65 Screen free winter activities


It can be difficult thinking of things to do with children and as a family together, here are my 65 suggestions for screen free winter activities…..

65 screen free activities

Indoor activitiesface painting fun

  1. Play games – have a games afternoon, board games, charades, I spy
  2. Puzzles
  3. Cooking - cook dinner together as a family, bake bread, bake cakes, Bake biscuits
  4. Small world play – use toy cars, figures, build your own town or zoo in cardboard
  5. Lego
  6. Puppet show – give a puppet show
  7. Pretend play – shops, cafe, schools, fireman, police, hospitals
  8. Theatre – put on your own show or panto
  9. Play trains
  10. Reading
  11. Balloon games – great for being active indoors
  12. Face painting
  13. Dolls – schools, babies, hospitals
  14. Dress up – give the kids some items of your own clothing, shoes & accessories to use/play with, pretend to be mummy/daddy
  15. Have a themed day – choose a theme & do crafts, play etc around that theme e.g. ocean, snow, space, animals, pirates, princess
  16. Boxes - children love boxes, there are so many things you could make and play with boxes
  17. Building blocks
  18. Singing and dancing
  19. Have a blindfold tasting session
  20. Skittles
  21. Science experiments
  22. Have a pretend party
  23. Write a story or poem
  24. Play simon says

Outdoor activities

  1. Fly a kiteChildren jumping in muddy puddles
  2. Go on a Gruffalo hunt – you can create your own like we did here
  3. Bubbles
  4. Make mud pies
  5. Do a winter scavenger hunt
  6. Visit the playground or park
  7. Play football
  8. Play catch
  9. Scooting
  10. Go on a bike ride
  11. Puddle jumping
  12. Geocaching
  13. Gardening
  14. Have a game of poo sticks
  15. Climb a tree
  16. Visit a National Trust location
  17. Chalking – great fun chalking outdoors
  18. Go on a sound walk
  19. Go for a nature walk
  20. Feed the ducks

Indoor or outdoor activities

  1. Water play – indoors at the sink or in the bath, or outdoors with ice or snow, wash the car, let little children do some washing up
  2. Have a picnic - indoor picnics are great fun, maybe in a den you’ve made or outdoors wrapped up warm
  3. Make a fairy garden
  4. Swimming
  5. Treasure hunt
  6. Make a den

Art and craftMaking handprints for the christmas tree

  1. Drawing and colouring
  2. Painting
  3. Finger painting
  4. Play doh/salt dough
  5. Make a collage
  6. Sewing
  7. Shadow drawing
  8. Make a bird feeder
  9. Make stick puppets
  10. Pasta art
  11. Junk modelling
  12. Make musical instruments
  13. Draw a map of your house together (then maybe make a treasure hunt for each other?)
  14. Make masks
  15. Make a memory book