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100 Fun and Easy Activities to Do with Kids at Home

Nicole Sipe
Nicole Sipe

Looking for fun and simple ways to keep your kids entertained at home? Whether it’s a rainy day, school break, or just an ordinary afternoon, we’ve got you covered with100+ creative and engaging activities for kids of all ages. From indoor games and crafts to DIY projects and educational experiments, this ultimate guide is packed with boredom-busting ideas that spark imagination and turn every day into an adventure.

Say goodbye to “I’m bored!” and hello to hours of family fun!

Is the weather nice? Check out our list of 100 outdoor activities for kids at home.

Do you have a fun idea we should add to our “Things to do at home with kids” list? Email us at [email protected], and we will add it to our list!

100 Activities to Do with Kids at Home:

  1. Play indoor hide and seek.
  2. Conduct a science experiment. Here are 31 easy science experiments using common household items.
  3. Make a batch of DIY Gummy Bears.
  4. Have a laugh with Alexa. Here is a list of some funny and kid-friendly things you can ask Alexa and Siri. 
  5. Have an extra amazon box laying around? Here are 32 fun, creative, and educational things to do with a cardboard box.

    Photo by The OT Toolbox
    Photo by The OT Toolbox
  6. Ride a virtual roller coaster. For even more fun, stream the video to your TV and sit inside laundry baskets to for the full effect. Here are 30 of the best virtual rides.
  7. Try a new cookie or cake recipe. Bonus idea: Set up a camera or smart phone and film a cooking show!
  8. Make at play kit with items from around the house to enhance your child’s imaginative play. Here are some of our favorite play kit ideas.
  9. Make DIY fruit roll-ups. 
  10. Practice a new lifeskill with your kids. Here are 81 Essential Life Skills to Teach Kids at Every Age.
  11. Play with blocks. We recommend the competitive STEM game Blocks Rock!
  12. Make a mancala counting game with an egg carton. Instructions here.
  13. Go camping in the living room.
  14. Play board games.
  15. Make DIY Strawberry Pop-Tarts.

    DIY poptarts
    Make DIY pop tarts
  16. Design and go on an indoor treasure hunt.
  17. Plan a family garden.
  18. Make ice cream in a bag. Recipe here.
  19. Make slime. Instructions here.
  20. Set up an in-home nail salon and try some nail art techniques. Ideas here.
  21. Dress up in your best clothes and have a fancy dinner.
  22. Make a piñata. Instructions here.
  23. Make friendship bracelets.
  24. Make and blow bubbles. Instructions here.
  25. Teach your pet a new trick.
  26. Make rock candy. Instructions here.

    home made rock candy
    Photo credit – jenniemasterson.com
  27. Have an indoor picnic.
  28. Listen to an audiobook or podcast.
  29. Host a DIY talent show and let each family member showcase their skills.
  30. Try Cosmic Kids Yoga.
  31. Make paper fidget spinners. Instructions here.
  32. Create your own bingo cards and have a bingo tournament.
  33. Create a family tree.
  34. Let your kids write and direct a stop-motion movie. Learn how it works here.
  35. Learn and play a new card game.
  36. Learn to make stop-motion videos with your toys. Learn how here. 
  37. Teach yourself to juggle.
  38. Play indoor basketball – use a laundry basket and small, soft balls.
  39. Practice origami, or the art of paper folding. Ideas here.
  40. Play with magnets on a cookie sheet.
  41. Make a maze on the floor with painter’s tape.
  42. Play with sidewalk chalk.
  43. Play indoor volleyball or soccer with balloons.
  44. Have a pizza party. DIY Pizza Bagels recipe here. DIY Pizza Bagels
  45. Make paper airplanes and see whose plane flies the farthest.
  46. Play dress up with mom and dad’s clothes.
  47. Create your own memory game with family photos.
  48. Create a DIY aquarium with paper fish. Instructions here.
  49. Make your own popsicles. Here is one popsicle recipe we enjoy.
  50. Go in your backyard and look for four-leaf clovers.
  51. Write a secret message in invisible ink. Recipe for lemon juice invisible ink here.
  52. Play “I Spy” inside or out the window.
  53. Sing karaoke with your favorite songs. Use hair brushes for the microphone.
  54. Clean out your closets.
  55. Facetime or Skype with family or friends. Here are some tips on making facetime meaningful.
  56. Have breakfast in bed.
  57. Set up stations for a DIY “Minute to Win It” game. Here are some easy ideas. 

    in it to win it
    photo credit: happymomhacks.com
  58. Write a family song or rap.
  59. Have a tea party.
  60. Learn magic tricks online and have a magic show.
  61. Make a water sensory bag. Instructions here.
  62. Make some DIY play-dough.
  63. Create a nature scavenger hunt in your backyard.
  64. Play “The Floor is Lava.”
  65. Snuggle on the couch and read your favorite books.
  66. Rearrange or redecorate your room.
  67. Play in a bubble bath.
  68. Have a pillow fight.
  69. Write a short story or comic book together.
  70. Try a new type of dance with YouTube tutorials – ballet, hip hop, salsa.
  71. Have a family movie night. Here are 10 of our all-time favorites. 
  72. Make an indoor obstacle course.
  73. Have a family music night.
  74. Learn to code without a computer. Here are 12 unplugged coding games.
  75. Make shadow puppets and create stories with them on a wall.

