THE summer school holiday, which some would say is almost obscenely long, is both a blessing and a curse.

It is chiefly a blessing for children – and teachers – who relish the prolonged release from the rigours of the classroom. However, for a good many parents the weeks before the autumn term can be a daunting challenge for a number of reasons.

Suddenly, for example, mothers and fathers discover that instead of having a sizable chunk of weekday childcare taken care of for them, they have to assume the full burden of parental responsibility. This can be a serious issue if both parents have to go out to work.

Fortunately, various play schemes and other holiday activities can come the rescue of hard-pressed families, though there is always likely to be a shortage of both opportunities and places.

Meanwhile, although ensuring that children are properly supervised during the long holiday is of paramount importance, there is a phrase other than ‘child care’ which is guaranteed to sow the seeds of terror in the parental heart. That phrase is ‘I’m bored’.

Yes, horribly unaware of just how fortunate they are to be looking at day after glorious day of freedom stretching away towards early September, many children very quickly imagine that they have run out of entertaining things to do.

Surprisingly, this appears to be as true now in the age of computers, the internet, DVDs and so on as it was in the days when, as grandparents are so fond of pointing out, ‘people made their own entertainment’.

It is, of course, no good telling the youngsters that failing to occupy themselves in this Island full of diversions is shamefully unimaginative. What they crave is practical advice on what to do, where to go and how to replace boredom with, at best, a sense of wonder or, more modestly, activities which pass the time.

Parents themselves might find this a tough challenge. There is undoubtedly an abundance of things to do in this Island, but coming up with suitable ideas off the top of your head is never easy.

With this in mind, today’s Jersey Evening Post comes to the rescue. On pages 52 and 53 there are 50 suggestions which will surely help to keep the over-leisured younger generation occupied. Moreover, most of the suggestions will, if taken up, ensure that they are usefully occupied – which, most will agree, is no mean achievement.