Look, we get it - bored kids = whiny, squabbling kids that are getting on your last nerve. It's hard to be stuck at home, even for adults! Not to worry - we've got 37 ideas for keeping them busy and entertained no matter how long your "staycation" turns out to be.
Keep their brains and bodies active with this list of the best educational games, outdoor fun and more! We'll guarantee one thing - they won't be able to say "Mom, I'm borrrrrred!" with a straight face in the near future.
We hope you find these products as awesome as we do. Just an FYI: We are a participant in the Amazon affiliate program, and Brainjolt may receive a share of sales from links on this page.
This Kids Schedule Chart Lets Them Know What To Expect
Keep kids on schedule and let them know what to expect with this daily chart. Bonus - they won't have to keep asking you every 5 seconds for something to do, they can just consult the chart! For non-readers, you can use images to let them know what's going on. My daughters' school uses a similar one in both preschool and 3rd grade classrooms; it's a great way to help kids feel more secure when they can see the daily plan.
These Scratch-Off Notes Are A Go-To Gift
I snapped up a bunch of these rainbow scratch-off notes from Melissa & Doug to add to birthday presents since they're so fun to use. I'm currently using them to entice my beginning writer to practice her letters. Or kids can write notes to each other, like "Stop looking at me" and "Don't touch my stuff" instead of speaking to each other if relations sour that much.
This Baking Mold Is Multi-Purpose
Baking is a great activity to kill some time while teaching math (fractions, anyone?) and this baking mold makes the cutest cupcakes or muffins. I like that you can also use it to form bath bombs, crayons, ice cubes, you name it. Do experiments in the name of science, see they're learning!
This Reading Workbook Makes Learning Fun
Packed with activities to help beginner readers (who happen to love unicorns and magical things) get on their way, this learn to read workbook makes it fun for kids to practice letters and simple sentences. I love the adorable illustrations and gentle pace - my 5 year old's going to go nuts when she sees this!
This Paint By Sticker Book Is Fun For Kids And Grown-Ups
Have you seen these gorgeous paint by sticker books? They're basically paint by number except with sophisticated stickers! This one's zoo animals, but they have bugs, magical creatures and more to spark kids' imaginations, and in the reviews the adults seem to love them just as much!
This Science Kit Teaches About Germs
I couldn't think of a more apt science kit than this World of Germs one from Magic School Bus. It includes everything kids need to learn how germs grow, including petri dishes so they can test their own sticky little hands! It's got over 1,000 rave reviews too for ease of use and holding kids' interest.
This Drawing Book Has The Cutest Illustrations
My 8 year old would love to know how to draw all the things in this book, from cheetahs to cute donuts. This is great for an at-home art class! It has step-by-step drawing techniques, plus a section called "Art School" that breaks down concepts like 3D shapes, shading, perspective and more into kid-friendly snippets. And it has almost 500 5-star ratings from kids (and adults) learning to draw!
This Swimming Bath Toy Is The Tub's New Best Bud
Move over rubber ducky, there's a new kid in town! This swimming penguin bath toy will keep the littlest ones happy for a long time in the bath, which is also a good way to kill some time. When in doubt, throw 'em in the bath with lots of bubbles and some fun toys to keep both you and them a little more chill.
This Crayola Art Set Has Everything
This is probably the best art set for budding Picassos - it comes with Crayola crayons, markers, colored pencils and even the paper for creating masterpieces. It's a huge hit on the birthday party circuit and has over six thousand rave reviews for a reason!
This STEAM Book Keeps Their Brains Busy
I know all this extra screen time is going to turn my kids' brains to mush if it continues much longer, so I'm picking up this STEAM book filled with over 100 cool experiments they can do at home with very little supervision. It's perfect for the 5-10 age group and most of the experiments use stuff you already have around the house!
