Babies and toddlers are one of the best blessings parents can have. They offer joy and comfort to a family, and help in reuniting loved ones. They are also a symbol of new life and new beginnings. However, spending time with a toddler can be challenging, especially when the weather is keeping you inside!
Toddlers are also challenging because they have different interests and a short attention span, which is why you have to be creative in keeping them entertained. Instead of looking at the difficulties and challenges of spending time with your toddler, think about activities you both can enjoy.
Rain or Snow? Indoor Activities Save the Day!
Indoor activities are a fun way to get you and your toddlers to bond and play. These activities are usually easy to do, and can help your child in their formative years. You can get creative and give boring games a twist to make it fun and informative. Games are a great way for your toddler to remember and learn. Through the games you play, they can pick a few lessons that will help shape their development.
Indoor activities are also a wholesome and fun way for you to connect with your toddlers. You can learn a thing or two from them, too. Itâs also through these indoor activities that will help your toddlers feel loved and cared for. To help you come up with ideas, we have categorized and listed different fun indoor activities for you and your toddlers.
Arts and Crafts
Get creative! Drawing, painting, writing, and acting out are fun ways to stimulate your childâs creative mind. It will give them the freedom to express themselves through art. These activities will also help them interpret their thoughts and emotions.
Since toddlers mostly take in lessons at this age, they can learn new skills, such as drawing or painting, to spark their creative skills. To give you some ideas for creative indoor activities, we have listed 10 fun-filled arts and crafts you could do with your toddlers.
1. Create Jewelry
Jewelry-making is a fun activity for you and your child. At this age, they love to dress up and imagine a lot of things. Jewelry is no exception.
To help you and your child create handmade jewelry, there are plastic jewelry boxes that come in sets for children. It usually contains a nylon string and several beads. Simply measure the wrist size of your toddler, tie the string to secure the beads from sliding out, and help your child pick the beads for the bracelet. Tie the two tips together, and you have your own jewelry.
Remember to use big beads, so your kids wonât be tempted to put these in their mouths. We also recommend that you pay close attention to them when doing this activity.
2. Finger Painting Sessions
Finger painting is an extremely fun and creative indoor activity for toddlers. This activity helps stimulate the mind of your toddler. There are a lot of kiddie art materials available in the market. When purchasing for finger paints, make sure that theyâre washable and non-toxic.
Finger painting can be a bit messy, so you may want to put your child in a black shirt or apron, and cover the table with newspaper. Help your toddlers paint, and allow them to get creative.
3. Coloring Sessions
Coloring books are a fun and creative way to bond with your child. There are tons of coloring books available in the market that you can buy. This activity can go two ways. You could buy separate coloring books for you and your toddler, with yours more complex and adult-appropriate. This way, you could enjoy your own clean coloring while your tiny tots go crazy with theirs.
You can lay out the pages they would color, and you could either help your kid color the page or let them have their own creative freedom. You can also discuss or teach them what the drawing on the page is about, and paint it based on the actual colors of the drawing.
4. Origami Crafts
Origamis are also fun indoor activities for toddlers. The simplest craft they can make is a paper airplane. Simple origami crafts are fun and easy things to make with your toddlers. It helps them visualize the things they see on books and television. It also makes them creative, making shapes with paper.
To create a paper airplane, get a clean long bond paper, and fold it in half. Fold the top two corners, so they will meet at the center. Then, fold the two corners again to meet at the center.
Flip the plane, and fold the corners again to meet at the center. Once done, fold the top of the plane so that the tip can meet the bottom of where the previous fold came together. Fold the plane in half, and fold the wings down. You now have your paper airplane.
5. Pasta Painting
Pasta Painting is a colorful, fun, and simple indoor activity for toddlers. Youâll need tubular pasta of any size, and different bowls of paint. To make it easier for your kids, simply give them the pasta, and let them dip it into the bowl of paint. Dry it on a piece of newspaper or tissue. Once done, help them turn it into a necklace with a yarn or nylon string.
6. Drawing Sessions
Toddlers love to draw, even though it may just be squiggly lines. Drawing stimulates their mind, and it allows them to draw whatâs in their imagination. It also helps in the development of their skills and passion for the arts. Who knows, you may find yourself having a young artist in the family.
To arrange your drawing session, get a piece of blank paper or sketchbook for kids, and prepare the drawing materials. Get a picture on the internet you and your child can draw, and be as creative as you can be.
This activity can also keep your child from defacing your walls or furniture. You can also designate a sketch wall in a section of your house, and cover that wall with paper. This way, even though your little tot has the itch to paint and draw on the wall, it wonât actually get damaged.
7. Ziploc Bag Finger Painting
Instead of painting on the walls, let your child paint on Ziploc bags for a mess-free art session. What you will do is put paint into the Ziploc bags. Seal them tightly to avoid from spilling on the floor, and tape them to a table, wall or window. Let your kids finger paint on the Ziploc bag by instructing them to create a shape or an animal.
