10 Things to do around a Campfire

Even though a lot of people have fond memories of campfires from their youth and they enjoy camping not many people know how to give their children those same fond memories from their camping trips. Having a fun campfire, having something that will leave a very positive mark in the memory of a youth is actually pretty easy but it is something you have to practice a little and plan for a little. Can you leave that positive memory without planning it and without a little prep work and practice? Yes you can but it's an iffy proposition at best. See it's like this: if you want to make a lasting impression, if you want to have your kids look back at (at least part) of their childhood and have it put a smile on their face then it takes work. Believe it or not but implanting those memories of warm and happy campfire experiences is just like any other part of raising a childe in my opinion. What that means is it takes a little work and a whole lot of love. So let's get into the list of what to do and how to plan a "spontanaeous" campfire: 1. Dusk - The time of the evening you do it at is very key to a successful campfire. Having a campfire in the middle of a sunny afternoon just doesn't have the same impact that having one as it is getting dark does. 2. S'Mores - I say s'mores but it doesn't have to be that treat, you just need to have some sort of snack that the kids really like and that they don't get very often. This makes the campfire something special. With my kids the only time they have s'mores is when we are at a campfire. Another "bonus" to having the s'mores is that they get to play with the fire. Boys especially, are really, really attracted to the fire and if you give them an opportunity to play in it then they will remember it. Do use some safety precautions and make sure to have at least one parent who just keeps an eye on the kids around the fire and the marshmallows themselves. 3. Best Part - This is something that a friend of mine came up with. Once you have eaten some sort of treat you all get your camping chairs and sit around the fire. You then ask everybody in your group something like: what was your most favorite part of the whole day? And you go around the campfire until each person has had a chance to talk about what the most fun part of the day was for them. 4. Wish List - This is basically the same things as the Best Part but you ask them what one thing they really want to do tomorrow? If you are leaving the campground and heading home really early in the morning the next day then you probably shouldn't ask this question. But if you get the chance, you will be amazed at some of the answers the kids will give. 5. Songs - A lot of people kind of scoff at this one but most kids really love this part of a campfire once you start doing it. You will be amazed at the variety of songs that the kids all seem to know. What we usually do is go around the campfire at least once if not twice and let the kids one at a time choose the song they want to sing and let them lead into the song and then everybody else joins in. My 9 year old son still requests "Itsy Bitsy Spider" every single time we go camping. 6. Scary Story - This item depends on the age and mentality of the children that are with you. If you have little ones or if you have kids that get scared really easily then you should skip this item. If your kids are older or they can handle it, go around the campfire and let each child that wants to tell a scary story. We don't usually have any of the parents tell stories because the kids do a better job of it themselves. 7. Add a Story - This one you can do regardless of the age of the children, you just tailor the storyline to the age of the children present. One adult will start the story and kind of get it going and then you just go around the campfire one at a time adding a sentence or two onto the story. You can go around the campfire a couple of times and then if it starts getting really out of hand you start another story and reverse the direction of the story. If you have an adult in the group who is pretty sharp you can ask them ahead of time to keep track of the story as it develops and then recap it at the end. You would be amazed at how interesting the story gets when one person retells it beginning to end. 8. Thankful For - Ask the kids to tell everybody what they are thankful for in their lives. It could be something on the trip or it could be something else in their lives. Always start this off by asking an adult first especially if you have little ones in the group. You kind of have to show them by example. If you start doing this on a fairly regular basis and the kids get comfortable talking about this stuff in front of other kids and adults you will be shocked (in a good way) at the very interesting answers you will start to get. 9. Dreams - Ask the kids to tell the group their biggest Dream in life. I don't mean the dream they had last night while they were sleeping. I mean like what do they want to do when they grow up, where do they want to live and what kind of life they want. That kind of Dream. Little ones (under 4 or 5) might be a little young to understand and/or have an answer to this question but once they get to be a little older then that you can bet that they have started to think about that. My 7 year old has already had three different careers in his life! 10. TAPS - We always end the campfire and the day (for the kids at least) by singing the words to Taps. You can very easily find them on the web if you don't know them. The words are absolutely beautiful and the melody is so calming and serene it is the perfect ending to a very memorable and fun campfire. I hope this list and the explanations were helpful to you. Some of my fondest memories of growing up and of spending time with my kids center around a campfire. If you take the time to do a little bit of prep work thinking about how to get this together you will not regret it and your kids will thank you for it down the road.