8 ways to keep your kids entertained on P.E.I. this summer
'We decided to do this production to give the talented kids on P.E.I. a chance to strut their stuff'
Have you heard it yet? "Mom! I'm bored!"
From spending the day at one of P.E.I.'s amusement parks (high $), to visiting a farm (medium $) to the free playground and pool at Victoria Park or one of the Island's many free beaches, there's no need to hear that phrase on P.E.I. this summer.
Reading clubs — we go to the one at the French school so the kids can keep hearing the French they have been working so hard on.— Elizabeth Carr, mother of two
Here are just a few suggestions to curb the urge to send them away to camp for the entire summer.
1. Castles in the sand
Island artist Maurice Bernard will have you building sandcastles like a pro at his free workshops, offered three days a week from 1 to 4 p.m. in the P.E.I. National Park. Mondays and Saturdays he's in Cavendish and Wednesdays in Brackley.
On July 16, there's a sandcastle competition to honour Canada Parks Day — individuals, team and families can enter, and there are prizes.
The workshops are free, but you'll need to pay to get into the park.
2. Book club
Feed the readers in your family with a kids' book club. You could set up your own, and TD bank sponsors a summer reading club at libraries across the Island every summer for all ages.
This year's theme is Wild! The club encourages kids to set a reading goal and record their progress, and enter to win great prizes when it wraps up August 18. It's all free — the schedule is here.
3. Song and dance
Dovetailing nicely with a morning library visit in Charlottetown is the free outdoor show by the Confederation Centre Young Company called The Voice of Canada, featuring high-energy dancing and singing and colourful costumes.
The Young Company is where some Canadian actors have gotten their start, so you might someday be able to say, "I saw them when..." It's 50 minutes long, so bring hats, sunscreen, water, and maybe even snacks.
It's free, but donations are accepted. More info here.
4. The Little Mermaid
The Little Mermaid is an hour-long Disney song and dance show playing Mondays and Thursdays throughout July and August at The Guild in Charlottetown.
"It is fast-paced and full of great music and projections similar to the movie," said Lori Linkletter of Top Hat Productions.
There are a whopping 59 Island children ages seven to 17 in the cast.
"We decided to do this production to give the talented kids on P.E.I. a chance to strut their stuff, and they are amazing!"
Tickets are $15 in advance or at the door. More info here.
5. Compete in a fair
Enter the Women's Institute craft, horticulture and arts show at Charlottetown's annual Old Home Week fair.
Do you have a competitive or creative youngster? Anyone can enter the WI handcraft, horticulture and arts show and there are lots of cash prizes.
There are 24 categories for youth up to 17 years old, from sewing to artwork to homemade bread or muffins. They can make a flower or vegetable arrangement, or enter a craft or a scrapbook they already have done.
There's a full list in the handbook here, along with directions on how to enter. Deadline to submit entry forms is July 26, and the show starts August 9. You could be part of a fun, free tradition that's been going since 1924.
6. Story and Craft
As part of the Morell River Run festival this weekend, take the kids to Rossiter Park grounds by the river from 10 to 11 a.m. for story time and craft-making.
Crafts are suitable for kids ages three and over, and it's all free.
7. Happy Potter
You can paint pre-made pottery pieces at Happy Potter in Stratford, P.E.I., daily in the afternoons and evenings. Prices range from $5 to $30.
Or try your hand at pottery-making with one of their Wednesday clay-after-day workshops. It's a two-stage process: first, you make something from a ball of clay, like a vase. Once it's fired in a kiln, you return another day to paint your creation. Appropriate for kids 10 and older, the cost is $30.
"Pottery is really quite magical," said owner Donna MacLeod.
"I find it to be a real confidence-builder for kids, as you can really do no wrong with pottery creations and they are so proud with their one-of-a-kind works of art that last forever."
8. Your suggestions
CBC asked folks for their suggestions via Facebook. While one friend commented he's ready to throw his kid's PS4 into Covehead Bay, others had gentler ideas.
"Vacation Bible School at CRC is a favourite," writes Elizabeth Carr. "There are also a lot of reading clubs — we go to the one at the French school so the kids can keep hearing the French they have been working so hard on learning."
Kimberly Rayner Rashed said she sent her girls outside with a list to start their own obstacle course they could have friends join in.
"Hopscotch, jumping jacks, basketball dribble, rollerblade to top of street and back, draw whole family in chalk on driveway, the list went on," she writes, telling them not to come back until they'd done it a handful of times.
"It's like these kids don't know what to do with themselves once they get locked, I mean 'sent,' outdoors," she joked.
And Shawn Connolly likes to cycle the trails at Cavendish Orchard — that's the old Rainbow Valley site — then along to the National Park with his two youngsters.
One more thing...
And finally, here's my suggestion: load up the back of the pickup with pillows and blankets, maybe even an air bed, and take the kids and their friends to the Brackley Drive-In theatre, the only one on P.E.I.
There are two movies per night — this week it's the new Ghostbusters movie (fun for kids) and The Shallows (scary, for teens and adults). A vehicle of up to five people costs $35 on Sundays and Wednesdays, other days it's $11 for adults and $7 for kids, and those under four get in free. More info here.
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