Easy toddler games

Easy Toddler Games: 20 Ways to Entertain Toddlers When You’re Too Sick to Play | MommyPoppins

Sometimes we (gasp!) get sick—or get just plain exhausted. For those moments when Mom or Dad just needs to chill, here are 20 toddler games, toddler activities, and other minimal-effort activities for kids at home. No messy sensory bins here—the mantra of this post is to do less when you’ve got less to give.

Looking for more indoor activities for kids? We have lots of ideas—including science experiments, crafts, and more—in our Guide to Boredom Buster for Kids.

Toddler Games and Activities You Can Do Lying Down

1. What’s on My Butt?

This is an old standby passed down by generations of tired parents. Never heard of it? You (the grown-up…this is key!) lie down on your belly. Have your child place an object on your butt. You guess what it is Twenty Questions-style. Repeat.

2.

Your Back, the Race Track

While your kid collects small cars and trains, lie face-down on any comfy surface. Invite your kid to use your back as a track as you snooze. Level up by purchasing a shirt with a road printed on the back for this exact purpose (oh, the Internet).

3. Horizontal Games

Referee games from the comfort of your couch. Think freeze dance (you’re the DJ), horizontal Simon Says, Hot and Cold, and I Spy. Gift yourself a copy of Horizontal Parenting written by an especially genius parenting hacker for many more ways to engage your child from a supine position.

4. Shadow Shapes

Grab some flashlights and make hand puppets on the ceiling. Tell stories, guess the animal…you get the idea. Try shining a light through anything colorful and transparent, like Magna-Tiles. Your kids will think you’re a wizard when they see it cast a rainbow of shadows. Extend the fun by having them trace the shadows on a piece of paper.

5. Doctor Kid

You’re the patient, obviously. Ask your kid to grab their pretend doctor gear and give you a check-up while you rest.

Post-its are a brilliant invention, in the office and at home!

Kids' and Toddler Activities Using Simple Materials

6. Post-it Party

Post-its are so much more than office supplies. Hand them over and watch your toddler effortlessly make a mosaic on the walls, windows, or themselves. Write the names of household objects on Post-its for your child to label for a fun literacy lesson. Or, write each letter of the alphabet on a Post-it and hide them around the house for your child to find and arrange in alphabetical order.

Every child ever born loves playing with tape. You can get in a nice long nap while they go crazy with tape!

7. Tape Tricks

Scotch, masking, washi…any of the sticky stuff will do. You might have to tolerate some amount of exertion to rip the tape, depending on your child’s age and patience level. Attach a ton of tape pieces to the edge of a table for your kid to pull from, then sit back as they stick the pieces all over. If you’re feeling ambitious, make tape lines on the floor for your child to walk on or push cars along.

Who knew aluminum foil was so incredible? Well, your kid, for starters.

8. Fascinating Foil

It’s shiny, it's crumply, it's easy to rip, and it's not a toy, which makes it extra appealing. And there's so much you can do with foil. You can wrap a bunch of toys in it and ask your kids to guess what’s inside before unwrapping them. You can make shiny sculptures out of it. Or, you can simply give your toddler a full roll of it and see what happens (just make sure to remove it from the box, which can be sharp).

9. Kiddie Rave

Break out some glow sticks, turn down the lights, play some music, and rest while your little ones rave. You can even drop those glow sticks into the bath and feel like the cool parent while you bask in the glow.

Tape returns in a game of rescue.

10. Toy Rescue

Tape tiny toy animals and figurines to the floor and ask your kids to rescue them. Picking at the tape can take a solid chunk of a toddler’s time and is great for those fine motor skills, if you care about that sort of thing.

11. Balloon Bounce

Blow up balloon, give to toddler, walk away. Easy-peasy until it pops, so prepare to play it cool when that happens and whip out another.

12. Pom-pom Play

I love sensory play in theory, but sweeping piles of rice is not my jam—especially when I'm sick. Enter pom-poms, or just plain old cotton balls. Pour the fluff balls into a few bowls, add a spoon and some tongs, and let your kiddos scoop to their hearts’ content. Throw in a whisk to really blow their little minds.

13. Busy Boxes

Got boxes waiting for recycling day? Draw on them, sit in them, put stickers on them, stack them…..remember, it’s not a box!

If you really want to keep kids occupied, tell them to search the house for something that rhymes with orange.

Toddler Games and Activities Around the House

14.

Shape Search and Color Collector

Send your kid on a treasure hunt for a category of things. How many orange toys can they collect? Can they find objects shaped like circles in every color of the rainbow? Have them arrange their loot in an interesting way and let them snap a photo of their assemblage.

Clean up, clean up, everybody clean up! For toddlers, even chores can easily turn into fun and games.

15. Housework

Put your little ones to work while you put your feet up. Toss them rags and spray bottles of water and ask them to wash the windows. Move that mountain of laundry that’s been waiting to be folded and challenge them to match all the socks or to sort the clothes by type.

It's art. No, seriously. And the forbidden factor makes it lots of fun.

