What to do with the kids on rainy days in the school hols - we need your ideas!

geo - caching! with rain coats

You give them a bin bag and ask them to sort through their toys, putting any they no longer play with in the bag. This way they discover toys they've not played with for ages, making the task last hours instead of minutes, and at the end of it you should have a bag full of toys to give to charity!

Today has been a "No, YOU take them out" sort of day.
Peace !

My only contribution is that we have a box. The children write activities down on scraps of paper. Then, when we're bored, we do a lucky dip. Whatever's on the slip of paper, we do it.

You are all so imaginative. I'm really impressed. I want to print out the whole thread.

haven't read through, so apols if already mentioned - make a film, using camcorder, can work with varying ages as they can haev increasing amounts of control

Painting/crafting/drawing/crayoning
Junk modelling
Play dough
Make pastry models and paint them next day
Makes tents with blankets
Play shops
Baking
Computer - cbeebies web site etc
Get kids to help with housework
Stories
Playdates/sleepovers
Indoor play centres
Board games/jigsaws
Start making xmas cards
Put rain coats on and go out anyway
Face painting

agree with foxythesnowfox too re: "check with the local council for any activities laid on. Ours do weekly sports programmes and are really affordable. Same with local libraries and museums" - We also do this and there's some fab stuff when you hunt them down.

I LOVE this thread. Shall be printing off some of these ideas and putting them on my fridge for emergencies.
I've already started planning ahead.
I have a big black binliner in my kitchen and am throwing anything suitable for arts and crafts instead of putting them in my recycle bin - cereal boxes, egg cartons, plastic trays, loo roll tubes, kitchen towel tubes etc etc. On a rainy day we get the lot out with loads of paint, glitter, tissue paper, glue, pens and the girls have a great time creating loads of stuff. Last year we even made an underwater scene >

rain walk, welly walk
museum
art gallery
make up a play and perform it
build a tent - ghost stories
make up stories and make a book with illustrations
playdough
painting
scrap books
buy an usbourne book entititled 'what shall I do today?' Follow the instructions.
Go to an indoor playcentre
swimming in an outdoor pool
baking - icing biscuits
shopping
cleaning

Possibly not for everyone but, rainy days here mean pom poms, dd gathers leftover balls of wool, I cut out circles from cereal packets, she strangles herself with yarn winds yarn round the circles.

She also grabs any leftover fabric and makes collages with them (my chances for attempting quilting are zilch in this house).

pyjama party - pjs, duvets, treats in the middle of the day.

Lining paper is great - draw around them and let them paint/draw themselves as they are, as aliens, as clowns etc etc

Also use lining paper to draw big landscapes for a play scene. If they are into dinosaurs, then a background of moutains and trees, or if cars a city, or a fairy garden -that kind of thing.

Let them get in the bath and play.

check with the local council for any activities laid on. Ours do weekly sports programmes and are really affordable. Same with local libraries and museums.

Check if you can visit your local firestation (a personal favourite of mine )

oh I set up a tent too, good one

They love the tent indoors

Picnic in tent, throw in some teddies, they are happy for ages

I have a tall-sided paddling pool that I fill with warm water and put in the conservatory on rainy days. They play in it for hours and hours and they absolutely knackered themselves out.

I don't do treasure hunts and stuff though. I think it's important that they are able to spend hours PLAYING without intervention.

(I use this justification to relieve any looming guilt over being a lazy parent.)

ah WMMC - I see you have read my parenting book!

Rub them with shampoo and then lock the buggers in the garden till they are clean

Then give them chocolate.

Wii/playstation/x-box/internet, raincoat, wellies and umberella and shove them out the door.

Birthday parties for favourite toys go down well here.

Also mass painting sessions - so you join in too. It's nice for children to see adults painting for enjoyment

I admire your spirit! I try and embrace the rain, but as I have to walk so much in it, the thrill has palled after 10 years...

We are outside all the time (on a farm) so yes.
The baby is in a plastic pram pod thingy and all cozy.
It is nice out in the rain.

gentleotter - will you do all those things in the rain? Strawberry picking?

We have set up a campsite in the living room with blanket tunnels and are having a picnic.

We can't get away on holiday so we do fly fishing in the field (no hook)

Picking strawberries and rasps.

Making butterfly gardens.

Dough people or things.

Plaster of paris and pasta pictures.

Baking

Lots of walks with the pram

Mini beast hunts and lots of paddling in burns.

Yesterday afternoon was spent looking for trolls and elves down by the river

Have a toy 'clear-out' - children will magically latch onto some long-forgotton manky old toddler toy which has been gathering dust for years and leap upon it and play with it all day

Also have a baking day. Even if all you have is some rich tea biscuits and some icing and decorations or sweeties, they will enjoy it.

Oh yes, if it's raining, DS particularly loves going on 'a muddy walk', where we jump in all the mud, and get as dirty as possible (wearing waterproofs).

Home cinema.

Get them to pick a movie that you will all watch (it can be helpful to do a swap with a friend for something that they haven't watched)

They then need to make the tickets and paint pictures for the adverts. You then need to make some popcorn.

Invite the friends round (quid pro quo!)

Draw the curtains and have a home cinema.

Take them swimming, many local authorities have free swimming for school kids in the summer hols.

Library

Puddle jumping

Local art galeries and museums often do activity days