25+ Family Boredom Busters

Here are 25+ boredom busters to liven up your routine, especially if you’re home more than before.

You may have decided to stay home more than normal in this corona climate. And you might be feeling  a little…claustrophobic. Try some of these 25+ family boredom busters to give you ideas for different things to do together that will make you laugh and draw you together. And you may even learn a few things along the way!

So whether you’re home a lot or you need a few fresh ideas, check out these 25+ family boredom busters.  Trying new ways to homeschool and play together will help you bring your kids’  homeschool education to life. It will also help you have a thriving home, no matter if it looks a little different than it has in the past.

So what should you do? Try a few of the 25+ family boredom busters to liven things up.

Beat a quarantine (or a rut) with these 25+  Boredom Busters

1. 1. Take turns setting up blindfolded “taste tests.”  Afterward, have each family member try various liquids and food. Then see who can stump the others and guess more of them correctly.
   2. With more time, do a project you normally wouldn’t want to mess the house up.
   3. Have dad and the kids cook together! (Of course, they should clean up, too.) My personal favorite.
   4. Bone up on your art education by taking a virtual stroll through parts of 12 of the most famous museums in the world. And you can have extra credit for having your children each pick one of their favorite works to copy.
   5. Plant a garden together if it’s warm enough where you are. Alternatively, start some seeds growing in preparation.
   6. Using random things around the house or in the garage, divide the family into two or more teams. Then, have each team make an obstacle course.  (Or maybe parents vs. kids if the kids are old enough.) There’s lots of room for creativity here.
   7. Take daily walks or hikes outside. History tells us that fresh air and sunshine are natural antibiotics.
   8. Make a big fort with chairs, pillows, and blankets or set up a tent inside (or in the backyard if it’s warm enough) and read together. Or instead, read together, separately.
   9. Make sidewalk chalk masterpieces in the driveway or on the porch. Or trace each of your kids and have them fill in the details.  Don’t forget to take pictures!
   10. Teach your kids to make bread or bake cut-out cookies. Don’t forget to decorate them.
   11. Make slime or play dough.
   12. Play 20 Questions, charades, or your favorite board games. Make it special by making snacks and drinking hot chocolate or icy lemonade. Or you could put puzzles together.
   13. When you get tired of your family’s games, switch games with another family.
   14. Dramatize a scene from one of your favorite family read-alouds together. You get extra points for coming up with costumes.
   15. If it’s safe for your family, give neighbor parents a break and have their kids over to play for the morning or afternoon.
   16. Everyone picks their favorite movie. Then have a movie marathon in your jammies with popcorn.
   17. If the weather allows, have a family picnic at the beach, park, or in your backyard.
   18. Do some science experiments together as a family. Here are 63 that you can do with regular stuff around the house. (Of course, you can count this for school!)
   19. Dig out your coloring books and crayons and color together.
   20. Play the card games you played as a child: Go Fish, Books, Old Maid, War.
   21. Find your unmatched socks, old buttons, and ribbon and make sock puppets. Then put on a puppet show for the littles or make a video so others can enjoy the show.
   22. Gather colored paper, leftover bits of wrapping paper, ribbon, rick-rack, washi tape, scissors, and glue sticks with your elementary-on-up kids. After that save some serious money by making greeting cards!
   23. Make a bucket of bubble solution and bend a large circle of thick wire on a stick or broom handle. Following that, make HUGE bubbles for the kids to chase.
   24. And for the crafty, here are 50 ideas of colorful, fun things kids can make.
   25. Play outside games like Mother, May I, Freeze Tag, Sardines, Hide and Go Seek, Hop Scotch, Four Square, and Red Light-Green Light. (By the way, some of these are great for teaching littles instructions, too.) If you need ideas, here’s a post with many games that your kids will love.
   26. Check out some of these clever ideas for building tents for your kids to play in. The more you add novelty to your kids’ day, the better it will be!

I pray you and your family are well and can handle this time with grace and peace.  And if you’re considering homeschooling, you may read more in this post comparing homeschooling and public schooling and this post with expert input from experienced homeschooling parents.

Warmly,