16. Potty Pictures

It's kind of gross, but it’s all in the novelty, folks. Dry-erase markers plus a (clean) toilet can make for a creative canvas. To make it educational, look up Marcel Duchamp’s famous Fountain sculpture and learn about how the artist signed a urinal and called it art.

Easy Fresh-Air Toddler Activities

17. Chalk Challenge

Step outside and grab the sidewalk chalk. Draw a few shapes on the ground and give your toddler commands like, “Stand on the star and spin around. Hop to the circle and do two jumping jacks. Walk backwards to the square and touch your toes.” They’ll love following your silly commands while you chill in a chair.

18. Sky Watching

Give your kid binoculars or grab a paper towel roll (aka telescope) and head outside. Watch for birds or search for shapes in the clouds. Jot down “field notes” of what you observe.

19. Discovery Drive

Change the scenery and go for a drive with a mission. We love to find where the garbage trucks live (i.e. Google the sanitation department and go). Or look up the best spots to watch planes land in your area and see them get bigger and bigger as they descend. Train hunting also works like a charm.

And Finally...

20. Screen Time

There is no shame in screen time. Louder for those in the back: NO SHAME. Especially when you’re sick. Or in a pandemic. Or if it’s just Sunday. Give yourself a break and hand over the remote.

Photos by the author

Games and activities for 1-3 year olds to play inside for 2023 UK

Here’s our pick of the best games you can play with your toddler indoors

1. Follow my leader

Prep time: None | Materials: None

Get your toddler has to copy everything you do: jumping, crawling, patting your tummy, putting your slippers on your head – the sillier the better! Then it’s her turn to lead…

2. Rescue the animals

Pic: Abi Walker

Prep time: 3 mins | Materials: Toy animals, masking tape

Gather up some toy animals (or cars or small dolls) and a roll of masking tape. Use strips of masking tape to stick the toy animals, one by one, to a window or a door. Then encourage your child to ‘rescue’ the toys by carefully peeling/pulling off the tape. It’s a fun game for toddlers that’s really good for developing fine-motor skills and hand-eye co-ordination. And MadeForMums superuser Abi, who shared this pic of her daughter Maisie playing the game, says Maisie also enjoyed re-sticking the animals back on the window, and asking Mum to rescue them for round 2!

3. Hunt for buried treasure

Prep time: 2 mins | Materials: Sand, toys, basin

You’ll need some small toys and sand for this one – either sandpit sand or, if you don’t have any, you can make super-quick play sand (with flour and oil). Put the sand in a washing-up bowl and hide the toys in it. Give your child a spoon and a sieve and set them off ‘hunting for treasures’. (You might want to put a mat/sheet on the floor under the bowl to catch any stray shovelled grains.)

How to make homemade play sand – with just 2 ingredients

4. Play Parcel Surprise

Prep time: 10 mins | Materials: Toys, newspaper, sticky tape

Use some old paper to wrap up a few of your child’s favourite toys (don’t use too much sticky tape). Then give one parcel to your child and ask them to guess what’s inside – is it Teddy? Or Dolly? Or Panda? Then let your child unwrap the toy (OK, tear off the paper) and enjoy the surprise of finding out.

5. Sweep and dust

Prep time: None | Materials: Duster or toy broom

Toddlers love imitating grown-ups doing the routine household tasks that most of us grown-ups would gladly do without. So, give your child a soft cloth and go ‘dusting’ together. Or get them a mini broom or dustpan and brush – or even one of the little play vacuum cleaners that make brilliant, important-sounding suction noises – and spend some time making the floor all spick and span.

6. Do some magic painting

Prep time: 20 mins | Materials: White candle, paper, paints

Draw a simple design on paper with a white candle or crayon. Make up watery paint in a strong colour and let your toddler paint the paper. As they paint the paper, it will reveal the ‘magic’ hidden design.

7. Play musical bumps

Prep time: None | Materials: None

You don’t need to be at a party to play a simple, giggly version of this game. Play some music and dance around together, telling your child that you’re both going to sit down as soon as the music stops. Then press pause on the music and say, “Quick, sit down!” Once your child’s got the hang of the game, make sure you’re a bit dozy and slow at sitting down sometimes, so that they get a chance to feel good about beating you to it.

8. Pretend to be animals

Prep time: 15 mins | Materials: Card, straws, sticky tape

Draw an animal’s face on a piece of card or, if drawing’s not your thing, print one out (there are some great ones to download from Twinkl) and cut holes for the eyes. Let your child colour it, then attach a straw at the bottom so they can hold it in front of their face. Make several masks and take it in turns to pretend to be the different animals, with lots of moving around on all fours and growling/quacking/bleating noises.

9. Play postie

Pic: YouTube/PlayTeachLove

Prep time: 15 mins | Materials: Scissors, boxes, objects to 'post'

Posting objects into different shaped holes fascinates toddlers, and can keep them busy for ages. And the action of posting is great for developing fine motor skills (grasping an object, placing it over a hole and letting go) and also understanding that when you drop something into a container it doesn't go away. Try one of the 8 different posting activities mum and primary school teacher, Kate, describes on YouTube that feature everyday household items, such as milk cartons, cardboard boxes and gift bags.

