Your average American eight-year-old is either headed into or coming out of third grade in the summer. That means they are ready for some more advanced activities, but they aren’t tweens yet.
Kids this age are versatile and energetic. So, what do you do with them in summer? I’ll help you out with ten summer activities for eight-year-olds that should bring a smile to their faces and keep them busy for a while.
The best summer activities for 8 year olds are creative and energetic, like outdoor crafts and nature walks that take some effort and have a definite goal. At this age, kids are ready for more advanced adventures than their younger siblings, but they probably need a good deal of adult supervision as well. Fortunately, finding crafty, interactive, and playful games and activities is easy.
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5 Summer Activities For 8 Year Old Girl
Eight-year-old girls are filled with energy, and they need an outlet that gives them something to think about and a way to get physical at the same time.
Finding an excellent creative endeavor or a sporty solution means getting modern and thinking outside the box.
Here are 5 summer activities for 8 year old girls:
1 – Do STEM Activities Outdoors
Science, technology, engineering, and math, or STEM as it’s called, is still a male-dominated arena, but more and more women are getting involved.
There’s no better way to empower your daughter than by starting early. Take her outside for some fun summer STEM activities. Engineering is a great place to start, and that means building something big.
I recommend building a geometric fort to play inside. You can get this incredible Fun Forts Glow Fort Building Kit for Kids from Amazon.
The parts are simple enough for an eight-year-old, but there are enough possible combinations to give her a challenge.
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Last update on 2024-04-24 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
2 – Paint Nature
Non-toxic paints are an accessible and reusable craft supply that you can take outdoors. Make your eight-year-old girl a protective paint smock out of an old adult t-shirt you cut up the back.
Put a tarp or some newspaper down, and then go on a rock hunt.
Collecting some exciting rocks to paint is easy, and you can do this together. After you have a few, you can work together in the mess-free zone and get to work with a paintbrush and a cup of water.
When the rocks are dry, you can set them out in the garden or let her keep them in her room as a souvenir.
3 – Check Out An Indoor Trampoline Park
If you want to get out of the summer heat but still need to use up a lot of energy, check out an indoor trampoline park.
You can buy an hour or two and bounce out any excess energy together or watch from the sidelines as your 8 year old goes wild. Just make sure she has on good socks before you get in the car.
4 – Hit The Roller Skating Rink
Roller skating rinks are still a great place to go in summer. There’s no chance of sunburn, they usually have pizza, and the music is bound to be entertaining.
More importantly, many roller-skating rinks offer summer passes so you can hit the skate floor more often.
5 – Make Leaf Rubbings
Some summer days are just too hot to be wild. Instead, get a little sun by grabbing a bag and taking a slow walk around the neighborhood. While you’re out, collect up a few interesting leaves and put them in your bag.
Have a cool drink and use some paper and crayons to make leaf rubbings when you get home. All you need is a peeled crayon because you’ll use the side and some thin paper.
Printer paper works great for this. Arrange your leaves flat on a table, put paper over the top, and you can tape the edges down if you want. By rubbing the side of the crayons over the paper, you get colorful and easy leaf impressions.
5 Summer Activities For 8 Year Old Boy
8 year old boys this is often an age where they start to play more sports or video games.
According to Very Well Family, “For 8-year-old children, physical development is more about the refinement of skills, coordination, and muscle control rather than huge changes.” You can help them on their journey with suitable summer activities.
Here are 5 summer activities for 8 year old boys:
1 – Design A Comic Book
Summertime is great for playing outside, but when it gets hot or rainy, you may need a better indoor option for your eight-year-old boy.
Instead of dropping him in front of a TV screen for the day, give him a fun challenge. Ask him to make his own comic book.
You can help him outline the plot and characters. Then, let him draw and tell the story in whatever way appeals to him most.
All you need for this is printer paper, a ruler to make the frames on the page, and some staples for when he’s all done. Imagination is a beautiful thing, and it deserves summer exercise too.
2 – Scavenger Hunt
Using your powers of observation is vital at any age. However, for a growing eight-year-old boy, a good scavenger hunt can help him be more aware of the environment around him.
Not only is this a great outdoor activity, but it’s relatively easy for parents to set up.
All you need is a piece of paper and a pencil. Think of things you see around the yard or neighborhood, make a list, and then have him find them and write down where they are.
If you want to be extra, send him out with a small digital camera and have him take pictures. Most eight-year-olds are more than capable of handling this simple, creative observation, and it’s entertaining to see what they come up with.
3 – Go To The Skate Park
Sometimes a kid needs to get out and use up all that energy. A skate park is a perfect place to work on balance and coordination, plus it will wear him out. You only need skates or a skateboard.
I recommend a super-stable set of 4-Pejiijar Kids Adjustable Size Quad Roller Skates from Amazon. Not only do these light up, but they can grow with your kid’s feet. Plus, the dual back wheels are large and stable.
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Last update on 2024-04-24 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
4 – Target Practice
8 year old boys are just getting to the right age for a classic toy like a kids’ slingshot. A simple forked stick and rubber tube will do the trick, and they can spend hours outside shooting pebbles at targets.
You can use a dartboard, make DIY targets, or set up a row of cans on a wall easily. This summertime staple is classic.
5 – Climb A Wall
When you really need to wear out an eight-year-old boy, try an activity that engages his whole body. Not only will going to a climbing wall require all his strength, but he’ll have to concentrate.
Moreover, doing gross-motor activities like wall climbing and monkey-bar swinging helps kids with hand strength and fine motor skills like writing and drawing.
Best of all, professional wall climbing places have safety harnesses, so you don’t need to worry about him falling and getting hurt.
Helpful Tips To Know About Summer Activities For 8-Year-Olds
Summer activities for 8 year olds can be fun, creative, playful, and secretly also help them develop their coordination.
This age is the best time to start combining physical and mentally challenging activities that require more ‘tries’ than a smaller kid can handle before they give up.
Here are more helpful tips about summer activities for 8 year olds.
- Challenge your 8 year old, but don’t push them too hard. There’s a fine line between encouragement and making kids do something they aren’t ready for, so always let them back down if they need more time on a particular challenge.
- Choose summer activities for 8 year olds that help them start to focus on the world around them better even as they expend energy at play or creating something.
- If none of my suggestions work, try out some child-led activities. Let your kids tell you what they want and need. Sometimes hide and seek or a story together in a porch swing is more what they need than any fancy plans an adult can come up with. Your kids will feel heard and validated if you involve them in choosing activities.
Final Thoughts
Summer fun means different things to different kids and families. Fortunately, there are tons of great ways to get out and enjoy the break from school.
Whether your kiddo wants to get their groove on by skating indoors or literally climbing walls, eight-year-olds are fun and full of almost as much energy as their toddler counterparts.
However, they are more capable and need something that presents a challenge. Once you’ve tried these ten activities, see if you can come up with ten more, or ask your eight-year-old and see what inspires them.