Games and activities to play with the grandchildren

The summer is fast approaching, and the summer holidays will soon be upon us. This can only mean one thing… grandkids coming to stay!!

But what fun and games can you have when they’re over?

Fear not. We’ve rounded up some of the best games and activities for grandkids that will keep them entertained for hours.

Scavenger hunts

A scavenger hunt is a great way to entertain the children for a few hours, and can be as fast or as slow as you like.

The grandchildren will get a chance to practice their observation and exploration skills, whilst also learning about new things and new places.

You can try all sorts of scavenger hunts with the grandkids. The Edventures With Kids blog has all sorts of ideas to try.

Shooting ranges

This activity for those grandchildren that have water pistols or Nerf guns! Rather than having them use them around the house, why not set up a shooting range outside?

To do this, all you’ll need is some plastic cups of various different colours (you can buy these cheaply at Poundland or similar). You should assign each colour a different point score.

Then simply place the cups around the garden at different angles, with the aim of the kids shooting them. Each child gets 10 shots. Total up the points, and the winner gets a prize!

Lawn Scrabble

This one is both an exercise, and a brainteaser. By painting the letters onto tiles – try with lino or another lightweight material – you can make your own version of word games! Scrabble is the obvious choice, but you can also do Bananagrams or even Boggle.

Don’t feel like making the board outside? Why not just go without it?

Simply make the words as you go, and try and fit as many into the garden as you can without overflowing. Then total up the letters at the end and see who’s got the highest score.

DIY piñata

Making your own piñata is a great way to stretch an activity over several days, ensuring that you don’t end up with bored grandchildren. It’s fun and inexpensive to do and can really make a fun activity.

First up is making the actual piñata. You can do this either with a DIY piñata kit, like this one from Etsy, or making your own from scratch.

If you’re making from scratch, we’d advise that you make it sturdy. You can use either cardboard or papier-mâché, but keep in mind that it’s going to be attacked with a stick.

Pretty Little Party Shop has good instructions for making a piñata from papier-mâché, and The Many Little Joys has instructions for making one from a cardboard box.

Once you’ve decorated your piñata, fill it with sweets or toys that you can get from the Poundshop. Then let the kids go for it!

Ice block treasure hunt

This activity is great for a really hot day, and can really help keep the children cool while they play.

The idea is to freeze small toys – the types you get from Poundland, e.g. plastic animals, rubber balls, shells, jewellery etc – into a giant ice block.

Throw all the toys into a giant bucket and cover with water, then freeze (if you have a big enough freezer of course).

Once it’s frozen, give to your grandkids with some tools to help them get the toys out. Warm water in a spray bottle, salt, paintbrushes, and hammers all work well.

If you do decide to let the kids use a hammer, be careful with the toys. The children can easily smash the toys with the hammer, creating sharp edges or choking hazards.

If the ice block is big enough, this can take several hours. Just make sure to do this in the garden, as all the ice pieces will melt and create a big puddle.

What do you think? Did you try any of our activities? Did we miss any really good ones off? Let us know over on Twitter.