Keeping Toddlers Busy

Every weekend I keep 8 granchildren at my house. They spend EVERY Saturday night and go to church with me on Sunday. After church they go home with their mother. I love this time with my grandchildren. What fun we have! I would guess that 95% of our Saturdays are spent outside. I put babies in strollers or swings. The big kids play while I do yard work or swing on the porch.

My older grandchildren love to gather sticks so they can have a bon fire before bedtime. My younger grandchildren chase ducks or chickens. We rake, we swing, we gather eggs, we push the babies in the strollers, we go for walks. I never have a shortage of ideas. I thought I'd share my ideas of keeping little ones busy. Idle children complain and fight. I always kept my children busy and now I keep my grandchildren busy. (By the way, I have NEVER had a TV in my home!)

30 minute activity ideas for ages 1-5:

(Don't start a new activity until the first one is completely cleaned and put away. Clean up immediately when the 30 minutes is up. The children should help clean or the next activity will be 30 minutes sitting on the couch. These activities may seem like a mess but it is easier to clean up after 30 minutes of activity that it is after 30 minutes of run loose in the house!)

-- Reading books
-- Cutting pictures out of old magazines or calendars
-- Gluing.
-- Paper sack puppets
-- Painting (food painting is fun and tasty)
-- Puppets
-- Paper folding (Making snowflakes, etc.)
-- Shapes (Use cut out shapes and have kids make things)
-- Blocks
-- Legos (put a sheet down and teach them to play on the sheet for easy clean-up)
-- Making necklaces out of different things (buttons, cereal, macaroni, paper, beands, etc)
-- Play dough
-- Make a paper chain
-- Peel potatoes (you can store them in a bowl of water for future use)
-- Roll & cut out cookies
-- Make money rubbings, etc.
-- Play store with money and a few items from the cabinets
-- Play church
-- Use a piano or tape player and sing.
-- Plant flowers
-- Shaving Cream
-- Decorate a cake
-- ABC magnets
-- Flash Cards
-- Puzzles
-- Water play
-- Roll balls
-- Hide and Seek
-- Dress up
-- Music
-- Chalk on sidewalk
-- Nature Walk