Kids’ Independent Play Activities
June 30th, 2010 | 
Author: By The Activity Mom, Guest Writer
Being a Mom is a busy job! There are times that I need to get something done like clean a bathroom, load the dishwasher, or take a phone call and I need a way to keep my kids happy AND busy while I do that. Sound familiar?
Here are a few independent activities for your child that will allow you a few minutes to get something done or to take a breather:
Fill the sink halfway up with water. Suggest that your child wash their play dishes or float their bath toys.
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Ripping is great for motor skill development and glue is just fun! If you are afraid your child will make a mess, put dots on the paper where you want them to put a dot of glue.
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Draw a line on a plastic cup and challenge your child to stop pouring when the water gets to the line. You’d be surprised at how much fun they have with this. Not as easy as it looks for little ones. Great for motor skill development!
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With inexpensive stickers, have your child make a scene (as shown above) or stick them in a mini notebook.
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A quick hint:
-Try these activities WITH your child first. Then, when the time comes that you need them to do it by themselves, you can be confident that they know how to do it and know the rules of the activity. I’ve learned that the hard way!
A huge thank you to the ladies of Our Mommyhood for having me today!
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These are great ideas, I’m going to try a couple of them today
Great ideas!
When my kids were little (starting around 18 months or so), we started “Room Time”. I brought out a bucket of “room time” toys – special toys to be used ONLY during “room time”. We started off with short time periods and I’d put them in their rooms with the special bucket o’fun and the rule was they had to stay in their room until the timer beeped (3 to 5 minutes initially). We worked our way up to 15 minutes, then a half hour, then an hour by the time they were 3 years old. This was an invaluable skill to instill in them for me. I could work out, do laundry, respond to calls, emails, take a mental break, etc. without interruption and it taught them several things.
1) Obedience, 2) Self-control, 3) Self-sufficiency, 4) Respect for my time and me, 5) And, probably most importantly, that as much as I love them, my world does not revolve around them (even though it seems like it sometimes) and selfishness and self-centeredness isn’t a part of our family.
Nice simple ideas although the sink play would result in my bathroom being soaked.
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Great idea Tiffany G! I like that.
Thanks again for having me!
Sink play is very popular at our house, any water play is. However it always ends with a flood. Instead I let the kids play with the hose in the driveway.
I love the sticker scene.
It is so important for children to be able to spend “down” or alone time in a constructive, not destructive way! Great ideas for younger kids!
My children love sink play also. I always try to use it as a springboard to cleaning the bathroom floor.
These ideas will really come in handy. Thanks!
My 3-year old loves to sit and listen to a book on CD. Luckily our library has a good collection. Often she asks for it again as soon as it’s done, so that gives me a good 20 minutes or so!