Low Budget Fun Activities for Children
Many families are struggling financially these days. They don't have a lot of money to spend on Fun Activities for their children, and they're looking for ways to save.
This article will show you some Fun Activities that can be done at home with little or no cost!
Spend time outside as a family
Ok, so we're going to start with the most generic and obvious ways to have some fun with your children. That's spending as much time outside as you can.
There are a number of Fun Activities that don't require any money or equipment, and they're all healthy for children in different ways! 
Go for a picnic - There are plenty of parks and open spaces where you can have a picnic with your family. Go to the park and play games like ball or hide-and-seek, or just sit under some trees and read books together - either way, it'll be fun!
Kite flying – A classic childhood pastime that many of us remember fondly from our own days as children are kite-flying.
Go buy yourself one for cheap at a toy store, then head outside on a windy day so they can let go of it into the air! It's not only an enjoyable activity but it also helps them develop their hand-eye coordination too.
Hunt for hidden treasure – If your kids are old enough to understand money and budgeting (if you're willing to help them learn about it) then this is a great activity to teach them the value of money.
Go out and buy some cheap toy treasure, hide it somewhere good for your kids to find (like their bedroom or under the couch), and have them hunt around until they find it!
If your children are more into arts and crafts than sports or outdoor activities, here are some ideas that will help make things fun without spending too much on supplies:
Make paper snowflakes – Paper snowflakes can look really beautiful, and they're easy to make too.
They can be used as decorations for Christmas or just hung up on the walls around your house!
Make homemade finger-paint – Finger painting is a classic art activity that many kids love.
Go buy some white poster paper from any stationery store (or use old newspaper), then get them to mix together water with food colouring until it's nice and thick but not so runny you can't paint with it anymore.
Let them go wild painting away while making sure their fingers don't touch anything else!
Use household items like milk jugs to create musical instruments - If you have an instrument lying around that doesn't work anymore, try taking apart its insides and using recycled materials to create a whole new instrument!
You can even buy old kitchen utensils for cheap from any thrift store - the possibilities are endless.
Read books together as a family
One Fun Activity that can be done with very little money is reading books together as a family.
Invite the whole family over to your house for book night and have everyone bring their favorite book!
Make up some snacks or drinks, like hot cocoa and cookies, then curl up on the couch under a blanket.
Read every single page of each story out loud so your children get used to hearing words pronounced properly.
Then switch it around; they read one while you read another until everyone has had a chance to share what they've learned from their stories.
Play board games as a family
Board games are Fun Activities that everyone can enjoy, and they're a great way to spend time together.
If you want some cheap board game ideas for the family why not check out your local thrift store?
You'll find all kinds of different ones there at very low prices! Just be sure to test them first before buying so you don't end up with something broken or unusable.
Go on bike rides as a family
Another Fun Activity that can be done with little money is going on bike rides together.
If you already have bikes in storage then you're all set! But if you don't have any bikes, or they are broken beyond repair, then there's no need to worry.
Check out Facebook or eBay as people often sell their old bikes when the seasons change and go buy a new one because of it.
Go on family bike rides in the park together or just around your neighborhood block.
You'll explore Fun Activities that you never knew existed as well as getting fresh air and exercise!
Make up some snacks or drinks before going on your Fun Activity so everyone stays refreshed throughout!
Go on an adventure to find treasures with a map or scavenger hunt list
One Fun Activity that can be done with very little money is going on an adventure to find treasures!
You can do this by getting a map of your local area and then planning out where you will go.
For example, the park down the street has a playground for children as well as some trails in case they get tired walking around all day long.
So plan ahead and see how many places you can visit before it gets dark or everyone goes home for dinner.
Once you're finished put together a scavenger hunt list so when family members come over they have something new Fun Activities to explore while visiting!
Arts & Crafts
When we're in a bind and don't want to waste time, keep a box of our kids' favorite things on hand — including construction paper, markers, crayons, colored pencils, glue sticks, and scissors — so they can amuse themselves for a few minutes.
They're usually entertained for hours at a time and it helps when Mum and Dad join in the fun.
Cook Together
Cooking is one of the best Fun Activities you can do with your children as it teaches them responsibility, patience, and how to follow instructions correctly.
You don't have to be an expert at cooking yourself!
Sometimes just learning how to make a basic meal will satisfy everyone's hunger for the night so they won't go hungry while waiting for food to cook or cool down.
Everyone in your family should get involved by helping in any way they can whether that means stirring or chopping ingredients, setting the table, or even taking part in washing afterward.
You can also set up different stations around the house and let each child take turns choosing what Fun Activity they'll do while everyone else is cooking.
