No fancy items needed! These activities, craft ideas and games use everyday household items. Save yourself a trip to the store and give one of these a try!
Parents everywhere are looking for low cost ways to entertain kids at home. This post is your guide to low cost, DIY activities, crafts and games that use things found around the house.
What’s better than using common household items as a way to make your own fun?!
Whether it be a school break, summer vacation, or maybe you’re stuck inside waiting out Coronavirus, parents everywhere are always looking for fun, easy indoor activities for kids.
I’m not a true “stay at home mom,” though I do consider myself to *mostly* be one. I work a few shifts as a labor nurse each week, but I mostly work in the evenings.
Therefore, I am home with my kids most of the time, and I’ve learned to get crafty with what we’re going to do all day! Sensory bins, loose parts play, and just getting our wiggles out with gross motor play is always on the agenda.
Everyone who meets my kids comments on how busy they are! In order to keep them happy and stimulated, we do lots of crafts, learning activities, and structured and unstructured play. I’m well equipped with things to keep my littles occupied.
All this coronavirus buzz had me thinking: what are parents going to do when they’re stuck at home with their kids, and can’t bring them out of the house?
There are plenty of fun activities to do with household items!
Not everyone is as “stocked up” with craft supplies, games, blocks, etc. as we are (seriously…I look like I run a learning center from my house!) and many places are discouraging people from going to shopping centers.
This inspired me to come up with some creative ways you can use everyday household items to keep your kids busy.
Not only is it budget friendly and low prep, but it also keeps you from having to run to the store.
There may be some things on here that just don’t interest your kid, and that’s totally fine! These are things that we use often to supplement our crafting, and it’s always fun for kids to get to play with things that they normally aren’t supposed to play with.
Check out this post: 71 Activities to Do at Home with Kids (of all ages!)
Common Household Items That Can Be Used as Toys or Crafts
Dry pasta
We use penne or rigatoni to thread pasta on pipe cleaners, yarn, or shoe strings.
You can use pasta of different shapes to try stamping into play doh, moon sand, or paints.
It sounds super silly, but there’s something exciting to kids about using food for something other than eating.
Yarn
Make necklaces, bracelets, rings or other fun jewelry!
Older kids may enjoy learning to braid or thread beads onto the yarn.
You can also use the yarn as a fun game! Cut long strands and put small prizes at the end of each one. Drape the yarn up the stairs, under couches, in closets, or other unexpected places. Have your kids run through the house following each strand of yarn to find the little prizes.
Make a simple sensory bins
I kid you not… my 2 year old’s favorite activity is when I put oatmeal in a small bin for her to play with.
We bury little figurines, practice scooping with a spoon or mug, and bury her hands and fingers. It’s a taste-safe sensory bin filler, so it’s safe for babies, too.
Is it messy? Yes. But she does a better job with it than I would expect a 2 year old to do!
You can also use rice, dry beans, pasta, crinkled paper, or craft pom-poms. Get creative!
Sensory bins are very captivating for toddlers and young children. I think you’ll be very surprised how much they engage in that kind of play!
Magnets
Do a science experiment, and figure out what magnets will stick to and what they won’t. Your preschool and kindergarten aged children will have tons of fun trying different objects to see what will stick.
Kitchen magnets will do just fine. Test the strength of each one, and make it a fun learning experiment!
Toilet paper or paper towel rolls
Don’t throw them away! There are so many things you can do with the cardboard rolls.
Some things to try:
- Use them as “binoculars” for a game of I Spy
- Create tunnels and bridges for toy cars
- Use painter’s tape to tape them to the wall, and practice dropping small objects through to see where they land (think ping pong balls, bouncy balls, or even craft pom-poms)
- Cut the ends into fringe and use them as a stamp for painting
- Use yarn, pipe cleaners and googly eyes to stand the rolls up and make little people. Turn the roll sideways to make animals like dogs or horses
Napkins, coffee filters and tissues
You’re probably thinking…and do what with these, Lindsey?!
Use washable markers to color on them! Then use a spray bottle or water dropper to get them slightly damp. The colors will spread and blend and become super pretty as they dry!
