By RyLee Matangi
Purposefultoys.com
Quarantine life has us all feeling a little blue, so we wanted to put together a few activity ideas for you and your little ones to make this time as magical as possible.
Build a Fort
Start gathering the cushions, pillows and blankets, we’re making a fort! You know an activity is good when it withstands the test of time and fort building is just that! Make sure to add the books, snacks and drinks! We’re going to be here awhile!
Do a Sensory Activity
Sensory activities are our go to! Be creative. Look around the house and use whatever sensory filler you can find. Some of our favorites are water, rice, beans, kinetic sand, foam, water beads, Easter grass, pom poms, Ice and colored pasta. Throw in some cookie cutters, scoops, spoons, tongs, cups, bowls and you’re good to go! Tip: Make sure to add a drop cloth or old bed sheet under your sensory bin for easy clean up! (For the record, a “sensory bin” could be as simple as a large cake pan.)
Make Homemade Play Dough
Making our own play dough is our absolute favorite thing to do! With a few simple ingredients you can make play dough that lasts for months! You can find a classic play dough recipe, chocolate play dough recipe and a pumpkin spice play dough recipe on my blog, purposefultoys.com. We love to add cookie cutters, rolling pins, cupcake liners and cookie scoops to add to our play dough.
Play Super Hero
This is an activity that we play almost daily at the Matangi household. Simply grab some of your favorite Little Unicorn Swaddle Blankets and you have the perfect super hero cape! My girls love running, jumping on the tramp and pretending to rescue each other as their capes fly in the air behind them.
Play Hide and Seek with Objects
This activity is one that is so simple, but can keep your children entertained all day long! Hide and Seek is obviously a family favorite, but our recent favorite activity has been playing hide and seek with random objects! We will take an object like a teddy bear and take turns hiding it somewhere in the house. Then the other family members will have to search to find the hidden object. Trust me when I say you’re going to want to do this one!
Have an Indoor Tea Party/Picnic
Growing up one of my favorite memories was when my parents set up an indoor picnic in our house. Whether for pretend play or an actual picnic indoors, this is one you are going to want to do. Your little ones will love the idea of an indoor picnic, and be able to create memories that they will treasure forever.
Bake with Mom and Dad
Baking experiences with mom or dad is always a favorite. You can extend learning during this activity by talking about fractions, measurements and counting. With young children you can ask simple questions such as, “We need 2 cups of flower, we already added one cup, how many more do we need?” With slightly older children you can extend learning by asking questions such as, “We need 1/2 cup of sugar, but I only have 1 cup, what should I do so that I only add 1/2 cup?” These type of questions get your little one’s brains thinking while having an enjoyable cooking experience.
We hope you enjoyed a few of our play ideas! If you would like more play ideas you can visit purposefultoys.com or find me on instagram @purposefultoys. Take this unique opportunity to create magical memories with your family that you will all treasure forever.
