…or almost FREE activities!
At a time when we are all indoors and rescheduling our lives around home, it’s always good to add family fun time. Forget the world of spending time looking on screens together, but start looking at more meaningful and interactive ways to keep family time fun.
As we all come closer together, check out 27 fun free family activities that won’t leave you bored and staring at a screen.
25 FREE Fun Family Activities
1. Baking
Let everyone choose something they want to bake together as a family. It could be cookies, cake pops, muffins, a pastry—anything yummy and bake-able! Then, you all work together as a family to get the ingredients, and make something super delicious everyone can be proud of being a part of.
My little family of three has done this plenty of times with making pizza. Since we all like different kinds of toppings, making pizza is a fun way to make dinner and spend family time together.
2. Gardening
Gardening is a very useful skill, and can be a lot of fun to get into. You can start a little vegetable, herb, or flower garden depending on the space you have. If you have a lot of space, everyone can have their own little plot where they can grow what they want as well! Gardening is a great way to show your kids how patience, hard work, and perseverance can pay off in big ways! It can even be used as a learning tool!
3. Story Time
To get the whole family involved in a favorite story, try acting it out instead of just reading it, or even turn it into a song (think Grease or High School Musical)! Everyone will become part of the story, and you will all have an amazing memory to look back on forever. Bonus points for going all in with costumes, funny voices, and homemade props!
4. Board Games
Sometimes just a relaxing day of playing board games is a great way to pass the time. Trust me, playing Monopoly can last for hours! If you want to add a little something extra, try making up some new rules and change the same old games up a bit! You can also create your very own games like themed charades, or scavenger hunts! Unleash your creative side, and play by your own rules. 😉
5. Craft Day
Coloring, collages, slime making, painting, etc. are all examples of super fun crafts you can do with your family. I’m not big on crafts, but I love coloring sheets which can be therapeutic. I did want to be an artist when I was younger because it was so fun to do at school! Art styles are all different, and there is no wrong way to be creative. Just have fun! Need inspiration? Just checkout YouTube or Pinterest!
6. Pizza Night
As I mentioned in the “Baking” section pizza making is so much fun and my son loves it! All you need is dough, toppings, sauce, and an oven to have your very own family pizzeria! Everyone gets enough dough for a personal sized pizza, and they can top it however they want. Then, you just bake and enjoy! This makes personal pizzas truly personal, and makes for great bonding time with food and fun!
7. Pillow Fort
One person can make a pretty awesome pillow fort, but a whole family can make an epic pillow CASTLE! Use cardboard boxes, blankets, couch cushions, pillows, and even put some chairs together to create this biggest fort possible. I’m an adult and love these just as much as my son!
For extra fun, camp out for a night in your fort and make it extra realistic with camp fire stories and smores.
8. Movie Marathon
(This is a great add-on to pillow fort day) Get comfy and watch a movie series for a day with lots snacks and finger food. Stay in your pajamas for extra coziness!
9. Learn Sign Language
Sign language is a very useful language to know, and it is actually a lot of fun to learn. I learned the alphabet way back in 8th grade and I never forgot it. You can use books and/or online tutorials, help each other practice, and even try going a whole day communicating with just sign! Find more about learning sign language here: https://www.startasl.com/american-sign-language-alphabet/
10. Film For A Day
Use your phones, to vlog and document a whole day with your family. Then you can watch it back and even edit it into a fun family movie if you want to! As the years go by, it will be fun to look back and remember what a fun day you had, and how you lived at that time.
11. Dance Party
Make a playlist with everyone’s favorite songs, and have big dance party! This was one favorite time when I was kid. We would all dance and have contest and work up a sweat! So go a little wild and crazy and have fun just shaking out all your troubles. You will get a great workout for it, too!
12. Yoga/Pilates
Speaking of workouts, Pilates and Yoga are fantastic ways to help with flexibility and fitness. Start with beginner positions, and practice daily until everyone is super comfortable with learning gradually more complex positions. Never overdo these exercises, and they can be a really amazing way to promote a healthy body and mind. This site might be helpful if you are a beginner: https://www.yogabasics.com/practice/yoga-for-beginners/
13. Picnic
This can be indoor or outdoor, depending on your situation. Pack up some food, drinks, snacks, pillows, and blankets. Then set up a nice little picnic spot in your house or backyard! Picnics are always a lot of fun and much more relaxing than a typical formal meal at a table.
