Hi - it snows for 5mths of the year where I live and there's very few things for a child to do between the age of 1yr and 4yrs. I'm especially interested in activities that burn energry indoors as it's often too cold (-10 to -20) or dumping snow outside. Thank-you
Thank-you ladies for all your great ideas. I would never have thought a 2yr old would use a Wii but I try it next winter since other kids that age have enjoyed it. A friend told me her daughter spends hours running in and out of the house to refill small bottles of colored water (food coloring) so she can squirt and spray different colors on the snow. The neighbours might not appreciate the art project but the family does.
I used a small jogging trampoline. that works great. We played tickle monster chasing the kids around the house too. Good Luck
I bought my two year old one of those nylon tunnels from Target for $15. It folds up easy for storage, and she loves it! It takes up alot of energy.
There something my kids and I used to do when they were young. It really only works if you have enough room. What I would do is I would take some masking tape and create shapes or letters on the floor using the masking tape. Then I would either sit on the couch or play with them, depending on my mood that day, and I would call out a shape or letter and they would race to the one I called out. Try to make the shape big enough for all the kids to fit on it so they don't fight over the space. Or have them take turns, like John where is the letter H? kind of idea. Sometimes to stir things up, after they were on that shape, I would ask them to find something in the house that was the same shape. I could also do a musical chairs type game also. They kids really loved it, and they were learning at the same time. There's lots of things you could do with it. Just play around with some ideas and have fun with it! Hope this helps.
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There something my kids and I used to do when they were young. It really only works if you have enough room. What I would do is I would take some masking tape and create shapes or letters on the floor using the masking tape. Then I would either sit on the couch or play with them, depending on my mood that day, and I would call out a shape or letter and they would race to the one I called out. Try to make the shape big enough for all the kids to fit on it so they don't fight over the space. Or have them take turns, like John where is the letter H? kind of idea. Sometimes to stir things up, after they were on that shape, I would ask them to find something in the house that was the same shape. I could also do a musical chairs type game also. They kids really loved it, and they were learning at the same time. There's lots of things you could do with it. Just play around with some ideas and have fun with it! Hope this helps.
Dancing, jumping contests, and pillow fights are favorites with my grandson.
There is a cute video that we have done that is called something like Alphabet Yoga. It is fun and has gotten us giggling trying to do it. Do you have a library that may carry movement videos such as this? Homemade playdough or potato stamping or crayon melt pictures or making and baking shapes made from frozen bread dough are also good small-motor activities. Finger painting on the counter or on a large piece of freezer paper (the back side is shiny and smooth) with instant pudding is one that usually delights young children. Gymboree makes the best bubbles in the world: they don't pop quickly--sometimes they stay a little bubble for a very long time. They are really fun, big movement. We often have danced on the carpet in front of the fireplace to music. There is such great music to dance to. Have you heard of Tom Chapin? He has recorded very fun, intelligent children's music that is also fun for the listening parent. You can also put on a classical music song, such as one of the Carnival of Animals songs by Saint-Saens, and have the children move like that animal. Pop popcorn in a pan. Climb stairs. Trace around your children on a large piece of poster paper or freezer paper and have them color in their bodies. (I know, 1 year old is not so easy for this one.) Bubble baths. Marching band with homemade instruments (dried beans between 2 paper plates, stapled together; coffee can-sized can with plastic top for drum, etc.) Hide and seek. Tickling backs (draw a picture: can you guess what I'm drawing?) "Help" mom fold the laundry. Camp: build a tent or fort with couch cushions, sheet, blankets, chairs. Read books inside your tent. Make smores with marshmallows and crackers in the microwave.
This is the great challenge of creativity for moms! Been there! :)
Best wishes and happy mothering,
L.
We put paper plates on the floor and use them as ice skates then stage a mini olympic speed skating race around the kitchen island. Another favorite of my two daughters 1 & 4 is putting on a CD and crazy dancing. It helps me burn calories also.
A Wii is the best. My two boys love it and so do their 3 cousins. We know what it's like, we've just moved out of MT after 26 years.
Most definitely a WII. I was always against game systems until I read in a parenting magazine that this is a good activity for parents and children. We live in CO, too, so this has been great for winter. You might think your 1 year old is too young, however there are games geared towards that age. Also, we have a WII fit. My youngest was 2 when we got all this and she loved and still loves to get on the pad and jog. We have Dora games, Diego games, Sponge Bob... This all may sound very expensive, however I bought my system plus an extra WIImote and a charger used off of Ebay for about $150, several games off Ebay and I hit the used games at Blockbuster. I typically pay $10 for a game. Also, Dance Dance Revolution is huge fun. My youngest absolutely cannot hit the right squares to save her life, but she dances and dances, especially if one of us is doing it with her. She doesn't have a clue she's not doing it just right and she has a blast! Good luck to you...I'm from the south so finding activities in the winter here has been quite the....minor ordeal. If nothing else, there is always a McDonalds indoor playground somewhere!
a small trampoline with handles for kids to hold on to while they jump. I've seen them in catalogs like One Step Ahead.
a small inflatable bouncy castle that's meant for indoors.
a set of fabric tunnels for crawling through.
If you have space, a smaller plastic play structure, like from Step 2, something that had a little club house they could climb up to and then go down a slide.
Also, if you are able to get out, check with your local gymnastics places to see if they have open gyms for little ones during the day. That will burn off lots of energy! We do this quite a bit when it's really cold in the winter.
I just bought a Blast Zone small jumper for my son's birthday party from TRU. All the comments in the reviews state that it is great for the winter, and they could easily fit it in their houses. I haven't done this myself, as I haven't received it yet, but will be keeping this in mind for next winter.
Get the game Hyper Dash. It's great fun for the kids. Not only does it burn energy running from color to color it also teaches colors, numbers, simple math and improves memory. Set up the cones all over the house and run from cone to cone as the machine tells you where to go. There is also Hyper Jump. We don't have that but I bet it's good too.
