their sleeping bags around the campfire or you can gather them around in lawn chairs and snuggly blankets to begin the activity. If you feel there might be some children that are really sensitive to this type of thing I would suggest letting the children know what kinds of stories you will be telling before you begin to give them the chance to object (the last thing you want is to have a scared child awake all night and very grumpy the next day, or worse yet too scared to continue with the camping trip at all). If you don’t care about that or if you already know that the kids will be ok with this then I suggest telling them a “true scary story” as this will bring more excitement and have them wondering if it’s really true or not.
This is a great camping activity especially for children who normally live in very polluted city areas and aren’t normally able to see the stars in the sky. This activity works best when camping in the mountains where you are closer to the sky. Some kids will just be amazed to the number of stars that are really in the universe and will enjoy this activity with the naked eye, but you could also bring along a telescope for an even more amazing camping experience.
