27 Camp-Inspired Boredom Busters for When You're Stuck at Home

Being stuck at home for days on end can seem like a drag, but never fear – we’ve got a great list of camp-inspired activities for you to do! Most of these require very few supplies, so pick out a few and think of camp during this season!

Outdoor Activities:

S’mores it up. Nothing reminds me of camp life more than a s’more, so enjoy one in your backyard! You can go for the classic, or make it special with these fun s’mores ideas. If you’re looking to get really fancy, grab some reusable s’more’s sticks so you always have something on hand.
Overnight with your family. Pop up a tent and spend the night outdoors! Don’t have a tent? Consider sleeping under the stars or get super fancy in your own Eno. Too cold to brave the outdoors? Sleep in your living room for something different. We always spice up our outdoor nights with these glow items (the glasses are always a hit!)
Explore nature. Try out a nature scavenger hunt. You can print so many free options online. Go for a hike (maybe you’ll even see llamas like we sometimes see on our camp hikes). Do some leaf rubbings. We also love this Nature Anatomy book in our family!
Have a family Challenge Day or mini Olympic event. Set up a competition between some members of your family to see which team is victorious! You can find so many great ideas online for family competitions, but don’t forget about these camp favorites: tug of war, oreo stacking on your forehead, sock wrestling, messy twister, banana slap, and Superfight.
Do some yoga outside. Pretend you are in our camp yoga class by enjoying some time on your mat at home. If you need some leading, there are some great videos online, including this YouTube channel for kids!

Indoor Activities:

Have a theme day. We LOVE theme meals at camp! Why not have a theme day while you’re at home? Have an Italian day where you watch a Disney movie set in France (Pinnochio) and then try to make our pasta carbonara for dinner. Or, have a Backwards day, where you wake up to Taps, eat bread pudding dessert for breakfast, make some famous scones for dinner, and go to bed to Reveille. You could even celebrate some of our favorite theme shirt days at home: Maui Monday, Wildlife Wednesday, Jersday, and more…pull out those crazy camp shirts!
Foam party in your tub. Want to relive our epic foam party from our Main Camp 100th celebration? Make your own foam party in your bathtub with bubble bath. The party is not complete until you’ve made your own foam beard and mustache!
Take an online class. What a great time to learn a new skill…just like when you try a new activity at camp! Why not take a hand lettering class or penmenship class and then try lettering one of camp’s theme verses from the past few years? Pretend like you are in our summer painting studio and try a watercolor class. Try your hand at something new or work on something you’ve already tried at camp!
Give weaving at try. Have you heard?! Greystone is adding weaving to our Fine Arts activities! Get a jump start by trying one of these cool weaving projects before you even arrive at camp.
Read a new book. Did you know that Andrew Peterson just re-released his Wingfeather Saga with new covers? Swoon! It’s a great adventure series that is good for almost all camp ages. Or, try out the Green Ember for another fun adventure read. I’ve also enjoyed The Star Shepherd, The Next Great Paulie Fink (so funny!), and Raymie Nightingale recently. You can pretend you are visiting the Greystone library as you read your next book.
Put on a family talent show. You can practice for the Mini Talent Shows right now! You can even have different talent show themes so that you enjoy more than one – try a musical version or a skit-only version.
Get moving like you do in Zumba. While we don’t have our Zumba dances online, you can get moving like Zumba by trying out some Just Dance videos at home. Camp classics Single Ladies and Umbrella are good places to start.
Have a Banquet movie marathon. Did you know we have a list on our website of all of our past Banquets? Have a movie day and watch some of these camp favorites. Even better, guess which role you and your friends would play, or even better, your favorite counselors!
Set up a cooking challenge. Make your own Great British Bake Off by challenging your family to a cooking competition. Use some of our favorite camp recipes to see who can make the tastiest meal. Make Solveig proud Greystone girls!

Games:

Check our favorite games. We did a great post over the holidays of our favorite games, so check that out to see what we recommend. Right now, we’re playing endless rounds of Zeus on the Loose and Ticket to Ride with our 8 year old! And, don’t forget about all of the games you can play with just a deck of cards: War, Slapjack, Speed, Old Maid, and many more!
Play some games by yourself. Don’t have anyone to play a game with? No need to worry! You can still pretend you are in our Card Games class, as there are endless games you can play by yourself. Try paying Clock Solitaire to see how you do. Or, check out these one player games we own and enjoy: Kanoodle, Pattern Play (for younger girls), Rush Hour, Snap Circuits, ColorKu and Gravity Maze.
Make your own March Madness bracket. Okay, this is fun. We may all be mourning the loss of basketball right now (or is it just me?!), but you can have fun with your own March Madness bracket. It doesn’t have to be as big as the b’ball tournament, but set some things up against each other, and see who you think is the ultimate winner. Right now, we are doing this with picture books with our 4 year old (reading 16 picture books and seeing which is best between 2, moving it to the next round…and so on). But why don’t you try it with camp recipes, Dining Hall songs, Zumba dances, camp activities, hot dog toppings (as you plan for the Weiner Dog Social), or something fun from home.

Planning for Camp:

Print your pictures: You can decorate your bunk with pictures, so go ahead and print some out so you’re ready to go. Check out these cool photostrip options that would be really fun to add to your bunk this year.
Mark things off that packing list. When you’ve got some extra time, why not look over the packing lists to figure out what you need. We printed out the list for my oldest just the other day and went ahead and rounded up a few things we needed. It may be early, but it definitely got us all excited for camp!
Write down addresses. You know you’ll need a list of addresses for your friends and family. Go ahead and make that now!
Write your Penpal. Tuck this idea away if you haven’t received your Penpal (they are coming soon!), but there is no better time to write your Penpal. You can spend some extra time on your letter or even draw a picture!
Cheerleading try-outs are coming. Main campers – spoiler alert! We are doing Cheerleading Try-outs again at Team Meetings. You may not know your team yet, but start thinking about what you are your friends can do to try out this year. It is going to be E.P.I.C.
Make a Bucket List. With camp just around the corner, what better time to make your very own camp bucket list. This summer, do you want to roll down the pageant court, try Fencing for the first time, participate in the Mini Talent Shows? Write it down and share it with your camp friends!

Remembering Camp:

Make a photobook. Have you made a photobook from your previous summers at camp? Check out this cute little mini books that would be so fun to have on your shelf. They are so affordable, you could even make one and send to a friend!
Join in our Prayer Challenge. Did you know we have a Prayer Challenge on our website? Decide to join us for the next 30 days!
Watch some camp videos. You can see years of past camp videos on our Vimeo page. Pop some popcorn and see if you can find some of your camp friends in their younger days.
Start your day off right. Camp days are the BEST days, so remember these great days by starting your day in the same ways we do at camp. Instead of Breakfast Club, watch an inspiring Ted Talk geared for children. Listen to some Morning Assembly songs, and then end by listening to one of our recorded Morning Assembly talks. You can listen to a talk from a different year or different session to hear something you’ve never heard before!