7 Creative After School Activities to Keep Kids Busy and Learning

It can be tough to keep kids entertained and engaged after school. They may be tired from a long day of learning, but it's important to make sure they're still stimulating their minds outside of the classroom. Luckily, there are plenty of fun and creative activities you can do with your kids to help them wind down while still keeping their minds active. Here are seven great ideas to get you started.

Get them cooking with a healthy recipe

Food is one of life's greatest joys! Cooking with your kids introduces them to new flavors and ingredients while teaching them about measuring, following directions, and basic kitchen safety. In addition to being a fun activity, cooking is also a great way for kids to learn about science, math, and nutrition.

Every time we measure out ingredients, estimate cooking times, or divide a recipe in half, we are using mathematical concepts. As such, the kitchen can be a great place to learn about math. Here are a few ways to explore mathematics while cooking:

One way to learn about math while cooking is to experiment with measurements. When measuring ingredients, try using different units of measurement (e.g., teaspoons, tablespoons, milliliters) to see how they compare. You can also try making half-recipes or double-recipes to see how quantities change. This is a great way to learn about fractions and proportions.

Another way to learn about math while cooking is through timing and temperature, and how playing around with oven temperatures affect the outcome of your food. The best way to do this, in our opinion, is through baking chocolate chip cookies. Start with the same dough, but bake them for different amounts of time. Have your kids guess what the best amount of time is for the perfect cookie, and then test their theories! Are they still too raw? Cook them longer! Too crunchy or burnt? Too long! This is a great way to learn about the relationship between time, temperature, and cooking.

Choose a healthy recipe that your kids will enjoy making, and let them take charge in the kitchen. They'll love being able to show off their culinary skills to the whole family!

Turn family game night into a learning experience

There are tons of great board games out there that are not only fun, but also educational. Games like Monopoly, Scrabble, and Trivial Pursuit can help kids practice their math, reading, and critical thinking skills – all while spending quality time with the family! Win-win!

Monopoly will help teach your kids about money, bills, investing, and the horrible interpersonal relationships that come out while playing Monopoly because NO ONE IS SAFE! In all seriousness, the tough losses you take in Monopoly and the feeling of unfairness when you're getting crushed are great opportunities to learn how to work through those negative emotions and handle disappointment. Separating your feelings when you're upset because "it's just a game" and when the game is over, those feelings can be over. It seems funny to talk about a game that way, but it really can be a great tool to teach some of the softer skills kids need to learn.

Scrabble is great for word recognition and spelling, creative thinking, and math. Your kiddos need to be a bit older to really get a game of Scrabble but it's a good option for them. It even may help serve as encouragement to read more and learn more words if they can't win a game against you. Perhaps some of the new words in the book they've been neglecting would have helped them score big!

Trivial Pursuit is a great game for general knowledge, and they have so many different versions specific to certain topics. Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, you name it. Whether you go for the standard issue version of the game or one of these popular culture versions, it's a fun way to test your memory and recall, and general knowledge.

You can also opt for some more physically active games if you’re looking for something a little less cerebral. Having a whiffle ball home run derby is super fun, or getting some over-sized plastic golf clubs and having a closest to the hole contest in the back yard can be great. Take out the cornhole boards and have a little family tournament, or see who can get the highest score with a certain number of bags. A little competition with mom and dad can be a lot of fun, and also teach your kids some great lessons about technique in a particular game, how to be a good winner, how to NOT be a sore loser, etc. 

kids playing cornhole after school

Cornhole is a great game to play after school with friends. It's a simple game that can be learned quickly, and it's a lot of fun. Cornhole bags are tossed at a wooden board with a hole in the center. The object of the game is to score points by landing the cornhole bag in the hole. The cornhole boards are usually set up at a distance of about 27 feet, so it's a good way to get some exercise while you're playing. Cornhole is a great game for socializing and having fun, and it's also a great way to relieve stress. If you're looking for an after-school activity that's enjoyable and good for your health, cornhole is a great option.

Head outdoors for some stargazing

Grab a blanket, some snacks, and head outdoors for an evening of stargazing. Not only is this a great opportunity for quality bonding time, but it's also a great way to teach kids about astronomy and our place in the universe. If you live in a light-polluted area, consider taking a drive out to a more rural location for optimal stargazing conditions.

By simply observing the night sky, you can begin to understand the vastness of the universe and the principles that govern its motion. For instance, by tracking the movement of the stars across the sky, you can gain a better understanding of how the Earth rotates on its axis. Additionally, by monitoring changes in the brightness of stars over time, you can learn about the life cycles of distant suns. Furthermore, by examining the spectral lines of stars, you can identify their chemical composition. In short, stargazing is an excellent way to gain a deeper understanding of astronomy and science.

Of course some of those lessons are a bit complicated and advanced, and can require not only vast knowledge but also expensive equipment. But even talking about the existence of those kinds of tests, or how we look at space and try to figure it out, can spark some imagination or interest in your kids. If they show an interest, or ask a lot of questions, maybe it's time to invest in a smaller, cheap telescope so you can get a better look at constellations and galaxies.

