Oregon Parent Here: indoor activities for toddler

[Anonymous]

Putting Cheerios on spaghetti. I don’t know why, but I think this an awesome activity. I was sad that I found it when my kids were past the age for it, lol.

https://jugglingwithkids.com/2018/10/stringing-cheerios-on-spaghetti.html

[Anonymous]

Bubble baths!! And those crayons that write on the tub!

[Anonymous]

Bubble foam. 1/4 cup of tearless shampoo with 1 cup of water. Use your hand or stand mixer to beat until fluffy. We put it in her old baby tub and it’s always a hit.

Scavenger hunt

+1 on bounce house if you have space

Obstacle course if you have space

Floor is lava if you have space

Make puppets with brown paper bags

Red light/ green light

Repeat some of the activities you’ve already done. You’ll be bored, but your toddler won’t be.

[Anonymous]

Some more ideas:
Stacking cups, build a pyramid (with your help) then knock it down
Sorting kitchen storage containers -- plastic drinking glasses, stuffed animals, coins, etc.
Use tweezers to sort cottonballs into containers
Shaving cream or pudding as finger-paints
Hide and seek

Hope that helps. FWIW this is a great - if exhausting - age! ; )

[Anonymous]

Have them help with sorting laundry, cooking, cleaning, etc.
Tape colored paper to the floor, play “jump on red, jump on purple, etc”
Make animal noises and movements. Jump like a frog, crawl like a crab.
Build an obstacle course with couch cushions, etc.
play red light green light

Thinking of you, OP. I have a bunch of friends in CA and OR, and it’s such an awful situation, especially for families.

[Anonymous]

Oh we just invented another one get a plank or something long and skinny and put rocks on it and balance walk it to a pot and dump it in. You can race the balance walk too haha! Let us know what the kiddo loves and we can think of more!

[Anonymous]

OP here. Thank you, everyone! These have been great!

Thanks so much!

[Anonymous]

Stay safe! My latest is the “rainbow game.” Label colored construction paper with its color name and lie them out on the floor. Then gather random stuff from around the house in the different colors and put it in a basket. Kid gets to take an item from the basket and put it on the right color. My 2 yo asks to play every day.

[Anonymous]

See if you can get big boxes and they like to climb in and cuddle with stuffed animals. Kids that age like to pull things like little wagons with stuff in it. Give them a bunch of Tupperware and let them play with it and dump things in and out, like small blocks. I think there is some kind of paint you can make to paint on windows that will wash right off. Get empty food containers, like a box of fruit snacks, and tape them shut, and play grocery store. Read a lot of books. And remember that you don't have to entertain every minute. I did, and regretted it later. Put some music on. Hide and seek in the house, but my daughter liked to yell directions about where we should hide so she wasn't anxious about not finding us! Then when she was hiding, she would yell where we should look for her, and then she would yell that it was time to come find her now. Still makes me laugh.

Fingerpainting with pudding was popular activity when I worked at a day care.

Stay safe. Thinking of all of you out that way.

[Anonymous]

Muffin tin volcanos. I put the food coloring in, they get a bowl of baking soda to add (with measuring spoon to scoop. They get vinegar to add in. To help with cleanup put it all on a baking sheet.

Washing their dishes or bath toys at the kitchen sink. Letting them go to town unless they pour water on the floor intentionally.

Peeling hard boiled eggs - daycare recommend this one, it was a surprise hit

Lint rollers.. don't know why kid is obsessed

Washing cabinets with me, other chores (this depends on my patience level)

Putting them + crayons/washable markers in a large cardboard box, ignoring what they do as long as they stay in the box.

There is a square dance recording of the Sandra Boyton book barnyard dance. Great for wiggles/dancing.

+1 on the toddler caterpillar tunnel

We bought a balance board that is heavily used for balancing and toy cars

Pillow forts

Pretending to be cats

Somewhat scary but thrilling for the kid - we introduced scissors early and plastic knives. He helps cut up soft food, and tries to cut paper

Working on not coming every time kid asks for me/for help. Letting him know when I'll be back/able to help. We bought a visual timer that helped with this.

I've been following the workspace for children and busy toddler. Workspace helps remind me to try not to interrupt ongoing play, busy toddler has helpful indoor ideas.

Good luck

[Anonymous]

I was PP - for baking I highly recommend scones. Not too many ingredients. Kid cuts up butter and can attempt to measure dry ingredients, pour in wet ones, and smash the rest of the ingredients around themselves. Smitten kitchen has some good recipes.

Also, lay on the floor and have toddler tuck you in. Highly recommend.

We also did some tablet time - we like Toca apps, and sago mini. Set parent control with a timer. When it ends, it ends.

[Anonymous]

If you take a yardstick and tie a piece of string or yarn on one end, and tie or tape a magnet on the other end, the child can pretend to fish for pieces of paper that you have cut out in fish shapes and then clipped onto paper clips. You can tape the paper clips to your paper fish if you are worried the child might put them in their mouths. You can use a strong refrigerator magnet if you just tape it on the string. It’s easy to take apart later. If you have older kids, write sight words on the paper fish.

Bigger kids like to throw socks into an empty small trash basket. Or throw beanbags into a small basket.

[Anonymous]

If you do allow some screen time, we the Fox and Sheep apps for the iPad beginning around that age.

DC summers r unpleasant outside, especially in a mask, so we spent tons of time in our tiny house.
We have a little sit-on scooter that was fun.
Puzzles
Mini trampoline
Cosmic kids yoga (could be a little early for that at 2, but it’s easy yoga done to fun stories)
Egg dying (it isn’t just for Easter anymore)
Laundry (who knew it was fun?!)
Many books and audio stories (I used to hate that kids want to hear things 100 times, but now I’m thankful for it)

My sister has 2 boys and lives in Portland. They’re in a pod with a neighbor family, so they do get to go to each other’s houses and play. I think that is the main thing keeping her kids from completely losing it. She seems to think it’ll start getting better soon, so I hope that’s true.

[Anonymous]

You guys have great ideas. I am less creative, but here are some more ideas. Using technology. There are some good storytimes on youtube and a new netflix series. PLay kitchen. My DD plays with it and "makes me meals "every day. Sensory rice bin. Just plain rice and scoopers and hiding random objects to find. Or she likes transferring from one cup to another. Painting. My DD like brushes and we use washable paint. Maybe you can look at the structure of pre-school curriculums and follow it roughly to create a sense of order?