quick, easy and cheap things to do at home - Kidsguide to Cheshire, Wirral, NE Wales

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Kidsguide homepage > places to go > quick, easy and cheap things to do at home
quick, easy and cheap things to do at home

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Here a some ideas for activities to entertain the kids which cost nothing (or very little), need no advance preparation & don't make too much mess. See also free places to go & recipes

Indoors

Outdoors

Egg painting
Hard boil some eggs. Then paint with food colouring. Allow to dry. Great for egg rolling - if you haven't got a hill, a slide will do.(Warning: food colouring stains).

Egg dyeing
Place eggs in pan of cold water with teabags (brown), onions skins (yellow/brown), beetroot (pink), coffee (brown) or red cabbage (blue). Boil for 15 mins then allow to cool. (Warning: natural dyes stain inc. pan).

Water painting
Paint with a clean paintbrush and a pot of water outside on walls, paving slabs, fences. Very effective and the sun removes the evidence!

Home picnic
Put cloth on floor as picnic rug and serve lunch on living room floor! Or in the garden.

Home camping
Hang tablecloth over furniture or clothes airer. Add torch, sleeping bag/blanket etc.

Iced digestives
Mix icing sugar and water in a bowl to make runny icing. Put sprinkes/ smarties etc in bowls. Let kids decorate the biscuits. (You can make your own biscuits or cakes of course but this is the quick and easy version.)

Blowing water bubbles
Fill washing up bowl or saucepan with water and blow bubbles in it with a straw. Constant supervision of course so they don't drown!

Paint bubbles
Like water bubbles but add paint to water. Gently place paper on bubbles to make bubble pictures. Constant supervision of course so they don't drown!

P
but messy

Pass the parcel
Why save it for parties? Child does the wrapping too using old newspaper. Prize can just be something simple such a sticker or a packet of raisins.

Pasta jewelry
Thread dry pasta tubes onto coloured cotton. Can be painted.

Pasta pictures
Stick different pasta shapes onto card.

Newspaper basketball
Roll a sheet of newspaper into a ball. Throw it into an empty wastepaper basket/saucepan etc. Lots of variations with different distances, containers and different colour balls for multiple or older children.

Newspaper volleyball
Roll a sheet of newspaper into a ball. Play volleyball over washing line.

Blow football
For two players. Use a straw each to blow a ping pong ball or small newspaper ball on an empty table. Goals can be pairs of unopened baked bean tins.

Make musical instruments
Cymbals: 2 saucepan lids. Drum: upside down saucepan and wooden spoon or chop sticks. Maracas: rice/dry beans/pasta/dry sand in a plastic bottle. Xylophone: milk bottles/jam jars half filled with water and and a spoon. Harmonica: greaseproof paper and a comb.

û
think of the neighbours

Skittles
Place plastic bottles on flat smooth floor. Hit with newspaper ball or tennis ball.

Wax painting
Draw a picture with wax crayons on paper. Then paint over with thin paint - the original wax drawing show through.

Surprise pictures
Adult secretly draws a picture with a white wax crayon on white paper. Child paints over with thin paint - the original wax drawing appears by magic.

Secret messages
One child writes a secret message with a white wax crayon on white paper. Second child paints over with thin paint - the message appears by magic.

Salt dough
Mix 3 cups plain flour, 1 cup salt and approx 1 cup water. Model like playdough. Dry out finished models in cool oven. Can be painted and varnished when dry.

Nature trail
Kids have to find and collect a series of items e.g different coloured leaves. Can be extended with lists/drawing activities for older kids

Bird Spotting
Write down or draw every bird they see. See also kids' activities at RSPB website

Rubbings
Use wax crayons and thin paper to make rubbings of different textures: bark, concrete, radiators, carpet etc. Small kids require supervision if you value your wallpaper.

Guess the smell/taste
Put a variety of safe substances in plastic cups. Blindfold child and get tem to guess what they are tasting or smelling.

Guess the texture
Put a selection of things in an opaque bag and let them guess what they are.

Treasure hunt
Hide toys or sweets around home or garden. Give clues to find them. Kids like setting the hunts too.

Paper plate masks
Kids make silly faces or animals on paper plates. Cut eye holes. Stick a straw or lollipop stick to bottom of plate to hold in front of face.

Mini gardens
Half fill a plant tray/plastic bowl with earth. Kids pick small sprigs of leaves, daisies, grass etc. Arrange on soil like a mini garden. Small pebbles can be walls and paths. Tin foil for a pond or stream. Can be populated with small toy animals or people.

Home cinema
Kids set up cinema in living room: close curtains, rearrange furniture, make tickets, prepare snacks. Put on favourite video/DVD. Older kids could write review afterwards. NB Libraries rent out kids' films for about £1.10/week.

Paper and pen games
Noughts and crosses, hangman, battleships

What's missing? Memory game.
Arrange a selection of unrelated items (spoon, toy, flower, book, apple etc.) on a table or cloth. Child studies selection for 1 minute. When child is not looking, remove one item. Child has to remember what's missing.

Apple bobbing
Float a small apple in a washing up bowl of water. They have to bite it without using hands. Constant supervision of course so they don't drown. If you don't mind mess you can then repeat the game with a chocolate or grape in a bowl of flour!

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