15 Fun Things To Do While Babysitting
![Toodlers are engaged in different games as they enjoy playing by themselves](https://blog.familywave.com/uploads/posts/630c1dc9-c661-4bdf-8127-b4dc731fa6ec/to-do-fun-things-babysitting.webp)
Fun things to do while babysitting includes activities like coloring, solving puzzles, and much more. Kids can enjoy even inside the house with these games.
Indoor activities like games and dance help to keep the children occupied. Maybe you had planned an outdoor game with the kids but the weather turns against you. Well, you don't have to worry about that in the case of these fun indoor games.
Looking after toddlers can get tiresome and exhausting. Those curious little humans with their hyperactive behaviors can often make adults look silly.
Babysitting requires patience and understanding the toddler's difficult behavior and handling tantrums.
Well, you cannot blame a kid for acting like a child, can you? Rather than stressing about the things you cannot change, you need to focus on things you can have control over.
Children love to play games, and they are always fascinated by new and strange things. Try these fun things to make your babysitting time worthwhile.
1. Play Board Games
Fun things to do while babysitting involves playing games like board game. Board games are fun and keep children engaged.
Board games are played on the tabletop so you can enjoy them with your children inside the house regardless of the weather. These indoor games are a reliable means of entertainment and learning.
There are varieties of board games you can choose from such as Cluedo, Snakes & Ladders, Scrabbles, and so on. You can pick anyone according to the likes of the kids.
Board games are very popular because it involves attention, careful movements, and most importantly keep us entertained. This can be a perfect getaway for a babysitter because it is equally entertaining for adults as well as kids.
Furthermore, you can teach a few skills and tricks to the younger ones. We all know that children are quick learners. They will instantaneously grasp anything they find interesting.
Next time you are given the responsibility to look after antsy kids, then you might want to start learning a few board games. Make the kid gather around for a board game, make it seem competitive for the young ones, and better if you promise some reward afterward.
If you know what to look for and where to get it, Board games won't cost you much. You can easily fit a board game plan into your daily budget and additionally, have some fun yourself.
Here are the Best Board Games for Kids that you can find on Amazon including Monopoly Junior, Candy Land, Wildcraft, The Sneaky, Snacky Squirrel Game, and much more.
2. Bowling With Plastic Bottles
Bowling with plastic bottles is an inexpensive way to enjoy the game at home. Your child will instantly fall in love with this home-made game.
You don't need to leave your house and pay extra dollars to enjoy bowling. You can enjoy the game in your room without having to pay a single dime.
Find a regular tennis ball that may be lying in a corner of your room. Set up a mini-bowling alley using plastic cups or bottles stacked in different ways. Or you can also set up a stacked pyramid instead of a regular setup.
Now, challenge your kid to the game. A simple reminder for you, there is a high possibility that your children will insist to go round after round. Yes, the young ones can't get enough of this addictive game.
Note that you will be setting up the bowling pins over and over again because children enjoy bowling, not setting up. That task is left to your able hands. So, are you up to the challenge?
3. Make Paper Crafts
Paper Craft is an age-old activity that you can enjoy anywhere at any time. Making different objects from paper is nothing short of an art.
Papercraft includes various levels and requires skill. However, you can start with simple objects such as an airplane, spinners, and animals. You can achieve this by simple folding methods or cutouts.
Making a papercraft is a highly engaging and refreshing activity for kids of all ages. You can simply use the paper you have at your house and makes some items like an airplane, boat, and so on.
To make papercraft more interesting for the little ones, you can take additional materials like cardboard, crayons, scissors, glue, and sticky tape. The colored paper will make items more attractive and makes them stand out.
First, you make an object or an animal from paper yourself and show it to your kids. You will see how interested they are in your craft. Next, you teach them how to make it which, they are sure to comply with.
Using colors to paint your crafts will make things more interesting. Children are fond of using colorful objects so, you won't have to out any effort to convince them to use the colors.
4. Paper Plate Ring Toss
Paper plate ring toss is an indoor game to enjoy with your kids. You can create your own tossing game at home to entertain your kids.
To start with, you need a scissor, paper plates, paper towel rolls, paint, and glue. Cut out the center of paper plates to make a ring-like structure. Allow your children to paint those rings, just for fun.
Next step, take that paper towel tube you have and glue it with some solid foundation. Once the paint in the paper tube dries then you are ready for the game.
Paper plate ring toss is a kind of game that will keep your kids totally occupied. Humans have a tendency to continue with an activity until they do it the right way. Likewise, when your child misses a mark, he/she will insist to go on another round again and again.
