Home with the kids but sick of TV? Here are 14 ideas for snow day fun

School’s canceled. The kids are bored. It’s too cold to go outside, but you just can’t stomach another Netflix marathon.

Here are some ideas for keeping youngsters entertained:

Build the ultimate fort

Empty the linen closet of every sheet, blanket and beach towel you own. Tuck them underneath couch cushions or into dresser drawers. Use anything sturdy and upright, such as a music stand or T-ball tee, to fortify your structure in the middle of the room. Then get some pillows, flashlights, books and snacks, and snuggle in.

Blow bubbles

You’ll have to head outside for this – and it may be too windy in Wichita today – but it’s worth a try. In extremely cold weather, soap bubbles freeze solid and settle to the ground as intact spheres, then collapse slowly. Pretty cool, right? Try it and see.

Have a dance party

Clear some space, crank up the tunes and go wild. Give young children a scarf or some ribbon and let them twirl it around.

Be an artist

Mix equal parts shaving cream (non-menthol) and white glue. Spoon several dollops of the mixture onto construction paper and spread it around to make a shape or scene. It will dry and harden in about 48 hours. Or, make lots of paper snowflakes for the windows or paper chains to hang from the curtain rods.

Grab the camera

Get out the cellphone and make your own funny commercials, cooking shows or movie spoofs. Write an original script and bring it to life. Film your own family newscast, with journalists who report “on location” from the living room, kitchen or back yard. Or set up a photo studio – use a sheet as a backdrop – and host a silly portrait session.

Get cooking

For kids, the kitchen is great entertainment. Make dough for cookies, breads or pretzels that you can knead, braid, shape and decorate. Or cook up a big pot of vegetable soup.

Make cards

Get a jump on Valentine’s Day by gathering all your paper, glitter, stickers, lace, markers, googly eyes and other art supplies to craft some homemade cards. Or, cut paper snowflakes to decorate the windows. Make a paper chain. Cut pictures from old magazines and catalogs to make a collage.

Set up an obstacle course

Use pillows, couch cushions, ride-on toys, tunnels, big boxes, hampers, Nerf guns and targets, whatever you can find. Scatter them around the house to establish the course. For older children, add a ball toss or even a math problem to solve.

Have a camp-in

Get out the sleeping bags and eat around a pretend campfire (or the fireplace, if you have one). After dinner, make s’mores. Sing campfire songs. Tell stories by flashlight.

Hunt for eggs

Dig out your stash of plastic Easter eggs and fill them with questions, riddles, charades ideas, candy or loose change. Hide them around the house for a midwinter egg hunt.

Have fun with yarn

Give youngsters a ball of yarn and let them make a “spider web” by wrapping it around table legs, window cranks, door knobs, etc. Or teach them to knit and whip up a scarf.

Dig out your games

Play an old favorite – Phase 10, anyone? – or that new one you got for Christmas. Teach the kids how to play chess, charades, marbles or solitaire. Dump out a huge puzzle and get to work. Combine forces to build an enormous Lego structure or a roller coaster out of K’Nex.

Read aloud

Reading books out loud is one of the most important things parents can do with children, and what better time than a cold winter day? Grab a book you think the whole family might enjoy – a classic such as “Charlotte’s Web” or something more recent, like R.J. Palacio’s “Wonder” – and gather ’round for an old-fashioned read-aloud.

If you have a baby, toddler or preschooler, sign up for the Wichita Public Library’s “1,000 Books Before Kindergarten” challenge. And book-lovers of any age are encouraged to participate in The Eagle’s 2018 #ReadICT Reading Challenge.

Just talk

Find a comfy spot, make some hot chocolate and tell a story or have a nice long conversation. That’s great in any weather.

This story was originally published January 16, 2018 at 11:02 AM with the headline "Home with the kids but sick of TV? Here are 14 ideas for snow day fun."