Looking for some fun ways to keep preschoolers active during the cold winter months? I have some ideas to share with you today, that will help your little ones burn off some energy indoors this season.
We were incredibly lucky to have some fairly mild temperatures this season, however it appears that the cold temperatures have finally arrived to stay. Despite the dipping temperatures outdoors, toddlers still need to burn off all of that excess energy! The past few weeks, I've taken to doing a few fun active activities indoors with my little guy, and they all seem to be a big hit!
Read on for 3 fun ways to keep preschoolers active indoors during winter, below.
3 Fun ways to keep preschoolers active indoors during the winter:
- Set up an indoor obstacle course: Use soft/padded items to create an obstacle course indoors. We gather furniture cushions, pillows, stuffed animals and set up an obstacle course for our little guy to run through/explore on the first floor of our home. He loves to carefully maneuver around the objects and jump over the cushions/pillows, to make it from one end of the house to the other. Add an extra element of fun to your indoor obstacle course, by keeping time. My older kids like to get in on the fun when we add the competitive element of the timing!
- Make a hop scotch on hardwood floors / low-pile carpet with painters tape: Map out your hopscotch squares (and numbers) using handy (non-damaging ) painters tape. Once you're done having fun, it's super simple to remove without consequence to the surfaces that you've applied it. This is always a hit in our home with our older children and our toddler
- Learn, hop, jump, and dance with the new Learn & Groove™ Musical Mat by LeapoFrog: We are absolutely LOVING this new toy from LeapFrog. It's perfect for keeping preschoolers active indoors, during the winter months. Kids can learn and have fun in so many different ways with it, too! Our toddler loves to follow along to the simple commands/prompts. It's helping him build better listening skills and it's also helping him to learn the value of following directions [which is great for the 3+ age category]. While he plays with the Learn & Groove Mat, he's learning to identify numbers, animals, musical instruments, music beats, and so much more! There are so many different ways to play; it definitely has the potential to keep little ones engaged for 20-30 minutes at a time [eons for the toddler/preschooler crowd!] Kids can control the game play and switch between games/modes + select 1/2 player mode, with the large on-board yellow button (which is meant to be controlled by the touch/tap of your foot). Our toddler thinks that it's so fun that he can control this mat entirely with his feet! As a mom, I love that this fun learning mat offers up the capability to control the volume [with two volume settings / options], and that the coated material of the mat can be easily wiped clean. I also love that LeapFrog has included non-skid backing, to prevent slips/bunching while little ones are playing. All around super fun [active] toddler/preschooler toy, available at a more than reasonable price point [MSRP $29.99].
If you're looking for fun ways to keep your toddler active indoors this winter, the Learn & Groove Musical Mat by LeapFrog is definitely the way to go. If you're still on the hunt for the perfect holiday gift for the preschooler in your life, the Learn & Groove Musical Mat makes the perfect present too!
Find out more at www.LeapFrog.com
More about the Learn & Groove Musical Mat by LeapFrog [recommended for ages 2-5]:
- 50+ songs and phrases: Bring music and learning to life with every step with a fully interactive jumbo playmat that's over 4-feet long.
- Step into counting: Identify numbers 1 to 10, and count claps, beats and more with animal friends.
- Explore mode: Step on the circles on the mat for open-ended play to explore numbers, instrument names and sounds, and animal characters.
*Disclosure: Our thanks to the company for sending a unit for review/feature purposes. All opinions expressed are our own.
