Guest Author - Melissa Weise

Holiday breaks are great. You look forward to them for weeks and daydream about them and all the great stuff you are going to do without the daily trudge of school. And they are great for a few days and then dreaded boredom seeps in. Here are some ideas of things you can do on holiday break to keep yourself entertained.

1) Make some money. Snowfall is the perfect time to make some extra dough because there are always people out there that don’t want to shovel it themselves. You can also offer to babysit or help with holiday baking for some extra cash. More creative (and time consuming) money making schemes could include organizing photos, helping to take down decorations, or after-holiday cleaning.

2) Volunteer. Around the holidays there is always someplace that needs some extra help. Find a local soup kitchen, hospital, food bank, thrift store or toy drive. You can also collect cans, box tops, pop tops, toys, or money for your own cause. Check out the article below on community service for more ideas.

3) Organize your room. With all the potential loot from holiday presents, now may be a great time to find a place for it all and perhaps get rid of some of the stuff you don’t use anymore. Check out the article below on how to clean your room for helpful hints on the best way to do this.

4) Play board games. Go ahead, haul out the Monopoly, Risk, checkers, Scrabble, Sorry, and any other board game that has been gathering dust in some closet or attic or shelf. Usually there are plenty of people around during the holidays to rediscover these childhood favorites.

5) Get in touch with old friends and relatives. Make a list of all the people you have known throughout your life. They could include friends from your early childhood or relatives that you haven’t seen in a while. Then, find out where they are and send an email, card, or letter. Or perhaps you even want to call them. If they are on holiday break, they probably have time to chat and get back in touch too.