CELEBRATE THE SOLSTICE: UNLEASHING SUMMER BLISS FOR KIDS

Coming into summer, the longest day of the year, heralds the season of heat and light. It is a season of freedom and of discovery for children, and the solstice is a perfect time to kick off a set of mini-rituals that form the rhythm of summer for children. Create some shared moments for children to associate summer with your family’s own annual rituals. Here are a couple of our favourite fun memories to try.

EMBRACE THE MAGIC OF THE SOLSTICE: BACKYARD CAMPING EXTRAVAGANZA

There’s no better way to ring in the summer than to organise a backyard campout the night before the solstice. Celebrate the beginning of summer in style and have a blast with the family all at the same time. Pitch a tent, make a safe (faux) campfire, and tell ghosts stories, laugh and get gooey with the s’mores. This is where our summer stories begin — under the moon with a solstice celebration in the backyard.

CRAFTING MEMORIES: THE ULTIMATE SUMMER BUCKET LIST

Channel the strength of the solstice by gathering your children around the kitchen table and creating the Ultimate Summer Bucket List – deliberating over the best way to spend every moment of the season. Let your imagination run wild. Think daily beach trips, backyard water-balloon wars, government agency break-ins, plays in the park and flying away on giant tricycles.

A SOLSTICE TO REMEMBER: CELEBRATE THE LONGEST DAY

The solstice is not just any old day: it is the beginning of summer. Throw a party on the solstice to mark the occasion. Set a table with the bright colours of the summer flowers, have a barbecue, or picnic. It doesn’t even have to be a family occasion. Go out for supper under the stars, but do something on the solstice that feels quintessentially summery. You want people to remember the solstice as a unique highlight of the season.

JOURNALING SUMMER'S JOURNEY: A CHRONICLE OF ADVENTURE

As the summer solstice marks the start of a flurry of summer adventures, invite your kids to keep a journal of summer this year – perhaps it can be a story of the adventures, artwork, or collages of souvenirs. It’s a lovely way of scaffolding observation skills, of savouring memories, of being able to review the vibrancy of the season years later.

THE THRILL OF THE HUNT: SCAVENGER ADVENTURES

Go treasure hunting on the solstice. Create a ‘scavanger hunt‘ for your local area or for your community park; this is a great way to make a day of adventure for your kids full of wonder and learning, as long as you include clues and other instructions that propel them through a quilt of activities. Using small rewards embedded along the way to propel them through the quest will make it feel as much about special treasure hunting as actual treasure hunting ever could.

BONDING OVER GAMES: A WEEKLY TRADITION

Turn the solstice into the incentive for some kind of regular family games night. Whether it’s proving your mettle at badminton, planning moves in a game of giant Jenga or cosying up to share a film projected on a starry-night sheet, these are the moments that build memories and kinship.

SEEDLINGS OF SUMMER: A GARDENING PROJECT

The solstice is a time for regeneration and growth, so what better way to celebrate than to start a garden with your kids, and plant a summer garden? Not only does it teach kids about the seasons and lifecycles of plants, and even more importantly about growing, nurturing and appreciating life, but also reaping and sharing the harvest of your efforts, along with some invaluable lessons in personal responsibility and ecological awareness.

SYMPHONY OF SUMMER: A SEASONAL PLAYLIST

Music makes everything better, so why not break out the solstice by curating a summer playlist? This sonic scrapbook of your kids’ favourites is not only a soundtrack for all your summer pursuits but also a means of expressing and sharing. Dance-offs in the back yard, car rides in the station wagon – this music becomes part of your family’s story of summer.

CREATIVE SOULS: A DAY OF DIY CRAFTS

Releasing the magic of the solstice to unleash their creative energy, running a DIY craft day can allow your children to use their imaginations, from flower-crown making to learning about bird care by making a DIY bird feeder. The concentration, imagination, and pride in actually achieving the task will stand them in good stead their whole lives.

THE QUEST FOR KNOWLEDGE: SUMMER READING CHALLENGE

In keeping with the educational spirit of the solstice, starting a reading challenge this summer will send your kids on the road to new worlds. Not only will they improve their intellectual capacity, children who read will also strengthen their imaginations and creativity. Establishing a reward system can give their efforts an added boost, turning that long, warm hiatus into an exhilarating expedition through the world and beyond.

UNDERSTANDING THE SOLSTICE

At its core, the solstice is a cosmic marker, a milestone based on the Earth’s relationship to the Sun, heralding either summer or winter, depending on your hemisphere. The solstice arrives when the Earth’s axis is at its maximum tilt towards or away from the Sun, and so the summer solstice is the longest day of the year, while the winter solstice is the shortest. And celebrating the summer solstice is ancient custom circumpolar. It’s a tradition steeped in ideas of prosperity, regeneration and the fertility of the land.

And by indulging in these and other attendant activities and rituals, the solstice transforms from being merely a day on the calendar to being a living, kaleidoscopic spectacle made up of many daily enriching observations, interactions and encounters – be it with nature, loved ones or the dance of the Earth itself. Happy solstice. Happy summer. And may you have fun and stay magical while you’re out there.