These Magnet Tiles Teach Engineering
These magnet tiles are so cool - we have a few sets and the kids will literally play with them for hours. I like this set in particular since it comes with wheel bases to make moving vehicles, and interesting shapes to build anything they can imagine. They're fun for adults, too, so you can play together!
These Pencil Grips Teach The Right Way To Write
Get kids writing right with these colorful, squishy ergonomic pencil grips. They'll help kids' hands stay in the correct position gently, which will help a lot when they get to higher grades. I love these for my 5 year old who's just beginning to try writing words.
These Pipe Cleaners Let Kids' Imaginations Soar
The sky's the limit with this set of 600 pipe cleaners in a full rainbow of colors! Kids can create to their hearts' content making tiny food, little animals or crazy monsters. It even includes some sparkly ones for extra fun.
This Lego Kit Makes STEM Fun
Keep their hands busy with this supercool engineering LEGO kit that lets them build 11 different machines, ranging from practical to silly. It includes all the pieces kids need to make the gadgets, plus open-ended prompts they can use as inspiration in case they're the type that like to go off-script, like mine.
This First Aid Kit Is A Must
If kids are at home for any prolonged period of time, you're gonna need a first aid kit. I can't count the number of bumps and scrapes my kids have gotten inside the house, they just keep coming up with new ways to hurt themselves on everyday objects! This one has everything you need to fix minor cuts and accidents, and is small enough to fit in your bag or glove compartment the next time you venture outside.
This Crystal Growing Kit Is Mesmerizing
My daughter has this crystal growing kit, and what I love about it is that it teaches delayed gratification while the excitement builds as you slowly watch the crystals form. It doesn't take all that long, but kids enjoy checking in on it every day, and it produces stunning results. This set has a light-up display stand kids can use as a nightlight and room decoration, too.
This Audio Splitter Will Save Your Sanity
If your kids love watching super-annoying videos on YouTube (oh, hey Ryan), you're going to need this audio splitter to save your sanity. Mine share a tablet, so they can still use two pair of headphones with this splitter and all I hear is their giggling, instead of high-pitched squealing or yelling or whatever "personality" they're obsessed with watching at the moment.
This Chemistry Set Is The Coolest
If, like me, you are very lazy but still want your kids to do some science activities, this chemisty kit has your name all over it. It includes all the ingredients you need, prepackaged and sorted by experiment, so kiddos can just grab and go with literally no effort on your part. Aaaand, add to cart *waits by mailbox*.
This Outdoor Game Set Gets Them Outside
Fresh air is the best antidote for boredom, so get 'em outside with this outdoor game set. They can have sack races, egg races, three-legged races and more with this kit that includes everything they need plus a storage bag. Enough for up to four kids in case you've got a small army to entertain!
This Floor Is Lava Game Is So Hot Right Now
My kids love playing "the floor is lava" while jumping all over the furniture and shrieking loudly, but a more house-friendly way to play with a group of kids is this game that's like a new twist on classic Twister. The kids have to keep to their colored squares while another person yells instructions on activities they must complete without touching the floor. I think adults might like to get in on this too, especially after happy hour!
This Giant Bubble Maker Is Clearly Amazing
What's better than bubbles? GIANT bubbles! This kit comes with special bubble solution and a wand so kids can create the biggest bubbles imaginable, right in your backyard. There's even an included tips n' tricks book to get them started off on the right foot!
This Giant Jenga Game Is A Towering Success
If they're tired of inside games, bring the fun outside with this giant jenga game. Even the littlest kids can have fun playing since it doesn't require the same intense hand-eye coordination and timing as the regular version does. This is a great party game for adults, too! Someday when we can have BBQs and get-togethers again, you're gonna want to have this on hand.
This Play-doh Is Old-School Cool
When all else fails, bring on the old-school toys like this Play-doh set of 10 jars! Let their imagination run wild while they mold and build all afternoon. There's enough here to share, so it'll be hard to find a way to fight over these. (I'm sure they'll try, though.)
