There’s no doubt, fathers and sons have a special relationship. You can strengthen and maintain this bond by going on a few budget-friendly outings with your son. Your son will only be a child for so many years, so it’s important to enjoy as much time as possible together. Also, there are lessons about manhood and life to teach him before he becomes an adult. So here are the 25 of the best bonding activities to do with your son.
Attend a Sporting Event
If your son is involved in sports at school and wants to learn more, bring him to a few sporting events. During the game, teach him about certain rules of the sport while still enjoying the game with him. And don’t forget to take plenty of pictures.
Work on the Car Together
If your teen just received his driver’s license, now would be a good time to have him assist you in working on the car. This is one of the most helpful bonding activities to do with your son that can teach him how to do regular maintenance and address car problems properly. Also, you and he might also discuss other life lessons in the process.
Go Fishing or Hunting Together
This is one of the best learning activities to do with your son because you’re teaching him how to be self-sufficient. He can learn how to obtain food without always having to go to the store. You can teach him the best techniques. Just for fun, have a friendly contest to see who catches the most fish or game for dinner.
Plan a Weekend Road Trip
You can plan a weekend road trip with your son. Pack lots of healthy and a few unhealthy treats along with some favorite books and music for the trip. Maybe there is an upcoming car show in a nearby city to check it out. Or perhaps there is a food festival your son has been talking about all year.
Teach Money Management Lessons
Your son will likely not learn financial literacy in school, so you must teach him proper money management skills. Dedicate a weekend to discussing financial concepts, such as creating a budget and saving money. Talk about avoiding debt by not spending more than he earns.
Explain ways to invest in passive income and even retirement. Discuss some of the mistakes you made with money and how you learned from them, too. This is one of the activities to do with your son that will help him all of his life.
Mow the Lawn Together
Your son needs to learn how to be handy, so mowing the lawn is a good way to learn at a young age. In addition to mowing the lawn, you can show your son how to keep the backyard tidy. Be sure to include all the proper safety rules and equipment.
Visit a Paintballing Center
Boys love to get messy and rough, so why not bring him to a local paintballing center? Another advantage of this activity is that your son is exercising instead of being glued to a screen. Activities to do with your son can be healthy and fun, too.
Go Camping
If you’re trying to get your son interested in enjoying nature and learning survival skills, camping is the best activity to do with your son. Use this time for telling him stories about your childhood and family history in general. This is also a neat option if you have a hectic schedule and you want to reconnect with your son for bonding time.
Attend a Music Concert
If your child is in high school, the two of you can attend a music concert together. Maybe you grew up in the ‘80s and your son just happens to enjoy ‘80s rock music, just like you. Or you want to introduce your son to ‘90s Hip Hop music because you think it sounds better than today’s version.
Many local nonprofit arts organizations hold free or inexpensive concerts at local parks, which is another good option.
Host a Guy’s Night Out Barbecue
Knowing how to cook food over fire is an essential skill for everyone. So, host a cookout together at home with your male relatives and guy friends. This would be a good time to teach your son how to grill different types of foods correctly and have fun in the process. Your son will enjoy the dude-friendly conversations and he can bond with the other men in his family for a few hours.
Tour Some Colleges
A college tour is a great way to prepare your teenage son for college life if he wishes to attend sometime soon. Talk with your son about his top choices and then contact the schools to inquire about upcoming open house events.
Have your son prepare a list of questions he can ask the admissions officers or tour guides once he arrives at the college. Discuss ways your son can apply for scholarships. Talk about maintaining good grades, so he can get into a good college.
Go Bike Riding
If you have a preschooler or kindergartener, this is an important skill that most dads look forward to teaching their sons. Purchase a bike with training wheels and a quality bike helmet. Spend at least 30 minutes each day showing your little man how to ride it.
He may fall a few times and get scared, but with your encouragement, he will improve. Soon, he’ll no longer need the training wheels. This is one of the best activities to do with your son since he will always remember it.
Do Grooming Routines Together
The chances are that you and your son wake up around the same time each morning, so why not bond by doing your grooming routine together? Most boys want to imitate their dads, so you can teach him proper grooming techniques by example. Put on his favorite music and enjoy yourselves.
