Feeling rather unsure how to spend time with your kids on weekends? Look no further! In this article, you can find our selection of things to do today with kids age 3 to 5!
It’s easy for moms and dads to go through the day-to-day motions of life with kids aged 3 to 5.
But stay in this mode too long, and you’ll be missing out on some fun activities that are good for your child’s growth and development!
Fun Things to Do Today With Kids
Here are some fun things to do today with kids that parents should try who is between the ages of 3 years old to 5 years old.
#1. Explore nature
Go on a nature walk and pick up trash along the way. Point out different shapes in leaves, flowers, berries, and mushrooms.
Point out natural features like mountains or rocks, Point out street signs or other manmade objects along the way.
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You could even bring along pony beads, stones, seashells, etc., to teach your child about shapes and different natural features.
Collecting items along the way can be a learning experience for what is “OK” vs. what is not OK to take from nature or an opportunity to teach your child morals or empathy by explaining how you are picking up trash because it would hurt nature if we didn’t pick them up.
#2. Play-Doh
Play with play-doh or other art mediums that help build fine motor skills in kids age 3 to 5 years old.
You can even put out magazines with glossy pages and let them use their fingers as playdough to create designs on the page!
This helps develop fine motor skills in children, which help them with practical life skills in the future!
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If you have a can of play-doh, use cookie cutters to create shapes with the play dough. Make sure when your child is done playing that you clean up all parts of this art project and put it away where kids age 3 to 5 cannot access it.
#3. Invite your kid to the library
Take your child to the library and get them some new books to read or exchange their current books (if they are re-reading them over and over again).
New words are important for young children to learn how to speak!
Books with animals can help teach lessons about empathy, which builds their morality.
Check out local parenting groups on Facebook or online forums for book suggestions based on your child’s age group (i.e. “books for age 3 to 5”).
Personally, it’s the best place where can i take my kid to have fun and learn new things from book.
#4. Spend time in the park
Take your kids age 3 to 5 years old to the park and let them play on the swingset, jungle gym, slide(s), and run around.
In the meantime, you can sit back on a bench and read a new book or magazine that is relevant to parenthood (or reading this blog).
This takes away your child’s screen time (i.e television, tablet, cell phone) while still letting them have some fun.
But make sure when they are done playing on the playground equipment that all parts of it are put back in their proper place so other children can use it too without any safety hazards or inconveniences.
#5. Dominos in different colors
Play with dominoes by stacking different colored dots on top of each other in different patterns.
You can even give your child dominoes that are already made into shapes like circles, hearts, or triangles (or whatever else you might find at the store).
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Making numbers 1-12 with either dots or shapes is also a good activity for kids age 3 to 5 years old to practice touching something small and using fine motor skills in their fingers.
This is great because it builds on math skills too!
#6. Make trail mix
Make trail mix (i.e., dried fruit, cereal, nuts) together and take it anywhere in a baggie with a plastic spoon inside so they don’t get dirty!
Or make an apple sandwich by putting peanut butter or cream cheese between slices of apples rather than bread if your child is allergic to gluten.
This is a good activity for parents with kids age 3 to 5 because they can participate in making healthy foods and snacks that will make them less picky eaters as they get older!
#7. Explore colors and animal sounds
When you are unsure what to do today with your 3 or 5-year-old kid, try to teach your child colors and animal sounds.
Bring animals into the conversation by asking them questions about what color they are or if they can say their animal sound(s) like “woof” or “meow”.
This helps teach them how to speak, which helps with literacy skills later on!
#8. Learn shapes and sizes
Help your child learn shapes & sizes by putting a certain number of items out on a table or open floor area and letting them guess what shape they are going to create together based on the numbers you put out.
Practice this by putting out 3 spheres, 4 triangles, and 5 squares and asking them what shape they will make with the items you put out for them to play with.
This helps develop cognitive skills in children and also fun things to do today with kids, which allows them to learn faster and better understand things like colors and shapes (which again build literacy skills)!
#9. Group dance with your child
Get up and dance with your child! Children love music because it’s fun and energetic!
You can even sing along or just let their little bodies move to the beat of the music as much as possible until they fall down tired from all that dancing!
#10. Play the game “Why?”
Ask open-ended questions like “why” so much that your child gets used to responding with answers rather than one-word answers.
Use the word why as often as you can with questions that will teach your child about empathy and social graces like “why did you let your sister go first?” or “why do you think she is upset right now?”
Doing this builds great character in children by teaching them how to be fair and polite members of society.
#11. Squeeze in some time for your kids, even if you’re busy!
Brush your child’s hair when they are getting ready for bed or just waking up in the morning so that you can spend some quality time with them before working, going to school, etc.
If you have a daughter, ask her how she wants it done and one style of doing it until they are old enough to do their own hair!
#12. Roleplay with other family members
Turn off the tv and play together as a family member at home!
It helps your children learn through role-play and not from constantly seeing things on tv that may be intimidating (i.e., violence) or harmful (i.e., commercials for sugary cereals).
It also takes away screen time which has been proven to negatively affect children later on in life with obesity, poor vision, and lack of social skills.
#13. Talk
Talk to your child about everything! Don’t be afraid to let your voice go up high or low when you are talking to them so they can learn how different tones affect their moods.
They learn most from tone rather than vocabulary, which is why it’s important that they are constantly listening to you say different things with different tones of voice every day!
This builds very powerful communication skills in children for later on in school where they will have to speak clearly and concisely if they want to get the right answers.
#14. Hide and seek
Play hide-and-seek or tag with your kids outside! Your kids will love running around outside instead of inside where there are a lot of electronics and distractions.
They will learn how to pay attention to their surroundings better if you play with them outside more often!
#15. Teach them to cook, but be extra careful!
Teach your children how to cook by letting them help in the kitchen! This helps develop fine motor coordination, problem-solving skills, and independence for when they are older and cooking their own food but don’t know how to cook yet.
Make sure you employ them to do things far from the stove or any hazards. Things such as kneading the dough or decorating the cookie can be a good start
#16. Set up some board games
Play games with your child like UNO or Go Fish where you have to put yourself in their shoes.
This way, you can see what it’s like being a child having fun with their family members playing around without feeling judged or stressed out about it–which could affect their social skills later on down the line.
It also builds empathy for other people because they realize that parents are there just to have fun with them instead of worrying about work all the time!
#17. Read a book
Read a book (or let them read one to you if they can’t read yet). Reading is great for when your child gets older because it’s another way to escape reality.
It also helps build vocabulary for when they are in school so you can help them with their homework instead of having them struggle by themselves.
This assists in their education which will determine how much money they make when they are older. So, do whatever you can now to help them understand the importance of reading!
Tips on How to Get Your Kid up for Activities
Make sure that you give your children plenty of fruits and vegetables to ensure that they eat healthy food. It ensures them to have more energy and be active (which is what they are supposed to be at this age)
Instead of waiting until dinnertime to feed them, you can give them healthy snacks in between games.
This prevents unhealthy snacking or being hungry at night which causes cranky moods in children that last all night long.
They will also be more willing to eat their veggies if they see you eating them too so it’s a great way for the whole family to bond by sharing healthy food together!
Conclusion
There are many more things for parents with kids aged 3 to 5 years old to do during the day, but these are just some suggestions to get started!
Parents should try different activities every day so their child doesn’t get bored. Keep doing activities like these until they graduate elementary school (i.e., age 11).