RAINY DAY

"Mom, I'm bored! There's nothing to do!" whines your child as he or she impatiently taps his or her feet on the floor and drums restless fingers on the fridge while you patiently try to juggle supper, phone calls, pets, the door bell, and toddler all at the same time. What to do, what to do? Children are all so tuned in to high action electronics these days, it's very hard to just tell them to go out and play ball,go swimming,or ride their bike like we used to when we were kids. So what can we tell them to do when theythink they are bored and can't or don't want to think of anything FUN to do? Here are a few ideas of things to do with different ages of children.
VERY SIMPLE IDEAS OF ACTIVITIES TO DO WITH AGES 12 MONTHS (?) - ADULT:TACTILE TEXTURE PLAY: Items needed: lots of small bowls, medium bowls, cups, measuring spoons and cups, the more the merrier; large bag of rice, dry beans, or oatmeal. Let the kids pour the food from one container to another. It will make a mess, but is easy to clean up and they LOVE IT! Must be supervised closely if it's a young child who puts things in their mouth, of course. My daycare kids of all ages LOVE this simple, inexpensive activity.PAINTING: Let the children use paint brushes with paint (water in a bucket) and "paint" anything their little heart desires. The garage door, toys, house, car, etc. This is a fun one during the summer!!! I get the inexpensive buckets and brushes from a dollar type of store. The kids also LOVE this activity, cause they can get wet!TOILET PAPER: Let your child run crazy around the yard when it's not wet or windy and throw toilet paper everywhere!!! The kids look forward to this every summer, it's now a tradition atour house. This is a great way to help children learn responsibility of cleaning up, too. They are required to have the toilet paper cleaned up before going back inside or playing with anything else.
SNOWBALL FIGHT IN JULY: Wad up dozens of small balls of newspaper and let the kids have a snowball fight in July, or any time of year. They love this imaginary activity, and all ages can participate, with a bit of supervision, of course.
FINGER PAINTING: Let even the youngest of children finger paint with chocolate pudding. Put the pudding on a tray with raised edges, and let the child "paint" away. This activity is one where having a camera handy is a must! :)COOKIE SHEET AND MAGNETS: When going on a trip or even at home, have a cookie sheet with lots of fun magnets available for your child to play with. As the child gets older, have them practice spelling with the magnetic letters or adding with magnetic numbers. Make sure the magnets are large enough not to choke on for young children.
KITCHEN UTENSILS DRAWER/BOX: When trying to prepare a meal and your toddler is whining for food and it's not ready, provide a box or drawer of plastic or wooden kitchen utensils and some pretend food to let your child prepare his/her own meal. Wooden spoons, bowls, funnels, spatulas, measuring cups and spoons, and tongs are great starters for this entertaining activity.
THE LAW OF GRAVITY: Have a large tube, like a roll of paper would gee on, and a ball that's just small enough to fit through. Your child will love finding out the ball will roll from one end to the other when the tube iselevated. Make sure the ball is not small enough to fit in your child's mouth for safety purposes.AGES 3-6PORTABLE FLANNEL BOARD: Cover a shoe box lid with flannel and cut your own shapes or buy the cheapies at Wally World. Store the shapes inside the box, and your child will have a built in activity on the go.LEARNING TO WRITE: Write each letter of your child's name on an index card. I have used the neon colored ones. Spell out your child's name for him/her, and then mix up the letters to have them try it themself.Draw 2 parallel lines with a dotted line in the middle. Print your child's first (and last, if your child is ready) name on the lines. Cover the paper with clear contact paper. Your child can use a crayon or marker to trace over the letters and then wipe it off with a damp cloth when finished.WHAT'S DIFFERENT: Give your child a group of objects, maybe 3 or 4, that are related in some way: eating utensils, drawing tools, books, fruits, etc. Add one item that doesn't fit in and have your child identify the object and tell you why.
WHAT'S MISSING: Gather a group of 4 or more items together and show your child. Name each item, the color, and any other specifics about each item. Put the items all in a pillow case or laundry bag, and take one item out. Have your child figure out which item is missing, then let them take a turn at having you guess which item they remove.AIR PAINTING: YOU NEED: Paper, tempera paint, eyedropper, spoon or straw, and an empty squeeze bottleHave your child drop some paint onto a piece of paper and disperse it by squeezing air onto it with an empty squeeze bottle. This can also be done by blowing through a straw. Adding different colors and mixing them teaches them about the primary colors and such.BALLOON PAINTING: YOU NEED: balloons of various sizes, liquid tempera paint, paperBlow up balloons and tie ends. Hold onto the tied end, dip the balloon into paint, and blot it onto paper. Use to display or as a unique gift wrap.MARBLE PAINTING: YOU NEED: marbles, liquid tempera paint, paper, tray or flat boxPlace a piece of paper in a tray (like a cookie sheet) or flat box. Have your child drop marbles into various colors of paint, then put marbles on paper in box and roll the marbles around. Or drop some paint onto the paper first and then have your child roll the marbles across the paint.
DRESSUP: This is a must have activity for children of all ages. Simple dress up items include boots, shoes, hats, scarves, bandanas,and gloves. For the older kids, a huge box of old costume jewelry from a garage/yard/tag sale or auction willbequite the hit for a large portion of a rainy day.
PUPPETS: Kids love puppets! Have your kids make sock puppets, or purchasepuppets inexpensively at garage/yard/tag sales or thrift stores. Have ablanket availableto drape over acouple of chairs, and your child will have a blast entertaining himself, others, and you. Make sure to listen for any cute things he might say, you might want to write some of this down in his baby book! :)
BOXES: Large boxes from your local appliance store are among the most popular inexpensive toys you could find for your child. The boxes can be cut with supervision, stacked, glued, painted, whatever your child desires. They can make race cars or castles, tents or towers. The possibilities are endless with a child's imagination.
These are just a few of the ideas I've tried over the years in my home daycare, and the kids love every one of them.More boredom busting activities to do with kids will be added as I think of them. I hope you have fun with your kids, too.
Thanks so much for taking time to read this guide. I hope you have found some helpful ideas and will vote positive on the helpfulness. Have a great day!
Sky