Construction Paper Is Classic For A Reason
I love open-ended toys and crafts where kids can just let their creativity flow. And construction paper is just the thing to open up little minds to all the possibilities they can make with just colored paper!
This Sidewalk Chalk Brings Back Fond Memories
Let them draw on a much bigger canvas with this bucket of sidewalk chalk to keep them entertained for hours. My kids use ours to draw race tracks for bike races on the driveway, or obstacle courses, or just doodling. Lately we've been using ours to write encouraging or cheerful messages to passersby since we live on a street popular with walkers!
This Baby Yoda Puzzle Is Adorbs
Puzzles are one of my favorite ways to spend some down time. Entertain older kids and teens with this Mandalorian puzzle featuring Baby Yoda himself in all his adorableness. There are 500 pieces, so it should take a few sessions to complete!
This Bath Toy Is So Entertaining
Bored kids love baths. Keep them entertained for quite a while with this cool pipe building bath toy! You can reconfigure the layout over and over, or add another set to make a giant water maze.
These Eco Crayons Are Stellar
Want to spice things up in the art department? Try these eco-friendly star crayons that reviewers can't stop talking about. They're easy for small hands to hold while coloring, but kids of all ages will get a kick out of the novelty shape!
This Kids Against Maturity Game Is Fun For The Whole Fam
If you need a game the whole family can have fun with, try Kids Against Maturity. It's the same concept as Cards Against Humanity, with family-friendly Q & As - i.e. expect lots of fart jokes. Example: "Knock knock, who's there?" a) A squatting sasquatch, b) The kid who wipes boogers under the desk, c) The turd burglar, d) Daddy's listening skills.
This Suncatcher Kit Doubles As Decor
Kids can get their craft on and make some fun, colorful decor with this suncatcher kit! My kids love doing these on rainy days, and the suncatchers come with little suction cups so they can display their art on their bedroom windows.
This Wooden Car Kit Is Great For Racing
Kids can assemble and paint these little wooden cars from the axle to the wheels, then set them up on a homemade race course for hours of boredom-busting! The toy car kit comes with the paints, parts and instructions so older kids can get started by themselves, and younger ones only need minimal help to put the cars together.
This Catan Game Takes Hours
If you've got a bunch of older kids on your hands and need to keep them entertained for hours on end, break out this Catan game. The highly strategic gameplay will keep them interested and it's easy enough for everyone to learn.
This Sushi Go Game Works For All Ages
Even little kids can join in the fun with this Sushi Go Game since it's simple to learn and play, but super fun! It's easy to rack up points, and even pre-readers can figure out how to get the best hand. This game has almost 4,000 perfect 5-star ratings - people are raving about it!
This Outdoor Scavenger Hunt Keeps Them Outside Longer
If you've already gone on a walk, played in the backyard and exhausted your bag of outdoor entertainment tricks, try this outdoor scavenger hunt game! Kids can get as creative as possible to find things to match adjectives like "crunchy", "huge", "thin" and more. Give them a camera and tell them to come back in 10 minutes with as many pics as they can match to the cards.
This Splash Mat Keeps Them Contained
When in doubt, add water! If you've got a group of little kids you want to keep contained, try this splash mat to round them up. They can play all sorts of water games with the sprinkler, and you won't have to chase them all over the yard. Just set up a lawn chair and let the magic happen!
This Fishing Game Builds Gross Motor Skills
I love this magnetic fishing game since it's so versatile - use it on the living room floor, the bathtub, in a kiddy pool outside. It's amazing for building hand-eye coordination, and kids can set it up themselves. A great thing for littler kids to grab and go whenever they need something to do!
This Lite-Brite Is A Tried And True Classic
Bring the 80s back with a classic battery-powered Lite-Brite toy for kids to create fun pics with. It comes with 6 design templates, and there's a website where you can download countless more! Plus 200 pegs so it's ok if some go missing, there's plenty extra.