This game is also an entertaining way to teach your kids the basic rules of mathematics. You can help them to keep count or learn addition. This homemade version of carnival fun is a great source of entertainment and learning.
5. Make A Fort
Making an indoor fort is exciting and requires very minimal effort to make. Building forts allows kids to fantasize about the things like a castle or cave, they read about in stories.
Here is a simple guide to making a cozy and cool fort in your room. Make two rows of chairs with the back facing each other. Drape a lightweight blanket or a sheet over the chairs. Use a clothespin or a heavy object to secure the blanket.
For the ceiling of the fort, you can use curtain rods or clotheslines. After that, stock your fort with games, snacks, and string lights. With that stuff, you can remain in the fort for a long time before you leave.
Furthermore, you can make your fort more comfortable and fun by adding other things like a string of colorful lights. You can also play board games inside the fort with your child. For additional structures, you can add a cardboard tunnel for the entrance.
If your kid is enjoying and shows interest in spending more time inside then you can bring story books or puzzles to keep him/her engaged. Or you can make the fort face the TV so that you can enjoy a movie with your young one.
6. Play Hide and Seek
Hide and seek is a fun game that keeps children engaged and entertained. It is a classic kids' game that can be played indoors with ease.
In case you are looking after two or more kids, then hide and seek is the ultimate way to keep them all occupied at once. It is a classic game for children of all ages.
Hide and seek keeps the young ones entertained but that doesn't mean you have to sacrifice your time as a bystander. You can join them in the game and actively play with the kids.
The rules of the game are simple. One person plays seeker and others hide. You can make rules about which rooms to allow for hiding and which to avoid. Furthermore, you can set a timer for the seeker to find the people who are hiding.
A reward for the winner can add to the fun. You can give them candies if the children are able to find all the others hiding. Rewards and prizes are highly encourage children to participate in the game.
7. Enjoy Storytelling
Storytelling is a great way to spend time with kids and help them learn new things. Stories capture the imagination of children and at the same time entertain them.
You can get a good storybook for children and engage in oral storytelling. If your kids are super active and seek some involvement in the action, then allow them to read the stories.
Children love to hear stories whether it is about family events, their parent's childhood, or fantasies. Storytelling is an effective means by which children grasp the idea of language. So, this sort of activity can make your babysitting time worthwhile.
You can find the best storybooks for children on Amazon including The Door of No Return, Knight Owl, Rumble, Rumble, Dinosaur, Wildoak, and Skandar and the Unicorn Thief.
8. Treasure Hunt
Treasure hunt is a game where you find a hidden treasure using the available clues. This is a great game to keep the children active.
Babysitting is fun with treasure hunts because the kids will be running around the house, enjoying themselves. They will be competitive and try to win the scavenger so, you don't have to do much.
The game can be easily set up indoors. Write the hints to find the treasure on the paper. Start the game by giving each of the kids some clues and observing as they follow the hints to the treasure.
Make things interesting by drawing pictures for each clue. You can plant the treasure inside the house so that the children don't have to leave the house. Find something good like a bar of chocolate, or cookies for the treasure that your kids love.
In case you are babysitting children under 4 then you can try something different. You don't want that little child running around on his own, do you? There are more practical options like Word Scavenge Hunt, Number Hunt, Art Scavenger Hunt, and Alphabet Bug Scavenger Hunt.
9. Play Lego Games
Legos games are very popular among kids. It allows them to be imaginative and draws their full attention.
Legos are fun and easy to play with your kids. If you have kids in your house, chances are there is a lego bag lying somewhere in the living room. Go grab the bag, and make your babysitting time memorable.
The most interesting thing about legos is that you can fully participate with your kids in making towers and other stuff. There are many variations of lego games you can try with your kids.
First is the Lego Tower where you build a tower by putting bricks on top of each other. Set a time and see which kid builds the tallest Lego tower. You can also keep a reward for the winner and play the game over and over again.
The second one includes Tic Tac Toe which is played by using a lego baseplate. Use the bricks to build the frame for the game and make the kids choose 5 small lego bricks each.
Likewise, there are many variations of Lego games including, Memory Games, Bowling, Color Hunt, Spoon Race, Lego Maze, Ring Toss, Mini golf, and so on.
10. Painting and Coloring
Coloring can be a fun activity to carry out with the children. The little ones love to play with colors and scribble with them.