10. Get potato printing

Prep time: 20 mins | Materials: Potatoes, cookie cutters, knife, paper, paint

This is one of those activities that toddlers love but many of us avoid because, frankly, who’s got time to carve a reverse 3-D shape into a potato? Well, we have a brilliant trick! All you need is cookie cutters (and a potato or two, obvs) and then. ..

With a knife, cut a potato in half vertically, then press a cookie cutter right into one of the cut surfaces – so that you can only just see the top of the cookie cutter.
Take your knife and make a cut into the side of the potato half roughly where the embedded end of the cookie cutter is. Stop when you feel your knife touch the cookie cutter.
Cut around the rest of the side of the potato half in the same way.
Peel off the strip of potato you’ve just cut, leaving the middle bit (inside the cookie cutter) in place.
Remove the cookie cutter – and you have a perfectly shaped potato stamper!

Put some poster paint in saucers and let your child dip the potato in the paint and then make prints on paper. Alternatively, an older toddler could brush paint onto the potato stamper with a paintbrush before printing.

11. Make a toy garage

Pic: Leanna Bannister

Prep time: 20 mins | Materials: Cardboard box, cardboard tubes, glue, toy cars

With a cardboard box, some loo roll or kitchen roll tubes, scissors and sticky tape, you can create this homemade toy-car garage for toddlers, which we first spotted when it was posted by mum Leanna Bannister on the Family Lockdown & Tips Facebook group. How to make it? Leanna tells us: "I simply turned a nappy wipes box on its side, taped different cardboard rolls together and slid them into the box! My son Vinnie hasn’t left it alone since he’s had it! He loves pulling all the cars out, then working out which cars can fit in which tubes! So simple to make and hours of fun!"

12. Walk like a bear

Prep time: None | Materials: None

In this action game, you and your child have to walk around the room like one of the 7 members of the ‘Bear Family’ (you call out which one). And each of them walk in different ways. So for:

Papa Bear – take BIG steps
Mama Bear – take medium steps
Baby Bear – take tiny steps
Brother Bear – jump around
Sister Bear – hop on one foot
Polar Bear – walk on all fours
Sleepy Bear – curl up on the floor and snore

Start with just 2 of the Bear Family and work up till your toddler can remember all 7 and their respective actions.

13. Do the washing up

Prep time: 2 mins | Materials: Bowl, plastic cutlery/crockery, tea towels

Not the actual washing up, obviously. But you can have a lot of splashy fun with a plastic toy tea set or plastic beakers, plates and cutlery, a sponge and a (half-full) bowl of warm soapy water. You can’t even begin to hope you’ll play this game and stay dry but you can’t stem a proper flood with a splash mat, an apron (for both of you) and plenty of tea towels to put washed items on.

14. Slot the sticks

Prep time: 15 mins | Materials: Lolly sticks, container with plastic lid, knife

A little step up from simple ‘posting through holes’, this is a brilliant activity, shared with us by MadeForMums superuser Amy, for further developing an older toddler’s fine-motor skills – it’s harder to post objects through small slots than bigger holes and the action requires using the wrist as well as the hands. You’ll need some lolly sticks (painted in bright colours, if possible) and a large container with a plastic lid (that you don’t need any more). Use scissors or a knife to carefully cut some small slots across the lid. Check that the slots are wide enough to fit a lolly stick through. Then show your child how to slot a lolly stick through the hole and let them have a go. Amy’s made her slots a fair bit thicker than her lolly sticks but you can ramp up the difficulty by making them thinner or even just cutting lolly-stick-width slits.

15. Create a big collage

Prep time: 20 mins | Materials: Paper, sticky-backed plastic/sticky tape, collage items

Collect together some bits and pieces of different sizes and textures – such as sweet wrappers, scraps of material, bits of foil, cotton wool, feathers, pictures of animals or flowers cut from magazines or leaflets, yoghurt pot lids. Tape a big square of sticky-backed plastic to a window or door, sticky-side facing out. If you don't have any sticky-backed plastic, you could tape up some lines of sticky tape (sticky-side facing out) instead. Give your child a bowl containing all the bits and pieces and let them get sticking.

16. Sieve pasta

Prep time: 5 mins | Materials: Bowl, pasta, sieve, plastic jug

This is a super-simple one. Put some dried pasta (all one shape or a mix of different shapes) into a big plastic bowl. Hand your child a plastic jug or spoon and a sieve for lots of scooping, collecting, sorting and pouring.

17. Hold a toy tea party

Prep time: 10 mins | Materials: Rug, beaker/plates, play food, toys

Spread out a rug or sheet on the floor and bring all your child’s favourite toys over for a tea party. Give them all their own plastic cups or beakers and plates. Put some play food or little triangles of bread or cake on a bigger plate and encourage your child to offer the toys something to eat. If you have a plastic jug or teapot, you can offer juice or tea, too – but make that imaginary juice or tea or you’ll be spending all your time in spillage-control mode. Talk with your child about which food the toys like (and don't like) and what the toys are chatting about. Don't forget to remind the toys to say please and thank you – and to share nicely!