Involve Him in Your Business
If you operate a business, you’ll likely want your son to take over it once you retire. So, show him the ropes of your business. Discuss what it takes to maintain long-term success as an entrepreneur. He can make deliveries, answer phone calls or take orders on weekends. You can have him help clean the establishment or even assist with your marketing and social media efforts.
Play a Game of Basketball
Whether it’s in your backyard or at the park, playing basketball is a fun way for fathers and sons to enjoy each other’s company. Not only that, you’ll get some great exercise at the same time. So, get off the couch and grab that basketball. This is one of the healthiest activities to do with your son.
Enjoy a Rainy Afternoon of Gaming
Of course, you don’t want to promote excess screen time, but there are times when you and your son can’t go outside because of bad weather or sickness. You and your son can spend an afternoon playing a variety of kid-friendly video games together. Prepare some cool snacks such as nachos, hot dogs, burgers, or barbecue chicken wings with fries.
Ride in Bumper Cars
Bumper cars are fun, adventurous, and fast. Boys are naturally drawn to action-packed activities, so bring him to local amusement parks that have bumper cars and go-kart sections. You and your son will get an adrenaline rush and burn off lots of steam.
Attend Church Together
If you’re a religious man, you probably want to pass on your values to your son. This is one of the most important activities to do with your son. Discuss why religion and spirituality are important and then bring him to church with you. Once the service ends, discuss key points that the pastor made and how the two of you can apply those principles during the week.
Have the All-Important Sex Talk
As your son enters puberty, his body and emotions undergo different changes. He’ll start noticing how attractive girls are, so he needs to learn how to navigate this critical stage of life. Dedicate a weekend to talking about sexuality, relating to women, and how pregnancy occurs.
You’ll also want to talk about how to prevent sexually transmitted diseases and the traits of a healthy relationship. This is a conversation you’ll want to continue having until he moves out on his own. This is one of the toughest bonding activities to do with your son, but it will help him for life.
Take a Trip to the Barbershop
The barbershop is one of the few places where men and boys have a safe space to be themselves and talk about the things that dudes find interesting. Your son might even gain lifelong funny wisdom from the barber in the process.
Do Some Basic Household Projects
Men who can fix a variety of things are more independent and confident. They also can save a lot of money, too. So, let your son assist you in projects like fixing a leaky faucet or installing bookcase shelves. Show him how to assemble new toys for younger siblings or put together new furniture. Teach him about the common tools and how to use them safely, as well.
Read Some Good Books Together
Reading is an activity that most men enjoy. Also, your son needs to have strong literacy and critical thinking skills to be a well-rounded adult. Allow your son to choose age-appropriate books at the library. Many books are also available via apps like Kindle or Barnes and Noble.
After he finishes reading them, ask him questions about what he read. Your son can also ask you about what you read. This can be the start of deep conversations that he’ll remember for years.
Discover Classic Card Games and Board Games
Video games are fun, but if you want your son’s mind to be challenged, play card or board games with him. Some good games to play include Monopoly, Clue, Sorry, Trivial Pursuit, Pictionary and Scrabble. You can even borrow some games from your local library to try first before you purchase them.
Volunteer in Your Community
You don’t want your son to grow up to be selfish, so it’s a good idea to do volunteer work with him. Maybe you and your son can spend the weekend at a local children’s hospital just encouraging the kids. Or the two of you might prepare care packages for military personnel who serve overseas. Check your local paper or Facebook page to see what the needs are in your community.
Play a Game of Catch
This is a basic activity, yet it’s so much fun. Boys love roughhousing and running around with a ball, so this is a neat idea at any time of the year. There’s no complicated planning, either. Just run outside or walk to the park after lunch or dinner.
These 25 activities to do with your son will bring you closer together over the years. That bond you build will last throughout your son’s lifetime, and perhaps, he’ll teach his son and his grandson, too. So, have fun and enjoy each other’s company. You may be teaching your son, but you’ll also learn some things, too.