Fun Things to Do At Home With a Preschooler

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Looking for at-home entertainment for kids who aren't yet ready for school? These are the top things to do at home with a preschooler, including active and quiet play ideas, craft and learning activities and the best things that preschoolers can do alone.

Things to Do at Home with a Preschooler

Out of the baby and toddler years, but not quite ready for school, preschoolers crave more of a schedule in their days at home. They become more bored with the same routine and look forward to additional activities and diversions.

Entertaining preschoolers with big kids at home

If you're a homeschooling family, balancing the older kids' educations while also occupying a preschooler can be a challenge.

With so much on your plate with school-aged kids, you might forget that preschoolers also need to stay busy. I'm sharing lots of tips on what to do at home with a preschooler while older siblings are otherwise occupied.

Back in the "distance learning" era, I had a preschooler at home to keep busy with three older siblings in school. With older kids needing to join Zoom calls and have virtual chats with their teachers and other students, I needed to find lots of tools to occupy the youngest child.

finding the right blend of at-home activities for preschoolers

I've collected plenty of quiet activities for a preschooler to do at home. Some of these are things parents and preschoolers can do together with a blend of educational, crafts, and fun. I've also included things that preschoolers can do on their own with your supervision.

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Activities to Do At Home With a Preschooler

These at-home activities are great ways to spend quality time with your younger child while your older kids are doing schoolwork. Some of these items would be fine for preschoolers to do alone with your mindful supervision (just to minimize mess!).

Minimize the mess with this at-home preschool craft tip. I bought two cheap vinyl tablecloths - one to lay on my daughter's table and another one for underneath as a drop cloth. This makes clean up quick and easy!

tactile entertainment for kids

Need craft supplies? Grab the Giant Art Jar that's stuffed with all the pom-poms, pipe cleaners, and foam shapes you'll need for those preschool-worthy Pinterest crafts!

Play-Doh is the classic preschool hands-on activity. Roll it, squish it, and use tools to mush the Play-Doh into various shapes for play.

I got the Play-Doh Fun Tub, which stores the included dough and instruments inside the large bucket.

Hands-On Things to Do at Home With Preschoolers

Playfoam looks like one of those activities that's going to be a mess, but it actually isn't! This tactile and squishy foam is completely mess-free and never dries out. I ordered my daughter the Playfoam Pals Pet Party 6-Pack which has a mystery toy animal inside.

Kinetic Sand on the other hand isn't completely mess-free but clean up of this cool sand is still pretty easy. Kids (and adults!) love squishing this "magic" sand that's fluid through your fingers but can easily be molded and sticks together.

This Kinetic Sand Folding Sand Box keeps the project in a single box. Or purchase the 2-lb bag of Kinetic Sand, some sandcastle building tools, and a shallow dishpan for this sensory activity.

Ways to Get Moving Together

Exercise, relaxation and meditation are something that you can do at home with your preschooler to increase movement and improve a good attitude throughout the day.

I've shared some ways that parents can get exercise at home. There are a few additional tips on how to incorporate children into your workouts.

At-home exercises to do with a preschooler

During distance learning, my preschooler was going stir crazy with staying indoors. We purchased this mini-trampoline so she could bounce out the wiggles while her older siblings did school work!

GoNoodle is a free app and website with fun and energetic video exercise routines for kids. My preschooler loves "Poppin' Bubbles" and Moose Tube. GoNoodle is a good site for kids of all ages to use when they need to take a stretch break.

take play outside

Naturally, playing in the yard with preschoolers is an ideal way to entertain them. However, if you're needing to stay in the house and keep a mindful eye on your older student's learning, taking the preschooler outside might be out of the question.

Once computer use time is done, you might consider moving your student's educational time to an outdoor location. Choose a park where your student can lay on a blanket in the grass to complete homework while the preschooler plays.

relaxation and downtime

Controlled breathing, yoga, and stretching can help young children to relax. These two books empower preschoolers with breathing and yoga in a kid-friendly way.

• Breathe with Me: Using Breath to Feel Strong, Calm, and Happy is a kid-friendly way to introduce mindfulness breathing techniques to young children.
• Yoga Whale introduces simple yoga positions with an under-the-sea twist.

