Free North East school holiday activity for kids each day over the coming week

The kids' school holidays can be a challenging time for grown-ups, with those long weeks stretching ahead waiting to be filled.

And holidays usually mean added expense. Not everyone can afford a break away or to plan something for their children to look forward to - which can mean that dreaded cry of "I'm bored" becoming a daily occurrence. To help out with some ideas of what to do over the summer, we are rounding up seven suggestions - one a day for the coming week - that won't cost a penny.

There is plenty fun to be had for free around the North East if you know where to look. This week we include a new playground in the heart of Newcastle.

• Read More: Summer in the City events in Newcastle include free kayak lessons and a quayside motorbike race
• Get all the latest North East updates with our free What’s On newsletter

The weather is always variable during the school holidays so we've included indoor ideas too, with free activities on offer at a museum and art gallery. Remember to pack a picnic if you can or take along some snacks as that can save a fortune on any outing.

Free pretend play

A great addition to Newcastle's summer attractions is Tiny Toon, which opened this week. Set up in a corner of Old Eldon Square, which is lined by trees, this play area invites young ones to explore a series of mini replicas of city attractions including a Grainger Market stall; Eldon Square shop and restaurant, all filled with props.

Inside the pop-ups they can dress up, play shop or serve pretend meals and cakes. There's even a mini Metro train and a section of the Tyne Bridge

Free films

At the opposite end of Newcastle's Old Eldon Square to Tiny Toon is the outdoor cinema Screen on the Green, which is showing films twice a day for free throughout the summer. This Saturday it's the turn of Wonka at noon and Migration at 3pm followed on Sunday by The Princess and the Frog and noon and School of Rock at 3pm.

Next week's programme includes The Railway Children Return and Beauty and the Beast on Monday; Abominable and Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children on Tuesday; Coco and Sing 2 on Wednesday; Paw Patrol: The Mighty Movie; DC League of Super-Pets and Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire on Thursday; Space Jam and Kung Fu Panda 4 on Friday; Tangled and Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle on Saturday and The Addams Family 2 and Ferdinand on Sunday.

Free fun at the farm

A visit to see some pigs, chickens and ducks is guaranteed to raise a smile in most kids and Newcastle's Ouseburn Farm has plenty animal residents to admire. There are reptiles and rodents too.

It's free entry and, besides its farmyard, there is a garden and wider site to explore and a visit could be combined with a walk along the Ouseburn river. The farm says it will be opening daily throughout the summer holidays, from 10am-3pm. See here.

Free Monster Trucks Show

There's free entry to this show in Streatlam Park at Barnard Castle, County Durham, this weekend and it promises a full family day out, with plenty entertainment between noon and 6pm on both Saturday and Sunday, July 26-27. While there will be food and fairground rides adding to the temptations, there's no reason why you can't enjoy your own snacks and there will be plenty other things to absorb kids' attention with truck show-times being at 1pm, 3pm and 5pm.

There also will opportunities to take photographs with cartoon characters, although it's not clear if this carries a fee. See here.

Free fish and chips at the coast

A day at the beach is always a winner, whether kids like to splash around, build a sandcastle or play beach games. There's endless beautiful coastline to explore and, to help families reach a vast stretch of it, Nexus has a Kids Go Free deal running, offering free travel on the Metro to children aged 11 and under when they are accompanied by a fare-paying adult, who can take up to three children each. The same deal applies to the Shields ferry.

And Oswin's fish and chip shop in Tynemouth is offering cod bites, sausage, scampi, halloumi fries or chicken nuggets, with chips, for free to kids over the summer. However, the adult will have to buy a meal to claim it (regular cod, haddock or scampi meal with chips) but this deal dilutes the cost.

It is available Monday to Friday (not weekends) at the chippy at The Tynemouth Castle Inn on Grand Parade, near Longsands beach. A gluten-free alternative is also available.

Free morning dance at the Baltic

The contemporary art gallery on the Gateshead banks of the Tyne is free to enter so a visit could be tagged on to a nice riverside walk - or how about a dance there to start off the day? Included in Baltic's summer programme is a drop-in cereal disco which will be running in its Front Room from 10am until 11am, Wednesdays to Sunday, throughout the summer holidays.

It says: "Join us for breakfast and a boogie." See here and find out about the rest of its programme see here.

Free 'Fantastic Fossils'

Sunderland Museum & Winter Gardens is running free drop-in activity sessions during the holidays and on Monday, July 22 it will be the turn of Fantastic Fossils, which is a chance to find out about the plants and animals of pre-historic Sunderland.

As well as learning all about fossils, the youngsters (this activity is geared towards those aged four-plus) can create some fossil rubbings too. The free sessions will run from 11am-12.30pm and 1.30pm-3pm.

Other Monday sessions to come will explore more of the museum’s collections, while another drop-in option in the coming week will be an Arty Friday. Find out more here.