Stuck indoors? Nobody likes to be stuck inside when you can not actually go out to play. Talk about cabin fever!! Nor do we as parents want to hear “I am bored!” all day long either. So we’ve come up with 20 Fun Games to Play with Kids Indoors to help you fight the endless hours of boredom. Try some or all of them out next time the weather has you trapped inside! These are also fun to play on family vacation or camping trips too! Have fun
20 Fun Games to Play with Kids Indoors
1. Board Games
There is nothing boring about a board game. There are some many different choices you have when it comes to games. We like to keep a few board games on hand for those rainy days, but we also like to make sure we pick up a new game or two a few times a year to add to our game stash. Some of our favorites are Candy Land, Chutes and Ladders, and Guess Who. Make sure to have a variety to keep the other kids entertained as well.
2. Fort Building
My brother and I used to build forts all the time. We would take our parents dining chairs and couch cushions, grab some bed sheets, blankets, and rubber bands. The possibilities are endless with what you can build and how big. Don’t have much room? That’s alright because you can still have a fun fort by throwing a flat bed sheet over the kitchen table! Keep reading for more fun games to play with kids indoors.
3. Hide and Seek
This one is pretty self-explanatory, but the options to hide are endless. I was always really good at hiding! Maybe you have some really good hiders or seekers in your family. Where was the best and safest place to hide in your house? I loved to hide in the base cabinet in our hall bathroom. It was a huge cabinet, but then again I was a lot younger and more flexible than I am now.
4. Puppet Show
What I love about a Puppet Show is that it can drag on for hours. You need to write your script or just simply improve, design and make your puppets, create and put together your stage, and practice. There is a huge array of stories that can be told and these memories will stay with your children forever.
5. Taste Test
Ok, this one takes a bit of parent involvement for two reasons. One, you don’t want your kitchen destroyed and every dish dirty and two you need to make sure your kids do not make their sibling taste test only the hot sauces! Another great thing to make this taste test less messy would be to pick up an arrange of baby foods.
6. Pie Eating Contest
Pie Eating Contests are something you would see at a state or county fair. Rarely do you see them in your own home, but who says you couldn’t do it! Do not worry about wasting whole pies for these contests, you can buy small individual pies or better yet you can just cut slices out of bigger pies. You can have prizes for who finishes first, who finishes the cleanest, or who had good team sportsmanship. Make a mess, make it fun, and make some memories! My son would jump all over this from our list of 20 fun games to play with kids indoors
7. Simon Says
This one is a no brainer. We all know how Simon Says works, “Simon Says to jump on one foot”, everyone jumps on one foot. “Stop jumping on one foot”. Anyone who stopped jumping is out because Simon didn’t say to stop jumping. Everyone loves to have the opportunity to be Simon so this is a great game to play indoors. Also, parents listen up. I just recently played this and “Simon Say to hug your brother/sister” or “Simon Says to say one nice thing to your brother/sister”. I know my kids would stop playing if I continued, but think of all the cleaning you could get them to do! Haha “Simon Say to sweep the floor!” Maybe that is just wishful thinking!
8. Indoor Hopscotch
Grab some tape, an open place on the floor but hallways work great for this, and start taping out the Indoor Hopscotch corse. If you do not have tape laying around anywhere then get creative and find things around your house that will work. My kids have tons of stuffed animals, so they could use that to lay out their borders. What are the most creative ways to make your Indoor Hopscotch? We’d love to see them!
9. Indoor Bowling
Do you have extra water bottles, coffee creamer containers, or maybe even some empty can in the recycling bins? Pull them out, give them a rinse, tape up any sharp edges and start stacking them! You can any kind of ball or round object that will roll. My mom used to stack up plastic cups and we would roll an orange to knock down the cups! We had so much fun! We would also add numbers and try to keep score too. That’s a good way to incorporate math skills. Can you get a strike? Give it a try and let us know!
