By Benjamin and Melissa Fugitt
Summer is nearly here! The children are excited. Parents might be a bit apprehensive, wanting to plan activities that are fun, educational and spiritually uplifting. As Catholic school teachers, parents and life-long residents of San Diego, we would like to share some of our ideas, suggestions and considerations for a summer plan that the entire family can enjoy.
Out and about
In our house, it’s a constant struggle to keep eyes off of screens. The best way to do this is to get the kids out of the house, leaving the phones and tablets behind. There may be a little grumbling at first, but our area has so many destinations that you should be able to find something to help take your kids’ minds off-line.
Our kids love visiting Tecolote South Shore Park with its inclusive playground, San Dieguito County Park with its suspension bridges and playground, and Old Poway Park with its working railroad.
One of our favorite activities is walking around La Jolla Village. We get coffee or treats at a local café, visit the bookstore and toy shop, and then walk down to the cove to look at the seals and watch the waves. North Park is another great neighborhood for walking with kids, and Liberty Station has great playgrounds along with shops, snacks and bay views.
Building our faith
Finding opportunities to strengthen the faith of our students is something we think about throughout the school year. When summer comes, it presents a great opportunity to develop our faith as a family. Six years ago, we stumbled upon the “Saint Stories for Kids” podcast. It quickly became one of our favorite ways to learn about the saints and our faith while driving.
Mission San Diego de Alcalá and Mission San Luis Rey are certainly worth visiting, especially if you are able to attend Mass there. Prince of Peace Abbey has a beautiful church, gift shop and Stations of the Cross. Attending Mass with the brothers there is a great way for kids to learn about the consecrated life. Walking the quiet grounds of a mission or abbey is a perfect time to practice prayers, both formal and informal, with your children. Introduce them to new Marian prayers, Pope Francis’ “Five Finger Prayer” or Lectio Divina during a visit to a sacred space, and they will remember it all the more.
As teachers, the Corporal Works of Mercy form a significant part of our classroom religion curriculum. There are concrete ways you can help your kiddos live out these Works of Mercy all around San Diego.
The Million Meal Event, Feeding San Diego, and The Surfrider Foundation are organizations that welcome kids and families to participate in genuine and meaningful service around the county. If your kids are littler, it may be easier to make homeless helper kits for our local neighbors, or encouragement cards for retirement home residents. These can be taken to the San Diego Rescue Mission, Nazareth House, or to a retirement home or shelter near you.
Connecting at home
Sometimes everyone (or maybe it’s just the adults) wants to spend a quiet day at home curled up with a book and some cocoa. Chances are that your kids won’t want to do the same, at least not for as long as you do. Read-alouds are a great way to engage the whole family in literacy. “The Adventures of Frog and Toad” was a favorite when the kids were small, and “The Wind in the Willows” is a classic for older kids. Both books focus on friendship and building relationships, and are filled with the humor that kids love.
Board games and card games are another way to bring the kids together when staying at home. Peaceable Kingdom has a line of cooperative games, where kids are encouraged to work together rather than compete against each other. Most young kids are not emotionally ready to deal with “losing graciously,” and tears during game-night means it won’t be fun for anyone.
One of our favorite card games is “Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza.” This simple game helps kids develop their focus and attention, even when it’s not their turn. It’s fun and silly and simple enough to be enjoyed by the whole family. For older kids, or when the little ones have gone to sleep, we love “Carcassonne” and “Settlers of Catan.” These take longer and have a bit of a learning curve, but they’re great fun.
Cooking with your kids is another way to encourage independence and critical thinking, and explore math and science in a fun, interactive way. Getting picky eaters to engage in preparing meals makes it much more likely that they will try something new, since they’ve had a hand in making it. If your kiddos are too young for knives and stoves, there are lots of no-bake recipes out there. And there’s always recipes for slime and salt-dough!
As teachers, San Diego summers always seem far too short. Running around and having fun with kids makes the time go even faster, and the memories made with the family are sure to stick around long after they go back to school. Summers, like childhood, fly by faster than we would like; so, make the most of both of them!
We have compiled a list of our favorite parks, books, recipes, games and religious activities here: https://bfugitt.github.io/summer2026. Enjoy!
Benjamin and Melissa Fugitt each with over 20 years of experience teaching in Catholic schools. They have been married for 16 years and have two children who attend Catholic school — a freshman in high school and a sixth-grader.