Imaginative Play for Preschoolers at Home

An indoor tent is a wonderful way for preschoolers to play indoors. They can set up camp, find quiet solace alone, create a reading nook, or even take a nap!

Gather all the dolls - there's a tea party happening! Playing tea party with her stuffies is one of my daughter's favorite playtime activities.

Save a few shipping boxes from your deliveries for playtime! Cardboard boxes of any size can be a wonderful way for preschoolers to play. Have them decorate the box and turn it into anything they wish!

Preschoolers love to play dress up. Have a variety of dress up clothing available for them to wear during creative playtime.

Old Halloween costumes, capes, and career-wear are great choices. Colorful Playsilks are my preference. These open-ended scarves are versatile and can be used in a variety of ways during imaginative play.

Books for Reading Time Together

It's important for young children to have daily access to books, whether you purchase them or borrow them from the library. Schedule reading into each day at home with your preschooler.

Some preschoolers prefer to play quietly while you read aloud and that's okay too. They are still hearing the cadence in your voice that comes with reading aloud. This is a great post-lunch option that might lull some preschoolers towards nap time!

picture books

Most preschoolers still prefer colorful picture books. Introduce diversity and inclusion through story books that can be read together with your preschooler. Choose titles with characters that don't look like your child or that have a global perspective to expand their view!

chapter books

Start a preschool-friendly chapter book series that will be engaging to your child. Opt for books that include images or illustrations, like the Frog & Toad Collection.

Books with large and clear lettering like the classic Dick and Jane books are great for beginning readers. Preschoolers will start to recognize the simple words and be able to "read" them back to you.

Quiet Reading Time

Create a special box of "Reading" books that only get pulled out during school hours. Consider choosing fun learning books or relaxing picture books that kids can enjoy without you.

Interactive and engaging pictures are ideal. Or choose books with simple text that your preschooler can memorize so they can "read" the book back to themselves. Wordless books that only have illustrations are another option for a quiet reading nook.

books that preschoolers can read alone

The I Can Read! series are ideal for preschoolers, even if they aren't reading alone yet. Kids can often figure out the story line from the pictures like in The Biscuit Collection. The large words and colorful illustrations are eye-catching. 

Richard Scarry books are so lovingly detailed with minimal text. The engaging images, like those in the classic Richard Scarry's Best Little Word Book Ever, will draw kids in.

This adorable series from Make Believe Ideas offers interactive pages. One of the favorites is Never Feed a Yeti Spaghetti.

Search and find books can keep young children busy as they spot the images in the My First Search & Find: Around the World.

Education Alongside the Big Kids

Preschoolers who are watching their older sibling doing schoolwork at home may also want to participate in learning activities. Set up a small area where your preschooler can learn with minimal disruption to their brother and/or sister.

I have a large table for my students and a smaller table next to my desk for my daughter. This way I can oversee her learning and help her with worksheets without interrupting her siblings.

• My daughter loves to see her preschool school work displayed. Check out these Unique Ways to Display Kids Artwork.
• Develop fine motor skills by practicing pen and crayon control.
• Dry erase boards and pens can help preschoolers learn writing techniques without waste of paper.
• Flashcards are a reasonably inexpensive way for preschoolers to learn basics like upper and lower case letters or numbers on a faster recall.

Sign up for a Subscription Box

Little kids love mail just for them! I've signed up my daughter for deliveries of Koala Crate, a subscription box with monthly craft activities that are ideal for preschool-aged kids.

This is an awesome subscription box if you're home with a preschooler! Koala Crate includes age-appropriate activities for ages 2-4 to complete with parental assistance.

All the parts are included in the shipment. Our first box included everything we needed to enact a doctor's visit. Intended to develop empathy, the kit included an interactive health checklist with sliders, medicals tools, a felt bag to decorate with stickers, toy bandages and a board book.

Once my daughter and I had read all the material together and played a bit, she was able to take the items and play alone. My review of Koala Crate is high! The parts are high quality and the kit really encouraged her creativity. An included booklet for parents explains ideas with questions to ask your child.

