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Things to Do
 

125 Things to Do

1.        Surprise your Little by celebrating his/her half birthday.

2.       Make a thin layer of Jello-O and carve it into letters, numbers, figures, etc.

3.        Together, write a family newspaper for friends and relatives.

4.       Take a walk together with a memento bag and collect interesting leaves, rocks or junk.

5.        Go to the bank and open a saving account.

6.       Design a Christmas card together.

7.        Make a bug cage and catch bugs.

8.       Eat lunch with your Little at school.

9.       Weave a ring out of grass.

10.    Paint graffiti on the walls of a room a few days before it is to be repainted.

11.     Buy 10 shares of stock in an inexpensive company and watch it make or lose money.

12.    Look up new words in the dictionary.

13.     Use a globe to locate friends, travel destinations and current events.

14.    Go on a sound scavenger hunt with a tape recorder.

15.     Go shopping at a secondhand store for dress-up clothes.

16.    Make a collage of your lives with pictures cut from magazines.

17.     Make giant soap bubbles.

18.    Plan an imaginary vacation.

19.    Roast marshmallows with toothpicks over the flame of a candle.

20.    Learn a simple magic trick and amaze your friends.

21.    Show your Little your high school yearbook picture.

22.    Paint an original T-shirt.

23.    Go for a walk through a hardware stores and explain the function of various tools.

24.    Compliment your Little's character and skill three times for every one compliment of their appearance.

25.    Find all the living things on a one-foot square of grass.

26.    Trace around your little on a piece of butcher paper each year to show how much your little has grown.

27.    Learn to count to 10 in a foreign language.

28.    Go to a volleyball or basketball game at the high school your Little will attend.

29.    Write a letter to your Little on your match anniversary telling them what you've noticed about them in the last year.

30.    Have an art show featuring your Little's masterpieces. Invite your friends and family to come and buy original, signed artwork. Set low prices and everything will sell.

31.     Practice filling out applications for everything.

32.    Make homemade potpourri with dried flower petals.

33.     Help your Little make a list of everyone who loves them.

34.    Explore the attic.

35.     Paint a special message on a wooden cutting board as a present for mom.

36.    Wash the car.

37.     Make a calendar of the big events of the year.

38.    Write a poem about your Little and read it at a special occasion.

39.    Feed the birds.

40.    Look through a book of house plans and pick out your dream house.

41.    Help your Little write a letter to the author of their favorite book.

42.    Buy a rubber stamp or stickers with your Little's name and address on them.

43.    Start a coin or stamp collection.

44.    Get a book of animal tracks and explore a pond or trail to see what animals live there.

45.    Create a tornado in a bottle; put colored water in a two-liter bottle, connect another bottle to it like an hourglass, turn it over and give it a swirl.

