Spending time with your children is the best way to bond with them. While you and your child can decide what activities to do together, you can also make it a point to do a few fun activities that also double up as learning activities. This way, your child will learn things that are important while also having fun.
Educational Activities for Your Children
There are many educational activities for kids at home that you can introduce your children to. Remember to not force these activities on your child, she should be naturally excited about the activities. Try to suggest activities that suit your child’s personality and interests.
1. Twister Math
Take the old classic of twister and give it a numerical twist. Write down numbers on pieces of paper and stick them on each coloured circle. When you call out a number, you child must place their hands and feet on a combination of numbers that will equal the number by any mathematical operation – addition, subtraction, multiplication or division. For example, you call out the number 12, then your child can place his hands and feet on three and four which when multiplied gives you 12.
2. Tree Lessons
This is an activity that will help your little one learn the basics of natural science. Take your child for a walk and pick up a few interesting leaves and ask her to do the same. Once you get home, look up the leaves on the internet and identify which tree the leaves come from. Your child can maintain a scrapbook keeping all the leaves she has collected.
This is a great way to explain a few laws of science to your child. You will need a peeled boiled egg, a glass bottle with a round opening like a milk bottle, a small cardboard paper, and some matches. Light the paper and place it in the bottle of the clean bottle. Immediately place the egg on the opening of the bottle. As the paper burns itself out, the resulting vacuum will suck the egg into the bottle. This activity is a sure fire way to get your child excited about science.
4. Bird Feeder
If your child is interested in birds then you can help her make her own bird feeder. Take any old carton box and open up the two larger sides. String a strong rope through the top and suspend the feeder outside on a tree branch or hook. Place a seed mix at the bottom of the box and wait for the birds to visit.
5. Rain Man
This is an experiment that can tickle any child’s curiosity. Take a few tablespoons of water and add some food colouring to it. The richer the colour the more exciting will the results be. In a larger glass, fill water up to two-thirds. Top the rest of it with plain shaving foam. Add the coloured water to the shaving foam drop by drop using a dropper. When the foam gets saturated, the coloured water will ‘fall’ into the water below the shaving cream like ‘rain’.
6. Colour Caterpillar
Here you can teach your child the colour theory while also having lots of fun with your child. You’ll need five clear containers, water, and primary dyes. Use red, blue and yellow food colouring to get the primary colours. Place the water containers in a row with the coloured water alternating with the plain water. Take paper napkins and roll into a cylinder and put one end into the coloured liquid and the other into the plain water. Connect all the containers in this manner. Soon, you will see that the plain water is changing colours and is becoming a mix of two primary colours. In this way, you will get green with the blue and yellow, and orange with the red and yellow. You can also arrange the containers in a circle with a plain water container between the red and blue to get purple.
7. Volcanic eruptions
A simple yet delightful activity is building sand volcanos. You’ll need sand, a pipe, vinegar, and baking soda. Build a volcano around the pipe with the opening of the pipe in the centre. Fill up the tube about halfway to add more stability. Pour the baking soda into the pipe. Get your child to pour the vinegar into the opening for the eruption. You can also mix food colouring with the baking soda to get different coloured ‘lava’.
8. Secret Codes
Every child will love the idea of having a secret language only they and their friends can understand. Once you explain the basic principle of codes, your children can go ahead and create their own. You can begin by creating a key for your children which is what they will use to break the code. One of the simplest codes is to assign numbers to the alphabets. So, 1 will signify the alphabet A and 13 will signify M. They can also select a particular book and choose words from there by writing down the page number, paragraph, and word.
Which kid wouldn’t be fascinated with slime? Now, you can teach your kids how to make slime right at home while also learning how different things react with each other. Place half a cup of white adhesive in a bowl and add a small amount of liquid detergent to it. Mix it well. If the mixture is still too sticky, then add a bit more detergent. Your slime is ready!
10. Stylish Coding
It’s never too early to get into coding. You can teach your child about coding by making a necklace that spells your child’s name with the binary numbers – 0 and 1. Select two types of beads where one stands for 0 and the other for 1. Using the code, your child can string together the beads to spell out her name.
11. Star Gazing
One of the most magical experiences a young child can have is a visit to the planetarium. Your child will be exposed to the mysteries of the universe and how the earth plays a role in it. You can also help your child set up a telescope at home if she is interested.
Encourage your child to keep a diary at an early age. This will teach your children to not just chronicle the things in their lives but will help them explore their creativity. They can use stickers, draw or even add photographs in their journals. This is also a great way for children to keep in touch with their emotions and also process events.
Cooking can be a fun way for you and child to bond while they also learn an important life skill. Get them to help you with meal preparations by adding fun elements to the tasks. Depending on the age of your child, you can choose the complexity of the task. On special days, you can ask your child to decide what to cook for the whole family.
This is a great activity for your young child. Using just a chalk, you can draw a maze on the ground large enough for your child to fit in. Give your child a car and ask her to get out of the maze without crossing any solid lines. In this activity, you can encourage your child to think and use her imagination.
15. Smiley T-Shirt
Let your child explore her artsy side with this fun activity. Start with an old plain T-shirt. Mix a cup of flour with water till you get the consistency of ketchup. Pour this mixture into a squeeze-y bottle and draw a smiley face on the T-shirt. Let this dry in the sun. Use fabric spray paints to paint the shirt. Once dry, remove the flour mixture and you’ll be greeted with a smiley face.
As you can see, there are many kids learning activities that your child can enjoy where learning doesn’t seem like a chore. The more you encourage these activities, the more your child will learn to develop a curious mind.