Sign up for the subscription to have a box sent. You can then pause or cancel the subscription at any time. To order Koala Crate (or any of the boxes in the Kiwi Crate family), click the link and receive 40% off your first box!

What Preschool Workbooks Should I Choose?

Putting pencil to paper is an important fine motor skill that preschoolers need to develop. Workbooks with minimal tasks are a helpful tool as they often have lines to trace and coloring keys to follow.

Workbooks are a great way to introduce simple instructions in a way that preschoolers can visualize and understand. Many workbooks include reward stickers for kids to add inside the pages. These are all books that my children used and enjoyed!

best workbooks for preschoolers at home

123 Fun Educational Pad from Little Genius is a super-simple numbers guide for preschoolers.

Wipe clean books are an alternative to paper, like this spiral-bound version about Alphabet Fun from Little Genius.

My daughter also has this workbook, Get Ready for Kindergarten. It's been keeping her very busy with all of the writing activities.

secondary projects with completed pages

Wondering what to do with the paper workbook pages that your preschooler has completed? I give my daughter a pair of Pre-School Training Scissors and a glue stick.

She cuts out shapes from the workbooks and pastes them onto other completed pages. It's a fun way for her to improve cutting skills and create a craft. Then, everything goes into the recycling can when she's done!

Preschool Educational Online Learning

I've largely kept my daughter off the computer and she's never used a mouse or played any online games. However, I understand the importance that an online curriculum could offer her in the way of education. When I decided to introduce computer learning to my preschooler, I went directly to ABCmouse.

ABCmouse is well-loved for it's vast collection of preschool and early education material. Reading, math, arts, science and social studies -  they are all covered with age-appropriate activities, games and books that help preschoolers learn while having fun.

If you have multiple young children, ABCmouse has three separate child profiles so that all the kids can be logged in on individual devices, playing at the same time. My son used ABCmouse as a preschooler and I was excited to introduce my daughter!

Ready to try ABCmouse with your preschooler? You can get your first month completely free and the rest of the year at a very reasonable price. ABCmouse.com - First Month Free - Click here!

How to Monitor Online Learning with Preschoolers

Online learning will require use of an internet connection. Make sure that additional devices aren't slowing down the connection for your students by updating your modem, increasing internet speed, or upgrading your service.

Use headphones on your preschooler so the noise of the games doesn't interrupt your other kids as they do schoolwork.

Consider which device you'll use for preschoolers. ABCmouse can be used on a variety of devices including a cell phone, tablet, Amazon Kindle, desktop or laptop computer. 

Set up time limits from the start. If your preschooler has not played online games make sure they understand that when the timer goes off, they need to take a break.

Track your preschooler's progress across all categories to see where they could focus more attention.

Toys That Encourage Solo Playtime

If you need to have time to yourself and your big kids are doing school work, choose toys for your preschooler that will encourage solo play. Free play time will boost imagination and creativity within your youngster. And they'll love that they don't have to share toys with their siblings!

I'm all for choosing unplugged toys that have long lasting power. I purchased this BRIO Cargo Railway Set over 20 years ago for my eldest - and here it is, still going strong! Yes, it might cost a bit more upfront, but the heirloom quality of some toys is worth it.

Another classic building toy that's quieter than wooden blocks, Bristle Blocks allow preschoolers to build without the usual frustration of their creations toppling over.

This is a perfect classic toy that many kids don't already own. Made more famous in the Toy Story series, my preschooler loves our giant box of Mr Potato Head parts. Especially when she doesn't have to share them with her brother!

Does your preschooler have separation anxiety?

Does your preschooler prefer to play near you? Or do they want to be constantly entertained by you? Encourage independent play with this trick!

A walkie-talkie set is a fun way for young children to stay in touch with you while in another room. Offer occasional check-ins with preschoolers who prefer your company.

Quiet Time Activities a Preschooler Can Do Alone

I'll be completely honest here. My preschooler spent a considerable amount of alone time watching Disney+ during distance learning with her older siblings. While educational television is appropriate in small doses, hours on end every day isn't good for anyone, especially preschoolers.

