Cheap Indoor Activities for Kids
February 14, 2014
Another Half Term is here, giving the kids a much-needed break, but also resulting in another chance to hear those dreaded two words – ‘I’m bored’. Fear not, as we’ve put together some great indoor activities for you to do at home.
Make your own Play Dough
Play dough is really easy to make at home and your kids will love getting involved, even as much as playing with it after!
For the basic play dough mixture you’ll need:
• 4 cups of warm water
• 4 cups of plain flour
• 2 cups of salt
• 4 tbsp vegetable/cooking oil
To colour the play dough you’ll also need a few drops of food colouring (either liquid or powder form will work).
To make your own play dough just mix all of the ingredients together (in the correct ratios from the list above) in a pan over a low heat. After a while it will start to look like mashed potatoes – keep on the heat until it’s no longer sticky.
If you want to colour it, divide it into portions and add the different colours separately while stirring. Allow to cool down (usually around 20 minutes) and then you’re all set.
Kids’ Coffee Morning
Rather than heading out to meet friends at your local Starbucks, get the kids involved at home. You can create a wonderful selection of drinks, from hot chocolates with whipped cream and marshmallows, to babyccinos complete with a dusting of cocoa powder.
If you want to make foam but don’t have the luxury of a coffee machine just follow these simple steps:
1) Fill an old jam jar around with semi-skimmed milk so it’s about half full and place the lid back on.
2) Shake the jar for around 30 seconds until the milk has started to froth and has almost doubled in size.
3) Take the lid off and then place the milk in your microwave for around 40 seconds.
4) You should find that the frothy milk has now risen to the top and can be either scooped up or poured directly on to the drink.
If you’re kids are slightly older, suggest to them that they could make a menu (complete with prices) so that they can earn a little extra pocket money from yourself and friends.
Russian-doll Height Chart
Taking the concept of dolls inside each other, this unique height chart will make it really easy for your children to see how much they grow and to mark their own progress.
To get started you’ll need some paper (the bigger the better) – ideally A1 size or A2 minimum. Join the paper together using selotape on one side to that they overlap. You’ll need a total surface of around 5ft in height by 3ft in width.
Once you have your paper joined together, lay it on a hard surface (wooden floors are great for this) and ask your child to lie down on it with their feet touching the bottom of the paper. Then draw around their whole body using a pencil so that there’s a full outline of their body on the paper.
It’s now up to your child to be as creative as possible, adding in clothes, a funny face or some funky colours.
You should now have a rather colourful height chart which can be hung directly on the wall (you’ll need fixings on all corners or some blu-tak). Every year, take the size chart back down and repeat the process.
Jelly Towers
Get the kids involved with making their tea with this simple twist on a jelly desert.
All you need is two or three packs of different colour jelly, together with a tall glass. It’s important the glass is wider at the top than at it’s base – a cocktail glass works beautifully if you don’t have anything taller.
Make the jelly in small batches, adding one colour to the glass and allowing it to set before adding the next layer. Each layer should be around 2-3 cm deep depending on how tall the glass is.
After you’ve completed five to six layers, leave the glass in the fridge to fully set. Then take it out, place the glass in a bowl of warm water for a minute or two to loosen it. Place a plate on top of the glass and carefully turn it upside down so that you’re left with just the jelly on the plate.
You should (fingers crossed) be left with a multi-layered jelly tower – perfect for the kids to get stuck into before bedtime.
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