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When the winter doldrums set in, be ready to keep preschoolers busy indoors. There are lots of activities that will prevent kids from getting bored on those dreary, cold, winter days. From crafts, to puzzles, to play-dough there are a variety of pass times that can keep the kids busy and encourage learning and motor skills.
There are a lot of great ways to keep little hands busy. Kids love to draw and show off their talent. Hang a chalkboard on the hallway wall or in the play room. The kids will love making crazy abstract designs. The big pieces of chalk are good for little hands to hold onto. You can take the time to teach shapes, ABC's, or colors, by dotting out the image and letting them connect the dots. It's a fun activity that becomes a great learning experience.
Painting is another great activity. There are painting books on the market that are less messy and easier, pleasing both mom and kids. All they need is a paint brush and some water. The pre-painted pages come to life in color when the child uses his wet brush on the page. Finger paints are another great pass time, although a lot more messy. This is a great way to get hand and even foot prints, capturing a childhood milestone. Having the child wear a smock or old clothes is a good idea.
Play-dough is great fun. With this great recipe you can make your own play-dough at home.
1 cup flour
½ cup salt
1 tsp. Oil
food coloring
Mix all ingredients in a pan over low heat, stirring with a wooden spoon until it pulls from the sides of the pan and forms a solid. Dump onto the counter top and knead well until it is smooth and cool.
Kids can help by pre-measuring the ingredients and kneading the dough once it cools off. You can add to the fun by buying inexpensive cookie cutters that the kids can use to make fun shapes. Molding, shaping, cutting, and rolling will keep your preschoolers busy for hours.
Safety scissors and construction paper is another great crafting activity. For the older kids, you can even add glue and glitter. Smiles beam across their faces with pride when they show off their sparkly creations. This is a good way for them to make gifts for grandparents or baby sitters. Logging onto the Internet and typing the word crafts or even crafts and preschoolers will provide you with many web sites that will supply you with great crafting ideas. Some of the sites will even have templates for projects that can be printed out. Also, there are a lot of books loaded with arts and crafts for little ones. Bookstores, libraries, and book clubs have them available.
Aside from crafting there are a lot of other things to do to keep those little ones busy. Games make for great fun and are a terrific pass time. Hide 'n Seek, Simon Says, musical chairs and "Duck, Duck, Goose" are a few old time favorites. A plastic bowling set provides fun for hours. Building with blocks, Tinker Toys™, and Lincoln Logs™ get imaginations flowing. Puzzles attribute to motor skills and board games such as Candyland™, Chutes And Ladders™, Lucky Ducks™ , and matching games encourage learning and fun. These games promote educational growth.
There are a variety of computer programs available that encourage learning, as well as being a fun way to pass a dreary, cold afternoon. Being computer literate in our society is becoming more and more necessary. By playing computer games or using learning programs, your child will be re-enforcing motor skills, as well as, learning his colors, shapes, ABC's, all while becoming computer literate.
After doing some of these activities you and your kids may need a break from each other. There are lots of great movies on the market for kids now a days. If you want to take a more educational angle to their TV viewing time, PBS and Nick Jr. offer wonderful television programs that entertain as well as teach lessons such as sharing, manners, etc. If you all are getting a little stir crazy and the walls are starting to close in a trip to the movie theater might be a good idea. Daytime matinees offer a inexpensive way to cure those winter blues. Also, check in your area for a indoor playground/activity center. These offer a safe, warm environment in which your kids can use up all their excess energy.
Let's not forget reading. It is a fabulous way to spend time with your kids. Reading opens up a whole new world to your child and lets there imagination soar. Sometimes, local libraries have a story hour. This is a good idea because while the kids are at story hour you can catch up on the latest novel or do some magazine reading or even take a nap!
Who doesn't like warm chocolate chip cookies and a glass of milk or hot chocolate? Baking is a great way to fill those long, cold, winter days. If you pre-measure ingredients, the kids can help pour them into the batter as needed. They will love watching their cookies bake in the oven, as the aroma fills the house. Another great recipe idea you can do with cookies is fill the middle with your favorite ice cream and roll the outside of it in chocolate chips or M&M's™. If you don't want to bake from scratch, there is an easier way to get right to the good part...eating. Check the dairy section at your local grocery store. There you will find ready to bake cookies and brownies.
Another great thing to make is an indoor garden. All you need are some seed packets, a small bag of dirt, and your empty egg cartons. Kids can help you plant herbs, or indoor plants that can latter be transplanted once the seedlings are bigger. This is a great way for them to learn about what plants need to grow. It will give them a sense of accomplishment when they see the seeds grow bigger each day and eventually into a flower. Also, they will learn a sense of responsibility with caring for the garden.
Great Indoor activities:
• Crafts
• Chalkboard
• Tinker Toys™
• Lincoln Logs™
• Making Play Dough
• Old Time Favorite Games
• Board games
• Finger Painting
• Library Trips
• Movie Trips
• Computer Learning Games
• Baking
• Indoor Gardening
• Puppet Shows
With some card board boxes and socks you can have hours of fun. With old socks, buttons, and thread you can make cute puppets. Kids can personalize their puppets by using red or yellow yarn for hair or by using squiggly eyes and pom poms for the nose. By cutting the back of a card board box, you can make a puppet stage, where you can stick your hand through and put on puppet shows. The kids can act out plays or nursery rhymes they know, or they can make stories and characters up with their imagination. Whatever you chose to do, the kids will have great fun putting on their puppet shows.
Keeping kids busy indoors can be a challenge but it doesn't have to be a losing battle. With a little ingenuity and by delving into you own childhood days you can come up with lots of activities that will wash away those winter doldrums.
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