Knowing that it was best to keep my daughter off the TV, I'm now better prepared to entertain my preschooler with these quiet activities! 

busy time solo play for preschoolers

The mess-free Water Wow books have been a lifesaver on long car trips and on plane flights. My daughter still plays with her Melissa & Doug Water Wow! at home. I've even set her up with a small cup of water and a paint brush so she can more delicately "paint" the images.

Little kids love stickers but they can often be tricky for them to use without help. Choose larger images like Big Stickers for Little Hands.

Preschool sticker trick - Peel off the outside frame around the stickers so that only the individual stickers are left on the page. This will assist preschoolers in being able to remove stickers by themselves.

Magnets are fascinating for preschoolers - a true STEM activity! Just always make sure that the magnets are large pieces that cannot be swallowed. Magna-Tiles are a classic for free form building and play.

My son had this Magnetic Pattern Blocks Set with foam shapes that can be placed onto a board. Then kids can use a dry-erase marker for added details around the design!

Scratch books, like the Scratch and Sparkle Activity Books can be completed quietly at home with preschoolers with minimal mess. 

Coloring and Art at Home with a Preschooler

Coloring books and crayons are a classic quiet activity for preschoolers. Every family should have a wide variety of Crayola crayons, washable markers, and colored pencils on hand.

Don't worry about trying to fit them all back into the original box! Get inexpensive snap-close pencil boxes or zip-up bags so that clean up is quick.

Favorite characters are popular with my kid, so I do a lot of printing from coloring pages found online. I recommend signing up for HP Instant Ink if you do a lot of printing at home. HP ships the ink cartridges before you need them, at a low monthly price.

Crayola Mess Free Coloring Pages are an awesome way for preschoolers to show off their artistic abilities, without worry of messes!

Preschool Board Games to Play Together

I'm starting to get that glossed over look, playing the same 'ol board games month after month with my preschooler! But she loves to play with me. I've been toughing it out through multiple games daily of Memory Match and the same two puzzles over and over.

Our preschool board games definitely needed a refresh though, so I invested in a few more fun classics and new-to-us games that her siblings play with her sometimes too.

Choose games that your preschooler can play alone along with a few games they can play with a partner or in a group. Candyland and Chutes & Ladders are the standards, but here are a few new choices to add to your game collection:

• Zingo

  

• Picture Dominoes
• Hedbanz Junior
• Cootie
• Connect 4

  

• Card games, like Go Fish or Old Maid
• Hi Ho! Cherry-O

  

• Spot It! Junior
• Pop Up Pirate
• Let's Go Fishin'
• Memory Match
• Don't Spill the Beans
• Honeybee Tree

Encourage Preschoolers to Help With Housekeeping

On top of keeping track of kids schoolwork, multiple schedules, and your own activities, you're also keeping up with house work at home with a preschooler! Why not take advantage of the extra helping hands and teach your kid how to pitch in? 

From meal prep, laundry or kid-friendly toy organization, preschoolers are usually willing to jump in and help. True, it might take longer to let your preschooler "help" with housekeeping but it's a pay off in the end.

They'll learn new skills and lifelong tasks, understanding that chores are a daily routine. I have tons of tips in this post about why our kids do housework.

Do you have a preschooler who is always asking for a snack? Cook up something fun in the kitchen together. Use The Everything Kids' Cookbook for meal inspiration, then whip up lunch for the big kids!

Have a Special Gift Box for Preschoolers

Some days at home with a preschooler are going to be rough. All the usual tricks may not work. Think about starting a behavior chart for preschoolers at home using the free printables in my article. Having incentives and being able to work towards a goal can encourage a better attitude. 

using incentives to encourage behavior

For my daughter I started a special gift box of toys that I pull out when she's met a behavior goal. The items ranged from a one dollar Hot Wheel race car up to a Barbie doll.

aturally I keep the box out of her sight and only pull out the items as a surprise. The hidden box of treats is a welcome break in the boredom!

Looking for more ideas for being home with a preschooler? See this post on things to do at home with toddlers and additional indoor things to do with kids at home!

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This article originally published Aug 8, 2020 and has been updated and republished with a new date.