co-written and illustrated by Geoffrey Stanton
Summer’s right around the corner, and with the kids out of school, parents are sure to be looking for fun and active ways to keep them entertained. Well look no further! Private Island is your one-stop shop for summer fun. Check out some of these fun ideas:
1. Games
Beach Ball Pass Relay This is a fun and simple game that can be played either in the pool or on dry land! All you need is two beach balls and something to mark off boundaries–sidewalk chalk will work great on a paved area, but anything will work, even a couple of old t-shirts!
How to play
First, divide the kids into two teams. This is a relay race, so make sure that the teams are even, and line everybody up on the starting line, facing another marker several feet away. Give the first member of each team a beach ball. When you say “Go!” the first member of each team must run down to the far marker, turn around and come back–all while bouncing their beach ball in the air. They can use their hands, elbows, shoulders, heads, knees, feet–any body part they like, so long as they don’t catch and hold the ball, or let it drop onto the ground. When they return to the starting line, they must bounce their beach ball to the next player, who then takes his or her turn. If any player catches or drops the ball, they must return to the starting line and try again. The first team to get all of their members across the line wins! This game is also excellent for the beach or at a large pool.
Floating Treasure Hunt This is a great game for a pool party with a pirate theme! All you need is a bag (or two) of our lightweight plastic party coins, a few plastic grocery bags, a pool and a few kids!
How to play
Figure out who’s playing, and get everyone to line up with their backs against the shallow end of the pool. Every participant should have one of their wrists looped through a plastic bag. Next, spread the coins out over the surface of the water–try to make sure that they’re evenly distributed instead of clustered together, as this will give everyone a fair shot. When you say “Go!” all of the kids should rush out, collecting as many coins as they can and storing them in their plastic bags (this will leave their hands free to swim or to collect coins). When all the coins have been collected, get everyone out of the pool and have them line up to count their treasure. The winner gets a prize–perhaps one of our fabulous pirate-themed products?
Variations: Deep Sea Explorers
If you’re playing with an older crowd who are stronger swimmers, why not try this game with toys that sink instead of float? Our little plastic Pirates and Dinosaurs are sure to do the trick. Just make sure that the game is heavily supervised so that nobody gets hurt!
Water Gun War: Capture The Flag A water gun war is perfect for a hot summer’s day–it lets kids burn off a lot of energy while staying cool and refreshed in the hot sun! This game will work best in a large field. All you need is enough kids to form two teams, enough water guns for each kid, and a few items (shirts, jackets or virtually anything else) to serve as flags and markers.
How To Play
The first thing you’ll want to do is divide up the territory as evenly as possible and lay down some boundary markers. Split up teams evenly, and have each team line up on the far end of their territory with the flag behind them. Give each player a full squirt gun. When you say “Go!”, each team’s object is to cross the boundary line into the enemy territory, steal the enemy flag and bring it back to their own side. Once a player crosses the border, the opposing team can shoot him/her with the water guns, and if hit, he/she has to go to jail (one of the far corners of the enemy territory). Players can only be freed from jail if a team member makes it across the enemy territory and tags them without getting hit, at which point both players get a free walk back to their own side (they are NOT allowed to make a run directly for the flag from jail without visiting their own side first). If a player steals the enemy flag but doesn’t make it all the way back to his/her own side, it gets brought back to its original starting place, but otherwise team members are not allowed to interact with their own flag. The round ends when a player successfully captures the enemy’s flag.
Variations: Free For All
Let’s face it, most of the fun of a water gun war on a hot day is getting squirted. After a few rounds of Capture The Flag, try opening the game up to a free-for-all, where there are no rules except to squirt anyone you can as much as you can. Let them go nuts! It’ll be a great way to wrap up a competitive game with some unstructured fun!
2. Activities
Sidewalk Art
Using sidewalk chalk to make large, colorful designs is one of the easiest and most fun summer activities. Here are some amazing pictures to help inspire you:

Sand Castles/Sculptures
If you’re near a beach, why not bring along your pail and shovel and get sculpting? Here are a few impressive sand creations to get those creative juices flowing:

