Indoor Activities for Your Toddler or Preschooler

Keeping your toddler or preschooler entertained can be a full time job in and of itself. While it's important to encourage independent play, it's also sometimes necessary to keep your child engaged to prevent him from "independently" dismantling your kitchen. Being stuck inside can make this job doubly difficult, so I've compiled a few suggestions for inexpensive, fun entertainment for toddlers and preschoolers.

If you are feeling crafty and have a few basic supplies handy, the possibilities are endless! Glue sticks and good old fashioned white glue are a great source of amusement for the preschool set. I choose a theme such as triangles or things that are green, and then cut examples out of old magazines and let my toddler and preschooler go to town pasting them to a sheet of construction paper. Craft stores often have a dollar aisle or clearance section where you can find dirt cheap craft kits for things like pom pom animals and foam picture frames. A quick web search will present you with thousands of websites full of printable coloring pages and paper crafts, all for free. Affixing stickers to body parts or (if you're lucky) paper is easy entertainment for toddlers.

Instead of shaking your preschooler off of your leg while you try to cook dinner, try setting him up with a kitchen activity. Homemade playdough takes minutes to throw together but can result in hours of fun. Use food coloring and you have a simple lesson about colors: what happens when we mix the red and blue playdough together? Another fun way to introduce secondary colors is to color two glasses of water with one primary color each and, using a medicine dropper to practice fine motor skills, let your child combine them in a third glass. Or, set out three small bowls and put vinegar in one and baking soda in another, and let your child combine them by the spoonful into the third bowl to watch the fizzy reaction. I also keep a plastic tub full of dried beans with old bowls and cups available for the kids' use only. Maybe it's not as much fun as a sandbox, but beans are definitely easier to clean up after!

Getting out of the house seems to be the easiest way to occupy my kids' time, but it can get expensive fast. Read your local paper or talk to other parents to scout out free activities in your area, such as library storytimes and playgroups. Some movie theaters even offer free children's movies during the summer! If you aren't involved in your local Mothers of Preschoolers (MOPS) group, this is a wonderful resource for mothers with children under five. Don't be afraid to ask around, you never know what might be available, even in small towns.

Building dinosaur houses out of blocks is fun for the kids, but can be mind-numbing for parents when you do it day after day after day. Find activities that you will enjoy too, such as building an obstacle course or fort, or stage a movie night complete with pajamas and popcorn. Inflate your kiddie pool in the living room and fill it with small balls for a custom ball pit. Try baking, even if it's from a mix. When you're stuck inside, get creative and remember that sometimes the simplest things can be the most memorable!