Sammamish Families: Summer Might be Slower but Keep Busy With These Boredom Busters

School is out – hurray! Oh no, school is out. Don’t panic if you aren’t ready for three months of your kids being home from school every day until the first day of school in September. I’ve got some great boredom busters that keep you sane while your kids have fun all summer long, last minute summer camp suggestions and a summer reading program at the that will help you prevent “summer brain drain.” 

Summer Boredom Busters to Stock Up On

If you have kids age 6 years old and under, the number one boredom buster item I recommend you acquire this summer is a giant bubble wand set from the Bothell-based Majic Bubble Wand company. The company’s giant bubble wands have been featured in national publications. They will entertain younger kids for hours and are a great thing to break out on a play date. I frequently bring my wands to school parties and play dates and they are a hit with kids of all ages, especially toddlers and pre-schoolers. Purchase sets and wands online.

Redmond’s  is a great resource for all kinds of summer boredom busters. Frisbee tossing tweens will love the Beamo Flying Hoop for $20 – a giant flying hoop made from swimsuit fabric. Tree Top Toys has a great selection of beach toys from $4 to $6, a bucket of sidewalk chalk for $5 and great kid-size garden tools for $1.50 to $10.  

Next door at Redmond’s  you can find lots of art supplies, craft kits and great books with projects. Other great resources for art supplies and craft kits near Sammamish include White Horse Toys in Issaquah’s Gilman Village, Michaels in Issaquah, , and even office supply stores including and .

I also highly recommend Planet Happy in the U-District. The store offers great summer boredom buster products, including the PHD Flying Disc (the “fair trade” handmade in Guatemala cloth flying disc that kids can play with indoor or out for $15) and the amazing eco-friendly, foldable traveling beach pail Sandsac for $15 (large) or $13 (small). The store also has a design-your-own kite kit for $15, the Solar Rover Science Kit for $20 and the Stone Soup Planting Kit containing everything you need to grow and make your own “stone soup.” The store offers weekly craft activities and has a resident hedgehog my kids love to visit.

You also can put together your own “boredom buster kits” using shoe boxes and art supplies, junk mail, yarn and other items you can gather from around the house. I often find my kids will “rediscover” the stuff I already have around the house if I “repackage it” and “resell it” as “Hey, let’s make some inventions today, or art or go outside and build a fort from stones and decorate it with the stuff in this box.” Another great “recycle something” idea is creating a giant sandbox by filling your old kiddie pool with sand. Toss in some buckets and shovels and you have the perfect backyard beach.

Summer Camps – There Are Still Great Options to Choose From No Matter Your Child's Age and Interests

Are you feeling like a bad mommy because you missed signing up for summer camps back in February? Don’t worry. I found some great camps this week, no matter your child’s age and interest, that still have openings.

For nature lover kids ages 5 to 10 years old, check out Summer Winds Day Camp in Snoqualmie where children spend their days building forts, making arts and crafts and enjoying all kinds of outdoor fun. Camp director Becca Hall has a MFA and is a passionate advocate of kids engaged in hands-on learning while making lifelong memories of happy hours at play outside. 

If you have a crafty kid, check out the mosaic glass and tie dye classes offered all summer long for kids ages 6 to 12 years old on the Plateau at Good Samaritan Episcopal Church. Artist and educator Cheryl Smith teaches these classes. For more information, call 425-313-0382 or email cherylsmith@live.com.

Horse lover? Sammamish’soffers horse-themed day camps all summer long. Campers enjoy their own assigned horse for the whole week, riding lessons, crafts and all sorts of horse-related fun. Sporty kids might enjoy the numerous sport-themed camps offered in Sammamish by Skyhawks Sports Camps.

The Sammamish Family YMCA offers summer camps. The Redmond Parks and Recreation Department is a great resource for half- and full-day camps. The Boys & Girls Club of King County Redmond/Sammamish also offers a number of great summer camps.

The  in downtown Redmond is offering a number of summer camps that still have openings with themes including outdoor art, building forts and fashion and jewelry.

In July, yoga-loving young people might enjoy the Yoga For Kids Camp at Redmond’s  at the studio’s new location near . Also, there's the kid yoga and modern dance camp at Flow Yoga’s new location near .

Free Family Entertainment All Summer Long at the KidsFirst Noontime Series

Enjoy free entertainment all summer in Sammamish by different children’s entertainers. The series kicks off Tuesday, June 28 at noon at  with a performance by Brian Vogan and his Good Buddies. The series continues through August. A compete schedule of performers, dates and locations is available online.

Great Family Movies Outdoors All Summer at 

Make some great family memories every Wednesday night from July 13 to Aug. 31 by attending the Movies@Marymoor series. It's $5 per person with seating open at 7 p.m., and the movies shown on a giant outdoor screen begin at dusk. The series opens on July 13 with "The Wizard of Oz." A complete schedule of movies is available online. 

Take Advantage of the 's Summer Reading Program to Avoid "Summer Brain Drain"

One of my favorite photos from my childhood is of me proudly displaying my certificate of completion for the summer reading program at the Bainbridge Island Library. My mom made me wear a dress for the photo – that meant it was a big deal. The King County Library System continues to save my summers as they offer cool, comfortable places to hang out, enjoy free kids programs and load up on great summer reading, movies and music. And the summer reading program this year is fabulous. My 9-year-old son can’t wait to get started.

Beth Rosania, children's section supervisor, KCLS Bellevue Cluster, said that getting kids engaged in the summer reading program and encouraging them to read all summer long helps them avoid “summer brain drain.”

"Kids can experience the loss of two to three months worth of learning during the summer if they are not engaged in reading and that if this happens over several summers the losses accumulate," she said. "This not only affects their reading skills, but carries over to their ability to problem solve in the areas of math and science."

Luckily, reading even four to five books over the summer break can help prevent this loss. Rosania said the library's summer reading program is also designed to instill a lifelong love of reading in every child who participates. "We want them to know the pleasure of reading," she said.

Information on the summer reading program and additional programs for children and their families can be found online. You can register your child online or in person at the Sammamish Library. Prizes include a kaleidoscope. If kids complete the program by Aug. 31, they could win one of three laptop computers.