COVID-19: Games and activities using typical household items

You can stay home and save money by transforming typical household items into some new family fun.

Games for kids don’t have to be flashy. You can stay home and save money by transforming typical household items into some new family fun.

Hopscotch: Use painter’s tape to create hopscotch on the floor. Buttons or bottle caps can be used for markers.

Bowling: Make the pins by filling up empty water or pop bottles with a couple of inches of water and cap the top. You can also add a bit of food colouring for fun. Set them up in formation and let the kids try different types of balls to see who can knock over the most bottles.

Cereal Box Puzzles: Keep your empty cereal boxes and make a jigsaw puzzle. Cut the appropriate number of pieces for your child’s age. Pieces can be stored in a ziplock bag.

Frisbee or Beachball Toss: This is a great game to play in the backyard, and is a good one for older kids. Mark sheets of paper with different numbers and tape them onto laundry baskets or boxes. Using frisbees or balls, kids keep score as they aim to land a basket.

Clothespin Snatch Game: Every player is given a clothespin. Wrapped candy, trinkets or even coins are sprinkled on the floors. Players try to pick up as many as they can using only their clothespins. Set the timer and let the fun begin!

DIY Race Track: Use painter’s tape to create a colourful, customizable race track for tiny cars — and a place to park them when playtime is over.

Balloon Tennis: A fun way to allow kids to play tennis indoors. Just replace tennis balls with balloons, and make a racquet by attaching a plastic spoon to a paper plate. In addition to hitting the balloon back and forth, kids can try to balance the balloons on their plates as they race across the room.