“Mom, I’m bored…”
Summer can be a challenging time for tweens and young teens. They’re old enough to stay home alone, but many can’t work or find regular activities to do without adult supervision.
Today’s story in The Spokesman-Review, “Keeping kids busy during break on a budget,” acknowledged the fact that so many families this year can’t afford summer camp, which can cost several hundred dollars a week. So what’s a tween to do?
“He’ll read a lot. He’ll draw,” Lee Ann Fleming, whose son is 12, told the Associated Press. “There’ll probably be too much time watching mindless television. I don’t know what else to do.”
Thankfully, youth in Spokane have some options. Although
some of the pools will remain closed until later this summer (and will no longer
offer free admission to kids), the Spokane Parks & Recreation Department
still provides a few affordable options – from two-week tennis lessons to
weeklong camps for basketball, cheerleading, soccer and even flag football.
The AP article offered some practical advice: Coordinate with other parents; find odd jobs such as car washing and dog walking so that the kids can make a little money; check senior centers, soup kitchens and other places for volunteer opportunities.
Another suggestion I’ve seen on several parenting websites is to organize a progressive play date. Instead of having your kids and their friends in one place, they can spend an hour at your house and then move on to the next house. I suppose this would only work if the play date involved neighborhood kids, but it’s still a way for parents to work together and supervise their children while also getting a few hours to clean the house, run errands or just get a break.
What are your summer plans for the kids?