10. Hot Potato
Alright, we have made it to the halfway point with our fun games to play with kids indoors. For this one, you do not actually have to heat up a potato in the microwave, just pretend it is hot. My kids like to play this with a stuffed animal or some rolled up socks too. How many times can you toss it around before someone drops it?
If you are tired of staying indoors then check out our post on 20 Outdoor Activities for kids.
11. Treasure Hunt
There are many reasons why we are stuck indoors. It could be because of rainy weather, maybe you live somewhere it snows a lot, or maybe you are sick and have to stay indoors. The fun does not have to stop. Treasure hunts are a great way to beat boredom. Take turns hiding treasures and drawing up your map! This game is good for all ages. You can hide things in plain sight for younger kids and make it more challenging for the older group!
12. Obstacle Course
Building an Obstacle Course was another one of my favorites growing up. We used to tie a string around chairs and up over doors and anywhere else we could think of. My object in playing was trying to get my brother stuck. Try to come up with some easy and difficult courses for your crowd!
13. Card Games
Grab your deck of cards and start playing. There are a ton of games you can play with a single deck of cards like Spades, Go Fish, Memory, Blackjack, Solitaire, and my all-time favorite 52 cards pick up! There are also other card games you can pick up like UNO, Old Maid, Pit, and more! If you want some other ideas for card games to check out our other post on 10 Card Games to Play with your Kids.
14. Balloon Races
Do your kids love to compete and act silly? If you said yes, then this is the game for you! Simply grab a pack of balloons, blow them up, then the rest is up to you! You can see who can scoot them across the floor with their nose, you can see who keeps their balloon floating in the air the longest, or you can see if you can pass off the balloon using anything but your arms and hands! Let the fun begin!
15. Bean Bag Toss
Who doesn’t love to throw things? My kids are always tossing clothes, stuffed animals, pillows, you name it! Let’s make it a game and see how many times in a row they can toss the bean bag into a cup, a bucket, and then a basket!
If you want to mix it up, stop playing games and start making crafts, we have a list of 15 crafts you can do to get you started.
16. Pillow Case Races
Mark a starting line, a finish line, grab some pillowcases, and let the races begin! Everyone will love this game from the younger kids to us dad! Just try to make sure the kids win sometimes! Indoor games are meant to be fun and that is why Pillow Case Races made it on our 20 fun games to play with kids!
17. Balloon Tennis
Oh here is another great balloon game to play indoors that will help keep the kids entertained. If you played the balloon races from above then you might have some leftover balloons. Grab one, blow it up, and start hitting the balloon back and forth. What are some creative ways you can keep the balloon in the air without it falling? I used to use my moms’ wooden spoons.
18. Lego Derby Races
We once visited our local library and participated in Lego Derby Races. They are super easy to replicate at home. Grab your lego bin if you have one and build an arrow dynamic car that can go down a track and land without falling apart. Younger children might need some adult help, but that is not a bad thing because it teaches kids that help is ok and you get to build something together!
19. Tower Building
How tall can your kids build a tower without it falling? What materials can they think of? Tower Building has a ton of components like math, engineering, and patience. What all can you build a tower with? Give it a try and have fun!
20. Blind Mans Bluff
Have you ever play Marco Polo in the swimming pool during the summer? Well, now you can on dry land and indoors. Make sure you have plenty of room and there isn’t something that your children could fall on. This is great for a living room or a playroom. We like to out pillows, couch cushions, stuffed animals, or anything else to keep every safe and while have fun and creating memories!
We all want to be entertained these days whether by friends, family, a board or card game, or electronics, like the Nintendo Switch, tablets, and more. Electronics do not always have to be present in order for you to have fun! Now you have 20 fun games to play with kids indoors that do not need screen time to have fun. How many more can you come up with? This list could really go on and on. We would love to hear from you!
If you loved these fun games to play with kids indoors, be sure to pin this to your favorite kids activity board on Pinterest so you can find it again. Post a photo of you and the kids playing inside and tag us social media @DadLifeLessons. We love seeing people use our tips!
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