My son will be 3 in December, and I would like to have a party with some of his friends from daycare and relatives. What are some easy games that toddlers can play that will keep their attention? Also, they need to be able to take place indoors, as I live in WI and the winters are cold! Additionally, we have a small house, so they cant take up too much room.
2006-10-09 06:21:40 · 4 answers · asked by holly w 2 in Pregnancy & Parenting ➔ Toddler & Preschooler
Duck Duck goose, musical chairs, pinata, follow the leader, have a little container with candy or small toys and have sawdust in it, they root around the container looking around for the treats.
Some others are
Cat and Mouse Indoor
Equipment: Music
This is rather like musical statues. Put on some music and the kids have to squeak and scuttle about like mice. The moment the music stops, the kids must be as still and as 'quiet as a mouse'. Anyone seen moving or making a noise is caught by the mouse (you) and is out of the game.
Copy Cat Indoor
Equipment: None
A great game for the 2 – 4 year olds who love to imitate. Sit on a chair facing the children who are sitting at your feet. Say that as you point to a part of your body and name it, followed by "meow", they have to imitate it followed by the word "meow". For example, point to your chin and say "chin, chin, chin, meow", whereupon they all follow suit. Now point to your eyes and say "eyes, eyes, eyes" and make sure that no one is a copycat, if they are, they are out.
Count the Pebbles Indoor
Equipment: Tin, pebbles
For children who have learned to count, this is a great way for them to show off their new skill. Sit all the children on the floor with their backs to you and stand behind them with a biscuit tin. Drop at irregular intervals ten or more pebbles into the tin. The kids have to try and count them out loud and say the correct answer. This can get very loud and confusing but the kids love it.
Down on the Farm Indoor
Equipment: None
A great noisy game for the younger ones. Prepare in advance a short story (long if you feel adventurous!) and include lots of animals and noisy farm vehicles. It doesn’t have to be a very adventurous story as the point of the game is to make the noises of the animals and vehicles. You could start with: "It was a beautiful sunny day down on the farm and the chickens (the kids Cluck) were wandering around the farm yard. Suddenly the big brown carthorse (the kids all neigh) came galloping over to Framer Giles in his tractor (the kids all broom)…". and so on.
Guess who I am Indoor
Equipment: None
For the 3-4 year olds. Think up in advance some characters or animals. With the kids all seated at your feet you then start to silently act out one of the characters or animals. Gradually you introduce some noises and the children then have to guess who or what you are. For example if you were a cat you could run around on all fours, play with a ball or imaginary mouse and then meow.
Hunt the sweets Outdoor/Indoor
Equipment: Sweets, containers
All children love sweets and the achievement of finding something. Hide some sweets around the garden or house and get the children to find them. It's best to restrict the children to a certain number each and to give them a paper cup to collect them in.
Musical animals Indoor
Equipment: Music, pictures of animals
There aren't really winners and losers in this game. Put on some music and the kids all dance around. As you stop the music you hold up a picture of an animal such as a lion, pig, dog. The kids then all have to jump around the room imitating that animal. The younger ones especially love this game.
Musical shapes Indoor
Equipment: Music, large sheets of plain paper, coloured pens or paint
As a variant of musical chairs and for age 4 plus. Draw and colour some big basic shapes on large pieces of paper (e.g. yellow square, red triangle, green circle). Place these around the room where the children can see and reach them quite easily. The kids start dancing to the music and when the music stops, you shout out a colour and shape such as "yellow triangle" and all the kids have to rush to that colour shape. The last child there is out of the game. For the younger age group, stick to 4 or 5 colour shapes but for the older kids you could use more.
Out of Doors Outdoor/Indoor
Equipment: None
This is a very simple activity to get the party going for the under 3's and to get the shyer children involved. When all the guest have arrived, make a conga line and jog gently round the garden singing a well known nursery rhyme. You could end up at the sandpit or other activity area that you wish the children to get involved in.
Pair them Up Indoor
Equipment: Pairs of objects, clothing
For 2-3 year olds restrict this game to one room but for the older children you could spread out a bit. In advance, collect pairs of a number of items such as socks, spoons, pencils, hair slides, toy cars or whatever you can think of. Place one of the pair of each object into paper bags or boxes equal to the number of kids that there are. The kids don't all have to have the same items and some you could repeat and allow 5 or 6 items per child. Hide the other halves of the pairs around the room(s). Issue each child with a bag or box and get them to go on a hunt for their matching halves. First to get a complete collection wins.
What’s the time Mr Wolf? Outdoor/Indoor
Equipment: None
This is not a new game but I've included it, as the little ones just love the excitement and anticipation. You or another child can be Mr Wolf and as you walk away, the children all follow you. They then say loudly "What's the time Mr Wolf?" and the wolf replies "It's 3 o’clock" or any time that he wishes. However when the wolf answers "It's 12 o’clock and dinner time", the kids have to all run away with the wolf running after them. The person he catches or the last one home is the next Mr Wolf.
Where's *** sock? Indoor
Equipment: Large sheet of plain paper, old magazines, pins or stickers
This is a fun game that singles out the child host and is similar to pin the tail on the donkey. In advance, stick coloured advertisements for rooms of furniture torn out from magazines on a large sheet of paper. Try and get it to 'vaguely'! resemble your house so include a kitchen, bedroom, bathroom, living room. Tell the children that "Mary" (use the name of the host child) has mislaid her/his sock and needs the children to help her/him find it. The children then pin on the picture where they think that the sock is. Beforehand put a sock in one of the spots and then you get all the children to run to their chosen place to see if they were correct.
2006-10-09 07:20:09 · answer #1 · answered by Jamie J 3 · 3⤊ 0⤋
Try face painting, its not that hard when they are small, they love everything you paint. If you have a tractor or even a riding mower and a small trailer you could do a hay ride. Get a pullstring pinata. Have a bean bag toss with colorful holes on some bright card board with a fun prize for everyone who tries. Check out renting a pony. Maybe some sack races. They are so small that the race doesn't happen, but its fun to watch. Also, check into renting a bounce house. My sons 3rd b-day party was today and we had all of these things and more and they had a blast! We had it at a local farm and they road 2 different shetlin ponies, a hackney pony, and a quarter horse. Also, depending upon what time of year it is, you could always purchase some small pumpkins with some fun stickers or finger paint and let them decorate pumpkins. It doesn't have to be before Halloween, just as long as the pumpkins are in season, the kids won't care. Have fun. Need anymore ideas feel free to e-mail me. clb_tucker is my e-mail addy on yahoo.
2016-03-18 07:03:46 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
I had my 3 year old son's birthday party recently: bingo, pin the tail on the donkey, musical chairs, coloring books and guessing how many marbles are in a jar.
For the most part I have always found all these items at Wal-mart.
P.S. The kids really loved bingo and the coloring books
2006-10-09 06:30:45 · answer #3 · answered by Cali Girl 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Pin the tail on the Donkey.
A Pinata.
Go to your local discount Party Store - they'll have a ton of stuff.
Don't have too many people or folks will think you're just looking for presents. And THEY will fill up your small home.
2006-10-09 06:30:42 · answer #4 · answered by 34th B.G. - USAAF 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Musical Chairs, Pin the tail on the donkey.
2006-10-09 06:23:46 · answer #5 · answered by Maryjane 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