Kids Activity Finder: Things to Do With Kids

Rainy day activities for kids

All of these work indoors in a normal-sized room, and none needs anything bought specially.

• Blanket den (Toddlers, 4-6, 7-10). Drape blankets over chairs or a table, pile cushions inside and use it for stories, snacks or a quiet hour.
• Cushion obstacle course (Toddlers, 4-6, 7-10). Use cushions, chairs and blankets to make a course to crawl through, step across and balance along indoors.
• Freeze dance (Toddlers, 4-6, 7-10). Put some music on and dance. When the music stops everyone freezes, and anyone who wobbles sits out a round.
• Pots and pans band (Toddlers, 4-6). Hand out wooden spoons, saucepans and plastic tubs and make music together. Try loud, quiet, fast and slow.
• Homemade playdough (Toddlers, 4-6). Mix flour, salt, a little oil and warm water into a soft dough. Add food colouring if you have some and keep it in a bag afterwards.
• Shadow puppets (4-6, 7-10). Cut animal shapes from card, tape them to sticks or pencils and shine a torch at a wall in a dim room.
• Junk model robots (4-6, 7-10, 11-14). Build a robot, castle or spaceship from boxes, tubes and pots, then colour or paint it.
• Cardboard tube ball run (4-6, 7-10). Tape cardboard tubes in a zigzag down a door or wall and race scrunched-up paper balls down it.
• Make a mini book (4-6, 7-10, 11-14). Fold a few sheets of paper into a booklet, then write and illustrate a story, a joke book or a guide to the family pet.
• Card game afternoon (4-6, 7-10, 11-14). Teach snap, pairs, rummy or cheat. Older children can keep score and run a mini tournament.
• Origami (7-10, 11-14). Fold a paper cup, a fortune teller or a jumping frog from a square of paper, then try something harder.
• Family newspaper (7-10, 11-14). Interview everyone at home, then write headlines, a weather report, a sports page and a puzzle corner.
• Indoor camping night (4-6, 7-10). Build a den, eat dinner on a blanket on the floor and tell stories by torchlight.
• Design a board game (7-10, 11-14). Draw a board on paper, write the rules and make counters, then play it with the family.

Half-term activities

Bigger projects that fill a morning or an afternoon, good for a week off school. Half-term dates vary by area, so check your local council’s website for your child’s school.

• Blanket den (Toddlers, 4-6, 7-10). Drape blankets over chairs or a table, pile cushions inside and use it for stories, snacks or a quiet hour.
• Salt dough models (4-6, 7-10). Mix flour, salt and water into a firm dough, shape it into animals or decorations, then let it dry and paint it.
• Nature scavenger hunt (4-6, 7-10, 11-14). Write or draw a list such as a feather, three kinds of leaf, something soft and something red, then tick them off outside.
• Garden obstacle course (4-6, 7-10, 11-14). Set out things to jump over, crawl under and balance along, then time each run and try to beat it.
• Puppet show (4-6, 7-10). Turn odd socks into puppets with drawn-on faces, use a big box as the stage and put on a show for the household.
• Treasure hunt with clues (4-6, 7-10, 11-14). Hide a small treat and write a trail of clues that lead from one hiding place to the next. Older children can write clues for you.
• Family newspaper (7-10, 11-14). Interview everyone at home, then write headlines, a weather report, a sports page and a puzzle corner.
• Bake and decorate biscuits (4-6, 7-10, 11-14). Make a simple biscuit dough, let children cut out shapes and decorate them. An adult handles the oven.
• Cook a family meal (11-14). An older child picks a recipe, writes the shopping list and cooks it with an adult nearby.
• Bug hotel (4-6, 7-10, 11-14). Stack sticks, pine cones, dry leaves and hollow stems in an old box or between bricks in a quiet corner.
• Mini sports day (4-6, 7-10, 11-14). Run egg-and-spoon, pillowcase sack and running races, then hold a medal ceremony with paper medals.
• Picnic (Toddlers, 4-6, 7-10, 11-14). Make sandwiches together, pack a blanket and eat outside, or on the living-room floor if it rains.
• Tie-dye a T-shirt (7-10, 11-14). Twist an old pale T-shirt with elastic bands and apply fabric dye, following the instructions on the pack. An adult handles the dye.
• Design a board game (7-10, 11-14). Draw a board on paper, write the rules and make counters, then play it with the family.
• Indoor camping night (4-6, 7-10). Build a den, eat dinner on a blanket on the floor and tell stories by torchlight.
• Family time capsule (7-10, 11-14). Fill a box with drawings, letters and a list of current favourites, seal it and agree when to open it.

Free activities for kids

44 of the 53 ideas in the finder cost nothing beyond what most homes already have. Here are twelve of the best.

• Nature scavenger hunt (4-6, 7-10, 11-14). Write or draw a list such as a feather, three kinds of leaf, something soft and something red, then tick them off outside.
• Bug hunt (Toddlers, 4-6, 7-10). Look under logs and stones, count the legs on what you find, then put everything back as it was.
• Nature art (Toddlers, 4-6, 7-10, 11-14). Collect leaves, sticks and stones and arrange them into faces, patterns or a picture on the ground.
• Water painting (Toddlers, 4-6). Give each child a brush and a tub of water and let them "paint" a wall, fence or path, then watch it dry.
• Chalk hopscotch and pavement art (Toddlers, 4-6, 7-10). Draw a hopscotch grid, a road for toy cars or a giant picture on a path or patio. The rain cleans it off.
• Garden obstacle course (4-6, 7-10, 11-14). Set out things to jump over, crawl under and balance along, then time each run and try to beat it.
• Bottle bowling (Toddlers, 4-6, 7-10). Line up empty plastic bottles as skittles, with a little water in each to steady them, and roll a ball at them.
• Paper aeroplane contest (4-6, 7-10, 11-14). Fold a few different designs, test which flies furthest and measure each flight in footsteps.
• Treasure hunt with clues (4-6, 7-10, 11-14). Hide a small treat and write a trail of clues that lead from one hiding place to the next. Older children can write clues for you.
• Puppet show (4-6, 7-10). Turn odd socks into puppets with drawn-on faces, use a big box as the stage and put on a show for the household.
• Family reading challenge (4-6, 7-10, 11-14). Pick a pile of books and make a chart to fill in as each one is finished.
• Stargazing (7-10, 11-14). On a clear evening, wrap up, let your eyes adjust to the dark and find the Moon and the brightest stars.