Cheap Summer Fun at the Local Mall

This was Spring Vacation week in our local schools.  For weeks, my two granddaughters and I had looked forward to making our first fishing trip of the year to a nearby pond, but the weather conspired against us.  Instead, we decided to head for the local mall and entertain ourselves with window shopping and finish off the vacation week with dinner at the Hometown Buffet located there.

I also promised to let them spend some time at Tilt, an arcade in the mall that had all kinds of games they could indulge in for a price.  Many of the game machines rewarded winners with tickets that could be redeemed for small prizes when you were finished and on your way out of the establishment.

Most grandparents enjoy spoiling their grandkids and I'm no exception, but I think you can combine a bit of spoiling with a bit of teaching, (I'm also a former teacher), so I try to do a little of both on our excursions around town.  Instead of just handing each kid a handful of quarters to use for playing games at Tilt, I told them they had to earn them.

Before I left home to pick up the two granddaughters and a neighborhood friend for our trip, I made a list of things each of them could do to earn their spending money before we even arrived at Tilt.  Each item on  the list had a number of points they could earn for completing that particular task. 

The most anyone could earn was $3 which I had decided was a reasonable amount to spend per child at that particular establishment, especially since I was also treating them to lunch.  In case you think I am being too hard-hearted, I didn't make them earn their lunch, but  I did reap a side-benefit from my list plan though.  It kept all three girls occupied while we traveled from home to the mall so I didn't have to deal with squabbles and endless "are we there, yet?" questions along the way.

Here's a copy of my list.  The next time you plan an outing with small children, why not make a similar list with your own local community in mind.  I can almost guarantee that a grand time will be had by all, and instead of just forking out cash for activities, you will be teaching your kids or grandkids the value of money, how to spell at least one difficult word, and helping them get some much needed exercise as well.

P.S.  Two of the girls turned their Tilt tickets in for small water guns and got even more exercise chasing their dog around the back yard with the guns after we got home.

My List

Each Point =1 cent.  100 points = $1 to spend at Tilt.  You can earn up to 300 points, or $3. Check them off as you do them.  Some can be done in the car.

(50 points)  1.  Rooms clean before we leave.

(25 points)  2.  Sing the alphabet song 3 times without stopping.

(10 points)  3. Write hippopotomus 10 times on this paper. 

(10 points)  4.  Spell hippopotomus out loud without looking.

( 5 points)   5.  Tell us your middle name.

(10 points)  6.  When we get to the sidewalk at the mall, skip the rest of the way to the door.

(25 points)  7.  Find your favorite cereal at Target. How much does it cost?

(25 points)  8.  Ride up the escalator in Kohl's and back down again. 

(50 points)  9.  Walk from the Buffet to Sears, then to Target and back again.

( 5 points)  10.  Find a chair in the mall, sit down on it and count to 10.

(25 points) 11.  How much does a dish of ice cream cost at American Ice Cream?

(10 points) 12.  Hop on one foot 10 times without stopping. 

(10 points) 13.  Hop on the other foot 10 times without stopping. 

(10 points) 14.  Touch your toes 10 times while you are standing up. 

(10 points) 15. Where could you buy fresh popped popcorn in the mall?

(20 points) 16.  Find a pole & walk around it 10 times one way and 10 times the other way.

 

YOUR NAME_______________ How many points did you get?  ________

 

 

*  For more inexpensive activities for kids, check out: Cheap Summer Fun