Indoor Activities for Au Pairs & Host Children
There are numerous activities you can do indoors with children; some activities hold children’s attention for hours while certain games will only entertain them for a few minutes. When it comes to childcare, it doesn’t matter how much experience you have, there are always times when you need to have a backup activity on-hand to do on a rainy day or after a long day of school. Plus, being able to plan some creative activities to do with the children will help give au pairs and the host family a great chance to build a special and lasting relationship.
Here are a few of the top activities you can do in your host family's home:
- Create an Activity Center - Keeping children active is important especially if they enjoy playing video games or watching TV. Take a room in the house and create stations of fun things the kids can do. You can make rules where they only have a certain amount of time at each or make an obstacle course for them. Focus on simple, fun activities that can keep them engaged and continually learning.
- Scavenger Hunt - Creating a scavenger hunt indoors allows children to keep their body and brain moving. Have them search for all kinds of items indoors and you can make the clues easier/harder depending on the skill level of the children. The ‘treasure’ can be anything that will motivate the kids: hot chocolate and cookies, screen time or an activity of their choosing.
- Arts and Crafts - Every kid can be entertained by doing arts and crafts, but it’s important to focus on themes they like. For instance, girls may love to draw or make necklaces with beads while boys would enjoy making hats or action figures. These crafts are great for the children to give to their parents to show them their accomplishments from the day. Legos are another great activity that allows for their creativity and imagination to take over.
- Board Games - The value in board games is that they can help develop the attention span and critical thinking children need to succeed in school. It is important for children to learn how to follow rules, pay attention to the game and understand the feeling of disappointment when they lose. If the children get too antsy, you can always play a more physical board game such as Twister or hopscotch (using masking tape on tile).
- Dressing up - Allowing children to dress up helps them use their imaginations, gain confidence and more! With dress up play, a child can be anyone they dream of, a superhero, doctor or even a crocodile. Using different props in new ways, such as pretending a paper towel roll is a sword, allows for those imagination muscles to be flexed.
- Movie Time - Movies are a fun way to connect and can be a great learning opportunity for children. Encourage children to ask questions during the movie to keep their minds engaged then you can pause and talk about their questions. Even better, turn the living room into a drive-in movie theater! Use a cardboard box large enough to fit the child and they can either color or use colorful duct tape to decorate their box. Paper plates can be used for wheels on the box. The children can now experience a drive-in movie theater in their own home. Don’t forget the healthy snacks!
- Storytime - Reading does not have to be associated with school or homework. Children should be able to get lost in a story, and you can easily find wonderful books that match up with the child’s interest. Challenge children to be able to pick up familiar words in their favorite books, this can help them prepare for school as well.
Another fun activity that will turn an ordinary day into a not so ordinary day for children is creating an arbitrary rule for the day! For instance, everyone must walk everywhere backwards or you create different names to call each other for the day. Think of some silly, funny rule to put into place for the day!