Keep Kids Busy With A Summertime PLAYlist

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(NAPSA)—When school’s out, it’s up to parents and caregivers to keep kids busy. Instead of waiting to hear the dreaded “I'm bored,’ families can be prepared with fun activities to ensure children are playing and learningall vacation long. According to experts at The Genius of Play”, a national movement to encourage moreplay in children’s lives, research showsthatplay is notonlycritical to healthy child development—it’s an important teaching tool. Through play, kids build physical skills, improve cognitiveabilities, learn communication and social skills, process and express Encourage your kids to express themselves with arts and crafts whenschoolis out. + Rock art—Whetherused as deco- rationsorto leave kind messages around emotions, andincreasecreativity. Meredith Sinclair, author and The the neighborhood,rockart is a trendy andeasycraft. Havekidscollect rocks of writing activities on popsicle sticks and placing them in play jar to create a PLAYlist of fun ideas. Whenever rocks areclean,use acrylic paint to decorate them. Genius of Play Ambassador, suggests children are bored or needinspiration, encouragethemtoselect from the play jarto stir up theircreativity. To help get your PLAYlist started, various shapesandsizes, and once the + Make a movie—Nurture your children’s inner filmmakers by encouraging them to create their own movie using a smartphone/tablet, some of their toys to play the characters and Sinclair recommends the following crafts for scenery. Oncethe movieis finished,gatherthe family and some pop+ Grow a garden—A fun, educa- cornto have a viewing party and admire activities: tionalwaytolet kids get dirty is by having them start their very own vegetable garden.They'll love planting the seedsto watch them grow.They'll also be learn- inga senseofresponsibility and getting a confidence boost by being proud of whathas blossomed undertheircare. + Camping—No need to go far. Gatherall the campingessentials, such as flashlights, sleeping bags, smore ingredients and a pop-uptent, head to the living room orthe backyard andset up campforthe night. yourchildren’s creativity. + DIY T-shirts—Havechildren play clothing designer for the day. Let them personalize a T-shirt with craft supplies such as tie-dye, puff paints, sequins, iron-on patches and anythingelse they mightlike. More play ideas, expert advice and other play resources are available at TheGeniusofPlay.org. Follow @ GeniusOfPlay on Facebook and Instagram for even further play inspiration.