https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Mon, 13 Apr 2026 08:53:01 +0000 https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/what-keeps-your-kindergartener-busy#post-2920661 Tue, 10 Nov 2020 13:59:19 +0000 nana87 2920661@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Another vote for audiobooks. My 6yo listens to books for hours on end! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/what-keeps-your-kindergartener-busy#post-2920658 Tue, 10 Nov 2020 12:57:57 +0000 castilrm 2920658@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>We’re still doing distance learning here so my kinder daughter usually has work to do in the morning and early afternoon and that keeps her busy while I work. Afterwards, I try to get her to go outside - either I’ll walk with her or she’ll go in the yard and play with chalk, water, sensory bins, collect random leaves/rocks, etc for awhile. I also ended up buying subscriptions to KiwiCo, Raddish, and Little Passports, so those keep her busy for a few afternoons a month (although she needs help with these so that backfires in terms of giving me time to do work!). </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/what-keeps-your-kindergartener-busy#post-2920636 Tue, 10 Nov 2020 05:03:36 +0000 SweetCaroline 2920636@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Kemma: we live on 20 acres and spend hours upon hours outside :grin: </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/what-keeps-your-kindergartener-busy#post-2920632 Mon, 09 Nov 2020 22:55:51 +0000 PinkElephant 2920632@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@catgirl: ooh like a labyrinth- fun! DH would go bonkers over the sound of the marble on a cookie sheet but I love it!</p> <p>@SweetCaroline: I feel your pain on the Peers. My kids will not do the gorgeous mermaid and unicorn glittery sticker mosaics for anything. I cannot figure out why, because they like stickers, crafts, and unicorns/mermaids. 🤪 </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/what-keeps-your-kindergartener-busy#post-2920599 Sat, 07 Nov 2020 18:55:40 +0000 Kemma 2920599@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I send my kids outside! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/what-keeps-your-kindergartener-busy#post-2920598 Sat, 07 Nov 2020 16:50:17 +0000 gotkimchi 2920598@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@bhbee: we love art hub for kids too </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/what-keeps-your-kindergartener-busy#post-2920597 Sat, 07 Nov 2020 14:54:49 +0000 bhbee 2920597@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>My kinder son will spend hours doing Art Hub for Kids on YouTube. The only annoyance is that youtube needs supervision, but he’s a good rule follower about sticking to their videos so far. I like how they always have a kid do it next to the adult so you see it doesn’t have to be perfect. He loves their origami too but can only do a bit on his own. </p> <p>All my kids love Legos and sometimes I give challenges to keep them busy - there are lots of calendars and such floating around that have one for every day of the month. Like build a rocket ship and Martian today ... builds overall creativity as the more they use the pieces, the more ideas they have next time. </p> <p>I also just cleared out an eye level bookshelf for our little Christmas Lego sets and basically made a diorama and they have been super into it! That could be a fun project if you can find the space, where you set up an initial idea and she rearranges and builds on it, you could give ideas for additional things it needs. I added a string of fairy lights from target, kids always seem to love little things like that to add to the magic. And I put in some small empty gift boxes (I have a closet full of these, ugh) to make different hills/levels which adds to making it a little world. Obviously a bit of work to set up at first but better than cleaning up sensory bins in my book :silly: </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/what-keeps-your-kindergartener-busy#post-2920592 Sat, 07 Nov 2020 14:00:10 +0000 SweetCaroline 2920592@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@catgirl: Fantastic ideas! Thank you!</p> <p>@PinkElephant: YES! I just ordered some rice and funnels, etc. Time to resurrect the sensory bins. I have some water beads also.</p> <p>@ilovepie: i love that! DD has zero interest in audio books. Maybe I can get her started with a read a long audio book. I think she would enjoy following along in a picture book.</p> <p>@LadyDi: Oh great idea! I think I could get her set up with one of her Lego Friends sets and she might stay busy.</p> <p>@Dahlia: Yes, I definitely need to do better with invitations to play! Also, good reminder. I will set up a call with my mom for her.</p> <p>@erinbaderin: @caitcat: You guys, my kid will not do perler beads by herself. It's such a PERFECT activity to stay occupied and burn some time but NOPE! Time to try again!!</p> <p>@kce56: Yes! We have a book of Highlights mosaics and they are so fun, DD won't sit to do them though, stinker :silly: </p> <p>You've all given great ideas. I need to focus on invitations to play and reintroducing things she hasn't bit on in the past. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/what-keeps-your-kindergartener-busy#post-2920588 Sat, 07 Nov 2020 11:13:48 +0000 kce56 2920588@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>My DD is very into perler beads and sticker mosaics! They have some cute ones on Amazon with mermaids, unicorns, etc. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/what-keeps-your-kindergartener-busy#post-2920585 Sat, 07 Nov 2020 06:43:51 +0000 caitcat 2920585@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>My kindergartener has been on a kick with perler beads lately. She's okay-ish with the tiny ones, but can do the bigger ones ("biggie beads" I think they're called?) all on her own. Well, aside from the ironing. :) But it takes her a long time to settle on the pattern she's making, so it buys me some time regardless. </p> <p>She'll also still play with sensory bins that we rotate in and out. She had an elaborate setup with some lego figures playing in water beads yesterday that she stuck with for almost two hours. It was great!</p> <p>And this was a random gift she got for Christmas last year that was a big hit - she'll play with a set of melting putty animals (like this one <a href="https://www.papersource.com/gifts/melting-sparkling-unicorn-10001131.html)" rel="nofollow">https://www.papersource.com/gifts/melting-sparkling-unicorn-10001131.html)</a> so often. They don't take long to make, but she's oddly amused by watching them melt slowly and seeing which one melts fastest/slowest. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/what-keeps-your-kindergartener-busy#post-2920583 Fri, 06 Nov 2020 19:53:07 +0000 erinbaderin 2920583@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Melt beads. My kindergartener also really likes drawing, so we got a How to Draw Pokémon book - the instructions are a bit advanced but he loves to trace them. He also really loves How To Draw videos on YouTube. We have a huge collection of Schleich animal figurines and he’ll play with those for a long long time. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/what-keeps-your-kindergartener-busy#post-2920575 Fri, 06 Nov 2020 16:51:30 +0000 Dahlia 2920575@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Legos, Playmobil, magnatiles, puzzles, all the crafts (we've had good luck with paint by sticker, coloring books, general art supplies), podcasts, Facetiming with my parents (she can talk to them for an hour or more if they let her), Outschool classes....<br /> I agree with the above that rotating toys and creating "invitations to play" is helpful </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/what-keeps-your-kindergartener-busy#post-2920573 Fri, 06 Nov 2020 16:33:11 +0000 LadyDi 2920573@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I haven't tried this yet with my kindergartner but I know there are a lot of guided "how to draw" videos on youtube. DS is getting more into coloring and drawing but he's not very creative so I want to give those videos a try to see if they will keep him busy for awhile. He loves instructions, so he can play with LEGO for hours if he has instructions to build something specific. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/what-keeps-your-kindergartener-busy#post-2920542 Thu, 05 Nov 2020 22:16:57 +0000 ilovepie 2920542@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Mine will listen to audio books for hours. Or story podcasts like the alien adventures of fun Caspian. </p> <p>Definitely rotating toys and stuff strewn on the table to create with. I'm bad a strewing, but even new markers, stickers, playdough with different toys than usual will work. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/what-keeps-your-kindergartener-busy#post-2920541 Thu, 05 Nov 2020 22:00:15 +0000 catgirl 2920541@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@PinkElephant: I stand them up like walls. If I use a small baking sheet she will sometimes pick it up and try to guide it through by moving the tray side to side and front to back. Sometimes she will use a straw to blow it through the maze. We've also used a marble instead of the pom poms. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/what-keeps-your-kindergartener-busy#post-2920539 Thu, 05 Nov 2020 21:54:27 +0000 PinkElephant 2920539@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@catgirl: This magnatile maze sounds really cool (and like a great OT exercise, haha) - do you lay the tiles flat, or stand them up like walls? Does she use a tool of some sort to move the pompoms?</p> <p>@SweetCaroline: For any of my girls (4, 6, and 8, so no kindergartner....but close), I find that just "rotating" toys and leaving different things out on different days helps. If you're ok cleaning up a little mess later, my girls really like sensory bins of rice (especially if it's colored), beans, etc. and some cups/scoops, with small toys like shopkins/hatchimals to hide in the rice and "find". If they play with a bin inside a larger bin or on a tablecloth, clean up really isn't bad. At her age she might be prime to enjoy some of the "Dot Marker" coloring books and paint-dot markers, or Melissa and Doug has a (slightly neater) washable stamp marker coloring book with different shaped "stamps". Does school provide any digital programs she could be permitted to use for a limited time during the day? I really am not a screen time fan, but I've been okay with things like Amplify, Guided Readers, Raz Kids, ABCya, ABC Mouse, many of which are free or she may have a subscription to from school, when I need to occupy the girls and keep them from fighting with each other or getting too loud and crazy when we're on calls. If you've got indoor space and can handle a little noise, we just got a My First Flybar (introductory pogo jumper) that is ok for indoor use and my kiddos LOVE to use to burn energy. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/what-keeps-your-kindergartener-busy#post-2920535 Thu, 05 Nov 2020 21:18:38 +0000 catgirl 2920535@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>It's so hard - DD might play with something for an hour one day and only ten minutes the next. But things that have the ability to keep her busy independently: magna tiles, her dollhouse, her art supplies, puzzles, and dolls.</p> <p>I find the key is to set up some inviting play options. So I might set up a scene with her barbies and leave it out for her - it inspires her to jump in. With the magna tiles I might build a maze on a baking sheet and she has to get pom poms through it - then she tries to create her own. We move the dollhouse to different rooms sometimes so it feels new. </p> <p>We encourage her to use her camera to take pictures of things she does while playing independently. That way she can show us later rather than while she is playing. </p> <p>But honestly, the main thing is to let her get bored sometimes. I find that if I don't step in she ends up filling more time. But it's hard to deal with the initial whining or disappointment. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/what-keeps-your-kindergartener-busy#post-2920529 Thu, 05 Nov 2020 21:01:32 +0000 SweetCaroline 2920529@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I'm sure many of you were or are WFH while keeping kids alive. I had DD home with me while WFM March-May (baby born end of May), then we were isolated at home on maternity leave June-August.</p> <p>So fortunate to have DD at in-person school, but starting to feel itchy as we have 18 days scheduled of no school coming up Nov-Dec and certainly more unscheduled days off. I'm in lots of meetings (and it's my busy season) and am looking for creative ideas to occupy DD. She's in Kindergarten--what keeps your kids busy and happy?</p> <p>DD could play school with her imaginary "kids", play with her craft cart or whiteboard for hours *if she is in the mood*. Looking for other things to have in my back pocket. </p>