When the kids are out of school for the summer, or too small to be in school, it’s hard to find things to do on those days when it’s just too hot to send them outside for long periods of time. There is plenty to do inside that doesn’t involve sitting your kids down in front of the TV to waste their day away. With just somethings that you have lying around the house, you can turn a boring day inside into a day that sparks their imagination.
Read a book. Instead of parking your kids in front of the TV to watch a movie, find a book with a similar story or even the book the movie was based off of. Try to find books about your kids favorite cartoon characters. They have books for every level of reading, and if your kids are still too small to read on their own, it’s a great opportunity to sit down and spend some time together.
Make an indoor clubhouse. Give your kids some free run of the living room. Give them cushions, blankets, chairs, and whatever else you can find. Help get them started and then let them take off on their own and build their very own indoor fort.
Have an indoor picnic. It’s always a blast to go to the park and take lunch. When it’s too hot outside to even step out the front door, who says you can’t still have a picnic? Take an old table cloth or blanket and spread it out on the floor, make a picnic worthy lunch, sit down and enjoy.
Make homemade play-doh. Homemade play-doh is super easy to make. It gives you control of how much you make and what colors you have. You can make an endless array of colors using basic food coloring. Just spread a vinyl tablecloth on the floor and give them some dull knives, rolling pins, and other tools.
TP bowling. Save your toilet paper rolls and roll up your socks. Sit the rolls up in the hall way like bowling pins and roll your balled up socks at them.
Get crafty.Kids love to do crafts. Get out the same tablecloth that you used for the play-doh, sit them down with paper, crayons, markers, safety scissors and stick glue and let their imaginations run wild.
Go on a treasure hunt. Pick a spot in the house and hide a treasure. Set up clues around the house and let your kids solve riddles to get to the treasure.
Play with some boxes. Anyone with a kid knows, the box is always more fun with the toy. Save some big cardboard boxes and pile them up in the living room. Give them markers and crayons and let them decorate their new houses, ships, or whatever else their brains can come up with.
Let your kids open a restaurant. Gather up a pencil, notepad, apron, and some play food and you’ve got yourself a restaurant that your kids can run. Let them take your order and cook for you for once!
Have a play date. Invite some of your kids friends over for a play date to make these activities even more fun.
