Indoor Toddler Activities

There are many indoor toddler activities that can be done in the house and still have fun without the worry of tearing the house down! These games are sure to make your toddlers have fun and keep you sane.

*Hot Lava: In this game you have papers on the floor that are 'safe' for you to walk on and the rest of the room is 'not safe' to touch as it is hot lava. You can only walk on the papers and have to keep moving. When you touch the ground you "burn" in the lava and are out. It can take a while but eventually there will be one winner.

*Hot Potato: The potato needs to be something that is safe to throw ensuring that the child will not get hurt. It can be a small stuffed toy or a soft ball or smaller rubber ball. In this game the children need to pretend that the ball is on fire and throw it to someone else as fast as they can. If you hold it too long you are out. As the adult set a time limit and keep track of how long they hold it. If they hold it too long or drop it they must sit out!

*Guessing Games: In this game you have to blindfold the young child. When they cannot see anything you have to jingle keys or snap your finger and have them guess what the sound was. This will help them to think of what things sound like.

*Animal Acting: Great when you have silly children because they are the best at this. If you don't have silly toddlers this is also a great game because it teaches them to have a great imagination. When playing this indoor toddler activity children have to take turns acting like an animal of their choice and the others have to guess what they are pretending to be. Then the person that guesses right is the next animal.

*Hot or Cold: A great indoor toddler activity that teaches the child to listen. In this game the adults tell the toddler where to go in the room to find what is hidden and the child has to listen to the adults and make it to the object. The adults cannot say things like "a little more" or "step forward" they can only say hotter or colder. Hotter means that they are getting closer and colder means that they are getting further away from it.

*Memory: A game played with a deck of cards that are laid face down so the children cannot see the other side. This indoor toddler activity is modified for toddlers to use only 4-8 cards so they can easily find the mates to begin with. Going from the left of the dealer and continuing clockwise you take turns flipping over two cards to see if they are a match. If they are you get another turn. Then when all of the cards are gone you count up your mates and see who has the most and that is the winner.

*Hand Puppets: Needing some fun for those rainy days? This is a great way to pass away the time when the weather is looking bad. All you need for this indoor toddler activity is some hand puppets for the adults so they can put on a show or you need enough hand puppets for all so they can play it together. A glove with faces painted and hair attached on the fingers make great hand puppets/finger puppets.

*Story Time: The best time spent with your child is reading a good story to them. It helps them to have inspiration and want to read for themselves and they can learn to read at a younger age. You could have an older child read to them or the adult that is watching them can read to the toddlers. Usually this gets the children making some interesting stories up from the pictures. Tip!! A good story before naps or bedtime helps them to unwind and settle down.

*Indoor Tents: Build the tent out of blankets and your kitchen chairs or other household furniture. Use pillows, stuffed animals or anything soft for the sides and flooring. We used some old sheets and tied some string to the four corners. I then tied them to door handles, bedposts, or baby cribs for their roof. Just be sure it is sturdy and nothing will fall on them while playing. One of our children's favorites and will keep them busy for hours!