Tis’ the season for getting creative with play.
Here are 10 ideas we rotate when the weather gets frightful:
Sensory Play
Make playdough, shaving cream art (squirt shaving cream in a baking sheet & add drops of food coloring), finger paint or use sensory bins
Board Games
Check out my review of the best board games for young kids (preschool and up)
Hide & Seek
Classic family game can be inside or outside.
Build a Fort
You can get creative with household materials or buy a fort building kit.
“Laser” Obstacle Course
Go to a real laser tag course or make your own. See @littlemovingartists Instagram feed for photo of how to use the party streamers
Obstacle course
Use painters tape or left over party streamers to make an indoor laser course.
Art
Paint, draw, color
Craft
Use a craft kit, build a model car, make an “invention” out of cardboard & painters tape (you can use a theme or just let their imaginations go).
Dance Party
Put on your favorite tunes or search for Kids Zumba or Kidz Bop videos on You Tube
Cook/ Bake
Rainy Day Play kit
For longer bouts of rain I dip into my rainy day kit (unless my son ask for it on a rainy day).
3 Bonus Rainy Day Play ideas:
- Suit up & Play in the rain Local parks & hiking trails are well suited for puddle jumping (during or just after the rain). Be sure to bring plenty of wipes & a change of clothes or two.
- Indoor play areas (malls sometime shave an indoor play area) but those are generally too crowded for me. We go to our local trampoline park or bounce house.
- Indoor sports places (soccer, etc), Fitness Facility or gymnastics sometimes set up obstacles for kids during stormy/ rainy weather (even if you are not a member it doesn’t hurt to ask if they do that or have non-member services to try out the facility. Most of them offer a free trial course or special trial pricing).
Where do you Rainy Day Play?