Don't forget to utilize your star map on your smart phone, too. You can use your phone's camera to identify constellations in the sky in real time. Every constellation is associated with a story, so it can be a great opportunity to tell your kids some new stories. Perhaps you can have them choose a particular constellation before going outside, and together you can try to find it using the naked eye first. Confirm it with your star map on your phone, and then tell them the story. What a fun way to learn!

Help them put together a scrapbook or photo album

This activity is perfect for kids who love being creative and telling stories. Have them gather photos from past vacations or special events, then help them put together a scrapbook or photo album complete with captions and commentary. This is also a great opportunity to teach kids about history if you use photos from older family members' albums.

A scrapbook is a wonderful way to preserve memories and create a unique, personal keepsake. If you're new to scrapbooking, or simply looking for some inspiration, here are some essential supplies to get you started.

First, you'll need a good supply of acid-free paper. This will ensure that your scrapbook pages will resist yellowing and fading over time. You'll also want to invest in a variety of adhesives, including glue sticks, tape runners, and double-sided adhesive sheets. These will help you securely attach photos, journaling cards, and other memorabilia to your pages.

Next, you'll need some pretty embellishments to add visual interest to your scrapbook. This can include anything from stickers and rub-ons to die-cuts and chipboard shapes. And don't forget the ribbon! A few well-placed ribbons can really make a page pop.

Finally, you'll need a good album to store your finished scrapbook pages. Look for an album that has acid-free pages and covers, as well as reinforced binding that will keep your pages safe for years to come. With these supplies on hand, you're ready to start scrapbooking!

Put on a play or talent show

This is one activity that's sure to be both entertaining and educational! Write out a script or set up an improv game for the kids to act out, sing songs, or perform various talents for the family (or neighborhood!) audience. If you have younger children, they can even participate by helping design costumes or props. Acting, writing, and directing – there are a lot of different roles to play in putting on a successful show. This activity helps with creativity, communication, and teamwork.

Prop building, or set building, was always one of our favorite parts of putting on a play. Really it's just because we loved building forts when I was a kid. Whether it's out of blankets, pillows, or furniture, let your child's imagination run wild as they construct their own secret hideaway. This activity helps with problem-solving skills and spatial awareness.

Build something cool with recycled materials

Turning trash into treasure is not only eco-friendly, but also super fun! See what kinds of interesting things your kids can build using only recycled materials around the house – cardboard boxes become robots or houses, old magazines can be turned into Paper Mache sculptures, drinking straws can become jewelry…the possibilities are endless! Not to mention, this activity helps promote creativity and resourcefulness.

This fun activity can serve as a time to talk about the serious side of recycling and the environment. You can work some lessons into your building experience to help your kids get a better understanding of what recycling really is, and why it's important on a large scale. Recycling is important because it helps to conserve resources, energy, and landfill space. When recycled materials are used instead of new materials, it takes less energy to produce new products. For example, it takes 60% less energy to recycle aluminum than it does to mine and process new aluminum. Recycling also reduces the amount of pollution caused by manufacturing processes. For instance, recycling paper instead of making paper from scratch reduces the amount of water pollution by 50%. Finally, recycling helps to reduce the amount of waste in landfills. In fact, recycling just one ton of paper can save enough landfill space for 9 trees! As you can see, recycling is an important way to protect our environment.

Have a themed dinner party complete with games and prizes

This is another great activity for families who love spending time together in the kitchen – plus, it's an excellent opportunity to teach kids about other cultures if you choose an international theme (Mexican fiesta anyone?). In addition to preparing delicious food from another country, you can also play traditional games or listen to music from that culture as part of the festivities – just make sure to have plenty of prizes on hand so everyone feels like a winner!

This can be a great way to teach your children about different cultures and help them explore their food preferences. Have each kid pick a place on the map and then spend some time learning about what they eat and how they spend their time there. Many first world countries will have many similarities in how they spend their day to day lives, but their favorite, or most popular, foods can vary greatly. Learn about WHY a particular dish is popular there, and then make it together! See how everyone likes the food from that country.

The real excitement comes when you start to choose some more exotic locations. What sort of foods are eaten on islands, or in the desert? There are amazing facts and stories about people all over the world and they are worth learning about. Help your kids explore these things without having to literally travel the world. This is also a great way to get your kids to have a better sense of the size of the planet, and help them identify countries on a map, too!

Keep Your Kids Busy With Fun After School Activities

There are plenty of fun after school activities that will keep your kids busy and learning at the same time! From cooking and gaming to stargazing and recycled art projects, there's something on this list for every kid (and parent!). Cornhole is also a great after school activity that can help kids burn off some energy and have fun. It’s easy to set up and doesn’t require any special equipment other than a set of custom corn hole boards, so it’s perfect for home or schoolyard use. So go ahead and try one (or all!) of these activities with your kids today – they're sure to have a blast while gaining valuable skills that will last a lifetime!

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