Bbbrrrrr! It’s cold outside! As the winter months seem to drag on, you and your kids are probably starting to get cabin fever. But if it’s not safe or just too uncomfortable to get outside and play, we’ve got just the thing for you. Here are some of our favorite indoor activities for you to try and beat the the winter blues:
Bring the Snow Inside
Ok, hear us out! This may seem crazy, but we promise it can be fun and educational too. This is particularly great for little hands to practice fine motor skills. Grab a tray – preferably a deep one. 2-3 inches is ideal. If that’s not possible, a wide bowl will do the trick. Mound snow into different sizes; tall and skinny, thick and flat, etc. Mix up several flavors of Kool Aid or food coloring. Children can help to mix the colors individually or together. Be sure to note which combinations make which colors. Using a medicine dropper, let them drip color onto the snow. They can experiment dripping colors together to see what colors the combination makes. Or they can make patterns or holes of varying depths in the snow too.
Hopscotch + More
Grab some painters tape, masking tape, or any other kind of tape that is easy to see and remove. And then get creating! You can make indoor hopscotch, roads for cars to drive along, tic tac toe toss with a bean bag… the list goes on and on!
Use the tape along with other household items to create an obstacle course. Tape can create arrows for direction, lines to jump over, or boxes to hop through. Grab a laundry basket, ottoman, pillows, tables and chairs to build hurdles to go over and under. Make the game more challenging by having players do it as quietly as possible or as loud as they can! Any bit of challenge makes the game more fun!
Lastly, use tape to create letters and numbers. They can go in order, or be mixed up randomly. Have your child hop, hop on one foot, skip, or crawl to get to each letter or number as they are shouted out. It’s a tape-tastic way to learn and practice!
Winter Scavenger Hunt
Who needs to be outdoors for a scavenger hunt?! Collect old magazines and newspapers from friends, family and neighbors. Get scissors, paper and a creative imagination. Create a list of wintery items; mittens, hats, snow, snowflakes, sleds, skis, etc. Then have your child go through the materials and find each item. When they do, have them cut it out and paste it under each word on their scavenger hunting list.
For a little more free form fun, have your kids cut out pictures to create their own winter wonderland on paper. Or if you can’t stand the sight of winter any more, start looking for your favorite summer activities to create a picture to dream about!
