by Jessica Endrizzi

Created on: March 09, 2007   Last Updated: May 24, 2012

You probably know the symptoms...the whining, the fighting, the sound of mom's dishes breaking...clearly, the kids are getting bored. In a world where kids are bombarded with structured activities and over-stimulating television, you'd think a little down time would be just what they need, however, before too long, they are back at it again, yelping, "There's nothing to do!"

Keeping kids enthralled and engaged is challenging, but putting a twist on everyday activities is all it takes to have revelry instead of a rut! Try some of these ideas to banish boredom and bring excitement to your afternoons!

Disclaimer

If you are one of those parents that can't stand a messy house, stop reading now! On the other hand, if you cherish your child's native ability to create joy out of chaos, please proceed.

Roll, baby, roll! A household staple is a large roll of paper. You can buy butcher paper, or rolls of craft paper relatively inexpensively. Use the roll for life-sized paper dolls, red-carpet runways, making indoor snowmen, paper skirts, drawing giants, banners to welcome dad home from work...the list is exhaustive! Hand out markers, roll it across the room, and entertain scores of children at once!

When the recycling bin is overflows, it's fun to make recycled robots! Use cans, boxes, tape, and glue, the kids love to assemble robots, aliens, crazy creatures, and whatever else they can think of. This activity requires some active supervision. Also, make sure the containers clean and free of sharp edges. (Tetanus shots put a damper on the event!)

Making collages is an old favorite. Use dry beans, macaroni, pebbles, leaves, and cup-up magazines to fashion beautiful collages. Sometimes we have a theme like "All about me", which creates a chance to talk about likes and dislikes, and how your child sees him or herself.

Garden! Even in the dead of winter, we enjoy planting container herbs and checking carefully for the sprouts to unfold! In the summer, it's the perfect way to get some sunshine...and kids love to eat veggies they grown themselves (Okay, they don't love it, but they will do it.)

Try a fun alternative to finger painting using shaving cream! Spray a little foam on a cookie sheet (or use your paper roll!) and paint away! It smells great, it feels cool, and it leaves your skin silky smooth.

Get jiggy! Turn on the radio and dance like crazy. It's aerobic, it's fun, and everybody can do it. You can dress up to dance, or do it spontaneously. Kids will have endless hilarity, trying to copy the dances their parent did when they was young. (It wasn't that long ago!)

Teach your children about service. You don't have to volunteer somewhere to give meaningful service. Children are genuinely thrilled to help others around them. Make cookies for a new neighbor, and present them a handmade welcome card. Assemble a cleanup crew at the local park. Each kid gets a bag to fill with ten or fifteen items. (They should probably wear gloves.) Ask if you can pick up sticks in an elderly neighbor's yard. It's even more fun to do secret service. Try not the get caught in the act! At the risk of sounding obvious, how about some oldies-but-goodies that you may have forgotten: Check out the library. Make a fort. Play kickball. Play indoor-snowball-fight with balled up socks. Make salt dough animals. Write your own book!

Now that you have some new ideas, tailor them to your own personal parenting style! Take time out of our crazy over-scheduled world to play with your kids.

Uh oh. You maybe hearing a dish break.

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