If you are looking for fun and informal educational activities for kids, here are five ideas that you can do today with just a few simple household items!
Supplies
- Dice
- Paper
- Pens
- Markers
- Building bricks like Legos or Mega Bloks
- Bowl
- Scissors
Dice Math
We play this game all the time at our house. Take a piece of paper and fold it in half. Draw one horizontal line on each side of the paper. In between, on the crease, place a math symbol like addition, subtraction or multiplication. (i.e. +, -, x, etc.). Alternatively, use this printable I created.
Grab a pair of dice. You can always repurpose some from a board game. Have your child roll the die to get numbers that they put on either side of the symbol. For example, roll the die. You get a 2. Roll the die again. You get a 4. Then add 2 + 4 = 6! You can scale the dice game for different ages/skill levels. Use a pair of dice to make it harder!
Recycling Sculptures
Collect unusual recycled materials from your everyday life. Think paper towel rolls, caps from yogurt, empty fruit containers — with parents and kids home 24/7, we sure do have a lot of these things going into the trash! Place the collection in a box. After you have a full box, give the box of recyclables to your kids along with some tape, glue, markers, etc. to build something fun. See what they can come up with to create!
Word Story
Cut strips of paper into little squares. Write one word on each piece – the terms can be anything! Alternatively, use this printable I put together by cutting out the words! Put all the words in a bag or hat and have kids choose 10 words without looking. Then, challenge them to write a story (or act out a play) based on all of the words they chose! Encourage them to make pictures or use silly props.
Lego Challenge
Pretty much every family has Legos or some similar building blocks at home. Each day, give kids a fun challenge of something to build. You can use this printable I set up as a starting point. Each day, give them their daily Lego challenge with fun goals like making a unique animal or designing a playground!
Another challenge to have the kids read a book. After they finish, they can build something based on what they read, like a scene from the book or a concept from the story. They can then give a presentation on their book and design.
All of these challenges help kids be creative, hone some STEM-based skills, practice literacy and writing, and even work on public speaking! They also help parents who are looking to keep the kids engaged while stuck inside. Need more educational ideas? Read this post here! And, if you’re looking for toys and activity kids with lots of educational play value, check out this post!Â
What are some of your educational tips and tricks? Share them with me below!
