May Family Night Ideas and Fun Activities List

Family nights and time together are so important, and Supermom Shuffle has prepared a May Family Night Ideas and Fun Activities List to help you get started for some fun in the month of May!

Wooden sign that says "Hello May" with flowers all around it all sitting on a distressed wooden table

It’s May already!!!! Happy Mother’s Day! Our theme this month is “May is for Mommies!” May can get hectic and busy! It’s the end of school, Teacher Appreciation, Memorial Day, and Mother’s Day celebrations, just to name a few things! On the good weather days, get out and about and take in the season with your family! May is a gorgeous time and all the plants and trees come to life again! Go on a nature walk or find a local garden to explore. Plant your own garden and flowers! Happy May, everyone!

Colorful wooden flower decorations with a block calendar turned to May 1

Importance of Family Time

A happy family is always super important to me and the value of family time cannot be overstated. Regular family nights as well as general family time are really important and strengthen your family bond. It’s a good idea to spend time together with the entire family regularly because it’s key to the development of your kids, and it boosts your general well-being also! It’s a fundamental part of offering emotional support, sharing triumphs, and navigating through challenges.

What To Expect?

What should you expect from each month’s guide for fun family night ideas? Each month will have a theme and then it will include the following ideas and activities planned around that theme!

Family Dinner Conversation Starters
Printable Conversation Starter Cards
May Weekend Activity List
Family Theme Night Suggestions
Game Night Ideas
Movie Night Ideas – May and Mommy Theme
May Baking Ideas
May Craft Ideas
May Family Bucket List

More on each section of our guide to come!

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A mom and dad on a walk in a field with their two kids on their shoulders

When To Have Family Night

Any night is fine for family night. You’ll want to do it on a night when there are no other activities planned. It is supposed to be a fun night, not something you stress about fitting into the schedules. Make the time and do the family nights regularly. It’s one of the best things in life, and you don’t want to miss it! I think Friday night is kind of fun to do them on so we don’t have to worry about homework or it being a school night. Try out some different times and see what works best for your family.

A family gathered around a child holding an ipad with everyone smiling

March Family Night Guide

Conversation Starters:

Use these for the dinner table or a longer car ride. Have fun with it and play along too! There are also cards to follow if you want to cut them out and put them in a jar and pick one each day!

Here’s May’s conversation starters:

May 7 is Space Day. What do you think would be fun about traveling in Space?
If you were going to space, what 3 things would you pack to take with you?
May 9 is Mother’s Day. What’s your favorite thing about your mom?
May 19 is World Plant a Vegetable Garden Day. Do you think you’d like to have a vegetable garden? Why?
If you had a vegetable garden, what vegetables would you plant in it?
If you only could eat one food for an entire week, what would it be?
April Showers Bring May Flowers. Which do you prefer? Showers or Flowers? Rainy or sunny days?
May is National Hamburger Month. What’s your favorite kind of hamburger and what are your favorite toppings?
May 5 is Cinco de Mayo, and one way we celebrate is by eating Mexican food that day. What’s your favorite Mexican food?
May 18 is International Museum Day. What would be your favorite kind of museum to go to?
What are 3 things you are thankful for today?
School is almost over for this year. Do you like summer break? Why or why not?
You just found a $20 bill and you can do anything with it. What do you want to do?
If you could be invisible for a day, what would you do?
If you could build anything in our back yard, what would it be and why?
What is your favorite word? Why?
What’s your favorite movie?
If you could have an entire day with just your favorite foods, what would you eat all day?
What’s your favorite book?
What do you think you want your job to be when you grow up?
What superhero would you be and why?

Printable Cards

If you sign up for the free March guide, there are printable cards you can print out. I love to print them on cardstock, cut them out, fold them up, and put them in a jar. Then each night at dinner you can draw a conversation starter and everyone gets to answer the question each day. You can modify it for little kids or big kids as best suits your family’s needs.

A family in the living room floor playing a board game

Game Night Ideas

Family Game Night is such a fun way to connect! Here’s a list of games we think are great fun with May and Spring Themes! Some of these will require a little more work and prep than a regular board game, but so much fun for the season. There are truly so many fun ideas and fun games out there to explore! Search Google/Pinterest for the idea for exact instructions! We’ve compiled a list of the treasures that we consider to be a fun game.

Some families like board games while others like video games. Some families are puzzle families while others are not! Do whatever fits you and your family’s personality the best! You can even play a bunch of different games for your game night. Make sure to pick games that are appropriate to the ages and number of players you have on hand.

