Back


On Their Own

Here are some activities children can try on their own. (Note: Activities one through seven are for younger children and eight through 16 are for older children.)
  1. Have your child cut out pictures of faces, clothing, hands and feet and then arrange them to create funny people.
  2. Have your children cut out letters from the newspaper to spell his or her name. Then paste the name on a sign or poster to display. Your child might also try to spell the names of other people in the family, perhaps making a place mat for each.
  3. Challenge your child to look through the food ads to find products that could be combined into a new and unusual sandwich. (Or suggest coming up with a new horrible-tasting sandwich!)
  4. Have your child choose a picture from the newspaper. Your child might draw a picture of what happened just before the photograph was taken and another of what happened after.
  5. Check the entertainment ads for movies or concerts. Choose a place you would like to go as a family. Ask your child to figure out the cost of having all family members attend.
    Have your child create a scrapbook of stories, pictures, ads or comics that are of interest.
  6. Ask your child to write a letter to a family member or a friend who lives in another city. Share with that person local news and events that have been gathered from the newspaper.
  7. Find pictures in the newspaper of two people they would want to know more about. What good or bad actions have caused them to be in the news? List each person's good qualities / actions and bad qualities/actions.
  8. Find words and pictures in the newspaper that best describe your child. Can they find a picture or description of anyone in the newspaper who shares some of their interests? Do this for other members of the family.
  9. Look through the ads to find coupons and bargain prices. Compare the prices for these items at two stores. How much money can be saved by comparison-shopping?
  10. Choose characters from the Sunday comic strips that would make up their family. Create a comic strip using these characters.
  11. Create a scrapbook of stories, pictures, comics and ads that appear in the newspaper on important days in their lives - birthdays, holidays, graduation, etc.
  12. Look through the Travel section to find locations they would like to visit. Find ads for airlines, hotels, clothes and other items that might be needed if they were to visit these locations.
  13. Find a column in the newspaper that they enjoy reading. If they could work as a columnist, what topics would they write about? Write a sample column to share with the family.
  14. Find an issue in the newspaper that they feel strongly about. Write a letter to the editor expressing their opinion on that issue.
  15. Over a period of several weeks, have children find pictures and articles about other children (you might want them to find information about children their own age) in the news. In what section or sections did they find the most articles? What did the children do to be in the newspaper?
  16. Look up the weather in the city where their favorite sport is being played. What kinds of special clothing do athletes need for different sports?
Bookmark and Share