25 fun ideas to keep your kids busy while at home. They’ll love completing this fun printable bingo board!
School districts around the country are closing, which leaves a lot of kids at home. I worked with my daughter to come up with 25 boredom busting ideas kids can do at home to stay busy.
We put the fun ideas together in a Bingo style checklist printable that will hopefully encourage your kids to participate. You can even assign prizes your kids can win after getting bingos and if they complete the whole board.
© Kim Tate
25 Fun Ideas for Kids Out of School
You’ll find the printable activity bingo board at the bottom of this post! Affiliate links are included in this post so I might earn a commission if you buy from my link. Thanks!
And if your kids need more fun ideas, check out these great virtual day trips you can take to popular travel destinations around the USA and the world!
Read a Book
This is pretty simple. I’m sure your kids have plenty of books around the house and/or they might have brought a library book home from school. You might consider ordering them a new book on Amazon to get them excited to read.
Play a Board Game
This might be a family fun activity that you can do together after dinner one night. Or if you have multiple kids, they can play a game together. Check out some of these popular family board games.
Play a Sport
Since the point of canceling school is to stop kids from hanging out together, you’ll have to get creative on this. Perhaps you have a basketball hoop your kid(s) can play at. If not, maybe you can take your kid to a local playground. Or you can always just get a backyard soccer set and have them play in your yard!
Learn 10 Words in a Foreign Language
It’s always fun to learn new things and the internet makes it easier than ever for kids to learn a new language — or at least some words. Duolingo is a popular app my girls like, at it’s free. You could also consider a subscription to something like Rosetta Stone.
Make a Meal
This could be something as simple as having them make their own lunch, or perhaps they want to tackle making dinner. This could be a fun activity to do as a family and might even lead to more kitchen helpers in the future! My friend Tiffany has a great kids’ cookbook if you need some idea.
Play Outside for 30 Minutes
This should be done more than just once, but hopefully having it on the board one time will help get your kids outside more. Perhaps you want to pick up some sidewalk chalk or bubbles to keep them entertained. Or I remember spending hours using a skip jumping ball as a kid.
Bake Something
Here’s another kitchen activity, but it would be something as simple as a cake in a mug, or something more elaborate. My friend Tiffany has a great kids’ baking cookbook.
Do a Puzzle
This is a fun activity that can take multiple days. Both of my girls love doing puzzles and they have many options for pieces size that make it a great activity for all ages. Plus, Amazon has a lot of choices so you don’t have to go out! As a rule of thumb, 250 piece puzzles are generally good for grade school kids.
Learn a Magic Trick
My girls have both gone through times when they really love learning a new magic trick and then performing it on every member of our family. They typically learn from a YouTube video, but you can also order books and kits of magic tricks for kids.
Build Something
I think most families have LEGO blocks in their house, so here’s a simple boredom buster idea. Challenge them to build something. I actually created a LEGO Build travel game that might be fun for them. Of course, you don’t have to use LEGO, kids could build something with almost anything they can find around the house.
Have a Dance Party
As the mom of girls this might be something I’m a little more used to, however, my hubby says he did dance parties as a kid, too. This is also a great activity for families and can be fun while making dinner together at night.
Yard Project
It is springtime, so for many, that means getting started on gardening. Perhaps you need some weeds pulled, the yard mowed, or maybe you want to start planting flowers. Even if you can’t go to the store, you can order some seeds and gardening supplies online.
Drink a Glass of Water
Ok, this isn’t much of an activity, it’s in lieu of a free space spot. I just thought it seemed a little better than free space. :)
Draw a Picture
Your kiddo can get as into this as they want. Maybe they’ll draw you a simple stick figure image, or maybe they’ll get more into it. If your child really enjoys drawing, consider getting them a drawing set for the quarantine time.
You can also find a lot of great online art lessons for free – read this post of online kids activities to find out more.
Listen to an Audiobook (or Podcast)
My girls both enjoy listening to audiobooks, and most libraries allow you to borrow audiobooks for free. You can also consider getting them an Audible subscription for the month while stuck at home. If your kiddo doesn’t want to listen to a whole book, there are some great podcasts for kids.
Do a Science Project
My kids are always loving to make messes in the name of science, but as long as they’re learning and having fun it’s worth it. You can find plenty of ideas online but you can also consider getting some DIY kits from companies like Kiwi Crate.
Write a Letter to Someone
This is a good bit of practice for your kid on how to address an envelope and could bring a smile to someone. Maybe you have a grandparent that would love to receive a letter, or maybe your kiddo just wants to write a letter to their best friend.
Take a Walk
Of course, this will be a family activity if you have young kids. But your kids might enjoy walking around their backyard if you can’t go out with them. My girls even made an obstacle course in the backyard one summer that kept them entertained for weeks! Consider getting your kids a fitness tracker and letting them earn a prize if they get a certain number of steps.
Clean Your Room
Ok, this is certainly NOT a fun activity, but when your kids are stuck at home for a long time there’s no better time for them to get cleaning. Encourage them to play some music while they work. Check out this big organization cleaning project we did one summer when the girls were so little!
Do a Workout
There are plenty of free workouts available on YouTube and Netflix, but my girls like to download workout apps on their phones.
Organize Something
Here’s another not-so-fun activity, but it does give your kids something to do. Maybe you can make it a paid chore if it’s a household space, like the pantry. Or perhaps they can just organize an area of their bedroom.
Brain Teasers
Have your kids exercise their brains with some fun brain teaser puzzles. You can print some online or get them a brain teasers workbook.
Make a Craft
I’m sure your kids can find supplies around the house to make some kind of craft, but you can also get them some crafting supplies. I’m going to buy a membership to bluprint which will let my girls watch all sorts of crafting classes online. You can also get your kids a craft box subscription box.
Ride Your Bike
Hopefully, your child has a bike they can ride. This might mean you have to make the effort to bike ride with them if you aren’t used to your child riding their bike alone in your neighborhood. It’s a great family activity if you need to do something before or after dinner.
Donate 5 Items
This should be fairly easy for your child to do. And hey, you might even be able to sell an old toy or set of clothes on a local resell group.
There you have it, 25 fun ideas to keep your kids busy. I hope you’ll all stay safe and healthy and that your kids will enjoy completing this activity bingo board!
Click HERE to download your Kids Activity Bingo
Great resources!
Thank you! Glad you liked it!