Family Game Night Ideas for May

Little Guys (Age 3-6)

May Themed “I Spy”
May Matching Game Printables
Flower Spring Dice Game
Rattlesnake Jake
Snug as a Bug in a Rug
Elephant’s Trunk
Curious George Discovery Beach Game
Picture Dominos

Bigger Guys (Age 7-10)

Connect4
Busytown, EYE Found It!
Wildcraft
Sneaky Squirrel Game
Operation
Trouble
Scrabble Jr
Sequence Jr
Money Bags
Apples to Apples Jr
Zombie Kidz
Magic Maze

Big Guys (Age 11+)

SmartAss
Telestrations
Sequence
Relative insanity
Codenames
Ticket to Ride
Double Ditto
Catan
Blokus
Catch Phrase
5 Second Rule
Bananagrams
Pandemic
Unstable Unicorns
Betrayal at House on the Hill
SKYJO
Spontuneous
Scrabble
Monopoly – Cheaters Edition

A mom and dad with thier toddler on a dock throwing food to ducks in the water nearby

May Weekend Activity Ideas:

The weather should be getting pretty beautiful for most of us now! Make the most of it before it’s crazy hot during the summer and pack in some of these activities in May!

Make a bird feeder
Indoor obstacle course
Make an art project
Try on Spring clothes and donate the ones the kids have grown out of already
Homemade Spring Play-Doh
Spring baking
Start a garden
Hang bird feeders
Picnic
Feed the ducks
Visit a museum
Go for a bike ride
Let your kids have your phone and take pictures of nature
Backyard obstacle course
Nature Walk
Make a Fairy Garden
Get a giant bubble kit
Fly a kite
Go to a museum
Go to a baseball game
Have a garage sale
Visit the library and check out books on Spring
Go to the zoo
Go fishing
Go outside and play in the rain, jump in lots of puddles
Family Movie Day!
Fly a kite
Sidewalk Chalk Art Contest
Go on a Rainbow Hunt
Get Family Pictures made
Family Spring Cleaning Days
Mini Golf
Spring Farmer’s Markets
Rock Painting
Go to a local community garden and explore
Feed squirrels and chipmunks
Day road trip
Go window shopping
Go to a farmer’s market
Attend a Spring Fair
Plan a lake day
Scavenger Hunt

Family decorating for Cinco De Mayo by hanging up colorful banners in their home

Family Theme Nights:

This is one of my favorite ideas. Family theme night is so much fun. Here’s what you do:

Pick a theme and go with it for a fun family night! There’s one for each week in May plus extras!! Some of these fun night ideas are more involved than others. The sky is the limit, so go for it and have some fun. (PS – As a side effect – trying some of these new ideas might even help your child expand their diet and try new foods!)

Scavenger Hunt

May 24 is National Scavenger Hunt Day. Set up a scavenger hunt for your kids and give them clues to follow. This can be a super fun family activity! Think indoor! Think Outdoor! Or both! There are tons of ideas on Pinterest and even already pre-done clues!! You could have the scavenger hunt end in a fun dinner or dessert!

Memorial Day

TWe celebrate Memorial Day as a day to remember those men and women that have died while serving in the United States military. Have a short discussion on the importance and honor of the day. It could be nice to put a flag outside today. You could also make flag crafts and cards and send them to someone who has served in the military.

Kentucky Derby Night

For Kentucky Derby night, everyone dresses up for dinner. Ladies wear big hats and the men get to wear bow ties. Watch some of the old races on You Tube and let your kids make bets on which horses will win. You could also set up a “horse track” in your house. Each kid is a horse and let them pick their name. Then THEY have to run your family house derby and see who wins in the best time!

Teacher Appreciation Night

May 3-7 is Teacher Appreciation Week. Take this evening to make some crafts and cards and write some nice notes to your teachers, both past and present, thanking them for their service and efforts all the school year long. I always get a gift for the teachers to go with our handmade cards to show them our gratitude for teaching our kids.

Cinco De Mayo

What a fun night this can be! Have your favorite Mexican food and decorate the house with a Mexican Party theme! Go to the party store and grab some streamers, shakers, and maybe even a Pinata! (Do the Pinata outside please!!) Find a Mexican dessert to enjoy together after dinner and play some fun games as a family!

Space Night

It’s space night! If you have a telescope look up into the skies tonight. Print a star guide and find some constellations. Make a menu of kinds of foods astronauts might eat in space. Get some freeze-dried fruit and ice cream to try! Find some space experiments to try on Pinterest. You can also watch some shuttle launches on YouTube!

