Around the World DIY Summer Camp Ideas {All Things Kids}

All this week the bloggers of All Things Kids are bringing you great ideas to create your own summer camp at home!  Whether you do a camp just for your family, or a play group, or the neighborhood kids, you’ll find lots of inspiration in this series!  Each day this week a blogger will feature crafts, activities, and snacks ideas around a particular theme.  See the full schedule with all the topics at the bottom of this post!

Looking for some fun – but educational – activities for your little ones this summer?  Here are some great ideas to create your own Around the World summer camp!  Take your kids and their friends on a trip around the world – without leaving home!

I had a hard time deciding the best way to organize the camp – whether to cover one continent per day or to focus on specific countries.  In the end, I decided for the country approach.  This allows for a coherent approach, since the cultures within each continent can be quite different.  A country focus also lets you tailor your camp to the group of children you will be teaching by choosing countries meaningful to them, because of family connections, recent trips, or favorite cartoon/storybook characters.

There are so many great resources available that you can use for your around the world activities.  I’ve included my favorites at the end of the post and have also created sample collections from three different countries: Costa Rica (of course!), Portugal, and South Africa.

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Costa Rica

1. Blue Morpho Butterfly Craft – Kid World Citizen

2. Lantern Craft – All Done Monkey

3. Tamal Asado (Costa Rican Corn Cake) – All Done Monkey

4. Homemade Tamarind Pops – All Done Monkey

5. Tropical Batidos (Smoothies) – Kid World Citizen

6. Parrot Tico Tango Book-Based Activity – All Done Monkey

Also:

You can also do Costa Rican-inspired yoga with Sophia’s Jungle Adventure book from Kids Yoga Stories!

Read more children’s books from Costa Rica with our book list and don’t miss our empanada recipe!  You can also follow my Costa Rica board on Pinterest.

Portugal

1. Merenda – the piri-piri lexicon

2. Rooster of Barcelos Craft – Mermaids’ Makings

3. Milk Rolls – All Done Monkey

4. Azulejos-Inspired Yarn Art – All Done Monkey

5. Pao Doce (Sweet Bread) – Glittering Muffins

6. Pasteis de Nata – Kid World Citizen

Also:

Exploring Portugal with food, music, & stories – Crafty Moms Share

Portugal for Kids – Adventures in Mommydom

South Africa

1. Vuvuzela Craft – Daria’s Music on Multicultural Kid Blogs

2. Books on South Africa – Africa to America

3. Guide to Nelson Mandela’s Autobiography for Kids – Kid World Citizen

4. Africa for Kids: Preschool Homeschool – Mud Hut Mama (includes books and activities for South Africa)

Also:

Explore South African history and apartheid from Look! We’re Learning

Learning About South Africa from Planet Smarty Pants

Additional Resources & Ideas

Read Around the World Summer Reading Series – Multicultural Kid Blogs

World Cup for Kids – Multicultural Kid Blogs

World Soccer Cup 2014 Activity Pack for Kids – Multicultural Kid Blogs

Raising World Citizens – Pinterest

Multicultural Kids’ Crafts – Pinterest

Multicultural Kids’ Activities – Pinterest

Multicultural Kids’ Books – Pinterest

Creating Country Units to Take a Virtual Trip Around the World – Kid World Citizen

Flags Around the World – Kid World Citizen

Resources to Teach Geography – All Done Monkey

World Culture for Kids – Mama Smiles

Around the World in 12 Dishes

Passport to Culture: At Home Travel Series – De Su Mama

Europe & Castles for Kids: Mud Hut Mama

Multicultural Geography Activity – Mommy Maestra

ABCs of Raising a World Citizen – All Done Monkey

Visit to Chinese Market – JDaniel4sMom

Don’t miss the other great posts in this Summer Camp series from All Things Kids! 

ROBOTS from Fun A Day

BUGS from Frogs and Snails and Puppy Dog Tail

ANIMALS by Inspired by Family

Ocean/Beach by Mamas Like Me

Nature by House of Burke

Circus by Sugar Aunts

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