Looking to put a unique twist on your next family fun night? Toy Insider Senior Editor Marissa DiBartolo stopped by ABC World News Now to talk about how to create a personalized family night with DIY activities and other fun games, using stuff you probably already have around the house. For more on the products featured in this segment, check out the product notes below, and be sure to view our Spring and Summer Toy Guide.
Board Game Tournament of Champions
- Pull out your family’s favorite board games and have a tournament.
- Whether you’re playing Monopoly, Farkle, or other family favorites, refresh game night with competitive family fun.
- Craft a DIY bracket to track the wins.
- When kids are eliminated, make them teammates or cheerleaders for other players!
- Whoever wins the tournament gets to pick the movie for movie night!
SPEAK OUT: KIDS VS. PARENTS Edition Game (Hasbro)
- With included kid-sized and adult-sized mouthpieces, the SPEAK OUT: KIDS VS. PARENTS Edition Game will have families doubled over in laughter as each member attempts to say a whacky muffled phrase!
- Ages: 8+
- MSRP: $19.99
- Available: Target, Amazon, Walmart
- Take a risk, and keep rolling to build your score. Or play it safe so you don’t lose your points in a Farkle. It’s a fight to the finish in this fabulously fun game of strategy and luck!
- Age: 8+
- MSRP: $8.99
- Available: Target, Walmart, Amazon
Create Your Own Art Gallery
- Take out all the crayons, markers, paint, glitter, and paper around the house and create your own art show!
- Hang the art around the house like an art gallery.
- Talk about the art together (artist influences, feelings and emotions, does the art tell a story?) to spark fun conversations.
- Have each artist speak about their piece and what inspired them.
Crayola Assortment- Make your own art gallery with Crayola products like Pip Squeaks markers, Washable Paint Brush Pens, and Dry Erase Bright Crayons.
- Age: 3+
- MSRP: $2.99-$9.99
- Available: Walmart, Amazon, Target
Play-Doh Challenge
- Get out all the Play-Doh and Play-Doh tools, or you can use plastic forks, spoons, and knives.
- Everyone in the family writes ideas down on scraps of paper that you can make from Play-Doh (a monster, a snowman, ice cream, pets, hippo wearing a hat!). Take turns drawing out of a hat, and set a timer for two minutes! Everyone must race and use Play-Doh to create what’s on the paper!
- Have fun being creative and comparing ideas!
- Use small toys and collectibles as prizes for silliest, or most creative!
Play-Doh Super Color Pack (Hasbro)
- This big pack of 20 cans of Play-Doh modeling compound holds an endless array of creative possibilities! Little hands can roll, twist and shape these colors into any form that strikes their fancies, then mash them up and start all over.
- Age: 2+
- MSRP: $14.99
- Available: Target, Walmart, Toys “R” Us, Amazon
DIY Slime
- Make your own slime from ingredients you may already have around the house, including laundry detergent, Elmer’s glue, and baking soda. Then add food coloring and glitter to make it fancy.
- You can even add shaving cream to make it fluffy, or hand lotion for a sweet scent.
- Kids can get creative and come up with their own fun recipes.
Nickelodeon Slime - Nickelodeon Slime includes all the ingredients, including glue, needed for kids to make their own version of the network’s iconic and beloved green goo.
- Age: 6+
- MSRP: $14.99
- Available: Walmart, Toys “R” Us, Target
Puppet Shows
- Craft a stage out of a cardboard box and wrapping paper.
- Adults can use a box cutter to cut the edges off a box, and kids can decorate with stickers, paper cutouts, and more!
- Make up a story line, act out a favorite movie, wing it.
- Gather your stuffed animals and put on a show!
Folkmanis Puppets - Folkmanis puppets spark imaginations and encourage open-ended play, endearing hugs, and snuggly companionship. Newest additions to the Folkmanis collection include the Dove, the Cavalier King Charles, the Toad, and the Abert’s Squirrel.
- Ages: 3+
- MSRP: $17.99- $57.99
- Available: Amazon, Folkmanis.com
LEGO Listening Game
- One child creates a simple LEGO structure, and gives verbal instructions to other kids on how to re-create the build without letting them see the original.
- Whoever comes the closest to the original wins!
LEGO Classic Brick Sets (LEGO)
- Includes a wide range of LEGO bricks in dozens of different colors and frames to start building on, LEGO Classic is designed to inspire open-ended creativity. Comes in a useful plastic storage box. Available in regular, medium, and large.
- Ages: 4+
- MSRP: $16.99—$49.99
- Available: Toys “R” Us, Walmart, LEGO stores
