For most kids, recess is their favorite part of the day — it gives them a break from the day’s lessons and allows them to socialize and have fun with classmates. Plus, recess is recommended by most professionals. Research shows that recess helps students free their minds, become more creative and develop their soft skills.
While every child loves to play outside during recess, it is not always possible. When it rains or snows, recess has to be held indoors. To keep kids entertained, teachers must get creative.
If there’s a storm brewing and you’re in search of games to play in school, we’re here to help. Here’s a list of indoor activities for kids that will keep your students entertained during indoor recess.
Get your students in touch with their artistic side with these three fun indoor activities.
Ages: 4+
If you have extra egg cartons at home, grab them so your class can make an adorable bale of turtles. To begin the craft, cut the egg carton into 12 individual cups.
Once the cups are separated, give each student an egg carton cup along with some green and brown paint, googly eyes, pipe cleaners, glue and pom poms. Students can begin the craft by painting the piece of egg carton green with brown spots. Once the cup is dry, they can create the rest of the turtle’s body:
Once everything is glued together, your classroom will be filled with tiny critters and happy kids.
Ages: 8+
This challenge is a hybrid between a craft and a game. The competitive nature of this craft makes it entertaining for older students.
To begin, start by separating your students into multiple groups of four. Then, give each group an equal amount of supplies to make a tower. You can use any supplies you have. Some popular options include:
Once your students have the supplies they need, set a timer to 30 minutes — that’s how much time they have to try and build the tallest tower possible. When the timer goes off, measure each tower. The team with the tallest tower wins.
Ages: 3+
If it’s raining outside, use this craft to make your own rainbow inside the classroom. Start by cutting white paper into the shape of a cloud. Then, pass out colored paper, googly eyes, glue and scissors to each student. If the students are too young to use scissors, you can cut the strips for them.
Once the students have the supplies, they can begin cutting the colored paper into long strips and gluing the strips side-by-side on the bottom of the cloud. After they’ve made the rainbow, they can give the cloud googly eyes and let the craft dry.
Every student loves to play games in school. These three game ideas for indoor recess will keep your students entertained in the classroom.
Ages: 4+
If the weather turns bad suddenly, this is the perfect game. “Find It Fast” is an impromptu scavenger hunt. Begin the game by gathering your students and giving them a vague description of an item. They will then try to find an item that matches the description.
Some possible game prompts include:
The student who finds an item that matches the description the fastest wins that round.
Ages: 4+
If you have students who need to burn off some extra energy, this is a great game. You begin by creating space in the middle of a room. Then, hang a piece of string horizontally to act as a net.
Once the game is set up, split your class into two teams. Then, give students a balloon to act as a ball. The goal of the game is for the kids to keep the ball from landing on the ground. If a team can make the balloon hit the ground on the other side of the net, they get a point. The team with the most points wins.
Ages: 4+
This fun game will keep students engaged during a rainy day. To begin the game, select a student to face away from the rest of the class — having them sit with their backs to the class at the front of the room is one idea. While the student is turned around, give another student a “bone” to hide in their desk or on their lap. The “bone” can be any object you have on hand.
Once someone has the bone, the student facing away from the class should say, “Doggie, doggie, where’s your bone?” The student with the bone should bark. Then, the student can turn around and has three guesses to guess who barked.
If the student can guess who barked, they get to go again, or you can select new participants.
Who says educational activities can’t be fun? These three activities will allow students to have fun while stretching their brain muscles.
Ages: 7+
This educational game is a competition to see who knows their spelling words. To begin, gather your students in a circle, select a student to start the game and announce a spelling word.
Once the first player says a letter, each person in the circle should go around saying a letter of the word. Each player should say a letter until the word has been spelled. When the word has been completely spelled, a student should say “sparkle” to acknowledge that the word has been spelled correctly. The player beside the student who says “sparkle” is eliminated.
If any student says a wrong letter in the game, they are eliminated, and the turn goes to the next student. Whoever is the last player standing wins the game.
Ages: 4+
While this game is not educational in the same way as “Sparkle,” it is a memory game that allows students to improve their attention, concentration and focus skills.
This game starts with one student leaving the classroom. When the student is in the hallway, one student should hide, and the other students should switch desks.
When every student is in their new spot, the selected student should reenter the classroom. The student will have two tries and 10 seconds to figure out which student is hiding.
If the student can guess who hid, they win a prize.
Ages: 7+
This activity is an educational twist on the classic game bingo. During the game, students will compete individually to solve math equations.
To prepare for the activity, create enough bingo cards for every student in your class to have one. Each card will consist of a five-by-five grid, with a total of 25 slots. Label the middle slot as a free space and leave the rest empty.
After you make the grids, put together the math questions you want to ask. For example, you might come up with addition and subtraction problems to complement your current math lesson. Then, list the answers to the problems on a separate sheet of paper, creating enough copies for each student.
When you are ready to play, give each student a bingo card, an answer sheet and a marker. Students can then fill out their grids with the numbers from the answer sheet. Ask the questions in a random order. Students will come up with an answer, and then cross out the corresponding number on their cards.
Students will win the game by completing a horizontal, vertical or diagonal line on their card. When they achieve this, the students should shout “bingo.” Make sure to keep track of what questions you’ve asked so that you can check students’ answers. If a student gets bingo with all the right answers, you can celebrate their win by giving them a small prize.
Here at Playworld, we know how important recess is for children. Recess helps students focus in the classroom and create lasting friendships. When you get playground equipment from us, you know that you are getting equipment that is inclusive and safe, helping kids create lasting memories during recess.
Our goal is to unite students on the playground. To get more information, find your local representative or fill out our contact form today.
