Summer Fun with Art and Social Studies

Summer Fun with Art and Social Studies

History and Art make great companions and what better time to study them both than during the summer when you have a lighter schedule? Keep education alive by planning summer fun Social Studies field trips and activities. I love doing this in the summer because it also alleviates pressure during the school year. Doing these things will give you a frame work of education for the summer that is so much fun, the kids will hardly know they are studying Social Studies! Below are some of my favorite United States Social Studies activities:

Making short day trips or field trips to local historic locations in your state is a great jump in point. Read beforehand about your state’s historical figures so you can make the most of the time. A fun tent or tree house is a great place for imagination and can motivate the children by keeping a fictitious journal about a favorite historical time or person they learn about. https://www.pinterest.com/JugglingJJ/field-trip-ideas/

Draw a map of the United States or your own state and fill it in with stickers, names of cities, bodies of water, forests, etc. Draw in the commodities of that state. Learn state capitals along the way.

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Make a State Bingo Game by drawing pictures of your state bird, words to the state song, state flower, drawings of historical buildings and famous people. Draw two pictures of each and turn it into a matching game to play outdoors with lemonade on a blanket under the shade! https://deceptivelyeducational.blogspot.com/2011/09/united-states-bingo-game.html

Study Native Americans from your area. Cook Fry Bread and enjoy an authentic snack! Make Native American jewelry or attend a local powwow. For a fry bread recipe go to: https://www2.ed.gov/parents/academic/help/history/history.pdf

Visiting a Civil War reenactment and stimulate all your child’s senses! My children were eager to read more about it and do fun activities all summer. They even worked on their own reenactments! https://www.familyfriendlyreenacting.com/

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Bake a sugar cookie map! Trace the 48 states on a piece of wax paper taped over a United States map or puzzle. Mix or buy sugar cookie dough. Then cut the states out. Bake the larger and smaller states separately, so the tiny ones don’t burn. Frost them and write the two letter abbreviations and put the sugar cookie map together! For more detailed directions: https://almostunschoolers.blogspot.com/2010/04/unscrambled-united-states-geography-fun.html

Make a salt relief map of your state adding in lakes, rivers, mountains, etc. https://www.123homeschool4me.com/geography-fun-with-salt-dough-map

Reenact the Oregon trail in your back yard with bikes and wagons.

Paint the things you see all summer with the different mediums such as water color bubble art or marble painting https://artful-kids.com/blog/2012/02/02/3-ways-to-paint-with-bubbles/

Use Pointillism Painting with dots for Lincoln’s Log Cabin or a famous landmark in your state. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yIuKeZqJ6y0

Visit historical farms and museums-look up their special programs. https://www.cincymuseum.org/museum-camps/

Cook historical foods from your state’s emigrants and cultures.

Read historical living books like Little House on the Prairie, Westward Ho, and The Magic Tree House.

Make your own family tree or history video by asking older relatives to talk about the good old days. https://www.jkhnelson.com/2013/life/37-questions-grandparents-parents/

Make a personal time line with long sheets of paper-Use photos or mementos. Note any history of the world that happened at the same time. https://www.pinterest.com/pin/220535712975118058/