One child might decide to make a fruit salad, another could be in charge of making some sandwiches for those who are too young or old to help with dinner that night, and someone else may choose to prepare drinks as their Fun Activity.
Once everyone has finished their assigned tasks then you can sit down together at the table to enjoy your home-cooked meal!
Summer Cookouts - While many people think it's just about burgers on the grill during summer cookouts getting creative with food choices is an excellent way to have fun with children without spending a lot of money.
For example, instead of hotdogs think about getting fish and making some homemade tartar sauce to go on the side!
Baking Summer Cookouts is a healthy way for children to enjoy their food while parents can have more than just chicken or steak if they choose as well.
This also allows children who are picky eaters to still get involved since there are usually lots of other foods at Summer Cookouts that they will actually like eating too!
Bake Together - Baking is one of the best Fun Activities you can do with your children as it teaches them responsibility, patience, and how to follow instructions correctly.
You don't have to be an expert at cooking yourself!
Sometimes just learning how to make a basic cake or bread will satisfy everyone's hunger for the night so they won't go hungry while waiting for food to bake or cool down.
Everyone in your family should get involved by helping in any way they can whether that means measuring ingredients, breaking eggs (with adult supervision), adding sprinkles, pouring batter into pans, or even taking part in washing afterward. These are all valuable lessons they will need to learn one day!
Make your own ice cream or popsicles with fruit and yogurt - All it takes are four simple ingredients: sweetened condensed milk, heavy whipping cream, lemon juice (or any other kind of flavoring), and sugar.
Then all that needs to be added in are some fresh cut-up fruits like strawberries, mangoes, or bananas - even blueberries if you want something more tart to contrast against the sweet ice cream base.
Finally, just pour this into a Tupperware container and place it inside your freezer for about three hours until everything has hardened.
Make sure everyone gets a turn at mixing what they'd like as well since this encourages children who may otherwise not be cooking with you to get involved.
Go fishing with your kids
A fun activity you can do on a budget is to go out and fish together as a family.
You don't have to be an expert at fishing yourself!
Sometimes just learning how to bait the hook will satisfy everyone's hunger for catching something that night so they won't get bored waiting around while you're fishing.
Everyone in your family should get involved by helping in any way they can whether that means dressing up, carrying equipment, scooping water from puddles, or even taking part in cleaning afterward.
Go hunting for rocks and gems
Go hunting for rocks and gems during springtime when it rains often enough for them to wash down into small crevices.
Your children will have fun learning how to be patient and waiting for the right moment when it's time to pull out a rock from underneath some water or mud.
Everyone in your family should get involved by helping in any way they can whether that means carrying rocks, looking around for stones, or even taking part in washing them after you're done playing with them at home.
Collect leaves, pine cones, or acorns to make into decorations for Christmas time
Collecting together as a family is always a great way to have some fun! You may never run out of ideas if you go on the internet and search for activities that are free.
One example could be collecting different kinds of stones from your local nature preserve then having them turned into keychains at one of those craft stations in the store.
Collecting rocks will keep everyone outside while learning about minerals since they can find ones with interesting colors and textures too!
Plant Flowers & Shrubs
Planting flowers or shrubs in a garden area of your backyard, front yard, porch, balcony, rooftop, or even in pots on the patio are all great ways that allow kids to have fun without spending too much money.
Planting them helps them learn about nature while they help out by digging holes with small shovels (with adult supervision) so they don't hurt themselves along with keeping track of how deep it needs to be using a stick as a marker before moving onto the next hole.
Everyone in your family should get involved by helping in any way they can, whether that means carrying supplies outside or even taking part in planting them once you're done playing with them at home!
Planting flowers will help brighten up your yard and make it look more beautiful while making sure everyone gets out of the house to have some fresh air during springtime too.
Movie Night
Holding a movie night is a great idea for a low-budget family activity!
You can try to make it into something more fun by inviting some friends over, asking them what their favorite movie is, and then all watch it while having food delivered or bringing in snacks.
Everyone can get involved when deciding which movie to watch together as a family since there will be lots of opinions that need to be taken into consideration before making the final decision.
Everyone in your family should get involved by helping out in any way they can whether that means trying to pick the best movie, bringing snacks into the living room so everyone has something to munch on while watching it, or even taking part in cleaning up afterward.
Wrapping Up
The end of summer is always a difficult time for parents, but we’ve got some ways to help you get through it.
These are just a few of the many low-budget activities you can do with your children.
We hope this article has helped give you some new ideas and inspiration for spending time together as a family without breaking the bank!
Be sure to share it with others who might be looking for fun things to do at home too!