The Boys & Girls club is a great place for your children to interact with other children, play games and participate in field trips. Depending on your children’s ages, there are age appropriate games, as well as opportunities to join a baseball league or other sports team. One good thing about the Boys & Girls club is that there is usually at least one location in just about every town. Another great thing is that the cost of a membership per child is a mere $25 for the entire year. That’s only a fraction of the $200 and up that most summer programs charge. Of course it costs extra for field trips and other activities, but you can’t beat the price. One thing that you must be aware of is that children at the Boys & Girls club can come and go as they please, so you will have to give your children specific instructions regarding leaving the center.

Many area libraries offer free or low cost activities for children during the summer. Many have crafts, reading groups, theme-based parties/celebrations, etc. Now while it will probably not be a daily program, whatever activities that your local library does offer can be beneficial to you children. Not only can library activities help enrich your children’s education, but it also gives them something to do in order to prevent boredom. Another plus is that your children will be exposed to books each time they are at the library, which will hopefully spark their interest in reading more often. In order to find out what activities your local library offers, simply call or visit for more information.

If you have no choice but to stay home with your kids or leave them with a babysitter, there are still ways to keep your children occupied and out of trouble for the summer. If you’re home with them, you need to take the time to spend quality time with them. You can go on bike rides, picnics, and to the beach, just to name a few. These are great ways to bond while saving money simultaneously. If you must work while your children stay with a babysitter, then by all means, make sure that your babysitter isn’t going to sit in front of the TV all day while your children play outside all day. You should choose a sitter who is going to read with your children, take them on nature hikes, to age-appropriate dollar movies, if one is available in your area, as well as other activities.

You don’t have to settle for paying for summer programs with rates equivalent to your mortgage payment. Your children can have a wonderful, productive, and fun summer without causing you to go broke in the process. If you can’t enroll them in a summer program and there is no Boys & Girls club in your area, there is always the option of allowing them to go to a recreation center near your house to play free games. You could also plan a “trip” to take them on each week, to bowling alleys, carnivals, museums, zoos, etc. If your children become bored rather easily, then you need to ensure that there is very little downtime during their day, even if you designate certain times of the day “quiet time,” when they’re supposed to read a book or complete a written assignment. Whatever you choose to keep your children occupied over the summer, just remember that it doesn’t have to be expensive to be fun.