8. Apple Print Craft
Turn those apple slices into art! Have fun with your kids by creating an apple stamp artwork. Simply cut an apple in half, and dip it into a plate of paint. Then, stamp it into a piece of paper, and get creative. This is an affordable and efficient way of making beautiful stamp arts for your kids.
9. Wooden Block Prints
Reuse those dusty block prints into art materials. These different shaped block prints are perfect to reuse for your kidâs arts and craft session. Dust off and clean the wooden blocks, and dip it into paint. Stamp it onto a piece of paper, and have fun creating different shapes and art. Your child will surely love this because they get to have their diy stamps.
10. Rainbow Marshmallow Painting
Create these beautiful and simple paintings using marshmallows. Buy different sizes of fluffy white marshmallows, and prepare your painting materials and bond paper.
Help your tiny tot dip the marshmallow onto the paint, and dab it on the bond paper. You can prepare an illustration that needs painting for it to be easier for your toddler to imagine the scene they wanted to paint. Donât forget to keep on eye of them because they might eat those sweet marshmallows.
Games, Games, Games!
Fun-filled games are a great way to bond with your toddlers. They love playing and running around. It’s also at this age that they get really curious and seem to have tons of energy. Games are also a great way to engage a toddlerâs motor skills. Below are 10 games that you and your child can play.
11. Play Hide and Seek
Hide and Seek is a fun game to get the kids moving and active. Start by picking a player who would count to 20. If your toddler doesnât know how to count yet, you would have to be the one to look for them. If they want to be the seeker, you could count for them, and shout that youâre ready.
12. Play Balloon Hockey
Balloon hockey is another fun indoor game to keep the toddlers moving. Youâll need balloons, a cardboard box to serve as a goal post, and a cardboard stick.
The rule of the game is to get as many balloons inside the box. It can be a challenge since balloons are light and airy, but this will also occupy your toddlerâs attention. Because of the nature of this game, your child will not only learn how to be patient when making a goal, but it could also teach them how to be strategic.
13. Simon SaysâŚ
This is a classic game everyone has played as a child. This game will test your toddlerâs listening and motor skills. You start with saying âSimon says,â and they have to do the action you say. If you didnât say the keyphrase, and they move, let them know Simon didnât tell them to do it. For sure, this game would elicit a lot of laughter from your tiny tots.
14. Freeze Dance
Freeze dance is a fun game to play with toddlers. The rules are simple. The kids dance when the music is on, and they freeze once it stops. They are not to move until the music starts back on.
Play a song the kids would love to dance to. They will have so much fun dancing and laughing, that it will help them connect with you and your family, and develop the skill of self-regulation and body coordination.
15. Toss Balls in a Basket
This is a fun game for both child and adult. Prepare two baskets and five foam balls for each team. Mark the area where the player should throw from, and place the baskets a few feet away from it.
Let the two teams toss the ball inside the basket from the line. Whoever gets many balls inside the basket, wins. This game will see how good they are in following instructions and be a good sport.
16. Build a Tower
When building a tower, youâll need tons of toy blocks. Start with creating a flat base to hold the rest of the blocks. Help your child in creating the tower by choosing wider blocks for the base, then work your way up. You can add toy soldiers to complete the look.
With this activity, you and your child working on the tower together would create a good-natured bond. This would also engage your toddlerâs imagination and decision-making skills.
17. Laser Maze
This is a nice and fun indoor activity for your toddlers, especially if you have a hallway to place this game in. Using long strips of crepe paper or any colored paper, create your own laser obstacle maze your tiny tots have to pass through. Stick the ends of the paper strips on each end of the wall, and design your own obstacle course.
18. Obstacle Course
This exciting and challenging game will promote your toddlers’ motor skills, coordination, and patience. You can set up a simple obstacle course with three stages, where each obstacle can be easily achieved by your child.
One obstacle can be called Pom Pom Drop, wherein you have these three toilet paper rolls for each team taped on the door. They will drop all the pom poms on the toilet paper rolls as fast as they can.
Second obstacle is Pom Pom Push, where there is a plastic container of ice cream. The container has holes in it, and your child shall push the balls inside.
Last obstacle is a Hula Hoop Jump where you place three hoola hoops on the floor, and your child must jump at the center of each hula hoop until they reach the finish line. These games will help them learn important lessons, such as motor skills and patience, and find balance in every obstacle.
19. Parachute Game
The Parachute game helps toddlers develop their motor skills and listening skills. The game starts with a thin and wide blanket spread out in the center of the room. The players will hold the edge of the blanket, and the instructor shall say “Up,up,up” and “Down, down, down.â
The players shall move the blanket according to what the instructor says. When the instructor says “Under,” everyone should let go of the sheet, and go under the blanket. This will really help them to be patient and listen to instructions.
20. Do not Ring the Bells Obstacle Course
This is definitely a fun game for toddlers. What they will do is to get past the hoola hoops with bells attached in it without ringing the bells.
They have to be really careful to not ring the bells. Once they do, they have to start all over again.
