Cold or rainy weather can make kids very bored, especially if they’re inside. Discover 5 indoor activities to keep them entertained for hours.
There are times when you’re going to be stuck indoors. Rain and snow are common contributors, and it doesn’t take long for cabin fever to set in.
However, being stuck inside is a beautiful opportunity for you and your toddler to bond with some indoor activities for kids.
What better way is there to bond than playing games and having fun together?
There are so many great ideas for indoor activities for kids, and we’ve come up with five that you’ll love.
Even better, you can put away the board games, and enjoy a more hands on approach with these indoor activities.
Your Wonder Wagon stroller wagons can also be used for all of them, as you’ll soon discover.
1. Blowing Bubbles
We start our list of indoor activities with a family favorite. Kids are always fascinated by the magic ability to blow bubbles.
But did you know if you can’t buy a bubble-blowing kit, you can create a substitute using household ingredients?
Parents: Make sure to supervise your kids while they’re blowing bubbles — especially if they’re using household ingredients.
You may wonder, how can you make bubble-blowing more exciting?
Play some music to help your kids feel inspired
See who can blow the biggest bubbles.
Blow lots of bubbles, then see who can pop the most.
Have a bubble-blowing competition. Compete with your kids to see who can blow the most bubbles in the shortest time.
If bubble blowing keeps your kids entertained in the house, why not try a funny-shaped bubble blower? For example, you can buy a bubble sword. When your kid draws the bubble sword from its sheath and swings it, it makes a whole line of cool bubbles — super exciting!
Do you have a Wonder Wagon? Well, you can always keep your bubble-blowing kit inside of it, too, so that the kit is easy to get to both in the house and outside.
2. Flashcards
Toddlers' first words often come from flashcards.
So, introducing flashcards from that age, right up until they start school, could give them a head start in their education.
Some benefits of flashcards include:
Increasing confidence in kids
Enhancing visual memory in children
Improving your child’s reaction times
Promoting early childhood learning for your kid
Stimulating your child’s ability to think for themselves
Improving your child’s awareness of the world around them
Helping to teach and write letters and numbers in preparation for their school years
Most of all, flashcards are enjoyable, and children learn faster while they’re having a good time. And don’t forget the value of time spent with your kid when you become their first teacher.
The beauty of flashcards is that they’re so versatile, too. They come in a broad range of categories, and you can create your own:
Letters
Numbers
Colors
Animals
Everyday objects
Here are a couple of ways you can use them:
Place them in envelopes. Write a question on the envelope, for example, “Which animal goes moo,” they answer the question, then open the envelope to reveal a picture card of a cow. Whoever gets the most correct is the winner.
Make a slit on the top of a container. Kids deposit one of the flashcards into the slit after naming what’s on the card. Make it a competition with more than one child. You can give them a container each, and the one who fills theirs first wins.
Here’s where your Wonder Wagon stroller wagon comes in. It can work as the ‘hot seat’ for the toddler who gets the most flashcards right.
If you only have one child, it promotes that the stroller wagons is a ‘fun’ place to be in, too. In other words, you’ll have less of a hard time when you need to take them out.
3. Jumbo Box Towers, Walls, and Forts
This indoor activity requires a bit more set up than others, and you’ll need to prepare some jumbo blocks.
Here are some ideas of household items you can use to create blocks:
Old shoeboxes
Food containers
Moving boxes
Old cartons from the mall
Once you have these items, your kids can enjoy building towers. Make the activity even more fun by letting your kids crash into them and knock them over. Then start all over again.
Mix it up by using the boxes to create a wall. Then let your kids go to town with nerf balls or rolled-up newspaper to topple the wall. Make it a competition, the one who knocks the most boxes loose wins (and gets to create the next tower).
Here’s another way to use your jumbo boxes with your WonderFold stroller wagons. Make a fort!
Pillow forts are entertaining ways for kids of any age to get creative. Enhance this game with your stroller wagons.
Here are three ways this can add to the adventure:
Use it as a vehicle to transport supplies to the fort area
If you have two stroller wagons, they could be used as the base for a fort of epic proportions
Put the stroller wagon in the center of the fort, so that it can become a throne for your little prince or princes.
4. Sensory Bins
Another excellent activity for toddlers is the use of sensory bins. They’re perfect ways to interact while exploring and learning through hands-on tactile play.
Sensory bins help kids' develop in six ways:
Engages the senses: sight, smell, touch, sound, and taste can all be promoted.
Develop social skills: learn to play together, take turns, and cooperate.
Calming: overactive children can learn to focus and sit calmly while playing and learning.
Improve motor skills: children learn to dig for items; introduce spoons, tongs, or tweezers as tools.
Cognitive development: add flashcards to the bins to promote learning and memorizing.
Language development: vocalizing the items as they draw them out of the bin helps to encourage speaking.
5. Story and TV Time
You don’t need to wait until bedtime to read your little one a good book. Your kids probably already have their favorite book, and they love hearing you read it to them. It’s the perfect time to bond with your little ones.
Hint: This one is especially good for preschoolers.
Use story time as a reward for good behavior. For example, after they help pack away the flashcards and the sensory box items.
Mix up the books. Sometimes, choose ones that are pure escapism; other times, slip in ones with more of an educational focus.
Here’s where your Wonder Wagon stroller wagon can make an appearance. It can be the ‘comfy chair’ where your child sits as you read the story. Your child will associate the stroller wagons with a fun and rewarding place.
If you like to use the television as a reward, ramp things up by turning your TV room into a mini drive-in. Do this by using your stroller wagons as the car.
Ensure it’s comfortable, and pack it with healthy toddler snacks. Put your child into it and wheel them into the bedroom to make it feel like they’re ‘going out.’
Park the stroller wagon in front of their favorite TV show and let them experience a family drive-in theater from the comfort of their own home.
Before the evening, have them help get the stroller wagon ready; this will further build their anticipation for them.
Tips for Making the Most of Fun Indoor Activities
We’ve given you a list of five indoor activities for kids. The table below looks at a few problems parents might have with under-twos:
Problem
Solution
Attention span
Have multiple activities available; they can return to earlier ones when bored.
Distractions
Turn off the TV and put away any toys or items that aren’t being used for these activities.
Disinterest
These are their earliest formative years. What might be of no interest today is their favorite tomorrow. Keep re-introducing activities.
Indoor Activities with Wonder Wagon:
Next time you’re stuck inside and have restless toddlers, take this opportunity to play with your little ones.
We’ve only got room for five activities. Still, there are plenty of other ideas, too, like:
Dance party
Board games
Arts and crafts
Kiddie-sized jigsaw puzzle
Time inside is the perfect opportunity for quality family time. It’ll pass quickly, and while your kids are being entertained, they’re also preparing for their early school years.
As you’ve seen, you can incorporate our Wonder Wagon stroller wagons into many activities.
If your toddler enjoys the added inclusion of the stroller wagon and likes to sit in it for long periods, consider upgrading it with premium seats. They’ll appreciate the luxury inside, making outdoor journeys even more comfortable.
