Be a Rockstar and a Stargazer
Science is great fun, and it’s all around us: look down as well as up with your kids this fall to see the treasures earth has to offer. Check out www.pbslearningmedia.org for resources on everything from the three different types of rock to that big rock in space we call the moon. Then head over to www.onegeology.org to learn all you ever wanted to about rocks and minerals, including what makes earthquakes happen and how fossils are formed. And, pour some hot chocolate and grab a sweater to stargaze. Sky and Telescope, www.skyandtelescope.org, teaches you how to spot the planets, identify constellations, and view a meteor shower.
Get Crafty
There are so many fun fall crafts, it’s hard to choose just one. Luckily, you don’t need to. Pathways, www.pathways.org, offers free crafting ideas to optimize children’s sensory, motor, and communication development. Use their fun guide to press leaves, knit, and make a bird feeder with your kids. Have a budding entomologist? Critter crafts from www.pestworldforkids.org will have them creating adorable aphids. Want to be a rock star? Start decorating rocks with the kids. This guide to rock art by www.artistshelpingchildren.org offers instructions for how to make paperweights, pet rocks, and maracas! Lastly, you can make bedtime a masterpiece by creating a bedroom planetarium with www.geniusofplay.org. Your kids’ celestial ceilings will have them begging for bedtime.
Help Others
As the weather turns cooler and the days grow shorter, it can be difficult for those already struggling, especially during the coronavirus crisis. Doing good deeds is a way to have fun while helping others. Some great ideas from www.dosomething.org include mowing a neighbor’s lawn, walking dogs, and fostering a shelter animal. Write a letter to a veteran through the National Veterans Memorial and Museum, www.nationalvmm.org, to thank them and brighten their day. Include your child’s artwork and involve them in writing. Or, organize a fall food drive in your community. Through www.foodlifeline.org you can plan and host a canned food drive. Ask older kids to help you by emailing their friends and designating a drop-off point at your house. Younger children can aid in sorting through supplies.
Autumn is many people’s favorite season. While it may feel a little different this year, it can still be a time of renewal, beauty, and family fun. Whichever ways you and your family decide to mark the season, we hope these great ideas from .ORGs help keep you and your family entertained this fall.