How to do Summer Camp at Home (AKA Camp Mom)

This summer camp at home weekly schedule AKA Camp Mom will be the thing your kids look forward to every summer. 

---

It’s two whole months and it’s the hottest time of year (but I don’t need to remind you about the heat). 

If you’re starting to think about what you’ll do all summer with your toddler or big kids at home, you’re in the right place!

I met another mom recently at the library, and this was our main topic of conversation: 

Should your kids go to summer camp if you’re a stay at home mom?

I used to love going to camp when I was growing up and it was also necessary because both of my parents worked.

Now as I’m home with my kids, I see the benefits to sending kids to day camp (especially as my older kids are growing up) and also keeping them home.

That being said, camp is *expensive* – and with 3 kids, we realistically can’t afford to send them all to camp every week, and I also don’t want to miss out on spending time with them while they’re home from school. 

I believe the term we’re looking for here is balance? 🙂

So whether you have 1 week of dance camp or sports camp planned and then a couple of “free” weeks, then maybe a family trip planned and another week of activity camp, etc. –

I’ll help you create a weekly summer schedule that feels like Summer Camp at Home!

• It definitely doesn’t have to be all or nothing
• You can still send the kids to camp here and there and then also do a fun themed week of Camp Mom

Summer Rhythms & Routines

Of course, as a stay at home mom, having a solid daily routine is everything, even over summer break.

Rather than waking up every day and wondering “what am I going to do with these kids today?” – it helps to have a plan! 

Supplies above linked here on Amazon

A routine doesn’t have to be a strict schedule, it’s meant to be a road map for your day. 

Your routine includes everyday things like feeding kids, daily activities (like we’ll cover in this post), and sleep schedules (naptime, bedtime, quiet time if needed).

Now you may be thinking:

How can I make summer fun at home?

It’s definitely a relief to know that you don’t need a bunch of expensive toys to create a memorable summer with your kids.

Here are my top tips for Camp Mom:

• Just add water! Preschoolers love water play. Whether you only have room for a water table, or you set up a big splash pad in the backyard, make use of what you have to create a fun water environment (yes, even playing in the bathtub counts!)
• Pick a theme for each day to guide your activities (see kids camp themes below!)
• Take a trip to the dollar store and load up on inexpensive supplies like bubbles, sidewalk chalk, measuring cups, scoops, funnels, ice cube trays and other essentials for a mud kitchen 🙂
• Schedule screentime as a tool when you need it most! Rather than having the TV on all day in the background or saying yes at inconsistent times, pick a time of day like an afternoon movie after lunch, or morning TV while you make breakfast. 

How do I make a DIY Summer Camp Schedule?

1. You don’t have to plan out every week of the summer up front.
2. I like to take it week-by-week and have a theme for each day.
3. This helps defeat the “what should I do with my toddler today?” question. 

Here are some tips for creating a summer schedule that works for you:

• Make a list of summer activities for preschoolers: this could be a bucket list of all the things you want to do this summer, or a list of ideas you’ve seen on Pinterest or Instagram.
• Pick a time of day to do these activities: This is an important part of creating your schedule – where do these activities fit into your daily routine? For us, the best time to do our “summer camp” activities is after breakfast and before lunch, so usually between 9 AM – 12 PM, or late afternoon, around 3-5 PM. 
• Use a planner, dry erase board or big piece of paper: Write down your weekly theme or daily activities, this will help keep you organized and will also help your kids know what to expect! 

The spiral bound book above is The Preschool Playbook!

This is my basic summer camp schedule template:

1. Make Something Monday
2. Take a Trip Tuesday
3. Water Play Wednesday
4. Thinking Thursday
5. Foodie Friday 

And of course, life happens! 

There’s no reason you can’t do a Field Trip Friday if Tuesday gets rained out. 

The specific days are not as important as having fun, having a plan, and making memories, so don’t feel that you need to stick to the theme days, if changing them around works better that week.

Read: How to get Organized for Summer with your Kids

Mom Camp: DIY Summer Camp at Home for Kids

For this post I’m going to share a sample week using an Ocean Theme (I see a Moana movie afternoon in our future 😀).

