Being stuck inside on a rainy day is no fun for parents or their kids. Hours of TV can become dull, and boredom leads to whining and often fighting amongst siblings. You know there are a million things you could do to help your little ones pass the time, but you have dishes to wash and dinner to cook. Here are four fun rainy day activities for children. All of them use regular, household objects, so setting the kids up is a breeze, and no extra trips to the store are necessary.
Paper Towel Tube Marble Run
Everyone loves a good marble run, and your kids are no exception. Save your paper towel and toilet paper rolls for the next rainy day and then break out this fun activity. Stick on magnets make this simple enough to be done without supervision. Just have your children stick the magnets to the backs of the paper towel and toilet paper rolls. Once this is done, they will be able to stick the rolls to the front of the fridge and create ramps and courses for their marbles and toy cars to roll down. With enough paper towel rolls, this can provide hours of entertainment and it secretly provides a lesson in physics.
If your kids are old enough to be trusted with scissors and glue, break out your old magazine collection and let your young artists get to work creating their own masterpieces. Make it more interesting by offering a box to decorate, or make it more challenging by providing a theme to stick with. Themes could be things that begin with a specific letter of the alphabet, fruit, a color, the ocean, or anything else you or your children can dream up. Decorated boxes can become book or pencil holders, purses, or treasure chests to hold small trinkets.
This one might drive you crazy if you hang out too close by, so be sure to offer it as an option only when you aren't trying to concentrate on something. Kids love to experiment with sound. While the littlest ones are content with a pot and spoon "drum," older kids will have more fun with a variety of bowls, pots, pans, and utensils. This allows them to explore the different sounds made by each "instrument," and create a musical masterpiece using their favorite sounds. To add another layer of fun, you can provide rubber bands and boxes for the kids to make their own "string instruments." You may have to show them how to do this, but after the first round they are sure to take over. You may be surprised at the music your kids make!
All kids love to jump which means this game is a hit with children of all ages. Gather all the pillows in the house (leave out any pillows you don't want smashed). Scatter them around a carpeted area, move any lamps, sharp objects, or other potentially dangerous or breakable objects from the area, and announce that the carpet is hot lava. Watch as your little jumpers have an absolute blast hopping from one pillow island to the next. Once they are tired of just jumping, create new rules such as "All white pillows are off-limits." Another example is "All red pillows give you one point." Get creative and make it a game. Lay down the rules and then back out and enjoy listening to your kids have a blast.
There are many great activities children can do when the weather is not cooperative. Brain storm now and see what you can come with. Keep a list on hand so the next time the kids can't play outside you have plenty of suggestions.