If you don't want your children to be running around the house and looking for a more safe way to babysit. Painting and coloring are the answer for you. Gather the kids in the living room and allow their creativity to pour on the paper.
You can try telling stories through painting with the kids. Hand out plain paper and different colored pens to the young ones. Then ask them to draw anything. After they do, pass the drawing to the next person and ask them to explain what they see.
There is no limit to the imagination so, you can try coloring different things. For instance, making postcards, making paper animals, and gluing paper cut-outs to make a structure and color them.
11. Solving Puzzles
Puzzle solving is a classic game that you can enjoy with children at home. It is one of the most entertaining activities a child loves engaging in.
Puzzles are a complete set of entertainment you can enjoy with your friends, family, and kids alike. Furthermore, it also helps to develop the cognitive ability of the young buddies.
There are many different types of puzzle games to choose from such as Knob Puzzle which is easy to put together and also helps to develop a love for animals in children.
Another format is Spelling Puzzles which focus on specific words as clues to complete the game. This type of game is effective in enhancing the knowledge of the English language in kids through problem-solving.
Similarly, you can also try Shape-Based Puzzles which include building different geometrical shapes like squares, circles, triangles, stars, and so on. It will be fun as well as fruitful for the young ones.
12. Indoor Kids Party
Indoor party games are crowd-pleaser activities for children. If you are babysitting many children at a time then such games are worthwhile.
It is a challenging task to look after a single child, let alone a group of them. However, there is a sure shot way to make it enjoyable by engaging them in various games. You can organize grand indoor party games for them.
Give the kids hula hoops and have them spin them. Declare the winner based on the longest time one can hola hoop. Similarly, organize a shoebox race for a space-themed party. Cut a hole on top of the shoebox to fit the legs of the kids and set up a bigfoot race.
Charades is also a popular game to keep many children engaged at the same time. You can divide the children into small groups and find some kid-friendly topics. One player from a group acts out without uttering a word to give a hint, and another team will make a guess.
There are many more options for indoor party games such as Ballon Stomp, Beanbag toss, Limbo, and so on. You can also shuffle between the games to keep things interesting.
13. Balloon Tennis
Balloon tennis is essentially a tennis game where a balloon is used instead of a ball. This indoor game is actually as fun as it sounds.
If you are trying to look after a kid and trying your best to keep him in the house, then balloon tennis can help you achieve that. You can easily play this game in your room.
The first thing you need is a set of rackets. If you couldn't find one, no problem, just stick a popsicle to the back of a paper plate or simply use fly swatters.
Now, to prepare a tennis court, divide the room by placing two chairs a few feet apart. Tie a rope between them to act as a net, and make sure it is long enough for your children to hit the ballon over.
Next, make the kids stand on either side of the court and commence the game. One player starts by tossing the balloon to the other side without the balloon touching the rope. And another player follows the suit. Let the kids enjoy as long as they want.
14. Touch And Feel Game
Touch and feel is a wildly funny and entertaining game. This guessing game is a real brain teaser and is sure to leave you in giggles.
To start the game, you need to get a cardboard box. Cut holes on two opposite sides of the box, just right enough to fit hands through them. Then place an object inside the box without showing the kids.
Now, ask the children to put their hands through the cut-out and grab the object. Tell them to guess what the object is based on the touching. To make it more interactive you can allow them to ask questions and you can give minor hints.
Use objects that are used in daily life such as fruits or a bar of soap. Make the kid take a part turn by turn and offer points to the one who makes a correct guess. The game will become more fun as it progresses.
This is a very encouraging game for little children because it helps them to experience strange sensory activities. If the holiday season is near, then you can put stuff like a gingerbread man, toy spider, candy corn, jello, or other spooky items you have in the house to make it more fun.
15. Making A Collage
Making a collage with children is always fun while babysitting. Children have their own ideas about putting pictures together on paper.
To make a collage you need some pictures or photographs, a scissor, glue, and blank paper. Furthermore, you can also use items that stick to the paper like cut-out magazines, ribbons, tinsel or foil, and buttons.
While working on a collage, make sure you give the kids to take the lead. You simply follow their work and only give a helping hand when necessary. For instance, sticking fabrics or leaves on the paper.
Simply observe what your child is making rather than telling him what to do. Even if he is not doing it right, no problem. It doesn't need to be right, he just needs to enjoy the activity. Always praise their work because it will encourage them to carry on further.
Collage is a craft so, it provides children to develop their skill of identifying objects. If you guide them through the process by explaining the pictures, it will also help in their language development.