Hi Moms - now that it's getting cooler and soon to be wetter, I'm looking for ideas of what to do together with my son on non-play outside days. I'm also looking for things he can do that are not the computer/ipad/tv. I was a BIG reader as a kid and really don't remember what I did way back then. And my imagination seems stuck on thinking of things for him.
Any ideas on in-house entertainment? We do go to the McDonalds play places (after lunch) on bad weather weekends so he can run and play. I'm looking for the non-active time stuff.
I'd like ideas to do with him, as well as things he can do on his on (so I can have some time to do my stuff and home stuff).
Thanks!
play dough
train tracks
cars
generally playing with toys and/or musical instruments
Kindergarten is when kids start really have friends come over to play with them. Maybe it's just time to do more of that.
I have a kindergartner and a 3rd grader. This is what we do when we don't go out:
Paint, color, make cards/pictures for people.
Legos
Make forts in our living room
Playdoh, clay
Make collages (cut out magazine pictures and have them glue on paper)
puzzles
games: zingo, hi ho cherrio, candyland, operation
play with blocks
Lego's or Art stuff.
paint
he can make gifts for everyone for christmas
arts and crafts
homemade science experiments
puzzles
hide and seek
bubbles inside?
put him to work washing windows (emmy loves washing windows for some reason)
make cookies or cupcakes
Legos. Hours and hours of designing fun.
M
Reading
Board games
Legos
Family Fun magazine has science experiments and activities. We loved those.
Finally, our son could not stay quiet all day. We played sock ball, using a rolled up pair of socks batted by a hand. ; )
At that age, my son LOVED Thomas the Train and blocks. I bought him a big bag of blocks and he would build tunnels and pathways for his trains, for HOURS. My daughter is that age now and she LOVES puzzles. She will play with puzzles on the floor for hours.
Good luck,
L.
Library story hour (our town has one in the early evenings once a month)
Legos
Puzzles
Art supplies
Making puppets out of socks and old "stuff"
-educational websites--our kinder teacher recommended Starfall.com, and my kinder daughter was on it for hours this morning.
-writing/reading/phonics workbooks
-drawing
-making books--illustrate and write words, staple all the pages together
-cut out pictures in magazines, and make collages
-tunnels & forts
What does he like to do on his own? I assume as an only child he's pretty good at entertaining himself :)
My son always loved his Legos, reading, drawing, building things (we always had a pretty good supply of cardboard and masking tape, that kind of thing) and playing outside. He had his two little sisters, but honestly at that age they were more of an annoyance to him than anything else, lol! He usually had a friend over at least once or twice a week, and he often got invited to their houses as well.
Having a friend over is great for YOU because he's happy and occupied!
You can also go to the library, and/or sign up for classes through your local community center or parks dept. And of course you can go skating, bowling, mini golfing, that kind of thing as well.
And when you DO find him home and bored just involve him in whatever you're doing, he can help you cook, clean, garden, work on home improvement projects, whatever!
For being a big reader, have you forgotten the library? Not just for fiction books but tons of nonfiction on space, bugs, science, art and cooking. All for kids. Books on how to do magic, nature crafts and make costumes can expand both of your worlds.
Baking is Chemestry. Uno is math. Making a terrarium is biology. Water play in the bathtub is physics. Have him dictate a story to you and make a book with cardboard and contact paper. Get a book on masks and make your own. Learn about different cultures by cooking different foods.
Online resources can only do so much! (and I am a big computer nut) Your children's librarian is your FRIEND. Its messy and fun and memory making. When you learn these things and have built up your resources, yours will be THE house to play in.
Google the blog/site: Confesssions of a Homeschooler. A lot of really neat stuff on there. Also, that blog has links to other neat homeschool moms with lots of creative ideas to keep your kindergartner busy.
My kindergarten son is really into board games right now, so we'll play a lot of games when we're sitting around the house. We also build with Legos and play soccer or catch in our playroom.
I am a Discovery Toys consultant, so we have a lot of great toys and board games around the house from that. He's always asking to take out a special toy to play with and some keep him busy for a couple of hours. You can visit my site at http://www.discoverytoyslink.com/karenchao to see what we have available. I am also happy to make recommendations or give you more info.
Oh, he also really likes to build forts out of couch cushions and giant tinkertoys, so that can keep him busy for a long time too.
Wii Fit or Dance Craze can help use of some of that extra energy on those really cold days! And don't forget that kids still love to go outside and on walks even though it's cold and windy. It's us parents who tend to shy away from it!
