35 Fun and Educational After School Activities For Kids

After school activities combine education, skill development and fun into one event, but is your well running dry when it comes to after school activity ideas? Read on for some inspiration, and feel free to borrow liberally from our list of after school activities for kids.

Why Are After School Activities Important?

Children may spend the bulk of their day in the classroom, but they don’t stop taking in information once their last bell rings. Children are always learning, and after school activities give them the opportunity to interact with ideas they may not encounter during the typical school day. Additionally, activities may be presented and experienced in ways not encountered in school—this may help teach kids of all ages new learning methods outside of school.

School activities like the various clubs available on campuses, as well as school programs like band, can help impart some of these lessons and experiences to middle school and high school students.

However, younger children from elementary school and preschool may not have access to such programs. In that case, parents or guardians who arrange child care for the rest of the post-school business day can either choose caregivers who prioritize activities for kids or leave activities with their chosen care giver.

Of course, parents or guardians can also participate in these at home lessons. They can be a great time to bond for you and your family!

Coding and Gaming Activities

If you’re planning activities for a child obsessed with technology, there are fun ways to bring their interests off the screen and into the real world—you can even start them on the path to creating their own apps and games! Check out some ideas below, and for more, visit Juni Learning’s list of coding activities.

Board Game Night

Whether it’s with family, friends or both, board game night can disguise many different lessons as no more than game rules and systems.

Take on a Fun Coding Project

Get your child excited about coding with these fun coding projects. Built for every age and level of experience, these coding projects are a hands-on way for your child to learn about what you can do with coding.

Online Tech Camps for All Ages

A number of sites, including Juni Learning, host virtual coding camps for young people of all ages. Not only are coding camps a great way to inspire a passion for coding, they teach kids valuable lessons on collaboration and teamwork.

Minecraft

It’s available on almost every platform, it’s a mainstay for YouTubers and it has maintained popularity for more than a decade. Minecraft touches on everything from counting to creativity, and its enemy-free creator mode gives kids full reign to explore their ideas.

Team Sports

It doesn’t matter if it’s in the backyard, at the park or at their school, kids who participate in team sports learn social skills and critical thinking—all while they get a workout. The world of team sports is vast and can provide safe, enriching experiences no matter what sort of sport a child is comfortable with.

If your child loves team sports, encourage their interest by teaching them how to use sports analytics to make smart plays.

Ladder Ball

With trick shots all the rage on social media, ladder ball may be the perfect way to introduce your Youtube obsessed little one to the joys of backyard games.

AR Gaming

Augmented reality gaming has taken off, with games like Pokemon GO encouraging people to take their game hobby to the outdoors. Playing augmented reality titles with groups is a safe, fun way to enjoy this new and ever-expanding technology.

Science Activities

The science classroom is a great place to discuss theory, but unless a child has a dedicated lab period scheduled during their school day, they may not be seeing or participating in the practical applications of those theories. There are a number of science-related activities that can be done with items common around a typical household. You’ll find some quick suggestions below, but check out Juni Learning for more!

Create an Obstacle Course

Construction of an obstacle course involves measuring distance and considering applicable laws of science, like gravity. It provides a focus on biology and anatomy when discussing parts of the body challenged by each obstacle.

The Volcano Experiment

Nothing beats a classic. Just grab some vinegar and baking soda, pour them into your volcano or stand-in volcano, then it’s time for the show.

Ice Cream in a Bag

You probably have most of the items necessary for this activity in your kitchen, but the rest can be acquired easily at any grocery store. After gathering materials and putting 10-20 minutes into this exercise, your ice cream in a bag will be complete.

Crayon Melting

Explore the melting point of wax and the properties of color by melting old crayons to create something new.

Elephant Toothpaste

Using a bottle, some dish soap and food coloring, create a large, slow-moving, colorful foam that resembles toothpaste from the tube—but this toothpaste is big, so it must be for elephants.

Invisible Ink Messages

A kid can feel like a secret agent and learn about chemical reactions thanks to common household substances that create and reveal secret messages on paper.

Which Paper Airplane Is Best?

Build paper airplanes with different sizes, shapes and enhancements. Then test them to see what works, what didn’t work and why.

Math and Numbers Activities

Whether they think in numbers or they refuse to touch their math homework, children will grow to interact with numbers more times than they can count. Juni Learning has a number of math courses that help familiarize kids with the practical applications of math, and some other examples can be found below.

Taking Inventory

Ask a young person to help take stock of which groceries are in the house. Have recipes handy so they can compare what’s there versus what’s needed. Itemize some recipes by an items weight and encourage conversion.

