The ultimate parents’ guide to summer activity resources and more

By Washington Post Staff

JUNE 15, 2020   

This guide has been updated.

We already know the bad news: Bored kids, harried parents, days when time slows to a standstill. And after being out of school buildings since mid-March in many places, kids are now staring at 10 or more weeks of summer, without even the structure of online school activities. Many in-person camps are canceled. And even for the camps that are open, parents may be hesitant to send their kids into a swarm of peers where social distancing guidelines will be difficult to enforce or quickly forgotten. But here’s the good news: Museums, libraries, arts organizations, private companies, celebrities and many others are creating online content for kids or offering free access to existing resources. Many more online portals and entertaining apps have been with us all along but never seemed more relevant.

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To give parents a sense of what’s out there, we compiled resources in 10 categories: reading, education, travel, mental wellness, music, art, physical activity, theater and dance, languages and entertainment. Then, as it became clear that we were in for a full summer of canceled activities and open schedules, we went back on the hunt for virtual camps and free resources that can help kids get outside and try something different, away from the screens that have in many cases consumed them since schools closed their doors.

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So don’t just sit there — give geocaching a go, sign up for weekly outdoor activity guides, learn how to wrap a mummy, take a virtual train ride, conjugate Spanish verbs or watch a Metropolitan Opera performance. Just because time is at a standstill doesn’t mean you have to be.

Don’t see your go-to resource? We will be periodically updating this list; feel free to leave recommendations in the comments. Continued