    shadow puppets, 100 things to do at home
    Shadow Puppets, 100 things to do at home with kids
  76. Have an alphabet scavenger hunt, finding items beginning with each letter from around the house.
  77. Build a giant fort out of blankets, chairs and pillows
  78. Paint with Kool-Aid. Instructions here.
  79. Put on a puppet show.
  80. Set up a funny photo booth using household items as props.
  81. Create a family cookbook with your favorite recipes.
  82. Make a family vision board.
  83. Make homemade lava lamps using oil, water, and food coloring. Instructions here. 
  84. Make a scrapbook.
  85. Play marbles on the floor.
  86. Do a puzzle.
  87. Have a home economics day; learn to sew on a button, iron a shirt, make a simple meal.
  88. Learn sign language together. Here is a great basic sign language video. 
  89. Fold clothes together.
  90. Create a new dessert.
  91. Put on your bathrobes and play spa day.

    Family Spa Day at home
    Family Spa Day at home
  92. Play 20 Questions.
  93. Host a lip sync battle with your favorite songs.
  94. Create creatures out of pipe cleaners. Ideas here.
  95. Make a treasure bottle. Instructions here.
  96. Decorate a T-shirt.
  97. Write letters to family and friends.
  98. Build a bridge or building with toothpicks or Q-tips.
  99. Play hangman or tic-tac-toe.
  100. Make a time capsule! One day your kids can use it to tell their kids all about this craziness.

Bonus: 20 things to do at home with your toddler

  1. Playing “I Spy” around the house.
  2. Build a blanket fort using chairs, cushions, and blankets.
  3. Set up a pretend grocery store with empty food containers and a shopping bag.
  4. Stack plastic cups or building blocks to create towers.
  5. Hide small toys around the house for an indoor treasure hunt.
  6. Dress up in costumes or old clothing for a fun fashion show.
  7. Create a “sensory walk” using different textured materials on the floor.
  8. Sort and match colored objects, such as toys or socks.
  9. Freeze colored water in ice cube trays for ice cube painting.
  10. Set up a DIY bowling alley using empty water bottles and a soft ball.
  11. Tell stories and act them out using stuffed animals or toys.
  12. Turn a cardboard box into a car, train, or spaceship with markers and imagination.
  13. Practice yoga or simple stretching exercises designed for kids.
  14. Create a DIY obstacle course using pillows, cushions, and other household items.
  15. Use pipe cleaners to make fun animal shapes or bracelets.
  16. Play a game of “Simon Says” or “Follow the Leader.”
  17. Use masking tape to create a racetrack on the floor for toy cars.
  18. Play “Hot Potato” with a soft ball or stuffed toy.
  19. Make shadow puppets on the wall using a flashlight.
  20. Play “animal charades” by acting out different animal movements.
Nicole Sipe
Nicole Sipe
Nicole Sipe is the editor of Indy's Child and Southwest Ohio Parent magazines. She has a BA in Journalism from California State University Northridge, and has been involved in the print and digital publishing world for most of her life. Born and raised in Southern California, Nicole traded the city and sun for corn and creeks, and now lives in central Indiana with her husband, two sons and Collie. Her latest book for children, “All About Me! Art Journal” was published in 2022 by Walter Foster Jr. In her spare time, she likes traveling with her family, enjoying good food and drink, volunteering at her children’s schools and around her community, and practicing yoga.

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Comments

  13. Such an amazing website!! Me and my kids will love doing these ideas!! I had an idea of doing one activity a day and then keep doing it for 70 days. My kids will love doing all these!! Thanks so much!!

  23. […] Parents! Your toddler needs plenty of things to bring to their schools and as a parent, it is important to keep a checklist of what you are going to buy for your kids. If your toddler is going to school for the first time, there will be an obvious fear for the parents to buy all the essential needs for their kids. Your kid may have anxiety about going to a new place and need to communicate with new people at the school. In those times, being fully prepared with their essential things will help you to ease out the situation. You can use this article as a checklist for your toddler’s things! […]

  27. […] I screamed at my kids today over homework. Yes, even though they are being homeschooled for obvious reasons, they still give them homework? Isn’t all school work homework now? And yes, I let myself get so worn down and stressed out that something that was clearly just busywork for my kids turned into a meltdown. Not all kids and not all parents learn the same way. Trying to educate by doing a few printouts… come on … this is silly. Don’t let a packet of busywork come between you and your loves. […]

  40. […] The best activities for kids are the ones that encourage self-expression and natural curiosity, and gardening is a good example of an exercise of this kind. Whether you are taking care of your existing plants or planting new seeds in a flower pot, gardening will seem interesting for kids. With the help of gardening, children can learn essential responsibilities, including patience, responsibility, and healthy eating. Not to mention that gardening can also be a great family bonding. […]

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