Playing Cards

A standard 52-card deck can be used to play a variety of games with rules that rely on addition and subtraction—especially when it’s time to tally up scores. Card games also teach critical thinking through strategy, as well as sportsmanship.

Probability Bottle Flip

Measure probability while taking part in the ever-popular pastime of water bottle flipping.

Do Sudoku

Sudoku is a magic square puzzle that requires players to keep track of number sums. These popular puzzles are widely available in books and online.

Play Math-centric Board Games

Games like Monopoly require the use of math and number comparison during almost every turn. Kids will learn while they’re just trying to win.

Calculate Distance

Have children calculate the distance from their front door to their favorite restaurant, or from home to school. Then, use a search engine to compare that distance with the distance from other interesting locations like local landmarks, well-known cities or destinations abroad!

Play Math-centric Board Games

Games like Monopoly require the use of math and number comparison during almost every turn. Kids will learn while they’re just trying to win.

Cornhole

Also known as bean bag toss, cornhole is a great way to encourage physical activity while the game’s scoring system encourages basic math skills. Smaller versions of the game’s boards are available for purchase at most sporting goods retailers.

Life Skills Activities

Learning how to care for themselves and manage money are important life skills that will help your child make smart decisions.

Building healthy money habits starts young. Jun Learning has a wide variety of virtual courses that help children learn about the stock market, economic laws like supply or demand, and even cryptocurrency. See Juni Learning’s full slate of courses here.

Play Store Clerk

Take turns pretending to be the shopper and store clerk to teach your child about the value of money and purchases. Kids will learn to count money—and how to prioritize purchases based on needs and means.

Build a Simulated Stock Portfolio

Introduce your kids to the stock market and investing with a simulated stock market. Free to access and influenced by real market trends, a stock market simulator allows your child to try their hand at trading with virtual money.

Start a Piggy Bank

Teach your kids the importance of saving money by getting them their very own piggy bank. For bonus points, use a clear container like a jar so your child can see their money growing.

Grow Plants

Use a patch in the backyard, a window planter or a community garden to grow flowers, vegetables or herbs. If kids grow one of the two latter plants, encourage them to create a meal with their crops!

Cook Together

Cooking teaches children to follow directions and be comfortable in the kitchen—an invaluable life skill that’ll save them money later.

Countdown Calendar

Create a cool calendar that counts down to vacations, events, holidays or important dates in the child’s life.

Take Care of a Pet

Classroom pets, daycare pets and house pets impart consideration and responsibility. It’s important to know a child is ready before choosing to allow them access to a pet.

Arts and Writing Activities

Learning how to craft projects, stories or poems doesn’t just help students explore their own ideas, it also helps them learn to communicate in healthy ways. Juni Learning provides options to you and your budding artist, and more can be found below.

Sign Your Little One Up for Private Music Lessons

Learning an instrument or perfecting their singing voice can teach discipline and have a long-term impact on a young person’s quality of life. Skills in music can turn free time into productive practice, lead to promising career paths and help kids network as young adults.

Throw a Dance Party

If a child is crazy about the latest viral dance move, turn your common space into a kid-friendly dance club and get on the floor! Kids love sharing their interests, and this could be a fun way for them to introduce an adult to their taste in music.

Have a Puppet Show

Buy puppets or make your own, then plan a puppet show to put on for friends, family, an audience of toys or yourselves! Children can learn to think on their feet with improv, get creative by adapting a known story or practice acting by reciting an existing script.

Practice Origami

This Japanese art of paper folding requires adherence to step-by-step instructions and precise folds. It’s a great way to build patience, critical thinking skills and fine motor skills. Kids can then hang their works of art in their living space.

Play With Rainbow Soap Foam

If you have dish soap and food coloring, you’ll be able to curate this colorful activity in as little as 10 minutes. Be careful with young children, as the soap can still sting and shouldn’t be ingested. Also remember to wear old clothing and be mindful of where you perform this activity, as food coloring can stain. Now that the disclaimers are out of the way, it’s time to get chromatic!

Play Dress Up

The possibilities here are endless. From children dressing up and imitating older family members to donning the attire of their favorite heroes, a quick wardrobe change could transport a kid to a different world.

Read a Short Story

It’s a classic, but reading together can spark curiosity, imagination and creativity. It also helps establish routine and increase attention span.

Explore Online Afterschool Activities

Whether you’re playing to a child’s interests or attempting to introduce them to new concepts, fun after school activities can enrich a young life. Juni Learning is full of great resources that can guide kids after school activities to educational, artistic or practical learning. Flip through their course catalog to get started!