No need to stress any longer on keeping your kids busy and growing their education at the same time.
Whether it is spring break, summer vacation or emergency indoor learning situation here is a list of activities for kids at home both fun and educational.
As a former 4th-grade teacher turned mompreneur, I can tell you from both sides of the coin getting your kids on a schedule is the most important thing you can do for your child! It’s not only crucial for them but for you.
In order to be the best mom you can be to your family, you need to put the needs of yourself first even though it is way easier said than done. You want to make sure you get self-time at the end of day to unwind and binge a show. So, getting your kids to bed at a reasonable time allows you time for yourself.
Think about it. Kids have a schedule in school and you want to adopt a similar structure in your own home to make any transition back to school easier for everyone. I created a schedule for you to use with your own family. It can be adapted to one or multiple kids.
Head over to our shop to download your own copy for free.
Let’s take a closer look at this schedule and break down some possible activities for kids at home.
Daily Schedule for Families
Morning Exercise
If the weather is nice outside, the first thing to do after the family finishes breakfast is to head outside. Go for a family walk, ride bikes around the neighborhood, or head out for a hike. Take advantage of burning off energy first thing in the morning before kids will have to sit and focus for education time.
If the weather is not on your side, YouTube is a great resource for exercise programs for kids of all ages. Yoga is a great way to start the day and get kids in the habit of practicing gratitude. GoNoodle is another educational program used for kids in schools for indoor recess and brain breaks.
Here are some other ideas for morning exercise:
- Have a dance party
- Jumping jacks
- Head to a local track to run
- Exercise games
- Stretching
Educational Activities for Kids at Home
No screen time for this educational learning time. When planning learning activities you are going to want to focus on where your child is currently. Make sure the activities are engaging and fun for your child to complete. It will be easier for both of you.
Here are some educational activities for kids at home:
- READ
- Trace letters
- Math facts
- Sort colors
- Activity books or worksheets
- Follow a recipe
- Lifeskills of chores around the house
- Counting
- Write a book
- Geography learning
- Memory games
- Sequence activities
- Problem-solving skills
Craft Activities for Kids at Home
Providing kids with opportunities to be creative and craft is a very important part of the learning process. As a mom myself, I get hesitant to start a new craft or allow them to explore because of the mess. Especially with little kids, you are going to have to do the majority of the cleanup.
But you would be surprised how helpful your little one can be to want to help pick up and part of the learning is cleaning up after an activity is complete.
Thinking back to my own childhood, instead of sitting in front of the TV or on electronics I was crafting. I loved making boondoggle, friendship bracelets, easy-bake oven concoctions, and Perler beads.
Here are some craft activities for kids at home:
- Create a batch of slime
- Paint pictures
- Pom-pom activities
- Clay animals
- Shaving cream play
- Connect crafts to seasons or holidays
Story Time for Kids at Home
Reading with your children is the single most important thing to support their educational growth. You should be reading with your kids for at least 20 minutes a day. Storytime is a great time to find a place in your house to create a reading nook and fill it with some great books.
Storytime could also incorporate puppets or props to help tell the story. Get the older kids involved and storytime could really be a special time for everyone in the family to make some great memories.
Here are some storytime activities for kids at home:
- Invest in different kinds of books and genres (Big books, chapter books, picture books, non-fiction, etc.)
- Use puppets
- FaceTime a family member to read
- Read to pets or stuff animals
Quiet Play for Kids at Home
Quiet play is time for mom to have some time to complete any work she needs to do. From completing a load of laundry to working on a side hustle to bring in some extra income, now is the time to complete tasks and have the children play independently or nap.
Here are some quiet play activities for kids at home:
- Origami
- Play-doh
- Coloring books
- Make bookmarks
- Puzzles
- Stickers
- Playing with cars/trains
- Threading items with pipe cleaners
Electronic Educational Time for Kids at Home
Now would be the time to break out the tablets, phones, or computers for educational purposes. Being a former teacher myself, I know of so many websites that my own students have loved so much they would continue to play the same programs at home. Always make sure you are reviewing what educational website your child is on and engaging when appropriate.
See our FULL list at the bottom of educational websites for kids.
Outside Activities for Kids at Home
Getting kids outside and playing as much as possible is so important! Nowadays kids are not outside enough. Get them off the technology and send them out to play!
Here is a list of outside activities for kids at home:
- Bubbles
- Chalk
- Ride bikes
- Play sports
- Hopscotch
- Foursquare
- Tag
- Hide and seek
- Water balloons
- Scavenger hunt
- Red light, Green light
Song and Dance Activities for Kids at Home
Nothing like cranking up the music and having a family dance party! It is one of our favorite indoor activities to do when we are stuck at home.
Our Echo Dot has been a complete game-changer with kids. To hear Kallie try to say “Alexa” and get all excited when her favorite song starts playing melts my heart every time.
The Echo Dot has amazing capabilities. Alexa can play nursery rhymes, sing the alphabet, give animal noises, play games, help with math facts, report the weather, daily words, jokes, and so much more! It is a great investment to help keep kids entertained.
Here is a list of song and dance activities for kids at home:
- Limbo stick
- Cha-cha slide
- Buy musical instruments
- Playlist of Disney songs
- Classic nursery rhyme songs
- Freeze dance
Free Play Activities for Kids at Home
After dinner, you just want to wrap up the day and start winding down for bed. Having the kids participate in some free play allows them to also have some individual time as the day wraps up also. Keep in mind. Kids are kids and even though having a schedule and routine is crucial they still need time to PLAY!
Additional Activities for Kids at Home Based on Age
Activities for Babies:
- Tummy time
- Jello dig
- Pom-pom transfer
- Play with kitchen utensils/measuring cups
- Build with blocks
- Pasta sensory play
Activities for Toddlers:
- Air mattress Trampoline
- Practice pouring
- Build Legos
- Play in water or sand
- Peel off tape
- Post-It scavenger hunt
- Coloring sorting
- Peel and place stickers
Activities for School-Aged Children:
- Create a fort with sheets
- Manicures and pedicures
- Build legos
- Have a tea party
- Activity books
- Make jewelry
- Paint a picture
Activities for Middle-School Children:
- Make a vision board
- Rearrange their bedroom
- A day at the spa at home
- Create different outfits and take pictures to remember what pieces went well together
- Model cars or planes
Activities for the Whole Family:
- Bake cookies together
- Play board games together
- Look through photos together
- Watch a movie together
- Wash the car and bikes
- Make an obstacle course
- Participate in a scavenger hunt
Free Educational Websites for Kids
It can seem so easy to place kids in front of screens to keep them busy or learn on their own. But the best thing for your child is to stick to the recommended screen time limitations given out by the APA and monitor website usage.
Multiple Subject Websites:
- Starfall
- Circletime
- IXL
- BrainPOP
- Kahoot!
- CK-12
- edHelper
- Classroom Secrets
- Scholastic Learn at Home
- Breakout Edu
- Khan Academy
- AdmitHub
- ALBERT
- Newsela
- 2Simple
- Book Creator
- Boardmaker
- Buncee
- Curriki
- Discovery Education
- Education Perfect
- Elementari
- Emile
- EverFi
- Fiveable
- Freckle
- Gamilab
- Twinkl
Educational Math Websites:
Educational Reading Websites:
Educational Science Websites:
- Alchemie
- American Chemistry Society
- Backpack Sciences
- Kids National Geographic
- Mystery Doug
- Mystery Science
Educational Social Studies Websites:
Other Educational Websites:
Enjoy the time and activities with kids at home because it won’t last long. Soon they will be all grown up and you will just have the memories of completing these activities together. Our children are only young once, cherish it!
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