No matter the age of your children finding productive and budget-friendly things to do can be quite challenging. Below are 7 ways (that won’t cost a fortune) you can use on any day of the week to ensure your kids (or you) don’t go stir crazy.
A Day of Volunteering
An awesome way to give kids some perspective on how others live is to have them give back in some capacity. It teaches kids to have empathy and care for others around them as well has to have gratitude for what they have in life.
There are many ways to give back that kids may be able to participate in. Some great places to start volunteering are your local soup kitchen, animal shelters, or spending the day cleaning up trash at your local park.
Indoor Camp Out
What kid doesn’t love to pretend play and make their dreams come true? What they would love even more is actually bringing their imagination to life. Bringing the camping inside is just the fun they may be looking for.
For this activity you will need a tent, a real one will do or one made from sheets is good too. Pretend to light a fire and eat freeze-dried foods. You could also make indoor s’mores very easily at your stove or in your microwave. Be sure to get the sleeping bags and ghost stories ready for a fun night under the ‘stars’.
Make Your Own T-Shirts
Let’s be real, kids will practically draw all over the house if you let them. Foster their creativity skills and design your own t-shirts. It doesn’t take much to get this done and can be made on new or old shirts.
Use any type of art medium your child likes such as crayons, markers, or even let them paint on their shirt. Make sure to hand wash and dry your shirts so that your kids can cherish their creations for years to come.
Indoor Obstacle course
Sometimes it’s just simply too cold or rainy to get out of the house. Bad weather or not kids need to be able to have the space to release all of the energy they have. Creating an obstacle course in your home is fun for everyone.
Try making the string laser course like you see in the movies for your kids. All you really will need is lots of string to create the course and then your kids can collect the objects you already have at home and put them in baskets at either end of the course.
Have A BBQ With Friends
Throwing a get together can be team effort one that children would love to be able to participate in. Tell your kids to think of a few family friends who have kids that they would like to invite over for a BBQ.
Let your kids decide on a few items to eat, let them come grocery shopping with you, or pick out décor/activities so that they are involved in the process.
Once the day actually arrives the kids will be so focused on hanging out and playing with the other kids that it will free up time for the parent to enjoy the day as well. Having kids near a BBQ can be dangerous so ensure you gas grill safety! Having a BBQ will be a win-win situation for both the parent and the kids.
Give Them Lots of Colouring Room
Kids of all ages enjoy coloring but depending on the age the activity can go pretty quickly before they are bored again. A way to switch up just plain old coloring is to buy a big roll of plain white wrapping paper. Use the wrapping paper and spread it out anywhere like the floor or across a table. This can be really cool for kids because they can just keep pulling the paper whenever they need more space to draw
Sensory Bins
Young toddlers to school ages children love to play with sensory bins. Sensory bins can be fairly messy so be sure to work on a sheet or outdoors where it is okay for you and the kids to get a little dirty. Make shimmer snow made from baking soda and glitter. Try a colored rice bin with just plain rice and food color. If you want to avoid the mess altogether fill a bin with cotton balls and simply add kitchen utensils and measuring cups and the kids will have a blast.