Fun summer activities for kids: ideas you’ll want to try in childcare and at home
In the hot summer, children spend more time indoors both at daycare and at home.
For those wondering, “What can we play indoors with the kids?”, here are some perfect summer activities.
Games using water and ice are especially popular this season.
Cool sensations and hands-on activities are exciting for children.
It’s also a great experience to help them feel connected to nature or to incorporate traditional summer events—these memories really stay with kids.
Try these ideas at home, in daycare, or in kindergarten.
Through summertime activities, let’s help children create lots of fun memories!
- [Nursery/Kindergarten] Water play ideas that kids will love
- Let’s enjoy summer-only fun! Cool and refreshing play ideas
- Handkerchief and Towel Play! A Collection of Fun Play Ideas
- [Nursery/Daycare] Recommended for Summer Festivals! A Collection of DIY Game Ideas
- Perfect for summer: Fun at the pool and water spots! Water play games
- Fun activities with newspaper! Recreation games kids will love
- [Childcare] Fun craft ideas and craft activities perfect for summer
- [Childcare] Recommended for summer and winter! Ice play ideas
- [Childcare] August activities: sensory play to enjoy summer, crafts, songs, and hand play (fingerplay), etc.
- [Childcare] Perfect for June! Indoor play ideas to incorporate into childcare
- [Childcare] Summer wall display ideas: fun summer craft activities
- Childcare: Ideas for activities to enjoy in July
- [Childcare] A roundup of summer craft ideas to enjoy with 2-year-olds
Fun summer activities for kids: Ideas you’ll want to try at daycare and at home (101–110)
Ice play
A great indoor activity for summer is “ice play”! Just touching ice is fun and cooling enough, but if you have time, try adding a little twist.
When you freeze water, place leaves, flowers, or small toys in it as well.
That way, children won’t just touch the ice—they’ll also think about how to melt it and get the items out as they play.
Be sure to choose objects that are safe even if they end up in a child’s mouth!
Playing with ice and glass noodles in spring rain
It’s so refreshing to play with cool ice in the summer, isn’t it? Especially on very hot days, here’s an idea: try playing with lots of ice.
It might melt quickly in the heat, but that’s part of the fun—you can observe it or watch it melt from the warmth of your hands.
You can use cube-shaped ice from an ice maker, long ice sticks for bottles, or even make ice using empty containers like tofu packs.
These days, 100-yen shops also sell silicone molds in shapes like stars, hearts, and characters, so using those could make it even more fun.
ice koma
Let’s make and play with icy spinning tops that are cool, refreshing, and beautiful to look at.
Freeze decorations like colorful, glittering beads or small toys inside the ice.
Silicone cups work best as molds—the silicone peels away from the ice smoothly, making them easy to use.
Insert a stick to serve as the top’s spindle before freezing so it sets in place.
Once it’s chilled and solid in the freezer, it’s done.
To make it slide and spin more easily, give it a few preliminary spins to shape and smooth the tip.
The decorations inside the ice look gorgeous while the top is spinning.
ice balloon
Let’s make ice balloons: perfectly round balls of ice with your favorite character figures or items hidden inside, so you can melt them out and play.
It’s best to use silicone items that won’t be affected by the cold of the ice.
If the parts you put inside are colorful, they’ll look exciting as they show through the clear ice when you take them out.
Smaller ice balls melt quickly and are easier for young children to retrieve.
Try making ice balloons in various sizes so everyone can play together.
Making juice with foam
Water play that kids love is perfect for summer—just splashing with their hands cools them down and makes it feel refreshing.
How about making it even more fun by using bubbles and pretending they’re juice? Fill a basin or an inflatable pool with water and whip up bubbles with soap.
They can splash and mix with their hands, or try a whisk or a bath sponge.
You can also use everyday items like scoops and paper cups to play.