(A longer article on summer activities for kids is here.)

Summer is here, with its glorious days of sunshine and flowers. A relaxed and lazy feeling hangs in the air, with one small exception: ninety days of the kids being out of school. But never fear. With the advent of the Internet, we now have an overabundance of sites to guide us in keeping those little darlings happy during the long summer months.  

Think back to your own childhood, to those great games you played in your backyard. Remember Kick the Can or Dodgeball? At the Games Kids Play site, you'll find the rules to over 250 backyard games.

Another fabulous site is Berit's Best Sites for Children. The site contains interactive stories, online games, coloring books, sounds and movies, and much more. Kids can chat in a controlled environment with other kids or find an Internet penpal. A unique and helpful feature is that all of the sites included are described and rated.

Is it time for some fresh air? What better way to spend a delightful summer day than by flying a kite you made yourself? At Anthony's Kite Workshop, you'll find instructions for making a multitude of kites as well as kite construction tips, flying games, and kite stories.

The Summer Fun site features a wide variety of old fashioned excitement in categories such as indoor and outdoor activities, recipes and craft ideas, and garden and food fun.

Here's a site you sure don't want to miss. 365 TV-Free Activities features just what it says: 365 activities to keep the angels in your home occupied for hours on end. Categories include arts and crafts, fantasy play, math and numbers, older kids' play, and my favorite: Tire 'em Out.

A unique site for would-be writers in grades 4 through 7 is the Young Authors Workshop. Young writers will learn how to find story ideas on the Internet as well as tips on writing, revising, editing, and getting the story published.

Few children can resist the temptation of a seemingly endless supply of game ideas. At the Play a Game site, the games are divided into easy and harder to suit kids of all ages.

Next week, we'll look for gardening and landscaping sites. See you then.

Robin Nobles is a freelance writer who can be reached at robinnobles@robinsnest.com.

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