“No more pencils, no more books, no more teacher's dirty looks. No more peace, no more quiet, the kids are at home and causing a riot.”

School's out for the summer – here are a few of my favourite activities and outings in London to keep the little ones entertained over the school holiday period.

From Dragonology to Belle's Beauty School, private members' club Maggie & Rose offer a full schedule of fun school holiday activities and excursions for children of all ages. Send budding chefs to hone their culinary skills at a Cookie Crumbles cooking workshop held in Kensington and Putney throughout the summer; or to Dri Dri Gelato whose summer workshops teach little ones how to prepare (and devour) delicious gelato and sorbets. And for something out of town, a shooting lesson at Bisley Shooting Ground makes for a great day trip for older children and teens.

There's still plenty of fun to be had in dreary weather – head to BFI Imax to see the biggest blockbusters on the biggest screen in town or to the interactive British Music Experience at the O2 where kids (and adults) not only learn to strum a Gibson and do the locomotion but take a recording of their performance home with them. An afternoon of bowling at All Star Lanes (£5.75 per game for children) or Bloomsbury Bowling (children catered for before 4pm) is a fun outing for families with a competitive streak. And to amuse the tiny tots, Disney and the athenaeum hotel have opened a Winnie the Pooh playroom for the summer filled with toys, musical instruments and games in a Hundred Acre Wood setting within the hotel.

To avoid the compromise of either force feeding your five year old fois gras or pick at a plate of fish fingers yourself, book a table at either Sam's Brasserie in Chiswick or Smollensky's in the West End – both of whom offer special kids menus that will keep everyone happy. The Orange also offer family-friendly wood-fired pizzas as well as serving half-sized portions at half-sized prices for children on some of their dishes.