18. Roll the ball

Prep time: None | Materials: Soft ball

Any soft ball will do for this game but remember that your child will find it easier the bigger the ball is. Get your toddler to sit on the floor with her legs apart, while you do the same – siting opposite them, so your feet are touching. Place the ball on the floor in front of you and roll it to your child, encouraging them to ‘catch it’ (which is, really, stopping it with their hands) and then roll it back to you. You can add extra fun to the game by saying a silly word, like “Eeep!” as you roll and encouraging your child to repeat the “Eeep!” as they roll it back. Change the sound after a couple of rolls each.

19. Do some flour drawing

Pic: Sarah Jones

Prep time: 2 mins | Materials: Flour, skewer/straw

This is a lovely sensory activity but it is a messy one – so be ready with splashmats and a dustpan and brush. MadeForMums superuser Sarah, who’s shared her picture of and her 2-year-old daughter Orla doing some flour drawing, was surprised by how long Orla spent on this activity. “I put some flour out on a board and gave her a chopstick and she drew pictures in it. She was amused for at least 20 minutes and very content just drawing!" For a slightly less dusty option, you could use rice or small lentils instead of flour (but place them on a tray to keep the grains roughly in one place).

20. Play Traffic Lights

Prep time: None | Materials: None

You’re the traffic light and your child is the car. Get them vrooming round the room. When you say, ‘Red!’, they have to stop. When you say, “Green!”, they can can vroom off again. Later, you can introduce “Amber!” and have a fast (green) and slow (amber) speed to the vrooming.

21. Be a farmer or zookeeper

Prep time: None | Materials: Toy farm/zoo set, toy animals

If you’ve got a farm or zoo set – or just animal toys and some small cardboard boxes – help your toddler create their own animal world. Hold the animals up one by one and make the right noises (if the animal figures have electronic sounds, turn the off). Talk to your toddler about which animal goes in which ‘house’ and what food they eat. And if you have a farmer figure, encourage your child to move the figure round the animals and you can talk together about what the farmer is doing for each one – brushing its coat, milking it, feeding it, letting it out into the field and so on.

22. Play Match the Socks

Pic: YouTube/SavyBaby

Prep time: 5 mins (30 mins for tumble dryer) | Materials: Socks (cardboad box, paper for tumble dryer)

Unpair some differently coloured socks, mix them all up and encourage your child to match the sock pairs together by colour. Or, if you don’t fancy messing up your sock drawer (or all your socks are black!), you could get a little crafty with this homemade ‘tumble dryer’ sock sorting game we spotted on YouTube

How to make a homemade colour sorter

23.

Make family photo art

Prep time: 30 mins | Materials: Paper, glue

Print out some pics of your child and your family. Find a nice big piece of paper and some PVA glue and a spreading stick (or a glue stick) and help your child make a collage of family photos to pin up on the wall or fridge.

24. Hunt the teddy

Prep time: None | Materials: Teddy

Hide Teddy (or another favourite soft toy) somewhere in the room (where your child can reach it) and go looking for Teddy together. Perhaps Teddy will 'magically' squeak when you get near (how are your ventriloquism skills?). Older toddlers might enjoy hiding Teddy for you to find, too.

25. Play newspaper hopscotch

Prep time: 5 mins | Materials: Newspaper, sticky tape

For this simplified version of the traditional game, you’ll sheets of old newspaper and some sticky tape. Tape the newspaper sheets around the room, each of them quite close to the other. Get your toddler to jump from one sheet to another, without touching the floor inbetween.

26. Fill the cardboard box

Prep time: None | Materials: Cardboard box

Find a medium to large-size cardboard box and open up the top. Place it on the floor in front of your toddler and encourage them how to put things in it – from toys to cushions to books. When it's nearly full, close the top flaps, and then open them again with a flourish. Now it's time to empty the box! Your child might enjoy pushing the full box round the floor, too.

Pics: Getty Images/YouTube/MFM superusers

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42 ideas for a great pastime

In the era of prosperity of technology, endless cartoons and the same endless feeds in social networks, both children and parents began to forget about simple communication, looking into each other's eyes, and not at the screen of a TV, tablet or smartphone. Think about how long it has been since you played with your child? Oddly enough, even the ideas for the simplest and once popular games have long been lost in memory and have undeservedly lost their relevance.

Games for children are not only a great way to spend time with the family, but also an opportunity to develop thinking, memory, logic, reaction speed. We have collected the best children's games that will captivate the whole family and give a charge of vivacity and positive for a long time.

