When rain pours down, boredom can sometimes set in, especially when it comes to children. This boredom can also drive parents up the wall. Plan ahead with some of the ideas and fill rainy days with indoor fun.
Arts and Crafts
Rainy days are the perfect chance to be creative. Sidewalk chalk might be out of the question, but pull out the finger paints or colored pencils and let the masterpieces begin. Have a large sketchbook on hand designated just for rainy day creations. When the rain starts pouring it is time to add another drawing. Children will look forward hearing the rain fall when it means getting to be messy and creative.
Aside from painting and drawing, rainy days can also be a great time to have children new techniques such as oil pastels, collage and stenciling.
Read a Book...or Three
Reading is a wonderful rainy day activity for both kids and adults. Keep kids interested in reading books by having a special rainy day collection. Read the books in the series only when rainy weather strikes. This will keep children interested in reading and looking forward to finding out what happens next.
Board Games not Bored Games
Board games can actually cure boredom when the whole family is having fun. Open the closet and drag out all those fun games that kids love. It is important that all the family members, including older children are involved in the fun. Chutes and Ladders, Old Maid and even Monopoly can provide hours of entertainment while the rain pours down outside.
Baking Overload and Moderation
Take the opportunity of a rainy day and teach children about the kitchen. Even if the idea of baking from scratch is not an option, keep a few boxes of mix on hand.
Have them help read the instructions, measure, add ingredients and stir. The oven is hot, so any activity related to that should be done by a responsible adult. Aside from all the fun of baking, this is an excellent time to introduce children to moderation.
Have them take a cupcake with them for lunch the next day, but share the others with teachers and classmates. They will love how excited and thankful everyone is concerning the cupcakes. This will also teach them about moderation since a day's worth of baking is more than one person really needs.
Fond Memories
Remember that truly rainy days where there is no going out to play don't have to be full of gloom. Make it a fun family experience by creating special activities that are just for rainy days. Also, remember to involve the whole family whenever possible.
Children learn by example so seeing everyone involved in the fun, as opposed to griping about the rain, will make the rainy day experiences something that children can look back on fondly. Plus, with these activities, it is easy to make them educational, as well as fun. It might even have children watching the weather report, hoping for rain.
Jennifer Tanner-Jordan - Jennifer attended Jacksonville State University, lives at home with 3 cats and a husband. She is an advocate of spay-neuter.
