Fun Ways To Keep The Kids Amused This Holiday Season
When the festive season has lost its sparkle, you can easily sink into despair at all the themed activities you planned to do with the kids. After all, there are lots of days off school to consider, not just the ones leading up to the big day. So if you’re looking for something different that you can do with the kids while they’re off school, try one of these ideas for fun:
Keeping Active
With all the candies and chocolates they’ll enjoy this season, you might be wanting some fun ways to burn off all that sugar. Creating an all weather obstacle course will keep them occupied for a while! Cushions or pillows can be stepping stones. Set up a path starting in one room and meandering to the next. You can create tunnels from lined up dining chairs. And moving the couch away from the wall a little creates a great crawl space. A few play cones from the garden sets can add obstacles to your course.
Well-Read
Enjoying good children’s novels together is another way to while away an hour or so. Take it in turns to read a chapter if your kids are old enough. If they’re not, revel in the opportunity to become the narrator. Watch their faces light up as the kids hear you take on all the character voices and describe the details of the story. Maybe the children can act out parts of the story afterward, or play along with puppets to let their imaginations run wild.
Cooking
Kids love to make a mess in the kitchen. And parents love letting them if they know they’re going to be eating their own healthy meals. You can choose healthy cakes like this banana cake. Or you might invest in something like the Blendtec commercial blender so the kids can whip up their own fruit and vegetable smoothies. There are plenty of options here. Encourage them to add a fruit or vegetable to each thing they make. They’ll soon get their five-a-day inside them, and they’ll find it fun too.
Musical Fun
As a welcome change to Christmas songs, why not pull out the musical instruments and compose something original? There are plenty of guides online to help you come up with musical ideas. You could also print out some sheet music and work together on an ensemble piece. Little ones love banging and shaking things. You don’t need ‘real’ instruments to make rhythm and noise! Some rice or chickpeas in a tub and water in a bottle are fun sounds to explore. And those old pots and pans and wooden spoons make the best drumkit in the neighborhood.
By having plenty of non-themed activities at this time of year, you can keep Christmas and the holiday period short, sweet, and extra special. Relieve the boredom of their time off school by giving the kids a wide variety of activities each day. They might have plenty of school work to catch up on as well. If you’re off work, why not get involved? Love the season (but don’t let it drag!)