Children's games at home

Entertaining games for children have many advantages: they bring together all family members who take part in the process, allow you to spend time rich and exciting, without gadgets and TV. The game is a powerful tool for the development of your child. When planning to spend time together blowing dust off a box of checkers or a long-forgotten Monopoly, keep a few things in mind:

Try not to prompt your child. Make an exception to the rule only if he does not yet know the rules. Let them learn to make mistakes and draw conclusions. Undoubtedly, you know more, but let the baby be independent.
Do not give in, you must be equal. Therefore, it is worth choosing interesting games for children, where the process does not require encyclopedic knowledge or vast experience, and the rules are simple and understandable for everyone.
You need to play only with pleasure, getting pleasant emotions. If you notice that the children don’t like the game or they get bored, it’s better to switch to another one: it’s definitely not worth forcing anyone to have fun.

Entertainment games for children at home: types

What kind of games are there in a confined space? When thinking of entertainment, consider the possibilities of an apartment or house and the age of the child. Excessive noise should not be raised late in the evening, and too primitive games are unlikely to be appreciated by a senior student. Therefore, alternate, experiment, and you will definitely select exactly those family games that will captivate everyone, and just spend time with children without a computer.

Active games

1. Let's go!

Have your child pretend to be a car driving down a dark road. To do this, put a few chairs or other objects, give the child a steering wheel or its round substitute, and blindfold. You are a navigator, a kid is a car, turn on and go! Try switching places so that the child also tries himself as a helper.

Suitable for age: 5-8 years old.

2. Hold the balloon

This kids game will require a balloon and some skill. Task: move the ball from one end of the room / corridor to the other without touching it with your hands and without letting it fall. Let the children be smart: you can blow on the ball, push it with your nose, chin, knees.

If there are two children, arrange a competition: who will bring the ball to the finish line faster. For older participants, the task can be made more difficult by building a path or placing small obstacles to get around.

Suitable for age: 5-15 years old.

3. Cross the river

Ropes, ribbons or two pieces of rope, laid out at a distance of one and a half to two meters from each other, can play the role of the banks. From paper, cut out circles that will replace the pebbles.

Invite the child to "get over" from one bank to another, stepping over the stones without "wetting" the legs. The game is simple, but perfectly develops coordination of movements in children 3-5 years old.

Suitable for age: 3-5 years old.

4. "Brilliant" basketball

In the conditions of an apartment, entertaining games for children with a ball are not very convenient, but if you replace it with small foil balls, and build a basket from a children's bucket or a cut-off five-liter bottle, you get quite a decent basketball.

The competition can be made more difficult: throw in turn with the left and right hand, count who will have more hits per minute, vary the distance from the player to the basket.

Suitable for age: 5-13 years old.

5. Classics

The good old "jumping" is definitely worth remembering and arranging a game even within an apartment or house. With construction tape on the carpet, “draw” a classic, a round candy box can be used as a “bit”. The main thing is to remember the neighbors below and try not to disturb their peace in the evening.

Suitable for age: 5-10 years old.

6. The fastest turtle

Turning into a turtle is easy! Get on all fours, put a pillow on your back and go to the finish line, so that your "shell" is not lost along the way. You can arrange a competition "Who is faster?" or which of the "turtles" will show the best time.

Suitable for age: 4-7 years old.

7. Insidious ball

Throwing the ball within the apartment is not the safest activity, so you can think of other activities with it. Lie on your stomach opposite each other, put the ball between your heads. Try to stand up while holding the ball with two hands, without the help of hands.

Another option would be to compete, in which case two balls would be required. Get on all fours and, on command, start rolling the ball, touching it with your forehead or nose, without helping with your hands. Whoever crosses the finish line the fastest wins.

Suitable for age: 5-10 years old.

Sports games

It is possible to entertain children at home with games not only for the purpose of entertainment. Motor activity is necessary, especially for a fidget baby. Come up with stories, remember your favorite animals or fairy-tale characters, accompanying interesting stories with movements as the story progresses. The child will be happy to imitate a bear, jump like a monkey or stretch his neck like a hissing goose. Mobile children's games will allow you to spend all the extra energy that the baby has accumulated, directing it in the right and useful direction.

8. Jumper

Hang balloons from the ceiling at such a distance that the child can reach them only by jumping. Pre-fill them with foam balls, large confetti or other light fillers.

The child's task is to jump up, hitting the ball with his hand, and reach it. You can diversify the game by taking multi-colored balls and placing them at different heights, and then, naming the color, ask them to jump to each of them.

Suitable for age: 3-5 years old.

9. Gulliver and the Lilliputians

This activity is suitable for a group of children. Ask them to stand in a circle and tell them that everyone can imagine themselves both very small and very large, the main thing is to be attentive.

At the command of "Lilliputs!" (as an option for children: dwarfs, kids) children should sit down, at the command “Gulliver!” (or "Giants") - stand up. The most attentive wins the game.

Suitable for age: 4-5 years old.

10. Take off the feathers

The following game will help you run and practice your agility. Divide the children into two teams. One attach several clothespins to clothes. The task is to get rid of the “feathers” by attaching them to the clothes of the second team members. The one who first removes all the "feathers" from himself will win.

Suitable for age: 6-7 years old.

11. Who is faster?

If you need to keep the children company at home, offer them something like a small relay race. From the options for passing the distance, use:

squatting;
walking around the room with a balloon without touching it with your hands;
walking with a bag of beans (or a book) on the head;
jogging over obstacles (for example, without stepping on spread out pillows or, conversely, jogging on sheets of paper), etc.

