In this time of social distancing and staying at home, it can sometimes be hard to find things to do with kids. Therefore, all of us at 4 Kinder Teachers brainstormed together and came up with 13 fun activities for kids at home. There are also 5 FREE resources we are providing that go along with a few of these home activities for kids.
1. Build A Sentence
Find old magazines or newspapers. Look for and cut out some of the words. Then arrange the words to make a sentence. Glue them on a page and write the sentence that you created. Last draw a picture to match your sentence. Get our FREE Build a Sentence worksheet to go with this activity.
2. Spring Nature Walk
Do a walk around your backyard (or neighborhood if you can). Notice all the signs of spring. How do you know it’s spring? Use your senses (sight, smell, touch, hear) to explore. Get our FREE Signs of Spring worksheet to write down everything you find.
3. Practice Writing
We have 3 FUN ways for you to do this!
1. Stick Writing
Get outside and find a stick. Use the stick to write the letters of the alphabet, letters of your name, or sight words you are learning in the dirt (or snow if you’re in the north). You can write them big or small. Have fun with this home activity!
2. Paint the fence or house
Use an old paintbrush and get a small bucket of water. Then paint your fence or outside of house while practicing your writing. We have a big rock outside, so I used my paint brush and water and painted a word on the rock. This worked too! Give it a try!
3. Rock Word Building
We have a lot of rocks where we live. If you do also, go on an adventure around your backyard and search for rocks. Then see what words you can build with your rocks.
4. Exercise by 10s
Come up with 10 different exercises. Then do 10 of each exercise. When you are finished you will have done 100 exercises!! Here are some examples of what you can do: jumping jacks, squats, sit-ups, touch your toes, lunges.
5. Write Your Own Story
You can come up with any story you would like. If you’re looking for an idea, try this one: You are the main character and you have a special power. You use this power to defeat the coronavirus. What power do you have? And, how do you defeat the virus? (If your child is not writing yet, have them tell you the story as you write or type it out. Then, have them illustrate the story.) Use these FREE writing pages we created to write your story!
6. Build a Sheet Fort
This was absolutely my favorite thing to do as a kid! Get a few sheets and go to the living room. Wrap the sheets around the ends of the couch and big chairs creating a fort. Then bring your stuffed animals and great books and maybe a flashlight inside.
7. Treasure Hunt
This is one of the top fun things to do for kids at home! Put on your (imaginary) detective’s cap and get ready to search for some clues! First, parents write a few clues for kids to find that leads them to something interesting at the end. The end does not have to be extravagant or a new toy, the fun is about the hunt itself. Some examples of clues are: 1. Go to the place where you’re teeth get sparkly. 2. Look under the rock you found by the pond. 3. Where do we clean the dishes? Another idea is to draw pictures on the clues so kids know where to go to find the next clue.
8. Online Library
Have your kids read through all of their books at home? Libraries might be closed but most have an online library where you can download eBooks for kids. Some of their books are also audio books so students can listen to the stories being read. After reading the book, have them fill out our FREE reading response to tell their opinion of the book.
9. Sort and Count Toys
Our students loved when we brought out items for them to sort. This is a great skill for kids to learn also. Get a handful of toys. Then sort them by different attributes. Try sorting by type of toy, color, size and shape. Can you think of any other attributes you can sort your toys by?
10. Help in the Kitchen
Let your child help you cook or bake. Show them how to measure ingredients, stir mixes together, wash fruits and vegetables, add seasoning, and so on. This is a great activity for kids to do, and usually when kids help cook something new, they are more excited to try it.
11. Reading Log
Use our FREE reading log worksheet to record how many books your child is reading. Kids get motivated to read more when they can see how many books they are reading in a chart. You could also use it as an incentive: Fill out the whole sheet and we can build a sheet fort (see number 6) or bake muffins together (see number 10).
12. Create Your Own Board Game
Use a blank paper to draw out a path for your game characters to go on. Make sure you have a start and finish spot on your path. You might want to add some obstacles on your path. Then use a few of your small toys as the game characters and dice or spinner from another game.
13. Camping in the Backyard
Set up a tent in the backyard or in the living room of your house. Pretend you’re on a campout. Bring a flashlight and tell stories and sing songs. This is one of the best things to do when stuck at home because kids feel like they are going on an adventure!
If you try any of these fun activities for kids at home, we would love to know how it went. Leave us a comment and/or post a picture! We can’t wait to see what you’re doing!
For More Great Activities
For more fun activities for kids at home, check out our FREE EGGcellent EGGsperiments, or read our blog post about field trips and learn about FREE Virtual field trips you can go on now!! You can also go to our TpT store, 4 Kinder Teachers for fantastic worksheets and activities that we have created!