14. Make Cards/Write Letters
Letters and cards can mean so much to elderly in nursing homes and troops overseas. Make some handmade cards with happy messages, or write some kind letters, and send them out to senior homes and military bases. This is a wonderful way to boost morale and spread love to people who may be lonely and discouraged. My local radio/news station actually has a campaign going for writing to nursing homes check it out: https://mynorthwest.com/1787303/letter-writing-campaign-nursing-homes/
You can also use these links to send your cards: https://supportourtroops.org/cards-letters AND https://www.operationgratitude.com/express-your-thanks/write-letters/
15. Fashion Show
Let the kids try on some old clothes from your closet, and make the craziest outfits they can think of… Then, the parents can pretend to be fashion show judges and score everyone’s costumes. The judges can even have their own eccentric outfits on for extra fun!
16. Write A Story
This can be done in a lot of ways. You can use a white/chalk board to add words while everyone takes turns adding one word at a time. You can also write one all together and put it on paper you can bind together into a homemade book. This also works with filling in mad-libs if you need a starting point to get your creativity rolling!
17. Tie Dye
Tie dye is a lot of fun, and is also a great outlet for creativity! You can tie dye just about any article of clothing, and there are a million ways to tie and dye them! Once they are all finished, you will have a great memory every time you wear whatever you made! Check out “5 easy tie-dye instructions — plus, 4 tie-dye patterns to try” here: https://www.care.com/c/stories/3341/5-easy-tie-dye-instructions-and-4-tie-dye-pat/
18. Learn To Sew
When I was in 9th grade, I was in a sewing elective class. I didn’t do to well in that class but there are some tips that I never forgot. The skills I learned still come in handy here and there. Even knowing how to sew on a button can be the difference between an awkward situation and a quick fix with no fuss. Basic stitches are also good to know in any future fashion emergencies.
19. Family Video Games
This is a top family favorite in my household! A lot of modern video games and systems have awesome multiplayer options that make family fun super easy! The Wii in particular has some of the best games and features for this, but you can use any system if you take turns playing one single player game. Keep it pressure free and have fun! Games are meant to be played to have FUN, not just to win.
20. Check Out Old Photo Albums
Learning about family history is a great way to keep memories and traditions alive. Great grandma’s cookie recipe will mean that much more if your kids have a face to place with the stories. Pictures are worth a thousand words, and they also preserve the memories of the past.
21. Life Sized Drawings
Get a big piece of poster board and have someone lay down on it. Then you can trace around their body so you have a template. Once that is done, everyone can work together to fill in the template and make a life sized drawing of the family member!
22. Karaoke
Karaoke is a lot of fun, and making it a family affair is sure to get lots of laughs. You can even hold a contest for silliest song/voice combo… Bonus points for interpretive dance!
23. Look For Four Leaf Clovers
If I could tell you how many times I’ve done this as a child! I was always determined to find one but never did. Clovers with four or more leaves are actually very rare. Looking for some in the backyard can pass a lot of time! Finding them is always very rewarding and exciting. You can also choose something else to hunt for; like mole hills, spider webs, or dandelions!
24. Make A Critter House
A typical birdhouse can be a home for lots of animals besides birds! Chipmunks, squirrels, mice, and other small mammals can also make their homes in birdhouses. This is a great way to keep these little guys warm and sheltered in the rain or cold that may be coming up where you live.
25. Scavenger Hunt
Scavenger hunts are really awesome ways to get the brain and body moving. There are also lots of ways to set up a scavenger hunt! You can theme it by color, size, room, and more! Set a time limit if you have older kids; and make sure if you have younger kids, that they can have fun without feeling too pressured to “win.” Family days and activities should be all about fun!
Helpful Links:
Learning Games You can do at Home
Family activities are wonderful opportunities to bond and create amazing memories with your kids. It’s the most enjoyable times that we all have together and you can too! Just make sure that it’s always a fun competition and that everyone can enjoy themselves.
If you have any more fun free family activities for families, please leave in the comments below so everyone can view!