Ages 7-9

Free/Low cost

·            Work together to create something unique (a clay sculpture, a painted rock, a holiday ornament).

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

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

·            Design a Christmas card together.

·            Weave a ring out of grass.

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

·            Make giant soap bubbles.

·            Create paper snowflakes.

·            Make puppets and put on a show.

·            Start a gratitude journal together listing 5 things you’re thankful for daily or weekly.

·            Plan an imaginary vacation.

·            Learn a few magic tricks and put on a show for your friends and family.

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

·            Make a bug cage and catch bugs.

·            Learn to count to 10 in a foreign language.

·            Explore the attic.

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

·            Start a coin or stamp collection.

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

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

·            Spend time just talking about how your week was and how you’re feeling.

·            Walk along the native prairie lands of Tatagwa Parkway

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

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

·            Tape record yourselves reading your favourite stories.

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

·            Make a treasure or jewellery box.

·            Make your own chocolates with chocolate moulds.

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

·            Build a house of cards together.

·            Go swimming at NickleLake.

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

·            Make pancakes from scratch.

·            Bake and frost cut-out cookies.

·            Have a carpet picnic on the living room floor and watch a movie.

·            Maintain a scrapbook of all the things you do together. Include ticket stubs, menus, pictures, brochures, programs and other mementos.

·            Decorate brown lunch bags and make them into gift bags.

·            Decorate eggs - not just at Easter.

·            Tell each other stories. Start by giving the other a starting sequence, such as "I was walking to school the other day and I saw..."

·            Create a bead necklace or bracelet.

·            Make a vase or decorate an old bottle or jar with paint, jewels, or buttons.

·            Cast their hand in plaster of paris in a pie plate or pan. Remember to write the name and date on the back after it fully hardens.

·            Make Christmas ornaments out of dough.

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

·            Make a family tree in the shape of a triangle with the Little’s name or picture at the top and the parents and grandparents branching out below.

·            Help them write and illustrate a story, fanciful or autobiographical, that you bind into a book with plastic comb bindings.

·            Make a Mother’s Day present.

·            Make a hand wreath for Remembrance Day.

·            Make handprint cookies. Cut around their hand on cookie dough with a blunt knife, and after the cookies are baked let him or her decorate the “hand” with a frosting tube.

·            Play catch in ClarkPark, Coulter Field or TomLaingPark

·            Make glitter pine cones.

·            Make a Father’s Day card or present.

·            As you read a story, let him or her “illustrate” it with markers on paper.

·            Plant a garden in a window box.  Watch and learn as it grows.

·            Spend time teaching your Little to whistle through his or her fingers on a piece of grass, to blow a bubble, to play jacks, to make a daisy chain, or to perform any of your favourite childhood activities.

·            Learn a few riddles, jokes or tongue twisters and have a good laugh together.

·            Thumb wrestle.

·            Make Birdseed Ornaments and hang them on nearby trees.

·            Play on the swings.

·            Look through a catalogue or magazine and try and guess each others favourite things.

·            Every kid should have the chance to make lemonade at least once. Let them determine the type of lemonade, the kind of cups, etc. It’s a wonderful photo opportunity.

·            “Fingerprint” your match, using a water-based paint and paper. Then draw thumbprint creatures, giving them names when appropriate. Ex: Draw legs and a head on the thumbprint to make a spider.

·            Make cards or gifts for loved ones.

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·            Train together and participate in a one-km fun run.

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

·            Visit the Therapeutic AnimalPark

·            Create s'mores with graham crackers, marshmallows, and chocolate chunks.    Heat them in the oven, microwave, or over an open fire.

·            Learn to make homemade root beer, ice cream, or popsicles.

·            Play mini-golf

·            Visit the Soo Line Historical Museum or the TurnerCurlingMuseum

Ages 10-12

Free/Low Cost

·            Go to NickleLake and watch the boats and water sports.

·            Go and spend the day flying kites in the park.

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

·            Look up new words in the dictionary.

·            Walk around RiverPark

·            Learn basic sewing skills and then put your new skills to work.

·            Go ‘beach’-combing for treasures.

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

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

·             Make homemade potpourri with dried flower petals.

·            Play Frisbee outside in the sunshine.

·            Write a poem about each other and read it to one another.

·            Help your Little write a letter to the author of their favourite book.

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

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

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

·            Take turns styling each others' hair.

·            Make mini-pizzas using English muffins.

·            Make maracas by covering light bulbs with layers of papier-mâché. When they dry, gently break the glass and paint.

·            Pack a picnic lunch together and let your Little choose the picnic location.

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

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

·            Make a delicious cake from scratch and decorate it.

·            Write a poem about Big Brothers Big Sisters.

·            Squeeze fresh orange juice.

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

·            Roast pumpkin seeds in the oven.

·            Take a tour of HeritageVillage.

·            Read books about famous inventors.

·            Make a time capsule and fill it with things that you both like, and then bury it. 

·            Watch the activity at a construction site.

·            Visit a farm and milk a cow.

·            Surf the Internet. Learn about new subjects.

·            Visit a nursing home and read or sing to the residents.

·            Sit at the mall or in a park and watch people.

·            Learn how to dance.

·            Plan an imaginary trip around Canada. It's a great way to sneak in a geography lesson.

·            Build a website on Geocities.

·            Try your hand at some fun and interesting science experiments.

·            Start a road hockey game.

·            Help them create a coat of arms using symbols significant to them. Ex: musical instruments, athletic equipment, etc.

