The middle school years are a great time for kids to dabble in a variety of activities. My daughter found herself through cooking and writing. For my son, it’s helping people and mechanical things. By offering tweens a broad range of opportunities, you can spark their passions and build their self-confidence. Try some of the following ideas to enrich your tweens’ experiences this summer.

Public Speaking

If you’re a church-going family, you may find opportunities as the congregation shrinks due to vacation absences. Perhaps your child could do a reading at Sunday services or help with a vacation Bible school class. Another possibility exists at your local library. Public libraries often seek volunteers, and those willing to read to small children during story hour are usually a welcome addition. Another opportunity to consider is having your child greet guests or offer hors d’oeuvres at your next family get together.

Animal Care

Does your neighbor need a dog or cat sitter for a week or two? Kids and pets are a great combination. Often shy children will communicate freely with animals, and responsibility for feeding and walking will contribute to their blossoming maturity. As your tween gets a little bit older, he or she may find volunteer opportunities in a local animal shelter.

Team Membership

Summer sports programs give tweens the opportunity to try a sport or two that they may not have attempted before. Being part of a team builds self-esteem, and affords kids the opportunity to make new friends. Organized activities keep their days structured, which is something many tweens need in order to keep boredom and mischief at bay. Also consider sports lessons during school downtime. You’ll send your tweens back to school physically fit and with new and improved skills to increase their confidence on the field.

Babysitting

Caring for a younger child may bring out the best in your tween. Perhaps you’d like him to watch a sibling for an hour or two while you run an errand. This is a great way to let your tween know that you have faith in him. Show him it’s serious business with a training program from the folks at Safe Sitter. They offer instruction for children as young as age 11. Visit Safesitter for information.

Cooking

Help your tween present a special dinner. Guide him as he makes a grocery list, shops for food, follows recipes and prepares a delicious meal the whole family can enjoy. Planning, adhering to a budget, measuring ingredients and cooking are achievements of which he can be proud. Both of my kids increased their manual dexterity by doing jobs in the kitchen. My son’s small motor skills needed work and my daughter is left-handed. By helping their dad and me prepare vegetables, they grew confident in manipulating small pieces. And we learned that lefties not only need a special pair of scissors, but their own vegetable peeler, as well!

Creating

Go to your local craft store and browse the aisles with your tweens. Maybe they’d like to build models, like my son. He’s passionate about rockets. The first few were from kits, and then he began to design his own. After each is built, it gets a custom paint job and the addition of a parachute. We launch them in a neighbor’s field, and each rocket is a masterpiece, even if they don’t all fly!

Enjoy confidence-building activities with your tweens this summer and watch them shine!

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