7 Fun and Educational Indoor Activities for Kids
Keeping kids entertained indoors while promoting learning can be a challenge. We asked seven professionals, including content executives and content writers, for their best tips. From organizing educational scavenger hunts to playing educational board games for development, discover the top seven activities these experts recommend.
- Organize Educational Scavenger Hunts
- Conduct Hands-On Science Experiments
- Create DIY Slime for Learning
- Promote Skills Through Cooking and Baking
- Encourage Critical Thinking with Jigsaw Puzzles
- Develop Skills Through Arts and Crafts
- Play Educational Board Games for Development
Organize Educational Scavenger Hunts
Try to organize scavenger hunts around the house. This is a great way to turn learning into a game, with a sense of challenge and accomplishment at the end. You can use scavenger hunts to teach navigational knowledge, such as “north, south, east, west,” or prepositions such as “under, on, next to, behind.”
You can also turn the clues into missing-word exercises where the kids have to use context or rhyme schemes to try and guess the right word and make sense of the clue. For example: “Your next clue is cold and wants to leave. But you’ll also find food that we put here to f________.
Adam Morris
Content Executive, Twinkl
Conduct Hands-On Science Experiments
Engaging in hands-on science experiments is a fantastic indoor activity that combines entertainment with learning for kids. From creating simple volcanoes to exploring basic chemical reactions, these experiments foster curiosity, critical thinking, and a love for discovery.
The interactive nature of these activities helps children understand scientific concepts in a fun and memorable way, encouraging them to explore the world around them and develop important cognitive and problem-solving skills.
Aviad Faruz
CEO, Know Mastery
Create DIY Slime for Learning
Making DIY slime is one indoor activity that keeps my kids entertained while also promoting learning and development.
Creating slime involves mixing different substances to produce a unique texture. This introduces kids to basic chemistry concepts, such as mixing ingredients, observing chemical reactions, and understanding viscosity. It’s a creative process that encourages kids to experiment with colors, textures, and add-ins. They can customize their slime by adding glitter, beads, or other decorations, fostering imaginative play.
Sometimes, achieving the perfect slime consistency takes time and experimentation. Kids learn patience, persistence, and the promotion of critical thinking through development.
Diana Royanto
Content Writer, Milkwhale
Promote Skills Through Cooking and Baking
Cooking and baking activities can be a great way to promote learning and development in children. They can help improve math skills by measuring ingredients and following recipes, as well as enhance reading and comprehension skills.
Additionally, cooking and baking can help children develop a sense of responsibility and independence, as well as an appreciation for healthy eating habits.
Steven Wright
Co-Founder and Chief Editor, Lifestyle to the MAX
Encourage Critical Thinking with Jigsaw Puzzles
I look toward activities they can do with their hands to encourage critical thinking or problem-solving. One activity that keeps them entertained for extended lengths is jigsaw puzzles. I can get different ones to suit their levels, with older children working on more complicated ones.
One of the best aspects of jigsaw puzzles is that the whole family can participate, so it can be a bonding experience. We sometimes do a complicated one on a wood board or canvas, so we can glue and seal it to create a permanent work of art.
Michael Gorlovsky
Orthodontist, Windermere Orthodontics
Develop Skills Through Arts and Crafts
One indoor activity that keeps kids entertained while also promoting learning and development is arts and crafts. Kids can get creative and make their own artwork using materials such as paint, markers, crayons, and paper. This activity helps children develop their fine motor skills and creativity, while also encouraging them to use their imagination and express themselves through art.
Matthew Ramirez
Co-Founder, USMLE Test Prep
Play Educational Board Games for Development
Board games are a fantastic indoor activity to keep children entertained while promoting their learning and development. Games like “Scrabble” enhance vocabulary and spelling, “Monopoly” teaches money management and strategic planning, and “Catan” promotes resource management and social interaction.
These games not only stimulate cognitive skills such as problem-solving and critical thinking but also foster social skills like teamwork, negotiation, and sportsmanship. Playing board games also helps in improving a child’s attention span and focus, as they need to follow rules, plan strategies, and make decisions to win the game.
Nyla Rose
Founder and Editor-in-Chief, JuseBeauty
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