Suitable for age: 5-10 years old.

Competitions

Sedentary children's games will also help you out in a situation when children need something to keep them busy, especially since the place or time may not allow active movement. Such an activity requires, albeit minimal, but preparation. And it, as you know, is no less interesting than the process of the game itself.

12. Quiz

Invite the child to be the leader and prepare a competition, say, for a family dinner or tea party when the whole family gathers around the table.

Tell me what questions or riddles to choose, prepare prizes for correct answers, choose the winner, dilute the script with a musical break, turning on karaoke or dance music.

Such quizzes can eventually become thematic and turn into a good family tradition.

Suitable for age: 7-13 years old.

13. Answer within a minute

Prepare a list of simple questions and organize games for the children at home if you have two or more of them. Offer to try to give as many correct answers to the questions as possible in a minute.

In this way you will train the speed of thinking and the speed of reaction. Select questions from the area of general knowledge or on topics that children know well, as well as in accordance with age.

Suitable for age: 7-15 years old.

Family games for development

Entertaining games can be organized with children at home, using the simplest objects. Thus, you will develop logic, thinking and help your child explore the world. Do not forget that during the game the child learns.

14. Magic Pencils

Colored pencils or felt-tip pens are needed to play. You will repeat the colors and work on the development of observation and imagination in the baby.

Explain that pencils sometimes come to life and can daydream, imagining themselves as other objects. The red one said that he was a strawberry, the green one - a maple leaf, the yellow one introduced himself as the sun.

Invite your child to "voice" different colors of crayons by naming the corresponding objects.

Suitable for age: 4-5 years old.

15. Touch!

Another way to repeat or study colors is this game. The child needs to touch the object of the color that you name.

You can play within the same room, or you can complicate the task and look for a suitable color throughout the apartment. As an option, to train your memory, at the end of the search, ask the child to name the items that he found.

Suitable for age: 4-7 years old.

16. Draw a story

Making up stories is a favorite pastime for many children. But it can be diversified by inviting the baby to draw everything that you are talking about.

A variant of this story: “There was a big house on a green meadow. It had blue walls, a red roof, and gray smoke coming from a black chimney. The yellow sun smiled at the blue sky and blue clouds. Red flowers grew around the house and multi-colored butterflies fluttered.

You can continue the story, add characters and objects, giving them a description. If the child likes this activity, roles can be reversed. Try to draw on paper everything that your creative child will come up with!

Suitable for age: 4-7 years old.

17. Attention to the picture

Children's favorite books usually contain a large number of pictures. For this game, drawings are suitable, which depict many different objects. You say, “I see something red in this picture. It does not know how to speak (as an option - to walk, ride, no pens, etc.).” The task of the child is to guess the object. Roles can be reversed.

Suitable for age: 4-5 years old.

18. Memory

Game ideas surround you even within the same room, so that with children at home you can develop any thought process even with the help of ordinary toys.

Take a few objects (doll, soft toy, ball, cube, etc.) and arrange them randomly. Ask the child to remember what toys he saw and look away.

Swap them or take one and ask what has changed. Tasks can be complicated when the baby has a little practice.

Suitable for age: 4-7 years old.

19. Didactic games

Suitable for studying mathematical and geometric concepts, natural phenomena and the world around. With the help of pictures cut out from old magazines or printed on a printer, you can help baby animals find their mother (for example, make pairs of chicken-chicken, sheep-lamb, etc.).

Geometric shapes cut out of colored paper will help you repeat colors and practice counting, while circles cut into segments will introduce you to the parts of the whole.

The process of preparing such material will be no less interesting and creative than the lessons themselves.

Suitable for age: 4-8 years old.

Speech games

The development of speech is an important and necessary process. Talk to your child on the way home, in the car, look at the pictures together. Cognitive games can be organized at home with children and in a simple conversation, the main thing is to show a little imagination.

20. Write a story

Some children's games are aimed at the development of imagination, and they should not be neglected. And to begin with, try to come up with a story that will be based on just two words. At the same time, they do not have to be combined in meaning. For example, ask one word from your dad (mother), the second - from your sister (brother). Look what a funny story you can make!

Suitable for age: 5-8 years old.

21. Who and what

By asking simple questions, this game can be played both with a child and with a group of children. Tasks can be as follows:

Who (what) is swimming?
Who (what) walks?
Who's talking?
What can you eat?
What can be cooked?
Who (what) can fly? Etc.

There should be as many answers as possible. If there are many participants, there will be a competition.

Suitable for age: 5-7 years old.

Construction of houses

Needless to say, how children love to build things? Moreover, it does not matter at all whether it is an expensive designer, wooden blocks left after repair, shoe boxes or an umbrella and a blanket - the process is always captivating.

Although, as practice shows, unnecessary boxes or a covered chair usually win in terms of popularity.

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22. Constructors

In any home there are small Lego parts or a box with wooden towers, arches and blocks of different sizes.