Chocolate Chip Night

May 15 is National Chocolate Chip Day. Have a day of all Chocolate Chip-themed fun. YOu could do crafts, bake cookies, have pancakes or ice cream toppers. Bake cookies to gift to others and deliver them! There are some fun chocolate chip melting craft/cooking projects on Pinterest too!

Plant a Vegetable Garden Night

It’s World Plant a Vegetable Garden Day on May 19. Go to the hardware store and let each family member pick out a vegetable seed packet. Plant them in pots and watch them grow into vegetables! (Make sure you know how big they can get! Don’t pick a squash or green beans unless you have room!)

A family snuggled up on the couch at night with lights strung around for a movie night

Movie Suggestions:

Need some fresh ideas for Family Movie Night? Here are some that match April and Spring and Earth Day Themes! Check out the movie beforehand to make sure there’s nothing to scare your kids! I haven’t seen ALL of these to confirm myself!

Younger Kids:

A Bug’s Life
Bambi
Tom and Jerry
Cruella (comes out May 28)
Tarzan
Brave
Troop Beverly Hills
Adventures in Babysitting
The Parent Trap
Dumbo
Coco
Little Big League
The Sandlot
Tangled
Finding Nemo
Despicable Me, 1, 2 & 3
How to Train Your Dragon
Beauty and the Beast
Moana
Space Jam
An American Tale
Free Willy
Spy Kids
Enchanted

Older Kids: (12+)

Freaky Friday
Cheaper by the Dozen
Baby Boom
Troop Beverly Hills
Adventures in Babysitting
The Parent Trap
A League of Their Own
The Princess Bride
The Karate Kid
Hook
Matilda
Homeward Bound
Inside Out
Cool Runnings
Honey, I Shrunk The Kids
The Mighty Ducks 1 & 2
Blind Side
Legally Blonde
Men in Black
13 Going on 30
Mr. Holland’s Opus
The Rookie
Ferris Bueller
Rookie of the Year

Mom with three daughters baking and rolling out dough with a rolling pin

Baking and Crafting Suggestions:

Here are some ideas for fun baking and crafting sessions this month! Google or Pinterest for yummy recipes and craft ideas!!

Woman cracking an egg into a bowl with flour and a kid in the background watching

Baking:

Spring Rice Krispy Treats
Carrot Cake
M&M Cookies
Strawberry Scones
Spring Confetti Bars
Lemon Blueberry Bars
Flower Pretzel Bites
Funfetti Whoopie Pies
Sugar cookies with spring cookie cutters
Strawberry Sugar Cookie Bars
Pop-Tarts
Chocolate Bark Brownies
Blueberry Muffins
Raspberry Cookies
Spring dipped Oreos
Strawberry Sweet Rolls
Hot Cross Buns
Spring Bark
Home-made ice cream
Sprinkle Cookies
Girl Scout Cookies Cakes
Sunshine cookies
Lemonade
Strawberry Cake

A family enjoying craft time with paper, scissors and glue

Craft Ideas:

Memorial Day Crafts
Mother’s Day cards
Mother’s Day crafts
Cinco De Mayo Crafts
Teacher Appreciation Crafts
Handprint sunflowers
Handprint flamingos
Popsicle Stick flower pots
Toilet Paper Roll Frogs
Paper Bag Kites
Twirling Paper Spinner Toys
Paper Plate flower crafts
Flowers with Tissue Paper
Handprint cards
Beaded butterflies
Toilet Paper Roll Butterflies
Qtip flowers
Fingerprint painting
Pom Pom Shooters
Egg carton flowers
Sponge Paint butterflies
Giant paper flowers
Sea turtles from paper plates
popsicle stick picture frames
Paper Umbrellas
Adorable Photo Magnets

Notebook with a bucket list outline written on it with wadded up paper and paperclips and a pen

May Family Bucket List:

In the printable Family Activity Guide, there’s a blank bucket list for May! Come up with a few things your family wants to do and start working on checking those items off the list! It can be for May, for Spring, or even for all of the Summer! The sky is the limit and make it your own and do what works for your family. I can’t wait to hear about everyone’s list!

A family out for a walk with their dog and a picnic basket

Wrap-Up – May Family Night Ideas and Fun Activities List

I still can’t believe we are all the way to May! All these ideas should keep you pretty busy for the month of May, and even beyond that! Keep this guide handy and use it month after month, year after year! I can’t wait to hear all about the fun ideas and quality time that you spend with your family this month! Having fun as a family is super important and helps solidify your bonds. Additionally, spending time together regularly is so good for your kids and for the parents as well. So, take some of these ideas, or come up with a great idea of your own, and get going on your family night! I can’t wait to hear all about them! Until then… Just Keep Shuffling! And Happy May!