1. Indoor Camping Adventure

Who says you need to go outside to enjoy camping? Have your kids set up a cozy indoor campsite in your living room!

• Create a Tent: Use blankets and chairs to make a tent. If you have a pop-up tent, even better!
• Campfire Stories: Gather around with flashlights and tell spooky or funny stories.
• Picnic Indoors: Prepare some picnic snacks like sandwiches, fruit, and s’mores made in the microwave.
• Stargazing: Stick glow-in-the-dark stars on the ceiling and turn off the lights for some indoor summer fun under the stars.

This activity sparks imagination and brings the fun of camping indoors—without the mosquitoes and dust.

2. DIY Art and Craft Station

Set up a craft station and let creativity flow! If your kids are age 5 or older, have them set up the craft station—and clean up after themselves when they’re finished making their projects.

• Painting and Drawing: Provide watercolors, markers, colored pencils, crayons, paper, and poster board
• Sculpting: Use clay or playdough to create sculptures. Modeling clay can be used over and over, and it’s great for building strength and dexterity in our hands.
• Jewelry Making: Use beads, strings, and charms to make necklaces and bracelets.
• Recycled Crafts: Use cardboard, plastic bottles, and other recyclables to create something new.

Life hack: We used to have an “art cupboard” where we stored the items listed above. This worked great for impromptu summer craft projects as well as having materials on hand when our kids needed art supplies for school projects.

Crafting not only offers indoor summer fun but it also helps develop fine motor skills and encourages creative thinking.

 

3. Indoor Scavenger Hunt

An indoor scavenger hunt is a fantastic way to keep kids active and engaged.

• Create a List: If your kids are old enough to write, have them come up with a list of items to find around the house, such as a red sock, a house key, a phone charger, a book with an animal on the cover. . . You get the idea. 😉
• Hide Clues: For older kids, create clues, or have them take turns creating clues for each other, that they hide with the items and lead from one item to the next.
• Themed Hunts: Choose a theme like “pirate treasure” or “detective mystery” to make it more exciting.

This activity promotes creativity and problem-solving skills while it keeps kids moving.

4. Kitchen Science Experiments

Turn your kitchen into a mini-laboratory with fun and safe science experiments.

• Baking Soda and Vinegar Volcano: Create a small volcano using baking soda and vinegar. Or, you can just put a tablespoon of baking soda in a tall glass and add a 1/4 cup of vinegar. I’ve found that kids of all ages love to do this, even if they’ve done it before. For older kids, Google “What is the scientific explanation for the chemical reaction when adding vinegar to baking soda?”
• Rainbow in a Jar: Layer different liquids like honey, dish soap, water, and oil to see how they stack. Then ask Google: “Why do different liquids stack on top of each other?” to discover the science behind what you’re observing.
• Oobleck: Make a non-Newtonian fluid with cornstarch and water (and maybe some food coloring 😉). Homemade Oobleck is fun to play with and a great way to observe chemistry in action. To understand the chemical reaction, ask Google: “What happens when you mix cornstarch and water/”

This is a great way for kids to learn about science in a hands-on way.

5. Family Game Day

Bring out the board games, card games, and puzzles for a fun family game day. On rainy, hot, or smoky days—what could be better?

• Board Games: Play Monopoly, Scrabble, Clue, Yahtzee, any of the classic games that teach strategy while they improve math and language skills.
• Card Games: Play Go Fish, Crazy Eights, or Uno—and teach them a new game they haven’t learned yet!
• Puzzle Time: Work together to complete a challenging jigsaw puzzle, play Sudoku, or fill in a crossword puzzle.

Games are great for building strategic thinking and cooperation skills while having a blast.

6. Indoor Fitness Fun

Keep active with indoor fitness activities that are both fun and healthy, for their bodies and their brains!

• Dance Party: Put on some music and dance around the living room.
• Yoga: Follow along with a kid-friendly yoga video on YouTube.
• Obstacle Course: Set up an obstacle course using pillows, chairs, and other household items. Kids can get so creative with this!

These activities help burn off energy, especially when stuck inside your home.

Being indoors doesn’t mean you have to miss out on summer fun. With these six creative activities, kids and teens can stay entertained, active, and engaged no matter what is going on outside. And supporting your children in cleaning up after themselves will be good practice for them to take responsibility for their own messes. So, encourage them to set up some indoor adventures and let the fun begin!

If you have any questions, feel free to reach out. Happy indoor adventuring!

Best wishes,

Trish Wilkinson, Coach, Group Facilitator, Founder of Brain Stages Parenting and Education