With winter around the corner, we’re looking at spending even more time at home this year—we didn’t even think that was possible! We know so many parents are wondering how to support their little one’s development in the midst of school closures and virtual learning, and we’re always looking for more ways to keep our mini’s busy. We tapped our toy-loving friends at Rose & Rex for 6 tips for indoor play that will get the whole family (even the grown-ups) in on the fun!
Build a cozy fort
Get creative with couch cushions, sheets, pillows, and blankets. We love adding play silks to our fort-building as they offer limitless possibilities! Once your fort is complete, use the space that you’ve created for family storytime, an evening meditation or imaginative play.
Make some music!
Turn a game of freeze dance into freeze percussion! Give one family member the role of DJ and let them take charge of selecting, starting and stopping the music. The rest of the famare your percussionists. Every time the music stops, the group must freeze their bodies and quiet their instruments. If you don’t have enough percussion instruments to go around, you can get creative with household items! Boxes of dry pasta make great shakers and oatmeal canisters can be used as drums.
Create an obstacle course
Get creative with items around your house like your Little Spoon delivery boxes, couch cushions and tape! Use painters tape to create a zigzag pattern for your children to follow or tape to create shapes to jump in and out of. Navigating obstacle courses by pushing a child sized grocery cart or doll stroller gives your kiddo a fun chance to flex their gross motor skills.
Organize an at-home scavenger hunt.
Opt for a spelling scavenger hunt and support literacy skills by choosing a specific word to hide. Using pieces of scrap paper or a set of alphabet blocks, hide each letter of the word in different rooms. Encourage your child to collect the letters, unscramble them and figure out which word you have hidden!
Unwind with a colorful bubble bath.
Combine 1 cup of children’s shampoo + 1½ cups water + small amounts of natural food coloring. Essential oils are a bonus! Adding a few natural rubber bath toys encourages little ones to experiment with STEM concepts, such as “sink or float”.
Try DIY Sensory bins
Transform a large container into a sensory bin by filling the container with one sensory material. Some of our favorites include dried grains or beans (rice, or garbanzo beans), art materials (pom poms or buttons), and natural materials (sand, sticks, or pebbles). Including open-ended tools, such as buckets and spades (like your leftover Little Spoon Babyblend containers), enhance a child’s ability to make observations about materials’ differences and similarities as they mix, pour, and dump.
Looking for more ways to connect and play as a family? We’ve got you with an exclusive offer to Rose & Rex for Little Spooners! Get 10% off your purchase using code LITTLESPOON10 and check out their collection of Gifts for the Whole Family.
About Rose & Rex
Rose & Rex is a teacher-curated online toy boutique that promotes imaginative play. Offerings also include resources for parents and educators, such as play tips and positive language strategies. With a mission to #PlayItForward, Rose & Rex partners with like-minded organizations to give back and ensure that every purchase makes a positive impact.
