Here are a few games and fun activities for your kids. Kids easily get bored. It might not sound like much but for kids time passes very slowly for them. And maybe that’s why they can’t continue to do things like older people.
If you have a toddler complaining of boredom, you can arrange for few fun activities at home. They don’t have to be some complex activities or video games on your iPad or something. If you can spare some time, you can make some really fun activities or simple games for your child.
Fun at Home Toddler activities and Games
Basketball: Don’t worry. This is just indoor basketball. Make a large enough ring or cylinder from cardboard for dunking in the ball. The ball can be easily made by rolling old newspapers. Your kids can have a lot of fun trying to make a slam dunk. This game is also very helpful for hand to eye coordination.
Bottle Bowling: Bowling is a favorite game for many teens and elders as well. The sheer the joy of bowling and the look on the face when all the pins fall is awesome. You can make a simple bowling bowl for your toddlers at home. All you need are few plastic pet bottles. You can find at least a dozen of them at your home easily. You can give a lightweight but strong ball to your child for bowling.
Drop the mail in the mailbox: You can encourage your kids to write mails and post them in a homemade mailbox. This way, you can work on your kids’ handwriting skills. You can make this mailbox by using a tissue box or take a cardboard box make a slot to put in the mails.
Halloween Special: As Halloween is fast approaching, carving Jack O’ Lanterns is another activity that you can assign to your kids. Instead of giving them a pumpkin, you could give them playing dough to carve out those scary yet special faces.
Connecting dots: Take a large piece of color paper and stick some star like dots on that sheet of paper. Pretend that this piece of paper is the night sky and ask your kid to connect these dots. After few minutes of play, your kid can come up with some meaningful figures.
Mini race: Here is a mini race that your toddler will love to play, once he or she gets the hang of it. All you need are drinking straws and just a few drops of water. On a large table, put two large drops of water and start a race by blowing at the drops. Make a finish line and whoever crosses the finish line first wins.
Bubble paint: This game requires you to add few drops of food coloring to the bubble mix and a large sheet of paper. Make it an outdoor activity. Stick the sheet a fence or two trees. Now let your kids blow bubbles on the sheet of paper. They’ll enjoy the sight of the bubbles bursting out the moment they touch the paper, creating different patterns of color each time.
Rolling marble: This is another indoor game that can be played to 3 or more kids. This game can inspire kids to be friendly and cooperative. Give each kid a cardboard pipe that is cut halfway lengthwise. Now, ask the kids to align their pipes and let the marble roll down from the first kid. The rule is pretty simple, don’t let the marble fall down and once the marble is with the last kid, have him go back to the first kid and let the marble roll down. And so on the game continues.
Marble Goal: This is another interesting game for your kids. Take a cardboard shoe box, cut out the opening side. Now, put the box upside down and cut out 5 slots through which regular sized marbles can easily pass through. Assign numbers 1 to 5 to each of the holes randomly. Now, give 5 marbles to each kid and let them roll their marbles towards the box from a distance. As they roll down marbles towards the box and as they enter into through holes, make a note of the number on the hole and give score accordingly. Highest scorer wins the game.
Rainstick: Rainstick is a simple homemade child gadget that gives out the sound of rain. It requires simple materials to make it. Take a long cardboard tube and a handful of toothpicks. Make holes into the cardboard and insert these toothpicks. Make sure that the toothpicks don’t stick out from the wall of the pipe. So, trim it a little bit and wrap glitter paper or color paper around the tube. Completely close one end of the tube. Now, pour rice from the open end of the tube. Just a handful of rice is enough. Close the other end as well. Now, when you hold it upside down the falling rice inside the tube almost makes the sound of rain.
Cardboard castle: If you have 2 or more kids, you can direct them or help them in building a cardboard castle. Your kids can play this game for hours together without getting bored. You can include many fun things in a castle game like decorating a castle, toy battles, etc. I just leave it your imagination.
Gladiator game: No, this is neither the original Gladiator game of the Romans nor the Russell Crowe version. This is just a fun game. This is related to cardboard castle game. With two or more kids around, you could make cardboard swords and shields which are completely harmless, 100% child safe and of course with no pointy edges. Make a rule that whoever breaks the other’s sword is the winner.
Drawing shapes: You can give your child a pencil and paper and a whole lot of things like bottles, small bowls or anything that you can lay your hands on. Your child’s hand to eye coordination will improve by drawing the outlines of those things around.
Talking on the phone: This is not real talking over the phone. Kids just love to imitate their elders and talking over the phone is one of them. Hand them over a phone and observe them. They at least pretend that they’re talking. Make a phone out of a cardboard box and stick a newspaper cutout of a phone on it and give it your child. Your child can talk on his new smartphone for hours together.
Drive a car: Make a small or big car for your kid using some cardboard cartons that you can find in your home. Your kid will love to push that car all around your home, all day long. Happy Vroom Vroom!!!!