9 Free, Family Friendly Activities For Movement & Mindful Meals This June
The start of summer is here, school is winding down, and the weather is beckoning us to spend more time outdoors.
For those of us with kids, keeping them entertained while being mindful of our budget can feel challenging. Furthermore, when it gets too hot to play at the park for long hours, it can feel like we’re stuck at home passing time. Luckily, there are many opportunities for free, family friendly activities this month that involve movement or mindful nutrition.
While this post will focus mainly on the NYC area, there will be options for those of you who live elsewhere. Let’s get into it:
Free June Fun: Movement & Mindful Meals Edition
Organize A Dance-A-Thon Fundraiser: A dance-a-thon fundraiser is a fun event that involves lots of movement and also an opportunity to raise money for charity.
DOJIGGY offers a step-by-step guide to help you organize your event.
Remember: even the smallest scale helps! Don’t want to get too big? You can have a small scale event with close family and friends.
Explore Free Lessons: Many town and/or city centers offer free or low cost classes for members of the community. While some might not be up your ally, examples include: Gardening Classes, Cooking Classes, and Dance Classes.
For example, edible schoolyard in NYC offers hands-on cooking and gardening classes with the aim of influencing and expanding children’s relationship with food.
If you are struggling to find a class in your community, check out online platforms that offer these classes. Platforms like Craftsy offer an abundance of options to enjoy. As long as you have cellphone service or wifi hotspot access outside, you can take the class anywhere!
Walking Museum Tour: There are many free exhibits that often go unknown! From art history to mummification to animal exhibits, chances are you can find a topic that excites you. If you’re looking to amplify the experience, you can have a “treasure hunt,” where you make a list of items and let your kids find them and write down important information.
In NYC, NYCgo offers a list breaking down what museums are either always free, free on specific days of the week, or free for select hours.
Make and use a Mud Kitchen: a mud kitchen is an outdoor setup for children to pretend to prepare and cook food using any combination of mud, sand and water. All you really need is some sort of mat/table, a bucket, and access to water and dirt.
This form of pretend play gets your kids outside and can be used in conjunction with teaching about a balanced plate.
For example, I recommend going over Harvard’s Healthy Eating Plate with your child and having them create meals with their mud kitchen that include all the food groups.
Look At Your Local Sports and Entertainment Complex: While many places have classes you need to pay for, often times there are “open hours” to visit for little or no cost.
For example, Chelsea Piers in NYC has many options. This can be an excellent way to blow off steam if the weather is extremely hot or stormy.
Go on a Bird-Spotting Tour: Spice up your typical outdoor walk!
The Audubon often posts up to date classes and birding events if you’re looking to join in with others. Classes are both in-person and virtual. There is a good mix between free offerings and low cost options.
Alternatively, you can find a PDF of local birds in your area (like this one for New York). When you go out on a nature walk, bring the list with you and see which birds you can find.
Use Your Parks: Do some research about what events are at your local park. The summer time is often filled with activities to enjoy.
For example, in NYC, bryant park offers something for everyone. Ping pong tournaments, yoga flows, juggling classes. There’s so much to chose from!
If your area doesn’t seem to have much, you can use the space with other community members to host your own small event: potato sack race, capture-the-flag game, circuit-based activity… You can go on a rotation of who plans the event to share the responsibility. This way, you’ll have a standing activity at the same time each week.
Plan a family Picnic & Outdoor Game Day
The location can be: the beach, the park, the backyard.
Let each family member prepare one game and one healthy snack. You’ll be incorporating both movement and nutrition in this family outing.
Do a Supermarket Sweep: One of my all time favorite shows! You can structure it like a scavenger hunt & see what new fruits and veggies you can discover. Moms and Munchkins has a printable available to use if you’re looking for a scavenger hunt template.
As we lean into summer and plan some opportunities to move and eat mindfully, what excites you the most? Comment below!
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