Are we the only ones that struggle to find inexpensive {or bonus, FREE} things to do with our kids??
If so, we’ve compiled a list of over 100 free and inexpensive things to do with your kids throughout the year.
Keep this list handy for summer break, rainy days, or those days when everyone in the house is SO bored.
- See a Cheap (and Kid-Friendly) Movie – Throughout the year, popular movie theater chains Regal Cinema and AMC Theaters host reduced price kid-friendly flicks.
- Go to a Building Workshop at Home Depot – On the first Sunday of each month, Home Depot hosts an on-site Kid’s Workshop for kids 2 and up. They’re free and open to the public. Registration is available, but not required.
- Take a STEM Workshop at a Microsoft Store – Microsoft stores host a series of coding- and gaming-related workshops. Session themes include Harry Potter Creative Coding. Minecraft, and Make Your Own 3D Movie.
- Go Roller Skating – Visit KidsSkateFree.com to find a location near you.
- Go to a Museum – Many museums have reduced entry and free events.
- Enroll in a Summer Apple Camp – Apple offers free three-day-long sessions (90 minutes per day) at its retail locations. Kids can choose to explore music, coding, moviemaking, or art & design.
- Exchange a book at a Free Little Library
- Eat at a Kid-Friendly Restaurant
- Go for a Hike – Find one near you here
- Visit a Farmer’s Market
- Go for a Bike Ride
- Plant a Vegetable Garden in Your Backyard
- Tour Your Local Fire or Police Station
- Visit a National Park – Several days a year, the National Park Service waives the entrance fee at all national parks. This includes Martin Luther King, Jr. Day (in January), the First Day of National Park Week/National Junior Ranger Day (in April), National Park Service Anniversary (in August), National Public Lands Day (in September), and Veteran’s Day (in November). Find a national park near you by using their Find a Park search tool.
- Check Out a Local Library Story Time or One at Barnes & Noble or Pottery Barn Kids
- Go to the Zoo
- Be a Trouist in Your Own City – try a new restaurant, new route home, or explore a new place
- Go to a Concert in the Park
- Have a Movie Marathon Night at Home
- Have a Backyard Scavenger Hunt
- Start a Book Club
- Take Your Kids Bowling – Go to KidsBowlFree.com and register your kids so they can score free games
- Take an Arts and Craft Class at Michaels – Michaels craft stores offer a variety of kid-friendly classes (for ages three and up). Find a class near you here.
- Go to the Playground
- Have a LEGO building contest – strongest, tallest, longest, etc.
- Visit a Botanical Garden
- Step Inside a Factory – Did you know there are 12 factory tours in Michigan?! To find a fun and free factory tour near you, check out this website.
- Take in a Beach Day
- Color Inside a Cardboard Box
- Absorb History at Monuments and Historical Sites – Most are free to see. Since the National Park Service celebrated a 100-year milestone in 2016, they offer free entrance days every year to several national parks, monuments and historic sites.
- Head to the Fishing Hole – Twice a Year Michigan offers Free Fishing Weekends. Find One Here.
- Start (or expand) a Rock Collection
- Have a Chalk Drawing Contest
- Play a Board Game
- Play Hide-and-Seek
- Register for Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library – Recieve a free book monthly for children ages 0-5 years old.
- Make Mazes (or other puzzles) for other family members to solve
- Go on a “Litter Clean-Up” Walk
- Build Musical Instruments
- Write Letters to Family and Friends
- Learn a Magic Trick
- Do Some Volunteer Work
- Donate Unwanted Items to a Local Charity or Center
- Perform a Play
- Make Popsicles
- Make Shadow Puppets
- Make Origami Creations
- Have a bubble blowing contest
- Read Aloud as a Family
- Create a Comic Book
- Make Snow Ice Cream
- Have a Paper Airplane Contest
- Visit Historical Sites in Your Area – Find a location near you here.
- Do a Science Experiment
- Create a Bug Box and Go on a Bug Hunt
- Design Your Dreamhouse Blueprints
- Create a Journal or Scrapbook About Your Life
- Have a Water Balloon Fight
- Camp in the Backyard
- Build a Blanket Fort
- Check Out Your Community Calendar or Facebook Page for a Local Festival, Fair, Parade, or Event
- Bake Cookies
- Build a Backyard Obstacle Course
- Plan a Family Picnic
- Build an Ice Castle
- Teach Your Kids About Money
- Try Star Gazing
- Take a Road Trip and Visit Eastern Market – The largest outdoor farmer’s market in the nation
- Watch Clouds
- Wash the Car
- Visit Your Neighborhood Splash Park
- Make Bird Feeders
- Make Your Own Mini-Golf Course
- Make a Scarecrow
- Make a Slip ‘n’ Slide
- Go Geocatching – Use a GPS or mobile device to locate hide and seek containers. Find other’s items and follow your item as it travels across the world.
- Hunt and Identify Animal Tracks
- Car Racing
- Play Tag in the Dark
- Make Sun Shadows
- Create Pretty Vases
- Make Pizzas
- Research and Learn a New Hobby – Drawing, Painting, Sewing, Bird Watching
- Pasta Bead Jewelery
- Make Daisy Chains
- Fly a Kite
- Write a Story or a Play
- Create a Handprint Family Tree
- Play Grocery Store/Bank/Post Office/etc.
- Balloon Ping-Pong
- Have a Family Coloring Contest
- Life Sized Drawings
- Visit One of Michigan’s 129 Lighthouses – Viewing and photographing the lighthouses is free, but admission fees may apply to enter.
- Make a Cardboard Town
- Tell Jokes
- Have a Pool Day
- Bake Cookies
- Learn to Juggle
- Explore a College Campus – UofM, MSU, CMU, SVSU, UofM Flint
- Have a Hula Hoop Contest
- Learn to Whistle
- Visit Little Bavaria – Enjoy free samples, cross the covered bridge, explore the Bronner’s, get your Gnome Hunt Sheet and track down 10 gnomes for a prize, or take a free tour of the brewery!
- Press Flowers
- Build a Card House
- Watch the Sun Rise or Set
- Tour Public Areas of the State Capitol
- Have a DIY Arts and Crafts Session
- Decorate Shoes
- Head to Belle Isle – If you have a recreation pass, your admission to the aquarium, nature center, and conversatory free.
- Paint Your Faces
- Play Question Games – 20 questions and ‘I’m thinking of an animal/place’ where one person gives clues and the others guess are favorites in our family.
- Cooking/Baking Competition – Pick a recipe as a family, divide into teams, and let the fun begin!
- Make Snow Angels
Check out all of our guides and resources to the Mid-Michigan area here!
From the best pizza to play groups and where kids eat free – We’ve got you covered.