I got this idea from The Preschool Playbook which has so many fun Summer themes to choose from like: Patriotic, Nature, Water, Outer Space, Camping, Sweet Treats, Balls & Sports, STEM, and of course, Summer!

Remember that all activities require adult supervision. 

Make Something Monday

What do you do with all of those sea shells that kids collect from beach vacations? 

Asking for a friend 🙂

Here we painted them with chalkboard markers!

• This was a great afternoon activity to pass some time, while I sat and drank my afternoon coffee and the kids just listened to an audio book on the Yoto player and colored their sea shells
• Another fun idea is to make an ocean theme playdough tray (as shown below)
• You can also find all of my summer activity supplies, here!

Here are two more Ocean-themed ideas for Make Something Monday:

Read: Ultimate Guide to Play Dough (Recipes, Storage & Activities)

Take a Trip Tuesday

Last summer we got creative with this one and it’s something my kids still talk about. 

For an ocean theme week, you can of course take the kids to an aquarium and that’s really the perfect way to spend an ocean-themed Take a Trip Tuesday, but if you’re on a budget (who isn’t!), you can go walk around the fish section of the pet store for free 😀

Water Play Wednesday

There are so many ideas that work here for a Water Play day:

• Sprinklers/splash pad
• Inflatable slide (worth it if you have multiple kids!)
• Water table
• Pool day
• Beach day
• Water sensory bin 

If water play doesn’t work out, you can also make a Sand & Sea theme sensory play bin! 

You can use blue magnetic tiles as the “water” (I wouldn’t mix water with kinetic sand as it will ruin it). 

Thinking Thursday

Head to the library to check out Ocean Themed books!

Most libraries have online systems or apps where you can also search for books, put them on hold/request, so that way if your local branch doesn’t have the book you’re looking for, they’ll order it for you from another branch!

Like grocery pickup, but for books! 

Use your book haul to make a morning basket or a screen-free morning setup, shown below. 

I’ve saved all of our favorite Summer themed books for you, here.

Foodie Friday

Make sandcastle ice cream!

What you’ll need:

• Individual size container of vanilla ice cream (I use Hagen Dazs)
• Golden oreos
• Tiny umbrellas (Dollar Tree!)

1. Crush the Oreos (easiest in a zip-top bag with a rolling pin)
2. Using a kitchen scissor, cut the carton off around the ice cream.
3. Invert the ice cream into the bowl (so the bottom is on top)
4. Top with crushed oreos and an umbrella!

Or you can make a fun DIY ice cream sundae bar (shown above right).

Here are some more ideas that you can use to fit any summer camp theme:

Make Something Monday

• Try a new recipe that you pick together 
• Do a craft kit from Michael’s or Target Dollar Spot 
• Choose something to try from Pinterest 
• Make a card to send to grandparents or family 

Take a Trip Tuesday

• Visit a relative who lives nearby and bring them something special
• Try out a new playground, park, or walking trail
• Ride bikes around a new area/neighborhood
• Go to the children’s museum, aquarium, planetarium, wildlife center or whatever you have available to you

Water Play Wednesday

• Set up a baby pool, splash pad, sprinkler, or water table 
• Take some favorite toys and freeze them in ice cube trays
• Fill squirt bottles with water and food coloring – endless possibilities
• Visit a local pool, beach, splash park or kid-friendly water park

Remember: Water Play always requires adult supervision at all times

Thinking Thursday

• Head to the local library to check out books 
• Visit the children’s museum
• Go to Barnes & Noble to play and buy a new book
• Visit a local museum to check out an exhibit 
• Do an age-appropriate science experiment at home 

Foodie Friday

• Try out a new recipe from a cookbook or Pinterest
• Go to Barnes & Noble and pick out a kid’s cookbook together – then try a recipe from it!
• Send the kids out for donuts with dad (personal favorite 😉)
• Try a new restaurant or bakery
• Have a make your own pizza night 

And for more help with easy summer activities (like the ones shared this week), routines, road trip tips, water safety & more, check out our Summer Survival Guide below.