46.    Go on a camera scavenger hunt. Let your Little take the pictures.

47.    Tape record messages to send to grandparents or other loved ones who don't live nearby.

48.    Stencil a border pattern around the tope of a wall.

49.    Go on a newspaper scavenger hunt.

50.    Read biographies of people who did great thing and let your Little know they can do great things too.

51.     Learn to program a computer in BASIC language.

52.    Finger paint with chocolate, lemon or strawberry pudding.

53.     Make mini-pizzas using English muffins.

54.    Make maracas by coving light bulbs with layers of paper-mache. When they dry, gently break the glass and paint.

55.     Write a letter to your Congressional representatives regarding an issue important to both of you.

56.    Donate old toys and clothes to a community shelter.

57.     Check out a tree identification book from the library and discover which trees grow in your neighborhood.

58.    Using the letters from a big word, see how many smaller words you can create.

59.    Train together and participate in a one-K fun run.

60.    Role play meeting new people so your Little will have more confidence in unfamiliar situations.

61.    Invite someone who has lived in a foreign country over for dinner to talk about life in that country.

62.    Use of book of names to find the meaning of your names.

63.    Build a log cabin out of Popsicle sticks and glue.

64.    Watch a potter throwing on a wheel.

65.    Use a magnifying glass to examine all kinds of little things.

66.    Make a tent using blankets stretched over chairs.

67.    Teach your Little to use a fire extinguisher.

68.    Squeeze fresh orange juice.

69.    Tape record yourselves reading your favorite stories.

70.    Tour the state capitol.

71.     Go to the airport for lunch and watch the planes take off and land.

72.    Share photographs and home movies of you as a child.

73.     Roast pumpkin seeds in the oven.

74.    Take your Little with you to vote.

75.     Volunteer to ring a bell for charity at Christmas.

76.    Get creative with some lumber, hammer and nails.

77.     Volunteer to visit your Little's class to tell students about your profession.

78.    Open the hood of a car and point out various parts of the engine.

79.    Give your Little an old billfold or purse. "Accidentally" leave a dollar or two hidden inside.

80.    Speak highly of the people in your life.

81.    Read books about famous inventors.

82.    Enjoy a fresh coconut or pineapple.

83.    Watch the activity at a construction site.

84.    Build and paint a birdhouse.

85.    Learn to tap out your names in Morse code and to sign your names in sign language.

86.    Order sea monkeys or Chia pets and watch them grow.

87.    Skip rocks on water.

88.    Photocopy each others hands on a copy machine.

89.    Buy a yo-yo and learn how to do tricks with it.

90.    Make a video movie.

91.    Have business cards printed with your Little's name and a catchy slogan.

92.    Go to a photographer's darkroom and learn how negatives and prints are made.

93.    Visit a farm and milk a cow.

94.    Look in the phone book to find people with your same last names.

95.    Set up a roadside lemonade stand.

96.    Using play money, show your Little how you spend the money you earn.

97.    Get a chemistry set and perform your own experiments.

98.    Write to the President and ask for a photo. (You'll receive a picture and a whole packet of information)

99.    Build a house of cards together.

100. Have notepads imprinted with your Little's name.

101. Make your own code with numbers representing letters. Send each other coded messages.

102. Teach your pet a new trick.

103. Visit a college.

104. Make pancakes from scratch.

105. Learn to identify three constellations.

106. Paint an old piece of furniture.

107. Learn CPR.

108. Do something for an elderly friend.

109. Learn 10 new words in a foreign language.

110. Rent a bicycle for two and tour the arboretum.

111. Learn to use a real camera - one in which nothing is automatic.

112. Go ice-skating, get hot chocolate afterwards.

113. Explore the children's museum.

114. Help your Little make dinner for their mom on her birthday.

115. Have a Monopoly tournament.

116. Visit a hospital and look at the new babies in the nursery.

117. Surf the Internet.

118. Learn how to fix your bikes.

119. Visit a nursing home and read or sing to the residents. Or, ask them to describe what life was like when they were your Little's age.

120. Whack golf balls at the driving range.

121. Shop for hats bearing the insignia of your Little's favorite sports teams.

122. Walk around a boat show, sporting show or Star Trek convention.

123. Bake and frost cutout cookies.

124. Rent a canoe.

125. Assemble a model or bookcase.



 

Age ranges are guidelines only – many activities are appropriate for children of all ages! Please remember to regularly talk through activities with your Little’s parent or guardian—they are an important part of your match

Ages 5-7:

  • Bake and frost cut out cookies
  • Fly a kite on a windy day
  • Go on a walk and collect interesting rocks, leaves or other items
  • Feed the ducks at the park
  • Make a present for someone special
  • Play UNO, Crazy 8s, or Old Maid
  • Play badminton or croquet
  • Go for a walk and find interesting places to practice “balancing”
  • Have a peanut butter and jelly sandwich picnic
  • Visit a pet store and decide which is the oddest pet
  • Cloud watch on a bright summer day
  • Make a collage using seeds, rice, cereal and old buttons
  • Catch fireflies together

Ages 8-10:

  • Go on a camera scavenger hunt to find odd objects to photograph
  • Make greeting, get well, or holiday cards for special people
  • Make a bug cage and catch lightning bugs together
  • Read a book out loud and tape record it
  • Work on a puzzle
  • Play miniature golf or go bowling
  • Play Monopoly, Life, Sorry, or hangman
  • Go on a field trip to the museum – focus on one exhibit and discuss it
  • Go for a bike ride
  • Make a lemonade or a hot cocoa stand
  • Got to the library together
  • Participate in seasonal activities – go apple picking, carve a pumpkin, make a snowman, go puddle jumping, paint Easter eggs

Ages 11-13:

  • Build and paint a bird house – watch for occupants
  • Rent rollerblades and learn to skate
  • Make a list of people you admire – look them upon the Internet  
  • Mow the lawn or wash the car together
  • Play computer and video games together
  • Participate in a community service activity to show your Little the importance of giving back
  • Plan or plant a garden or visit a community garden and offer to help
  • Pick and press wild flowers
  • Share your greatest fears with each other
  • Make a list of all the items in the house that use electricity
  • Check out a local high school or college sports game  

Ages 14-16:

  • Research what happened on the day and year each of you was born  
  • Check out the classified advertisements and discuss what each job requires in terms of education and experience
  • Go out for dinner at an ethnic restaurant – who else is eating there? What is your favorite dish?
  • Explore a new radio station together
  • Plan and shop for ingredients to cook dinner together
  • Go to a concert featuring a favorite performer
  • Try mastering something difficult: juggling, cooking a soufflé, water color painting
  • Watch a professional or semi-professional sporting event
  • Talk about today's news
  • Buy ten shares of stock in an inexpensive company that your Little will recognize and watch it make or lose money
  • Take your Little on a tour of your place of work
  • Go fishing 

 

 

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© 2011 Big Brothers Big Sisters of Snohomish County, 1420 Hewitt Ave Everett WA 98201

Big Brothers Big Sisters
, the Big Brothers Big Sisters logo, and Start Something are service marks of Big Brothers Big Sisters of America, Inc. (BBBSA) and are used under a license from BBBSA. All rights reserved.