Low Cost School Holiday Activities

School is out and it's time for some serious fun for the kids. Have you got plans for your kids? School holidays do not need to involve activities that will burn a hole in your pocket. School holiday is a good time to train children with some life skills. It is also a good time to rekindle love among family members, as during schooling season, the children are usually bombarded with homework and the endless tuition and after school activities, not forgetting the busy parents as well. So, this is a great time to catch up and have fun together while instilling love and positive values in our children.

There are plenty of activities that you can plan ahead for you and your children which will not cost you so much. Here are some of the things I like to share with all parents out there. Some of these things are what I usually do and some are things I plan to do this holidays.

Movie night

How wonderful will it be to snuggle up on a cosy sofa with some home made snack watching a movie everyone in the family loves? I've got a list of movies suitable for everyone in the family that we will be watching this holidays.

Movie party with friends

Let the kids have some fun with friends. Allow you children to invite around 2 or 3 closest friends to watch a movie together in your house. Provide some healthy snacks for them.

Outdoor activities

The outdoor provides plenty of opportunity to have fun. Cycling, taking stroll in the park, picnic are among several things you can do. I personally love taking my children to parks for them to learn and explore more about nature. My kids love picking up leaves, an opportunity for me to teach them about size and shape, I also teach them the why some leaves are green while others are yellow/brown. My daughter is especially crazy of collecting biji saga these days, so we will go to the park and spend quite some time picking up the bright red seeds which she takes home to decorate or use it during play time as one of the items to cook. They also love chasing after birds and feeding them.

Fun at the beach which does not cost much if you pack food and drinks from home

Water play

This is something every child loves. It is a wonderful activity they love so much, gives you some time to relax with your spouse and most importantly cost saving and easy. Those DIY plastic pools can be purchased at almost all supermarkets and it will cost you less than RM50 depending on the size. I have this pool at home, we just blow it up, fill it with water and let the kids play. Me and hubby will sit back and relax, enjoy the time chatting, drinking our favorite beverage or juice.

The fun time with water play at home

Art and Craft

There are plenty craft projects available online. Get some ideas there. You can also provide water colour, pencil colour, crayons and plenty of paper and allow children to just create their own art. In my family, art is an activity we love doing together. My husband happens to be a trained artist, so painting and coloring is something my children look forward too. They are given lots of opportunity to explore with colours. We frame their work and display them on the wall of our dining area.

My children during one of their art sessions

The two dragons produced by my son, Daanish.

Another art session, using chalks and drawing on the floor at the porch.

Cooking

Kids actually love it when mothers give them a chance to help out in the kitchen. By including them in the process of preparing meal, you instill the value of good nutrition, love by observing the effort you put in preparing wholesome meal for the family, names of vegetables and many more. It is more rewarding when they are invited to prepare their favorite meal or baking their favorite cookie.

The chocolate milk shake my kids made with my supervision

My daughter, Maya Sari busy with her cookies

Camping

Camping is so much fun yet we hardly find families do this. We've had some non Malaysian friends who asked us why don't Malaysian parents take their children for camping. I guess it is something many of us are not exposed to hence we don't even think about it as something possible to do with our children. I was first inspired to go camping when I read an article by an overseas blogger which you can read here. Off course camping requires a bit of planning. I found this list really helpful. First of all, scout around to find a place that is safe for you and family. I live in Sg Petani, Kedah after moving from Kuala Lumpur about two and half years ago. There's a wonderful beach called Pantai Merdeka which has a beautiful resort but also camping spot. This place is especially popular among families who love fishing. We decided to give it a try as it was a safe area with many other families too. We already have a tent, so what we needed were just some other basic supplies. We camped for one night, I prepared goodie bags for my children with several simple stuff to give them some activities to do besides star gazing and playing at the beach. It was truly an unforgettable experience which we definitely want to do again!