You can also use them to do some watercolor painting — it’s way more fun than boring old paper.
If your toddler is learning how to cut with kid scissors, something like napkins or coffee filters are easier to cut than regular paper. Practice cutting shapes and then glue them onto a piece of construction paper to make a collage!
Cardboard boxes
Get out some crayons and markers and make a fort with big boxes! You can cut out little windows and a door, and even connect them to make rooms. Have your kids go crazy decorating the outside of their little house with stickers, crayons, markers and paints.
Use smaller boxes (like a shoebox or cereal box, for example) to make a fun play place for new toys.
Some ideas:
- Make a doll house
- Connect several small boxes to make zoo exhibits for toy animals
- Make an underwater, space, farm, or whatever-interests-your-child-at-the-moment scene
- Make a rocket ship or submarine
Bubble wrap
Is an explanation needed?
Lay it on the ground and stomp around, or practice pinching the bubbles open! It’s both a fine motor and a gross motor activity your kids will get a kick out of!
You can also cut and save a small piece to use for stamping with paint or play doh.
Bubble wrap is fun at any age!
Empty water bottles
I wish I could give you a reason why these are *so* fun for kids.
We like to play a game called “will it make noise” with water bottles!
Basically, my daughter and I go around and gather a few small items to put in the bottle. We guess if it will make noise or be quiet when it’s shaken in the bottle. She gets to put them in and try it out! We do this over and over and over again (that’s your warning…be prepared!)
Items to try:
- Rice
- Beans
- Crumpled paper
- Dry pasta
- Oatmeal
- Craft pom-poms
- Little pieces of yarn or string
- Beads
- Candy
- Crayons
- Toilet paper pieces
Check out these fun indoor activities for kids:
25 Toddler Activity Bins
Gross Motor Activities to Burn Off Energy Indoors
Dinosaur Dig Sensory Bin
Indoor games and activities with household items
Blindfold sensory game
This sounds silly, but it’s a ton of fun! I worked at a daycare my freshman year of college, and the pre-Kindergarteners LOVED this game.
I’m talking silly, giddy giggles whenever it was played.
Basically, have your child cover their eyes, and you select a common household object. You may let them feel it, taste it, smell it, and listen to it when it is rattled in a box or falls to the ground. Then they have to guess what it is!
If your child doesn’t like to be blindfolded, you can also place the object into a drawstring bag and let them feel it and listen to it. It’s quite a bit easier this way, but it still works!
Ideas of objects to try:
- Spoon or fork
- Pens
- Crayons
- Paint brushes
- Plastic eggs
- Figurine or small toy
- Crumpled paper
- Shoes or slippers
- Toy cars, trucks or trains
- Stuffed animals (you could play guess the animal, too!)
Another fun way to play is by covering your child’s eyes, and giving them a small piece of food to try! Let them smell it, touch it, and taste it before guessing. Just small little bites of food is enough to keep it fun!
A few ideas to taste:
- Chunks of fruit
- Cheese
- Pretzels or chips
- Bread
- Lunch meat
- Pasta
- Oatmeal
- Cereal
Create a ________ contest
Give your children a variety of objects, and challenge them to create something!
Play to your child’s interests. Maybe you want to create a dragon, monster, car, or house!
It could also be fun to challenge them to make a replica of something they love.
A fun idea would be to have kids make vehicles, and see whose can travel the farthest!
Give them things like:
- cereal boxes
- yarn
- stickers
- crayons
- glue/tape
- cardboard
- paper
- toilet paper/paper towel rolls
- sponges
- candy
- straws
- napkins
- whatever else you come up with!
Scavenger Hunts
Scavenger hunts are a fun way to get your kids moving, and they require no prep.
You can create your own, or get some inspiration from others.
When you join my email list, you’ll have access to some printable scavenger hunt activities and indoor games in the Kids Activity Vault! This is totally free to readers of These Hungry Kids.
There you have it! That’s all my brain can come up with today, but if you have any other ideas for fun indoor activities for kids, leave them in the comments below! You just may help another struggling parent!
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GOOD POST
Thank you, Louetta! I’m so glad you liked it.