Don’t stress if you’re aren’t architecturally gifted. The point is not to create something wildly beautiful that has never been done before–the point is to have fun at the beach. Castles like this one will be just fine:

With all of this fun, the kiddies are bound to whip up quite an appetite. Try serving a few of these delicious and healthy treats:

Watermelon Shark

How will you please the bellies of kids and the more health-conscious brains of adults at your party? Simple–fruit platters. Served in a shark, of course. The National Watermelon Promotion Board makes turning a big, ripe watermelon into a shark quite easy. Trust me, this will win you points with every guest, so it’s worth trying out.
What you need: 1 oblong watermelon (seeded works best) 1 dry erase marker large knife smaller utility knife paring knife (or the tip of a vegetable peeler if you don’t have a paring knife) 2 large marbles (or cherries, red grapes, etc.) toothpicks Swedish fish (optional for garnish)
What you do: Clean and dry the watermelon thoroughly. Cut off a third of the watermelon diagonally. Stand the remaining watermelon upright and use the marker to draw the mouth and eye sockets. Cut out the mouth and trim a half an inch line of the green part of the rind for the teeth. Using a large spoon, scoop out the watermelon flesh but leave about three inches intact at the base. With the small utility knife, cut out the teeth. If you have a melon baller, use it to cut out the eye sockets to match the size of the marbles or the fruit you’d like to use for eyes. If you don’t have a melon baller, use a small knife carefully and round out the socket as well as you can. Make the dorsal fin with the carved out rind from the mouth. Attach using toothpicks. Fill the mouth with the leftover watermelon and whatever other fruit you have on hand! This is, hands down, the least dangerous and most legally delicious shark you will come across.
Rainbow Fruit Skewers

Why stop serving fruit with your shark? Brighten up your luau party with the vibrant colors of some tropical fruit skewers. Not only are these tasty skewers easy to make, they only require a napkin to serve. As the gang at Quick Dish points out, kids will eat anything so long as it is on a stick.
What you need: red fruit (raspberries or strawberries) orange fruit (tangerines or oranges) yellow fruit (pineapple or bananas) green fruit (grapes or kiwis) blue fruit (blueberries) purple fruit (grapes or blackberries)
What you do: Cut the fruit into one-inch cubes. String each piece of fruit, in rainbow color order, onto a skewer until you have enough for your guests! Easy peasy.
Coconut Fruit Popsicles

What summer luau would be complete without popsicles? This Rawsome Vegan Life has a wonderfully simple and healthy recipe for some popsicles that will surprise all of your guests. What kid doesn’t love popsicles? And what parent doesn’t love gourmet popsicles with fresh herbs?
What you need: 400 ml fresh raw coconut milk (or a can of store bought coconut milk) ¼ cup raw cane sugar frozen fruit finely chopped rosemary, basil, thyme, or your favorite herbs
What you do: Blend the coconut milk and sweetener until the consistency is smooth. Add frozen fruit to the mixture and a dash of your herbs. Carefully and slowly pour the mixture into popsicle molds until they are full. Set in freezer until they are solid.
Fresh Lemonade

Fresh lemonade is a summer staple in my house. It’s easy to make, deliciously refreshing, and serves as an overall crowd pleaser. Eat Drink Garden’s recipe is so delicious, you’d be remissed not to make two batches. Serve up this batch of fresh lemonade in some mason jars. They are practically indestructible
What you need: 1 cup water (for simple syrup) 1 cup sugar 1 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (from 4-6 lemons) additional lemon for garnish 4 cups cold water (to dilute)
What you do: To make the simple syrup, heat up the water and sugar in a small pan until the sugar is dissolved completely. Using a juicer, extract one cup of juice from the lemons. Let the simple syrup mixture cool. Fill a pitcher about ⅓ full of ice and add lemon juice. Add 4 cups of water. If the lemonade is too sweet, add more lemon juice. Garnish with extra lemon slices (or lime wedges if you’re getting crazy).

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