MATCH ACTIVITIES

The one-to-one time between Bigs and Littles is what Big Brothers Big Sisters is all about. That time together is fun, and meaningful, and it strengthens relationships. Below is a list of low-cost match activities, but don’t stop there. Browse through the Bigs Only Facebook Group or post a question to connect with other local Bigs about what they like to do with their Littles. Look for the monthly Bigs News email in your inbox to sign up for activities provided by BBBS. Your Match Support Specialist is also a great resource for activity ideas catered to you and your Little.

DIGITAL ACTIVITIES

-Use the Discover a Hobby website to share and compare your favorite hobbies.
-Check out your local food truck tracker to find local food trucks.
-Take art classes on the Michaels website
-Learn about ballet by checking out Dance Theatre of Harlem videos.
-Hike the Grand Canyon with Treadmill TV.
-Help your Little improve their soccer skills with Simply Soccer training videos.
-Watch 5 Shooting Drills to shoot like Stephen Curry
-Check out free art lessons at the Wild Free and Crafty YouTube page.
-Introduce your Little to engineering and tech on the Discover Engineering website.
-Learn how to make simple origami animals.
-Explore the beauty of space via the James Webb Space Telescope
-Take a virtual tour of national parks
-Take a virtual tour of the National Museum of Natural History
-Explore mars
-Tour the Egyptian Pyramids

HOBBIES & CRAFTS

-Dayton Public Library events and activities
–Greene County Public Library events
-Oakes-Beitman Memorial Library DIY Center (Troy)
–Piqua Public Library events
-Play board games and make jigsaw puzzles for free at Puzzles Plus (The Greene location)
-Dayton Regional STEM Center activities
-Learn and find activities on the Ohio Department of Natural Resources website
-Build a model airplane, car, or ship
-Learn card games or build a house of cards
-Explore a creek and look for fossils
-Carve a pumpkin
-Learn chess or checkers
-Participate in a public speaking group
-Try out some brain teasers on your Little!
-Create a scrapbook with pictures from mentoring match activities
-Learn how to cook/bake; plan a week’s worth of meals
-Create a time capsule
-Create a comedy skit
-Practice meditation
-Learn first aid & CPR
-Check out car racing events at Kil-Kare Raceway
-Make home-made slime
-Take art classes at the K12 Gallery & TEJAS
-Watch a documentary
-Play musical instruments
-Read a book together
-Make a Rube Goldberg machine
-Work on a science project
-Sign up for a Home Depot DIY project class
-Decorate a Christmas tree
-Do a self-guided walking tour of Dayton
-Fly a kite
-Learn how to juggle
-Play 20 questions
-Learn about family history at the local library’s Genealogy Department
-Go roller skating
-Study the stars
-Learn about your hometown
-Use globes, atlases, and maps to learn more about the country and world
-Visit a train station
-Visit an airport
-Practice learning a new language
-Write a journal together and add to at during each match meeting
-Go to a high school sporting event
-Write a play, a poem, or a short story
-Search for a good used book at Rabbit Hole Books
-Practice baseball at the batting cages
-Join a bowling league
-Play laser tag
-Play mini-golf
-Ice skating
-Got to a painting or art studio
-Check out an Ohio Farmers Market
-Canoeing
-OSU Extension activities
–University of Dayton athletics
-Wright State University athletics
-Greene County Fair
-Miami County Fair
-Montgomery County Fair
-Preble County Fair

MONTHLY EVENT CALENDARS

-Montgomery County Fairgrounds Events
-Miami County Fairgrounds Events
-Dayton Local
-Downtown Dayton Events

MUSEUMS, MUSIC, & MORE

America’s Packard Museum
Aullwood Audubon Farm & Nature Center
Boonshoft Museum of Discovery
Brethren Heritage Center
British Transportation Museum
Carillon Historical Park
Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historic Park
Dayton Live
Dayton’s Old Court House
Go to a play at Dayton Playhouse
Hawthorn Hill
Memorial Hall
Mound Cold War Discovery Center
National Aviation Hall of Fame
National Museum of the United States Air Force (free admission)
Paul Laurence Dunbar House
Patterson Homestead
Sinclair College art galleries
Sinclair College music performances
Sinclair College theatre productions
Sunwatch Indian Village/Archaeological Park
The Dayton Art Institute
The Funk Music Hall of Fame & Exhibition Center
The International Peace Museum
The Neon Movie Theater
View art exhibits and live music at the Troy-Hayner Cultural Center

OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES

AllTrails: local hiking trail app & website
City of Dayton Department of Recreation
Five Rivers Metroparks has an activity finder to help you find new things to do!
Learn how to play disc golf (frisbee golf)
Miami County Park District
Grow fresh vegetables and fruit at a local community garden!
Lost Creek Reserve & Knoop Agricultural Heritage Center
Go geocaching: join the world’s largest treasure hunt
Go picnicking
Ride bikes
Get some ice cream!
Hit golf balls at the local driving range
Take landscape photos
State Parks list
Make sidewalk chalk art
Help your Little match nature time with screen time by going to 1000 Hours Outside!

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT ACTIVITIES

-Write a resume
-Write a practice job application
-Do a mock job interview
-Help your Little with homework
-Read a newspaper article and talk about it
-Discuss career options: high school; college; vocational school; military; etc.
-Talk about your first job with your Little; discuss being successful in the workplace
-Discuss and work on quarterly or yearly goals (academic; behavioral; social)
-Financial planning/budgeting
-Go on a college visit
-Put together a healthy and affordable grocery shopping list
-Talk about your Little’s career plans, then visit a workplace (BBBS office can assist with this)

VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES

-Make a homemade card and send it to a senior citizen (Love Our Elders campaign)
–Volunteer at the Humane Society of Dayton (ages 10+)
-Clean up litter in your neighborhood
-Form a Keep Ohio Beautiful affiliate
-Serve a meal at a soup kitchen
-Go to the Random Acts of Kindness website