10 GAMES THAT KEEP OUR KIDS ENTERTAINED + THREE BONUS IDEAS

Ahhh, the good old days. If only we were happily on holiday now. Instead we’ve had a good clear out at home recently, and wanted to put together a list of games/toys that make the cut – the ones that capture our kids attention spans for longer than 60 seconds.  we’ve had a good clear out at home recently, and wanted to put together a list of games/toys that make the cut – the ones that capture our kids attention spans for longer than 60 seconds. 

There are obviously so many things that you can do with your kids that don’t cost money, so we’ll paste a few ideas of them below, but equally some of these traditional games are what we rely on to pass some time and so in the spirit of swapping tips, we thought that we’d share what has worked for our almost 5 year olds and 2 year olds.

1 JENGA: Remember how good Jenga was? We recently introduced this to Leo and he loves it.

2 SNAKES & LADDERS: Sometimes it’s the oldest ones that stand the test of time. Also great for maths skills. Bonus, this also comes with ludo on the back too. We’ve linked to a fairy themed one but Leo also has the jungle themed one.

3 DOBBLE: Tbh we’re as into this as the kids and anything that we actually don’t mind playing (repeatedly) is a winner. The adult version is also great to play a version of snap with kids.

4 UNO: Same as the above!

5 GUESS WHO: But make it Peppa Pig! Again, much loved in both of our households and a winner with every kid who ever comes on a playdate. Also not too bad for us to play either!

6 THE POSTBOX GAME: This was Leo’s and he loved it (OG followers will remember how obsessed he was with Postman Pat!) A great way to solidify the learning of colours.

7. LARGE REUSABLE STICKER BOOK: You can’t really go wrong with stickers, especially reusable ones.

8. CRAYOLA PIP PENS: Washable pens that come in a case. Loads of colours so they don’t get bored, and not an issue if they get creative and colour in more than just the paper because they wash off with soapy water.

9. GALT TOYS WATER MAGIC BOOK: No mess! Just water pens that make pictures appear.

10. MAGNETIC DRESS UP: Dolls with loads of outfits options that stick on with simple magnets. Great for the imagination.

GAMES THAT COST NOTHING

BONUS ACTIVITY: Homemade play-doh

This makes 1 ball, and shouldn’t take more than 10 minutes.

You will need:

• 8 tbsp plain flour
• 2 tbsp table salt
• 60ml warm water
• food colouring
• 1 tbsp vegetable oil 

Method

1. Mix the flour and salt in a large bowl. In a separate bowl mix together the water, a few drops of food colouring and the oil.

2. Pour the coloured water into the flour mix, mix with spoon.

3. Dust a work surface with a little flour and roll out dough.

4. Store in a sandwich bag (squeeze out the air) in the fridge to keep it fresh.

AND FINALLY….

Baker Ross is a great online site for affordable arts & crafts. A recent discovery, cheaper than Hobbycraft with lots of great activities for kids of all ages we made an order last week.