When looking for rainy day activities for kids, consider indoor camping. There are lots of fun games and activities that can be enjoyed on days when it's raining or it's too cold for children to play outside. Indoor camping can make for a great, fun family activity.
Indoor Camping
Start by finding a location in the house that can be used as a camping site. The living room or family room is usually the best. If you own a tent or are able to borrow one from a friend, set it up. Otherwise, use furniture and sheets and blankets to create one.
Let kids pack up camping gear that can be used for indoor camping. This allows for the camping experience to become more realistic. Give them backpacks or pillowcases to hold some of the camping equipment. Not all equipment will fit in. The rest they will have to carry separately. Suggested indoor camping equipment includes:
- sleeping bag
- pillow
- pajamas
- flashlight
- healthy treat
- stuffed animal
Set up a camping store. Let kids shop at the store for food for camping. Provide them with pretend food and money. If you don't have play food available, let kids create their own food with Play Dough, if you have some. Otherwise, have the children draw and color pictures of food that can be used for camping. Play money can also be made.
Rainy Day Games
A rubber horseshoe set is perfect for indoor camping. An alternative is to make your own horseshoe set. Take a popsicle stick and insert it into a piece of Play Dough or styrofoam. Use a cardboard box to cut out the horseshoes.
Many real-life campgrounds are located in forests. In forests, many animals reside. Take some small stuffed animals, hide them around the room, then let the kids find them. Play an animal "Who am I" game. Give kids clues about an animal one at a time. For example, let's say the animal is a snake. The following clues could be given:
- I am long
- I have no legs
- I am a reptile
- I have fangs
- I like to slither
Rainy Day Activities
Most kids love to color. Thanks to the Internet, there are many online sites which offer free, printable coloring pages. Grab some crayons and print out coloring sheets of characters or activities that the children have an interest in. Suggestions can be found in the articles Free SpongeBob Coloring Pages for Kids and Free Printable Disney Coloring Pages for Kids.
When it comes to dinnertime, keep food simple by making hot dogs. If there is a fireplace in the room, consider lighting a fire and making s'mores. As nighttime approaches, turn off any lights in the house and use lanterns, flashlights or glow sticks instead. Have kids get in their sleeping bags to begin to wind down for the night. This is a great time to sing some campfire songs, read books or tell scary stories.
On cold, rainy or snowy days, kids can still have fun indoors with indoor camping. Throw in some rainy day games and activities and children from toddlers on up can have lots of fun taking a pretend camping trip.
Janis Masyk-Jackson - I'm here to seek out the truth about some of life's mysteries. There is nothing new about New Age beliefs. These are beliefs that have ...
Join the Conversation