Cracking our brain on how to keep our kids entertained is not one easy task on a daily basis. Regardless of their age, planning what to do with our kids can be a very tricky business at the best of time and it’s even more challenging during school holidays when the kids are at home for a month or so. Nevertheless, kids grow up so fast and this is the only time parents can really establish family time and create memories. So, no matter how challenging it could be, parents are surely upon their alley to prepare and plan ahead on what are the happiest and most unforgettable activities to do with their kids even just within the grounds of their home.
Put your thinking caps on and be inspired with 7 activities below to keep your kids busy and excited. So take away the gadgets, gaming console, and television for a while and get yourself occupied with your kids. After all, best times and memories always start at home.
1. Get Messy with Kool-Aid Play Dough
Safe, Edible, Cool and Fun? You will never look at play dough like how you’ve seen it before once you start trying this Play Dough recipe with the Kool-Aid Rainbow colors. The best part, it is INEXPENSIVE, NON-TOXIC and can be stored for long like your normal playdough at home.
If your kid understands the idea of play more than eating the dough (even though it is made to be edible) then this is the right activity for the both of you.
What you need: ½ cup all-purpose flour, ½ tbsp. canola oil, 1/8 cup salt, ¼ cup boiling water and 1 pack of your kool-aid variants (get as many flavors to create the rainbow colors)
Let your kid help you pour all the ingredients in a bowl and make sure to mix all ingredients together well. Be careful on the hot boiling water. Add flour, if necessary, if you feel the dough is too sticky. Make sure it is COOLED off completely (give it 30 minutes max to cool down) before handing it to your kid to play.
2. Play Master Chef in the Kitchen
With Pinterest and Google just at the tip of your fingers, you can try to bring out the master chef in you and your kid and try some simple recipes for a start. It doesn’t have to be complicated, it just has to be “easy” and “delicious”.
If you are concerned about things getting out of hand in and out of the stove and the oven, you can try no-bake recipes for sweets and treats and maybe ask for the little ones help on preparing the ingredients instead if you are targeting a savory dish to cook.
A simple sandwich making with different fillings can be a fun bonding in the kitchen. Just go to your nearest grocery or DAISO shop and buy some sandwich/cookie cutters, food picks and you are good to create memoirs.
3. Themed Scavenger Hunt
Who isn’t intrigued and fascinated with hidden treasure and enthusiastic about the idea of being able to find a treasure? No man that I know of. Adults and kids definitely love treasure hunting. Hunting for precious treasures can be fun and educational at the same time and knows no age. It is an activity for everyone to enjoy. This is the best excuse to organize walks outside our house with our children and give them the opportunity to discover the things around them. It can be done indoors or outdoors within the premises of your home.
If you want to make it educational, it is suggested to do a checklist of scavenger hunt that starts with “look for something that starts with the letter a”, you can also promote sensory skills by asking them “to look for something rough or soft”. You can also tap nature, animals or photo scavenger hunt theme for more out in the wild experience. Plenty of scavenger hunt ideas to inspire one’s, inner hunter.
Make sure to also do your task to provide guidance, give pointers and supervise the children. Throwing a small friendly competition especially for older children can make the hunt more interesting. Everyone will surely be looking forward to a prize that is for sure.
4. Imaginary Wall Painting
Kids grow up being told that coloring, writing or painting the wall is a big NO. We try as hard to discipline the kids that there are some areas in the house that cannot be simply touched with anything colorful and non-washable.
However, childhood is only for a short period so why not bend our rules once in a while, grab a majong/manila paper, stick it outside your wall, take out your big painting rollers and brushes and pretend to be PAINTERS with your kids. You can draw a pretend brick on the paper and paint it together, which would be most fulfilling when you and your kid accomplished painting the house walls.
5. Make a Home Cinema
Our generation allows us to be more exposed to watching movies or shows on screens, be it television or gadgets. We cannot really deprive kids of this time away from screens 100%, as some kids, believe it or not, learn from watching, too. So anything in moderation is still good for them. Besides, they also need to feel relaxed when they are on holiday. If you find that bringing them in the actual movie house is still a bit inconvenient and might be too much for your kid’s age, a HOME CINEMA will always be a delight for the entire family.
Set up small bean bags by the floor and some cute pillows, deem the lights and ready your Disney movies list for a night of family-friendly home cinema.
A movie night is not complete without a treat, so make your own salty or caramel popcorn to excite the kids even more. Pair it up with a homemade fruity smoothie to make it a balanced kiddie treat.
6. Rainbow Pasta Threading
Colored pasta threading is a staple item in every home for kid’s craft activities. I don’t know about you but even an adult like me finds it addicting to play with my little toddler. It is one of the easiest to prepare, in less than 10 minutes and just leaves the colored pasta to dry.
You only need the following to color the pasta: White Vinegar/ Isopropyl Alcohol, Food Coloring, Zip Lock Bag, Raw Fettuccini Pasta (mix all together inside the zip lock bag and shake, once done, pour all pasta pieces unto a tray with baking paper and let it dry)
For the threading activity: You just need a straw and play dough. Poke the straw on the dough and make sure it doesn’t move and voila you can already start with the activity.
7. Read-A-Thon
Reading is not just a great activity for older kids, it is also for younger kids. Studies show that reading to your kids and with your kids early not just only help their language skills but together you also encourage your kids to have that thirst for knowledge.
The only challenge for younger kids is their focus and ability to concentrate when the book is heavy on text. Make sure to choose a suitable book for the age of your kid if you want to do a READ-A-THON. An additional tip is that try to make yourself more animated if you were to read to kids ages one to four years old, as it gets them interesting and happy which will give you a good one-hour maximum to keep them listening without getting distracted.
As for older kids, set a challenge to see how many books/chapters can be read during the day.
