Winter Play Made Fun

Keep Your Kids Entertained (Without Screens)
Winter Play Made Fun
Winter Play Made Fun

If you live in a cold climate, winter is mostly made up of freezing days and hours of darkness, and by February everyone in the house is going stir-crazy – especially your kids.

Here are some ideas to keep your little balls of energy happy and occupied without zoning out in front of a screen.

Create a Craft Corner

This may sound like a lot of work, but it’s actually pretty effortless.

Clear a corner in your living or dining room and throw down a tarp to protect your floor.

Add a couple of chairs, an old card table covered in newspapers and some rolling storage bins for the crafting supplies.

Hang a whiteboard on the wall so you can write out the craft challenge of the day.

This is an instant kid-friendly area prepped for easy cleanup. You can also add some easels with stools or a smaller table for sculpting playdough creations.

Some fun crafting supplies to have on hand are:

Yarn

  • Different paint mediums (watercolor, water-based, puffy paint, etc.)
  • Markers and colored pencils
  • Colored paper
  • Old magazines and newspapers for collages and paper mâché
  • Glue sticks
  • Glitter (if you’re brave enough)
  • Playdough and cookie cutters
  • Pipe cleaners, pom-poms and popsicle sticks

You can purchase activity kits in stores or online if you don’t have these items around the house. You can also hit up your local thrift store for supplies.

Set Up a Scavenger Hunt

This is a creative way to allow your kids to play independently. You can do this in a variety of ways:

1. Give them a list of items they can find around the house.

Write down a list of common household items, give them a bag or a pillowcase and then let the hunt begin!

Pro tip: Do this one before you tidy the house — they’ll probably make a mess hunting for everything on the list.

2. Make a live version of “spot the difference.”

Have them enter a room and give them a solid few minutes to memorize the placement of everything in that room. Once they feel confident they know how everything looks, kick them out and move or hide eight to 10 items (make sure you write them down, because it’ll be easy to forget.) Send them back in and see how many they can spot.

3. Write out clues to find a prize.

This will be fun for older kids who can read. Start with a written clue that will lead them to hidden notes around the house. After they discover all of the clues, the last one can be an awesome prize (like a book, cool new toy, etc.) You can also replace the clues with weekly chores as an incentive to get them done.

Have Scheduled Dance Parties

When kids can’t play outside because of the weather, that extra energy can turn into big feelings quickly. Prevent meltdowns with a little organized chaos — crank up some music at the top volume and have them go to town!

This is also an excellent opportunity for you to sneak a workout in. You can either do your own while they're dancing and singing at the top of their lungs, or you can just join in the silliness for some quick cardio. It’s amazing how much dancing and singing can improve moods, including your own. Add costumes into the mix for some extra fun.

Family Game Night

With all the technology in the world, it’s easy to forget how enriching a good old-fashioned board game can be.

Will the older kids whine and groan about it? Probably. Will you mourn that little window of adult time you have to sit on the couch and relax in front of the TV? Maybe. But taking one night a week to play board games after dinner will create great lasting memories.

Organize Play Dates

Need to fight those winter blues? Spearhead a playdate rotation with other parents. The kids will have a blast, and you’ll have a little solo time to meet up with a friend or go on a date with your spouse. This also provides an opportunity to hang out with other parents if you’re feeling a little isolated.

Teach Them How to Cook and Bake

Let your little ones measure, pour, stir and crack those eggs. Allowing them to “help” in the kitchen might be frustrating at first, but depending on their age, they’ll learn in no time and will become assets in the kitchen.

You can also whip up a quick batch of salt dough for them to play with while you’re cooking. They can make fun sculptures, and you can bake them right along with your dinner. Then, they’ll have something to paint in their craft corner the next day.

Winter is a tough season for many, but you can use these tips to sneak in more bonding time and distract your kids from screens until spring.

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