With winter fully underway and the current situation limiting our social interactions, we are all spending a lot more time at home with the children.
Whether you want to get arty or teach your toddler something new, here are some of the best indoor activities to keep the kids busy and entertained during the darker winter months.
1. Craft activities for toddlers
- Make a cardboard box train
Everyone always has some spare cardboard lying around the house, so why not put it to good use and let your children’s imagination run free.
- Create some jewellery
You can use a piece of string – use a shoestring if you don’t have any – and add big beads, pom poms, pasta shapes or straws to decorate it. If you don’t mind getting messy, you could let your child paint the pasta before threading it.
- Build a den
Grab some blankets, chairs and fairy lights and start building a cosy cubby hole. Perfect for those dark wintry days and the ideal setting for reading a story.
- Paint some leaf art
Collect some leaves from the garden or your local park and let your toddler paint or stencil them on some leftover newspaper. This is a great way to bring nature inside.
2. Indoor games for toddlers
- Set up ten-pin bowling
Just grab one of your child’s balls and set up some household items like pins, such as empty bottles or toilet paper.
- Basket practice
Use an old newspaper, scrunch it into balls and try to aim them into a waste paper bin. Set up a points system and move the bin around – this a great one for practising motor skills with your toddler.
- Dance party
Everyone loves a good boogie, so whack some music on and get moving. Buy some flashlights from the pound shop and turn the lights off to turn it into a disco. You can also blow up some balloons to keep the kid’s playing and burning energy.
- Scavenger hunt
Set up a pirate-themed treasure hunt for your toddler. This could be as simple as leaving a paper trail to different locations around the house. Here are some printable clues you could use.
- Create an obstacle course.
Clear your living room and use whatever obstacles you have in your house. For example, set up two chairs with a blanket and have your toddlers crawl through the tunnel.
3. Learning activities for toddlers
- Do some baking with your ABC
Make learning the alphabet fun by using alphabet cookie cutters while baking some delicious treats with your child. Kids love playing with dough so this is a great idea for a rainy day at home.
- Make lunch together
This is a fun sensory activity where the child can butter their own sandwich bread or use cookie cutters to cut fun sandwich shapes. Lay all the different sandwich fillings you have in your fridge out onto the kitchen sides and let them choose their favourites.
- Body outlines
Trace around your child’s body on a large piece of paper. When drawing and colouring in the body, you can label the different body parts. Get extra arty by decorating the hair with painted cotton balls or pieces of string.
- Find a free printable
There are plenty of free online resources which you can print out and do at home with your child. From colouring-in sheets to first word puzzles to dot-to-dot, there are hundreds of printables for toddlers to suit different learning needs.
When stuck inside, these fun ideas will break up the day and keep your toddler busy. Easy to set up and with minimal supplies required, these indoor activities will help bring play back to life. Keep a note of them and let us know your toddler’s favourites!
Little Angels 24/7
At Little Angels, we have over 10 years of childcare experience and understand the importance of building long term trusting relationships with our children. Our exciting range of activities ensures your child is always engaged and learning with us.
If you’re interested in finding out more or would like to book a tour, please get in touch.