Create and keep a fun notebook along with a kit of whatnots (a hodgepodge of materials) for when school is canceled or parents and children are stuck at home. Add activities, play-doh, colored pencils, etc. to the kit as you stumble across them daily. Then voila! Pull out the notebook and activity container when there’s a snowy or rainy day. Consider these suggestions for having fun or having a staycation in or around the house.
1. Spend time doing crafts. Do you have yarn and knitting needles in the fun kit? Many older children enjoy knitting, crocheting, or embroidery. There’s a certain sense of satisfaction that surfaces when we create something with our own hands.
2. Create a book. Provide paper or a journal. Encourage your child to write their own stories. This can be a story from their imagination or real-life events. Encourage him to add pictures or illustrate the story. Staple the pages together or put them in a notebook. The book becomes a treasured keepsake.
3. Enjoy performance time. Knowing her children enjoyed dressing up and wearing costumes, one mother added space in her child’s closet for dress-up moments. Encourage your child to dress up and role-play. It enhances their creative muscles.
4. Do karaoke. Children can participate in an at-home music and dance festival. Put on lively music, add homemade instruments like a pot for a drum and wooden spoons, and then go for it. Dance, sing, and sway to the music. Not only will this be lots of fun, but it will create life-long memories.
5. Make puppets. Have you ever made a hand puppet? Remember how fun doing this project was. Start with scraps of cloth, old socks, ribbons, etc. Create a hand puppet and encourage her to give the sock puppet a name. Later, the child can entertain the family by making up stories to accompany her puppet.
6. Plant a mini garden. When seasonally appropriate, plant flowers or make a mini-garden from packs of seeds. If you live in an apartment or don’t have yard space, consider planting an indoor garden in flower pots. Watch the child’s eyes sparkle as he waits and sees the first seedling bursting through the soil.
7. Have fun in the kitchen. Make pizza, cookies, a salad, or sandwiches, and toss a blanket on the floor to have an indoor picnic. Take five minutes to close your eyes and envision yourself at the beach or at a park. What do you see, feel, hear, and smell?
8. Create a unique collection. Go outside and do a treasure hunt for rocks or leaves. Identify and display the items, or enlist your imagination and give clues for where they have been seen. If there a specific interest like baseball cards your child shows interest in, spend time discussing the collection, which creates bonding time.
9. Do science experiments. For the intellect in your child or to feed his curiosity, do an at-home science experiment. If you don’t know what to do, go to YouTube or invest in a do-it-yourself science kit from your local store.
10. Explore photography. Take pictures for fun, or choose a theme. Do a rainy day in the life of you and your children. Assist her as she goes throughout the house with a camera or smartphone to take pictures to be used in a photo slide show or that can be used to make a photo story or album later.
11. Make sculptures. Turn items that have been found around the house into a sculpture. With paper, scissors, glue, and a parent’s supervision, old items such as recyclables can be turned into a child’s very own art piece.
12. Have music time. Write and perform your own music and lyrics. No real instruments? No problem! Improvise. Pots with a wooden spoon make a great drum set. Let your music genius come out. The only mistake is not having fun or not stretching your musical wings.
13. Create book covers. Use wrapping paper to make a new, cool cover for a well-used and well-loved book.
14. Write letters. Pull out stationery to write simple letters to family members and friends. Write letters and draw pictures for a nearby senior facility. It truly is the thought that counts.
15. Have fun with puzzles. Are there particular animals your child gravitates to, such as horses, dogs, cats, rabbits, or deer? Hopefully, you have a puzzle in your fun kit that the child will enjoy putting together.
16. Play with board games. Provide age-appropriate board games such as Scrabble, Monopoly, etc. Many families enjoy spending time playing board games together.
17. Venture outside. Snow angels, snowmen, or a sled are great for winter days; children love venturing out in the snow. Mittens, scarves, boots hats, a watchful parent, and cups of hot cocoa for later are great for a day of playing in the snow.
18. Color in coloring books. Dive into the world of coloring books. There are bountiful coloring books for adults and children with a variety of themes. Make markers, crayons, and colored pencils part of your entertainment kit.
19. Paint or play with clay. This can be messy, but kids can have loads of fun and participate in the cleanup efforts.
You could even combine multiple of these ideas for a very fun and memorable experience. This is what my family did when creating the book Today My Sister Is Getting Married! We made a cake, played dress-up, and various other activities as a family, and then we photographed everything.
Do you have other ideas for fun at-home activities? Keep a running list, and watch for opportunities to engage your children in fun activities with the materials and items you already have in or around your home.
Lucille is the author of several books, including Today My Sister Is Getting Married.
