May 20
5 Creative Activities To Do With Friends And Family
If you have some time on your hands and want to bond with each other…
Unwinding by yourself can be fun and relaxing — but what about when you have friends over, or want to hang out with your kids or nieces/nephews?
Sometimes, it can be seem tempting to just put on some TV and all mindlessly watch a moving screen instead of actually doing something. However, organizing an activity doesn’t have to be grueling and tedious — it can be fun!
Here are 5 activities to stimulate you and the people around you’s minds, and bring some creativity to the party!
Make An iMovie Trailer
This is a great activity for both smaller kids and full-grown adults, and is perfect if you have some(wannabe) photographers or filmmakers in your group! This activity can be both fun and creative, but also educational, leaving you all with new skills and talents.
To get started, choose whether you want to use a mobile device or your computer to run iMovie. The PC version is more powerful, but less handy, especially if you don’t want to take your footage on the computer(a hassle) or on a external mobile device(also a hassle).
After opening up iMovie, you can either use a trailer template, or open up a blank iMovie project. The first is more structured and probably better for beginners and smaller children, and the second option is more flexible and gives you more creative license — for those more experienced and skilled.
Come up with an idea, sketch out a loose shot map, and start shooting! Play around with different angles and events, and don’t be afraid to record multiple takes. It’s best to have one or two ‘directors’(parents/older siblings) and some actors(younger children) to make sure everything is flowing smoothly.
Use your creativity and filmmaking skills to record and put together an amazing, riveting, iMovie trailer!
Do Some Crafts
Crafts may seem little-kiddy, and it’s true, it’s a great activity to do with the younger ones. Art is for all types of people and age ranges though — even if you and your friends are in your late fifties.
As for what to craft, if you have younger children, you probably want to do something involving cutting and glueing paper — nothing too crazy.
If you’re older and want to try something more advanced, you could get into other mediums, besides just paper. Try making jewelry out of chain, beads, and resin, or even magnetic bookmarks out of cardstock and adhesive magnetic sheets.
Play around with your different crafts, and be creative! Who knows, during this little craft session, you may even find your new go-to, favorite hobby!
Follow A Dance Video
There are hundreds of ways to express yourself, some with words, some with art, and some with movement.
A great way to get your body moving, as well as the giggles and laughs, is to follow a dance video — whether TikTok, Fortnite, or folk — and try to learn it. You can do this with younger kids, helping them learn body and motion coordination, or with your friends, maybe tackling a harder, more complex choreography.
If you really want to work together and maybe even focus on team-building skills or bonding time, you could try to do a dance number that works has the dancers work together. Instead of everyone learning one dance, try learning a dance that incorporates multiple people.
Remember, while having a cool dance video to show off at the end is a nice bonus, it’s not the main goal. Learning a new dance won’t be easy, especially if it’s on the complex side, or if you’re working with younger kids. Just keep in mind that the main goal is to have fun, work together, and laugh.
Learn to Draw
Drawing is something we do from childhood, and whether you’re still struggling to draw even a mildly straight line, or creating gorgeous portraits that look as realistic as photos, we can all find a little joy and peace in drawing.
For a group with younger kids, you can either teach them yourself, or put on a tutorial video and help them as they follow along. For an older, more advanced group, you can all try to draw something from scratch, or even try drawing each other!
You can also explore different mediums, going beyond just pencil and paper. Try painting — acrylic, watercolor — or even charcoal. You might even want to go past physical art — why not try your hand at digital art?
Learning to draw won’t be easy — learning a new skill never is — but when you’re working with others and all struggling together, it can unlock a whole new world of fun.
Host A Writing Competition
Are you and your group writers? Do you love telling stories, or even just reading them? You could host a writing competition, and whether the grand prize is a kiss on the cheek with your little ones, not a competition at all, or a $10,000 betting between professionals, having a chance to write a little fiction can be a nice activity to add to your day.
Pick a few ‘judges’, or have everyone rate and vote on each other’s — it’s up to you! You can use some prompts, give a word count limit, turn it into a poetry contest, or just let everyone do a free-for-all.
If you’re working with younger kids, you might want to bring in an element of art. Have them make a picture book or one-paged scene, teaching them both drawing and storytelling skills. Guide and teach them, and who knows? — maybe they’ll become the next bestselling author!
Sometimes, putting together a fun group activity that both excites and educates can seem like a hassle and chore. However, if you take some inspiration from the above 5 activities, you’ll have a fun group gathering in no time — while creating some amazing art at the same time!
