Have them create a storybook.

12 fun activities that will keep your young children occupied with little (or no) supervision

Being a full time stay at home mum is rewarding, but it is energy draining. Kids require so much attention. Whether you are entertaining them, feeding them or even just looking out for their wellbeing. Here are a few ways you can keep your children entertained with minimal observation and supervision.

 


1. ​Have them create a storybook.

 

If they can hold a pencil or a crayon, you can have them create a book as a small project at home. The book can be a picture book or a written book. They will need to come up with a theme and a story. You can then advise them to create, design and illustrate the images in the book.You can give your children three hours to complete the task. Afterwards, you can have them share their creative stories with yourself, their siblings and their friends.

2. Get them to play Jenga

Image credit: Mymomdom

It’s the simple game where people need to keep on building the stack higher by taking planks from the bottom of the pile and placing them on top. You can get the children to play in teams and have a contest that will see the best of 7 games win a prize or a reward. The children will be able to manage themselves and it is likely that they will play this game for 1-2 hours.

3. Get them to fly a kite.

 

If there is enough wind and you are close to an open area, get the children to fly a kite. They will need some supervision to make sure that the kite doesn’t fly into any obstacles or goes into electrical wires. The kids can have fun trying to control the kite and master aerial manoeuvres such as a figure 8.

4. Have them learn tricks on a yoyo.

Yoyos come in and out of fashion every couple of years. But the tricks associated with them never get old. You can get them yoyos and challenge your children to show you a few tricks, such as walking the dog or ‘rocking the cradle’. You can see yoyo tutorials below.

5. Buy them colouring books to complete.

Get your children an assortment of colouring books and have them colour illustrate the contents within the book. You can reward their illustrations by hanging them on the fridge.

6. Uno

 

Image credit: My novice shots

The classic card game is a favourite with people of all ages. Have them play a few rounds of Uno with their friends. Depending on their interest with the game, they may be occupied for one to two hours. It will certainly bring some laughs and maybe a few minor tears, but it will all be in good fun.

7. Have them construct Transformers toys.

This one is more for the boys in the household. They can take the transformable figures of Optimus Prime or Bumblebee and try to construct them into their humanoid or automobile form. Let their imagination run wild as they roundup the Autobots to take on the mighty Decepticons.

8. Karaoke.

If you don’t mind a little noise in the background, you can set up a karaoke box or game like Singstar and have the children sing along to their favourite tunes.

9. Keep them entertained with a gaming console like a Playstation or Xbox.

The Playstation and Xbox offer the complete entertainment bundle. Games, movies, television shows and music are on offer. You can simply have them choose what entertainment they want to engage with and leave them be.If they get involved with games, they will be engaged for as long as the gameplay allows. If they decide to watch a movie, then they will be engaged for one to three hours.

10.Sorry board game

Image credit: Taking on Magazines

Have your children have fun with board games like Sorry. In the game, they can challenge other competitors to get all of their pawns to the finish area, without being ‘bumped-off’ back to the beginning. People will be sorry (or not sorry). It’s all a part of the fun.

11.Twister

Twister

Image credit: Karen Russell

This classic game that involves 2 or more players can be full of laughs and giggles. The children will be able to play this for about an hour, as they try to twist and turn their body around others to win the game.

12. Musical instrument

If you don’t mind sounds in the background, you can encourage children to learn an instrument. You can purchase instruments like a keyboard, guitar or drums and they can dedicate 1-2 hours a day learning how to play.These are a few activities that you can have children play with little or no supervision. It will give you a bit of extra “me time”, while allowing you to fulfill your motherly responsibilities. Do you have any other suggestions that should be included on this list? Let us know in the comments below.

Author Bio:Chris Maggacis is an Australian-based toy retailer for Mr Toys Toyworld. He’s passionate about giving children and their parents a world of choice when it comes to discovering the latest toys to educate and entertain young minds. You can follow Chris’s Toy blog here.