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

·            Bring a camera and take some funny-face photos.

·            Find something inspirational to read.

·            Learn origami.

·            Clip and save articles of interest from the newspaper.

·            Play one-on-one basketball, football, soccer, etc.

·            Make a crossword puzzle for your match with clues emphasizing key facts and interests in his or her life. Ex: 1 Across – Favourite Colour.

·            Take the time to play a board game or card game of their choice.

·            Go on a newspaper scavenger hunt.

·            Press flowers and or leaves from the fall to make paper or picture frames.

·            Fix something (a broken toy, bike, piece of furniture, equipment).

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

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·            Watch a potter throwing on a wheel, then try your hand at making pottery – Signal Hill.

·            Build and paint a birdhouse.

·            Learn about three constellations and see if you can find them in the sky at night.

·            Make homemade ice cream sandwiches in the summer and eat them outside in the sun.

·            Make a dream catcher and learn about the story behind it.

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

·             Assemble a model or bookcase.

·            Make foods from around the world and learn how people live in that country.

·            Cook - pizza, KD, breakfast, waffles, BBQ, etc.

·            Cook or go out for breakfast one day, even if it’s in the afternoon.

·            Garage saling - see how much stuff you can buy with $5.

·            Keep a journal and write reviews on movies you see together, restaurants you go to, plays you might see.

·            Plant a tree, bush, or perennial at their school or home.

·            Give them the chance to experience the feeling of self-worth that comes with helping someone else. Put together a Christmas shoebox, donate a gift to an organization, join in a school clean-up project, etc.

$$$

·            Learn a martial art together.

·            Rent a canoe and go on an aquatic adventure.

·            Explore the world of model Railroads; electric car sets.

Ages 13+

FREE/Low cost

·            Show your Little your high school yearbook picture.

·            Go for a walk through a hardware store and explain the function of various tools.

·            Practice filling out applications for everything.

·            Wash the car.

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

·            Read biographies of people who did great thing.

·            Get a book of North American birds and go bird watching.

·            Write a letter to your MP or MLA regarding an issue important to both of you.

·            Donate old toys and clothes to a community shelter.

·            Teach your Little to use a fire extinguisher.

·            Share photographs.

·            Take your Little with you to vote.

·            Volunteer to ring a bell for charity at Christmas.

·            Get creative with some lumber, hammer and nails.

·            Go skateboarding at a nearby skateboard park.

·            Make a mobile using driftwood, beach shells and glass, small stones etc.

·            Read books written by local authors.

·            Open the hood of a car and point out various parts of the engine, check the oil, fluids etc.

·            Skip rocks on water.

·            Make a collage with a particular theme of interest.

·            Go to your local fire department and learn to use a fire extinguisher.

·            Try your hand at archery.

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

·            Teach your pet a new trick.

·            Talk to one another – share troubles & worries, joys & successes.

·            Visit the campuses at SouthEastRegionalCollege or even the University of Regina.

·            Visit the AllieGriffinArtGallery and discuss how pieces make you feel, what they remind you of and what you see in them.

·            Do something for an elderly friend.

·            Research what was happening on the day you both were born.

·            Learn 10 new words in a foreign language.

·            Ride bicycles in a nearby park.

·              Make a batch of your favourite cookies.

·            Go ice-skating, get hot chocolate afterwards.

·            Learn how to fix your bike.

·             Meditate together.

·             Visit a coffee shop to sip hot chocolate or soda while having a friendly chat.

·            Research an important event or issue at the library.

·            Do aerobics in the living room or visit a health centre.

·            Tour the Walk of Fame, located in front of City Hall on 3^rd Street and then discuss the inductees.

·            Play tennis together.

·            Learn about each other’s favourite music group.

·            Visit and find out more about the T.C. Douglas Centre and the Water Tower

·            Play Frisbee or golf.

·            Go swimming at a pool or lake.

·            Help each other learn how to juggle or hacky sack.

·            Visit a local dealership and look at new cars.

·            Yard work - at either the Big’s or Little’s home.

·             Learn the rules of Cricket, Rugby, Fencing, Lacrosse, or another obscure sport and try to find a game on TV or the internet.

·            Tour the Court House and City Hall

·            Visit an electronics store.

·            Go ‘Glow Bowling” in crazy costumes.

·            Encourage them to write a favourite author a fan letter, which can be addressed in care of the book’s publisher. Authors often respond warmly to such fan mail, and they may be the thrilled recipient of a personal response.

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·            Paint an original T-shirt.

·            Make your own instruments.

·            Enjoy a fresh coconut, pineapple or any other kind of fruit that can not be found in the area.

·            Paint an old piece of furniture.

·            Explore different museums, libraries and art centres.

·            Whack golf balls at the driving range.

·            Work on home improvement projects together - painting, wallpapering, or remodelling a spare room. It provides great talk time and quite a few laughs, too.

·            Make a fondue meal or a fruit-and-cake fondue for dessert.

·            Design and build a kite and fly it!

·            Cook anything from scratch (pizza, spaghetti, mashed potatoes, waffles, BBQ etc).

$$$

·            Tour the city and learn about its history.

·            Train together to run or walk in a local marathon.

·            Go to a Red Wings hockey game.

·            Walk around a boat or car show.

·            Take an art class together.

·            Go golfing at a Par Three golf course.

·            Attend a local sporting event that you have never seen before.

·            Go to a restaurant and order something that seems a bit strange or that you have never tasted before.