Learning Fun
At this age, toddlers tend to learn and soak up everything you teach them. Theyâre very curious, and ask about a lot of things. Spending time with your toddlers by teaching them in a fun and engaging way can greatly boost their knowledge and wisdom. To help you pick activities that are fun and engaging, below are a list of activities we have compiled for you.
21. Read a Storybook
Stories are a great escape from reality, but it also teaches us so many lessons that we can apply in our life. Sometimes it’s a mirror image of reality. Other times, it is a product of our creative and imaginative mind.
Stories are made to compel and engage a reader. By reading a storybook to your toddler, they can be entertained and pick up a few lessons. This will help your toddler learn about life in a creative and engaging way. It also teaches them important lessons and actions to inspire them to do good.
22. Sing Songs
Songs are easy to remember. You might find it interesting that it’s easier to memorize or learn a thing when it is being sung. Singing a song or a nursery rhyme will get your child engaged and active. It also helps them learn and know important things.
23. Teach Them the Alphabet
During these years, their minds are fresh and open to new lessons. This is usually the perfect time to teach them the alphabet song. There are also charts and flashcards for toddlers to learn the alphabet. You can allot a time in the morning or afternoon in teaching them.
24. Teach Them to Count
Aside from the alphabet, teach your toddlers how to count. You can do it by using visual objects, such as boxes or lego pieces. Teach them how to count to ten with visual aids first. You can also use stuff at home to represent visual cues.
25. Puzzles
Puzzles are a great way to enhance your toddlers’ physical, cognitive, and emotional skills. They’ll use their cognitive skills to think and build the puzzle while emotional skills to be patient and headstrong. You can buy a set of puzzle pieces at the mall or online. This activity also boosts your toddlerâs memory, and helps them set simple goals.
Sensory Activities
Aside from developing their motor skills, you can also enhance your child’s sensory skills with these fun and simple sensory activities. The game is easy to set up, and the materials are easy to find.
Sensory activities help the development of a toddlerâs thinking and motor skills. It can also function as a stress reliever, in the long run.
26. Playing with Shaving Cream
Kids love squishing their hands in something slimy. Playing with shaving cream will do the trick. This sensory indoor activity is perfect for toddlers.
Simply place a bubble wrap on top of the table, and let them wear an apron. Squeeze some shaving cream onto the bubble wrap, and mix some paint to create a beautiful mess. Let them enjoy touching the squishy and colorful foam before cleaning them off.
27. Make Slime
Making slime is a fun and sticky indoor activity that toddlers will surely love. Prepare the materials in creating a rainbow slime. Assist the children in creating one, and let them color it using food coloring. Let them have their fun as they sink their hands in the squishy surface.
28. I Spy
I Spy is a great game for eyesight. Start with saying “I spy something,” and describe the object you are referring to in one word. Let them guess what item you are looking for. This will engage their eyesight and their motor skills.
29. Find the Bright Red Candies
Find the small red candies under the hundreds of rainbow colored chickpeas. It will be like a treasure hunt for your kid that he or she will surely love. To make it interesting, place a number of colored candies, and time their hunt. They should only find the red candies.
You may also choose other materials, such as marbles, white marshmallows and colorful eggs.
30. Have Fun with Clay!
Have fun with clay! Clays are sticky and stiff multi-colored art material that you and your toddler can happily play with. You can also make your own clay or play-doh with your tiny tots! Your child would surely have fun using different colors to create different shapes and animals.
Bonus Ideas
31. Throw a Dance Party
Put on your tot’s favorite music and dance the day away! Teach them all of your favorite moves too! A dance party helps toddlers learn how to move their bodies and coordinate their movements with others. It also provides them with an opportunity to express themselves through dancing.
32. Board Games
There are so many amazing board games out there for toddlers. Matching games are a great challenge to develop object recognition and categorizing. You can also try more physical games like “Pancake Pile-up!” where your tot needs to stack pancakes. It’s easy to accidentally get games that are too advanced so make sure you avoid overly complex games.
33. Bumper Cars & Bumper Boats
Indoor activity centers are great options and often have toddler areas or ways for older kids and adults to accompany a toddler on a more advanced activity. Bumper cars are an excellent example. Most bumper cars feature two seats and a safety harness for smaller passengers. Just make sure you call or email ahead to see what options your local activity center may have for your little one.
34. Indoor Amusement Parks
Like my idea above, indoor amusement parks often have activities for toddlers as well. If you’re lucky enough to have a nearby indoor water park, then they likely will have a section for toddlers that feature a splash pad and lower-pressure water jets and dump buckets.
35. Indoor Trampoline Parks
Toddlers love bouncing on trampolines! Trampoline parks offer a safe environment for kids to bounce around and play.
Furthermore, this type of exercise improves their balance and coordination, which is perfect for their developing bodies and minds.
Conclusion
Spending time with toddlers can be fun and exciting. It doesn’t always have to involve sitting around and sleeping; it can also be filled with tons of activities both of you will enjoy. It’s also a great way to teach your child a thing or two. Be as creative as you can be with these activities, so you can make both of your times happy and fulfilling.
