Water Theme Activities for Summer Camp at Home

Planning your own Summer camp experience at home can be a lot of fun for you and the kids. The point of attending camp is to explore new things, learn new skills, and build confidence in your campers. Hosting your own camp at home is fun, budget-friendly, and the perfect way for you to make some amazing memories with your little campers this Summer.

Water Activities for Kids

Water Theme Activities: Summer Camp at Home

Choosing an exciting theme for your Summer camp can help get everyone excited about the week ahead. It’s also a great way to narrow down all the fun activities and events you’ll want to include in camp.

A water theme is sure to please even the pickiest camper. There are tons of fun activities, sports, crafts, and learning experiences you can include with such a versatile theme.

Summer Camp Activities

You’ll get fun, engaging, and educational printable activities, crafts, hands-on activities, science experiments, themed movement activities and gross motor ideas, sensory play, themed snacks, and so much more!

A Full Week of Activities and Lessons for:

Learn all about it
Learning Stations
Arts & Crafts
Hands on Activities
STEM & Science
Get Active Activities
Music Activities
Journal

Plus, themed snacks and lunch ideas for each day.

Check out some of these fun water themed summer camp ideas

The Water Cycle

Some of the best Summer camps help children excel academically by challenging them to learn new things and explore the world around them even after school’s out. At your water themed Summer camp, you can teach your kids all about the water cycle. This important scientific process is essential to sustaining life on Earth, yet not too difficult for young learners to comprehend.

Teaching kids about the water cycle helps them to understand and make sense of the natural world. It’s also a great way to begin a conversation about water conservation and why it’s important. Check out my water cycle teaching resources for more great ideas on introducing your little campers to the water cycle.

Looking for a field trip idea? Take your summer camp on the road by visiting a local body of water to explore the effects of the water cycle’s collection phase in person.

Or create a rainforest terrarium that can last for years and show how the water cycle works first hand.

Water Games for Kids

Capture the Flag

Capture the flag is the ultimate Summer camp challenge! To play capture the flag, you may need to recruit cousins or friends for this camp at home competition. But, of course, you can have fun playing as a family too.

Here’s how to play:

Create two teams to compete against each other. The more the merrier! Ultimately you want a minimum of 2 -3 people on each team.
Each team has a base and a flag they must protect while simultaneously attempting to “capture” the other team’s flag.
The first team to successfully capture the other team’s flag and bring it back to their own base is the winning team.

Capture the flag is an excellent way to encourage physical activity. Regular physical activity helps keep kids physically and mentally healthy. This game also encourages kids to work together and helps build trust. Plus, it’s a lot of fun!

To convert this ultimate camp game into the perfect competition for your water themed Summer camp, just add water!

Instead of tagging opponents as you would in the traditional version of the game, give players water balloons to “tag” opponents. It’s the perfect way to cool off on a hot summer day while you run around.

Don’t worry if you don’t have other children to include in your camp. In the summer camp guide, we share lots of fun water activities to keep your children happy and moving.

Water balloon activities and water walls are also a great way to enjoy some water fun.

Water Activities

Outdoor Water Pad

One of the best things about Summer is playing in the water. There are so many ways to enjoy the water together with your little campers. Building a DIY water “blob” together is another fun water experiment the whole family will love!

Here’s how to create one for your backyard:

You will need plastic sheeting or film, duct tape, and a garden hose. First, fold the sheeting in half.
Next, use the duct tape to seal the sides of the sheeting. Don’t forget to leave a small hole for the garden hose.
Finally, fill with water and seal. For an extra fun visual element, you can add dye, Swedish fish candy, confetti, or glitter.

This water pad is a great play idea for toddlers and preschoolers. Our kids played for hours with this simple experiment! It also makes en excellent sensory experience for little campers. Summer camp is the perfect time to experiment with something new and playing with a DIY water blob in the backyard is definitely something new and exciting to try.

Ice Cube Painting

Another new and exciting activity to try at your Summer camp is painting with ice cubes. Some of my favorite camp memories involve arts and crafts. Arts and crafts help children learn to express themselves in a variety of ways, even when they might not have the vocabulary to share their feelings.

Painting with ice cubes adds a mesmerizing water element to self-expression through art. It’s also a great way to teach kids about the different states of matter. As the water melts, you can explain how ice is really just solid water.

Here’s how to make your own ice cube paint:

You will need an ice cube tray, paint, and water. First, squeeze a few drops of paint into each compartment in your ice cube tray.
Next, add water to fill each part of the tray and stir each one until the paint is blended.
Wait 10 minutes, then stir each compartment again.
Then, freeze the paint ice cubes.
Finally, release your frozen paints from the tray and have fun creating your own ice cube masterpiece together.

Sensitive kids might want to wear gloves while they paint to keep their fingers warm. Gloves or not, you’re going to love listening to all the giggles and excitement this activity sparks among your campers! In the end, I’m certain your refrigerator doors will be covered with ice cube masterpieces.

Water Sports

Finally, don’t miss this golden opportunity to explore some new sports together as a family. There are so many fun water sports you can take part in with your little campers during your water themed Summer camp at home.

Here are just a few exciting athletic activities you can do together if you have water nearby:

Surfing
Canoeing
Kayaking
Fishing
Tubing
Sailing
Swimming
Snorkeling

Water sports are a fun way to play together as a family, learn a new skill, and make memories to last a lifetime.

Of course, you can also race down slip and slides, swim in a kiddie pool, race through a sprinkler, and many other fun water sports at your house.

Water STEM and Science Activities

Water STEM Projects and Science Experiments to help you and your children educate, learn, and enjoy the awesomeness of this liquid.

Hosting your own camp at home gives you a unique opportunity to participate in the creation of Summer memories that your child will cherish forever.

In the end, that’s the best part of Summer camp: the memories.

Water Experiments

STEM water activities and simple water experiments for home. Explore the water with easy to set up experiments and activities for kids to try for lots of educational fun.

Water Books for Kids

Find fun and educational books about water and on the water cycle for kids.

Summer Camp Water Theme Activities

Enjoy a camp director’s guide with so many exciting ideas and opportunities for learning and fun.

Grab Your Summer Camp Water Activities Below

Make this summer fun and make it memorable with summer camp at home.

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE YOUR WATER THEMED SUMMER CAMP

I hope this summer camp at home has given you some creative ideas for a fabulous water themed week and learning about the water cycle in a fun summer camp setting right at home.