Fun Ways to Keep Your Kids Entertained at Home
Keep Kids Busy at Home
Entertaining kids at home can be a difficult feat, whether it’s a long weekend, summer break or you’re under orders to stay at home in the midst of a global pandemic.
However, with a little creativity and some useful online resources, there are plenty of ways to keep your little ones entertained during this time. Not only will they have a blast, but they might just learn a new skill or pick up a new hobby in the meantime!
Make a Fort: Collect blankets and sheets to create a magical fort in your living room. Bonus points for Christmas lights and a laptop or TV set up to watch movies!
Set Up a Scavenger Hunt: Create your own scavenger hunt list filled with things to find throughout the home and/or backyard — or use one of these creative scavenger hunts from Good Housekeeping!
Visit a Museum Virtually: Explore some of the most famous museums and galleries in the world — without ever leaving your couch. Google Arts & Cultureteamed up with more than 2,500 museums and galleries, from the British Museum in London to the Guggenheim in New York City, and is currently offering virtual tours and online exhibits for each.
Have a Picnic in the Backyard: Make your favorite meal and enjoy the great outdoors without ever leaving the yard. Set up a blanket and dine al fresco in the grass. Make it extra fancy with some kid-approved charcuterie and sparkling cider!
Take a Trip to Mars: Explore the actual surface of Mars with Access Mars, which features 360-degree views recorded by NASA’s Curiosity rover. Your space fanatic will love this incredible tour!
Create Cards for Neighbors + Loved Ones: Spread some love to neighbors, friends and family members by creating cards with encouraging messaging or colorful drawings. This activity keeps your little ones entertained and brings joy to others — it’s a win-win!
Visit a National Park From Home: While nothing beats an in-person tour of our country’s national parks, these virtual tours might just be the next best thing. You and your kids can tour 31 national parks on Google Earth, from Arches National Park to Zion National Park!
Bake Cookies: Find a simple recipe and get creative in the kitchen with your kids. They’ll especially love decorating them, if you have sprinkles and frosting on hand!
Lunch Doodles With Mo Willems: The Kennedy Center Education Artist-in-Residence, Mo Willems, created 15 episodes over the course of three weeks with fun doodles for kids to recreate at home. Plus, Kennedy Center @ Home has a library of extraordinary live, on-demand performances and educational activities to do at home, with new releases daily.
Do a Science Experiment With Bill Nye the Science Guy: Bill Nye the Science Guy has an extensive collection of science experiments designed to be completed at home, including life science, physical science and planetary science.
Plant a Vegetable Garden: Create a vegetable garden or small window box to grow all sorts of vegetables with your kids. They will love watching them grow over time, and you’ll love all the fresh produce your garden provides!
Travel to Seussville: Keep their imagination going with a virtual trip to Seussville, which has plenty of games, videos and resources — which are, of course, focused on all things Dr. Seuss.
Do Cosmic Kids Yoga: Get your kids moving and stretching with Cosmic Kids Yoga, which has plenty of kid-friendly yoga videos that you can all do as a family!
Ride a Virtual Disney Ride: Ride a roller coaster without ever leaving your couch! Good Housekeeping compiled this list of virtual Disney roller coasters, from the leisurely “It’s a Small World” to the thrilling Expedition Everest.
Have a Blast