Offer a bored child to build a home for his favorite toy: a little man, a doll, a bear, etc. you can go beyond walls and build simple furniture and celebrate the move.

Suitable for age: 5-8 years old.

23. Cardboard boxes

It happens that shoe boxes have accumulated or a large package of household appliances has appeared. Then the house can be built for dolls (for boys - a garage or parking lot) or for a baby.

Such structures can be pasted over, decorated, filled with furniture - in general, playing with them will captivate young architects and designers for more than one day.

Suitable for age: 6-10 years old.

24. Armchairs, blankets and umbrellas

The good old version of “housing”, inexplicably of interest to all generations of children without exception. A bedspread or a blanket can be put on the table, fixed with books, two chairs can be covered with it, or something similar can be built using an ordinary umbrella.

Fantasy begins to manifest itself instantly, and sofa cushions, blankets and other improvised means are used. True, after such a game you will have to spend some time cleaning.

Suitable for age: 4-8 years old.

Math games

Don't you think that mathematics is a boring science? Wrong opinion. Usually children like to count, add and subtract, play with geometric shapes. The main thing is to interest them and not turn the game into a long annoying task.

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25. Mathematics in the kitchen

Setting the table is a great way for your little one to practice counting. Ask him to put two forks on the table, bring three cups, take five apples from the basket, or put four cookies on the plate.

Get creative with addition and subtraction using teaspoons, large pasta, or other household tools.

Suitable for age: 4-6 years old.

26. Tasty Numbers

Bake number cookies together. Prepare the dough, let the child roll out the sausages, and you help to add them in the form of numbers.

You can play with them, build pyramids, stack them up and down, and even make simple examples. It's not scary if a couple of signs suddenly disappear imperceptibly - after all, this is a cookie.

Alternatively, math pastries can also be made inedible. Blind such numbers from salt dough, dry and decorate them, and then open them with varnish. Spreading examples from this counting material will be especially nice.

Suitable for age: 4-6 years old.

27. Math ball

The ball can be played even within the same room without damaging neighbors or surrounding furniture. Repeat verbal counting with your child.

When throwing the ball to him, name an example, and he, throwing the ball to you, must say the answer. Depending on age, you can take numbers from the first ten, second or three-digit. The main thing is to have time to count yourself in order to check the correctness of the answer.

The variant of the ball game can be like this. When throwing the ball to a child, name the number, and in response he must name adjacent numbers (5 more, 10 less, half as much, etc., depending on age and knowledge).

Suitable for age: 5-8 years old.

Interesting games for two children

Children often only need to be prompted to play, and they will perfectly play with each other, mostly without paying attention to the difference in age.

Calm games at home can be very different, the main thing is that they are interesting for children.

28. Wonder Beast

All you need is a piece of paper and a pen. The first player draws a head and folds the sheet so that only the neck is visible.

The second one completes the torso, then again the first one draws the legs (paws, flippers, etc.). Expanding the "picture", the children will see a rather funny creature that you can think of a name for.

Suitable for age: 6-10 years old.

29. Funny stories

A similar activity can be a variant of the game on paper, when children need to play with each other or with adults. The first participant must write two lines from a song, a poem or just two sentences related in meaning, and wrap a sheet of paper, leaving only the last phrase.

The next one writes two of his own lines, connecting them in meaning with the previous phrase, and again wraps the sheet. As a result, the bundle will hide a very curious and, most likely, funny story.

Suitable for age: 8-14 years old.

Role-playing games

Children's games, in which children pretend to be adults, are perhaps the most favorite.

From an early age, a child begins to imitate his parents: lovingly puts his favorite toys to bed, builds a garage, cooks food on a toy stove, or builds a semblance of a real store. Play along with the child or switch roles with him, allowing him to become a mom, dad, salesman or doctor.

30. Shop

There are several variants of this game. You can lay out items on the "counter", set "price tags" and make "money" from cut sheets of paper of different sizes, thereby repeating the count.

Or you can ask the child not to name the product he wants to buy, but only to give him a description. So the game will become a small lesson in the development of speech.

Suitable for age: 4-6 years old.

31. Beauty salon

A role-playing game that captivates absolutely all girls. You can become a model for your child to do hair, make-up, and manicures.

But a doll can also act as a “client” of the salon. At the same time, be sure to discuss the rules of conduct and the culture of communication in the salon.

Suitable for age: 5-7 years old.

32. Construction site

You can organize the activities of both the driver and the builder at the same time by showing your son that a big car can be loaded with blocks, help it get to the construction site, unload the “material” and start building a garage or house.

You can also include a crane, "worker" figures and build more than one object.

Suitable for age: 4-6 years old.

33. Playing Pirates

Build a ship from improvised means, and look for costume parts in the closet - the preparation process will be no less interesting.

Then, armed with binoculars, you can go in search of treasures to uncharted shores. Alternatively, a small toy man can become a pirate, and a ship can be built from a designer. Depends on what the child likes more.

Suitable for age: 5-8 years old.

