Stuck indoors with your kids? Tips to get the wiggles out

It can be challenging to find activities to do with your kids when you are stuck indoors due to coronavirus (COVID-19) or cold and snowy weather. Here are my ideas for mastering the #StayHomeMN challenge and how you can get the wiggles out while indoors.

We recommend that children and teens from ages 6 – 17 get an hour of moderate activity per day. Toddlers and preschoolers should participate in active play throughout the day. This can be challenging. Luckily, there is a lot that you can do indoors to help your child.

Indoor activities

1. Build a fort with blankets and pillows. Grab cushions and pillows, and drape blankets over furniture to make a fort inside. It’s a great place for a slumber party!
2. Indoor treasure hunt. Place clues around the house that lead to a treasure at the end.
3. Microscavenger hunt. Grab different knickknacks around the house and give clues on where to find them.
4. Have a disco. Make a playlist of your favorite tunes and have a dance party.
5. Indoor obstacle course.  Set up an obstacle course to crawl, climb, hop and jump through.
6. Balloon badminton.  Paste Popsicle® sticks on paper plates, blow up a couple balloons and play balloon badminton indoors.
7. Plastic bottle bowling. Save plastic bottles and set up your own bowling alley.
8. Indoor balance beam with tape.  Tape zig zags, squiggles and circles on the floor for your children to practice all of their balance beam tricks.
9. Laser string maze. Tape string all over in a hallway and pretend you’re a spy navigating through it.
10. Hot lava game. Rearrange the furniture to avoid stepping on the hot lava floor.
11. Indoor ice skating. Step on a couple pieces of parchment paper and glide across the carpet.
12. Bring outdoor activities inside. Bring the hula hoop or jump rope inside, or use tape to create a hopscotch game on the floor.

Indoor imaginary play

1. Bake. Make cookies or cupcakes and have fun with decorating.
2. Create a play or a show. Have your children create their own show or play and then film it so that they can watch it.
3. Indoor picnic. Grab your picnic basket and blanket and set up for a picnic lunch inside.
4. Make jewelry. Grab some noodles, beads, paint and string to make homemade jewelry.
5. Make paper bag puppets. Use buttons, markers, pipe cleaners and paint to make puppets and then put on a show.
6. Shaving cream messy play. Lay newspaper on your table, and put shaving cream all over it. Add food coloring and sparkles.
7. Marshmallow building. Use marshmallows and pretzels to build a marshmallow city.
8. Create a cardboard box house. Get out your pencils, crayons and markers and get creating.
9. Play dress up. Grab some Halloween costumes and repurpose clothes that family members no longer wear.