Before the frost and school start, plan a fun camping activity for kids in your backyard. Invite some friends and neighbors over for a backyard campout. A small group of children is recommended, 6-8 school age children. Borrow several tents, at least one for every 2-3 kids (unless you have a large family tent!), or lay flat sheets on a clothesline to make a tent.
Have the children make tent-shaped announcements that include information such as:
- Backyard Camp Date
- time to show up
- What to bring such as: sleeping bag, pillow, pajamas, toothbrush
- Time to be picked up the next morning.
- passenger information
When the kids show up for the kids’ camp activity, plan a cookout with grilled hot dogs on a stick, French fries, vegetable sticks and dip, and nutrition drinks. Make cupcakes decorated with shredded coconut (dyed with green food coloring for “grass”) and paper “tents” on top. Put the child’s name on each “tent.”
Before it gets dark, go over safety tips, where to put the bathroom for the night, and even a place they can go in to sleep if they need to. Issue that each camper have a flashlight or a litekick. Have insect repellent and a first aid kit available.
After it gets dark, play flashlight and shadow catching games with your fingers. Gather the group in a circle (or semi-circle) and place a camp lantern in the center. Dim the lights and tell “scary camping stories.” Or play a storytelling game in which the guest of honor (the child whose backyard is being used) begins a “fantastic tale” and each person around the circle has to add to the story until it’s done with the guest of honor. honor. With a small group, it can be fun to go around the group several times before finishing the story.
If the night is clear and cloudless, have everyone lie on their backs and look up at the night sky. Who can find the North Star, Polaris? Who can locate the Big Dipper and the Little Dipper? Look up the constellations in the summer sky for your area. See if they can locate any of them.
In the morning, before the campers go home, serve breakfast and have everyone “pack up.” If you want to send home small party favors, a whistle, compass, and stylus are popular with children.