Unusual home games

Family games at home can become a good tradition that will give your children a lot of warm memories in adult life. In the meantime, they are still small, a little imagination, effort and time will help organize fun games and occupy the leisure of the whole family. Get actively involved in the preparation, do not be lazy, think of what you can play, and you will not notice how you will get carried away yourself.

34. Fantastic patterns

Mix 5 tablespoons of gouache, one of shampoo (dishwashing liquid) and a teaspoon of water. Make a thick foam in the container by blowing into a plastic straw.

Now lightly touch the colored bubbles with a piece of paper. See how the prints turn out, and paint an abstract picture, following your imagination.

Suitable for age: 5-12 years old.

35. Cheerful quest

This activity can be prepared for a birthday or for a group of friends, or you can just please your child with an exciting activity. And if the treasure hunter is interested in the search process, then, believe me, the preparation process will be no less fascinated.

Hide a small gift or sweet prize (there may be more than one) at home and write step-by-step instructions on how to find it.

You can place notes with clues in the most unusual places, the main thing is that each previous one should be the key to finding the next one and eventually lead to the main “treasure”.

Suitable for age: 6-12 years old.

Music games

Every child has favorite songs, regardless of age. You can just dance, learn new moves or prepare a dance as a gift.

Joint games of children at home unite, and music will help recharge with positive and good mood.

36. Leg, leg!

Have you ever danced with your neck? What about a nose or a finger? Well, there is a great opportunity to try! Turn on your favorite tune and start with simple movements.

Ask the children to dance with only their hands or only their feet. Then move on to more difficult tasks: dance only with your elbow or finger. And don't forget: you, too, must be actively involved in the game.

37. Get rid of the balls

For this game you will need a low stretched volleyball net. But as an option, any dividing line in the house is also suitable. Inflate 6 - 10 balloons, depending on the number of players.

The task of two teams (they can have from 1 to 3-4 participants), having received the balls equally, transfer them to the opponent's side.

The game starts when the music is turned on and stops when the music is turned off. Whichever side has fewer balls at that moment wins.

Water games

Children love to splash in the water, bathe and pour water from container to container.

If you decide to use water as a play area, be prepared for the environment to be wet and your baby's clothes and shoes to become wet. Therefore, be prepared for the fact that at the end of the game you will need to completely change your clothes.

Best Family Fun

38. Catch, fish!

Prepare a bowl or bowl of water, take a few small items and put them directly into the water. These can be balls, small figures, chestnuts, etc.

Invite the child to catch the “fish” with his hands, a spoon, a small net (a small kitchen sieve can act as this), and then carefully place them in a nearby container.

Suitable for age: 3-5 years old.

39. SpongeBob

Tell your child that a sponge can absorb water and show how it works.

Prepare two containers, fill one of them with water. Try transferring water from one container to another with a sponge, filling it up and then squeezing it out.

Suitable for age: 3-4 years.

40. Catch the ball!

When your baby goes for a bath, drop about ten lightly inflated balloons into the bath with him.

They will funny jump out from under the water, float like boats if you blow on them, and will be a wonderful field for experiments of a little researcher.

Suitable for age: 3-5 years old.

Interesting games

What other games are there for children at home? Choose according to the mood and preference of the child.

They can be active or calm, with a lot of additional materials or in the form of a conversation, but in any case they should be interesting to the child. As practice shows, games without a phone can also captivate and interest a child.

41. Guess what it is

We explore the world around us with the help of the senses, and touch plays an important role in this. Therefore, it will be useful for a child to mentally create images of things without seeing them, but only by touching them.

Place several objects in a basket or container out of sight, then give one to each child's hands while blindfolded (or simply cover them).

Let the baby try to guess what he is holding in his hands, examining the object only with his fingers. Tell me if the child is not coping.

Suitable for age: 4-7 years old.

42. Unusual book

Games and activities with children at home can be remembered not only as an interesting pastime with parents, but also as an interesting craft that has been preserved for many years. You can make a book with your child about himself.

Collect photographs, magazine clippings, interesting small items. They can be glued onto thick sheets of paper and write a story together.

Have your child write the first letter in this book, make the first drawing, circle their pen, or paste a picture they like. After many years, such a craft will evoke very fond memories.

Alternatively, you can make a fairy tale book by inventing a story and decorating it with applications and drawings. The process will take more than one evening and, most likely, will interest the child for a long time.

Suitable for age: 4-10 years old.

Advice to parents

When spending time with your child, do not be afraid to show your imagination, use any household items for play, talk about the world around you, let the baby try on different roles, dance, jump, get his hands dirty in paint or wet clothes with water. So he learns the world, develops and grows.

Remember that your participation in the gameplay is important, but only as a partner, less so as a mentor.

Take a break from everyday activities, spend more time making cookies or cleaning, but do it together with your child while playing.

Things to do with kids at home: 35 fun ideas for fun

A wise Polish proverb says: "You have a whole life to work, and children will be small only once." Use this time as much as possible, and the useful habit of seeing a friend in a parent will remain forever.

We hope that our advice will be useful to you in organizing your leisure time, and you will always find something to captivate your child at home.

Easy toddler games