Make the most of this fantastic but fleeting season with a Summer Bucket List of goals, dreams, wishes and plans for maximum fun in the sun. Draw up your own or review our list of 50 to find the ones that grab you. You can also print out our paper bucket and use the printable templates of our top 12—plus whatever ideas you write onto the blank cards provided—to turn it into a game!
Paper “Bucket List” Game
Instead of thinking of this list as things to do before summer kicks the bucket, turn them into a game you play using a “bucket!” Use a real pail, or print out our paper summer bucket template and cut it out. Staple the front and back of the template together, creating a pocket for the paper “bucket.”
Then print out our 12 “bucket list items” and cut them out—along with the blank cards you wrote your own ideas on—and slip them into the paper bucket. Pull one out each day of vacation, once a week, or whenever you like, then do what it says to make the most of your day. You can add extra cards with your other ideas written in, too!
Or, have a Summer Bucket List party or playdate where every guest pulls out a card to see what their adventure is going to be.
You can print out the bucket and card templates as-is, or print out blank versions and have kids color in the bucket, write bucket list goals, and illustrate them with pictures.
Bucket List Item Cards
Print out our cards, and you can use them to play the Bucket List Game, stick them onto your fridge, or tape them to the calendar or into your datebook to remind yourself to seize the day!
Once you’ve had your adventure, tape the cards into a scrapbook, your fridge, or onto the wall as a reminder of all the fun.
Here are our ideas to get you started—starting with the 12 illustrated ones on the cards. Whichever ones you pick or add, you’ll make memories to last all year long!
Summer Bucket List
- 1. Order a triple scoop ice cream cone. Pick three flavors!
- 2. Learn a new language—or just how to say “thank you” in five different languages
- 3. Read a biography of someone you admire
- 4. Catch a firefly
- 5. Go skinny dipping! (Or, if you’re shy, night swimming)
- 6. Plant something
- 7. Exercise outside
- 8. Write someone a letter—or send a postcard
- 9. Take a nap outside…on a picnic blanket, in a hammock, on a pool float
- 10. Have a s’mores party!
- 11. Run through the sprinkler or garden hose spray
- 12. Visit a farmer’s market
- 13. your toes in an ocean, lake, river
- 14. Go on a nature walk or scavenger hunt
- 15. Throw a frisbee in the park
- 16. Invite a friend over to fruity drinks with summery straw toppers and blast summer tunes
- 17. Stop to watch the sunset or sunrise as often as possible. Do a sun salutation!
- 18. Skip stones on the water
- 19. Travel somewhere new, whether it’s a city, state, country, or just a new local hiking trail
- 20. Learn—or re-learn—how to do cartwheels or cannonballs
- 21. Keep a list of “summer stats”: how many fireflies you saw, ice creams you ate, laps you swam
- 22. Set your own Olympic goals: How many laps you’ll swim or miles you’ll run
- 23. Cook a new recipe with summer vegetables
- 24. Watch a movie outdoors—at a drive-in, in a park, in your yard
- 25. Recreate an old family photo from a previous summer
- 26. Spread the love—have a lemonade stand or sponsor a fun run and donate the money to charity
- 27. It’s summer reading season! Have a book swap with a new friend.
- 28. Press some flowers so you’ll have souvenirs of summer all year long
- 29. Pack a picnic, or have a candlelit dinner outside
- 30. Make a daisy chain
- 31. Make fun ice cubes! Freeze berries, edible flowers, or colorful fruit.
- 32. Make a friendship bracelet, God’s eye, lanyard or whatever your favorite camp craft is
- 33. Make a flag cake on 4th of July or crepes on Bastille Day
- 34. Start a Labor Day barbeque tradition
- 35. Make a summer reading list—and read at least half of it!
- 36. Splash in the rain
- 37. Blow bubbles on the beach or in the park
- 38. Have an outdoor dance party
- 39. Go swimming with a friend—you’re never too old to play Marco Polo!
- 40. Ride your bike someplace new
- 41. Do something nice for a neighbor—pick up some groceries for them, mow their lawn or make them a pan of brownies
- 42. Make a summer playlist—have each of your friends add one song
- 43. Pick your own fruit
- 44. Keep a summer journal
- 45. Have a water balloon fight
- 46. Watch a parade
- 47. Paint some rocks; leave them in the park or yard for others to find
- 48. Go on a romantic date—to a drive in or outdoor concert
- 49. Walk barefoot—in the grass, in the sand, wherever, whenever you can
- 50. Make a joint summer bucket list with your friends to plan group adventures
What You’ll Need
- Summer Bucket List Template
- Card-stock or paper
- Scissors
- Stapler
- A Sense of Adventure
How-To
Step 1: Download the Summer Bucket List Template, print, and cut out cards. Write your own bucket list items on paper, cut into squares.
Step 2: If you’re playing the Summer Bucket List game, staple the front and back of the paper bucket together along the sides and bottom, creating a pocket. Fill your “bucket” by sliding the cards in the pocket.
Step 3: Pick a card out of the “bucket”—or an item off your list—and have a summer adventure!
