Have you ever have a long weekend looming ahead, your children are home and there’s nothing planned? Goodness, how to keep the children out of mischief and occupied? Well, here are some great websites with interesting activities to keep the children entertained and they are educational as well. (Note: Some of these websites will require that you have a color printer in order to print their free downloads.)

Take the Flying Pig Paper Animation Kits for example. These kits are paper models you make that move. They are suitable for children above 12 years old (younger children would enjoy them too but adult supervision is required). They are easy to understand and do not take long to assemble and soon you will be able to enjoy the fruits of your labor.

If you or your children like origami, then you should visit the Canon’s Creative Park. They have a long list of free downloads that would keep the children occupied for hours (provided your printer does not run out of ink first!) The instructions are clear and easy to follow. When you finish, you would have a beautiful piece of art to display or to show off in school.

Like to eat eggs, scrambled or otherwise? Well, don’t throw away the eggshells. Just visit this website and see what you can do with eggshells. Can you imagine the turning the fragile eggshells into these beautiful works of art? There is no free download to guide you on how to make these beauties. It’s up to your imagination!

Or take a look at this or this! These works will definitely require skill and patience. Just imagine what you can do with all the eggshells that you threw away everyday! Here’s a simple eggshell project thats does not require great skill.

Do you like making your own greeting cards? Making Greeting Cards has some great ideas for making your own cards for all occasions. Making Greeting Cards has free templates and card making tips to guide you on your card making projects. So, why not get the children to make their own special cards for their Grandpa’s or Grandma’s birthday? Grandpa or Grandma would surely love these homemade cards more than the best store bought cards.

Another great website with wholesome activities for the whole family is the Artist Helping Children. It is filled with ideas that even 4 years old can do like the Baby Jar Gardens or making a kite with drinking straws.

If you are a cross-stitch fan like me, then you may just want to check out some of the great cross-stitch websites here.