Seeing your toddler sitting on the living room floor, looking around the room for something to do, you grab their favourite puzzle from the shelf and take it over to them. But after sitting down and spreading the puzzle pieces out across the floor, your toddler crawls away, seemingly uninterested. So you find the red bouncy ball they love to roll back and forth and push it in their direction, but they simply watch it roll past, a look of boredom on their face. You offer activity after activity but nothing seems to excite them. You start to wonder - Are they already bored with all their games and toys?

While there are a lot of great baby and toddler games out there, you might not want to spend a bunch of cash on even more toys they’ll only play with a few times. So, are there any games and activities you can make with the items already available to you?

Absolutely! Baby and toddler toys don’t need to be expensive, complicated, or even very attractive. Toddlers love to explore new things, and it doesn’t matter much to them what they look like.

Besides saving you some money, creating homemade activities for your child can be a fun and creative pastime. If they join you in the making process, your toddler will love it too!

So, with all that said, we’ve put together a small list of activities for you and your child to create and play together at home. Let’s take a look now!

What are our 8 homemade baby and toddler activities?

Tape toy rescue

What you’ll need: Some tape, a few small toys, and a flat surface.

How to play: Set the small toys on a flat surface and loosely tape them down. Your toddler must work their way across the surface, tugging all the toys free.

Why it’s good: This activity will improve fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination, and, if your child manages to free up all the toys, they’ll feel a wonderful sense of accomplishment.

Card slot drop

What you’ll need: An old plastic or cardboard container, a knife (for adult use only!), and a deck of cards.

How to play: Cut a slit into the container lid large enough for a playing card to fall through. Show your little one how to push the cards through the slot and then remove the lid and cards for them, so they can start all over again.

Why it’s good: Not only does ‘card slot drop’ help with cause and effect thinking, fine motor skills development, and hand-eye coordination, it also requires problem-solving skills. Your little one must work out which direction to position the cards for them to easily slide through the slot.

Toy push drop

What you’ll need: As with card slot drop, you’ll need an old plastic or cardboard container of some kind, as well as some small toys.

How to play: Make a small hole in the container lid just big enough for a small toy to be pushed through. Demonstrate how to push a toy through and how to take the lid off once they’re done, and your toddler’s ready to go.

Why it’s good: This activity is especially good for teaching cause-and-effect thinking and improving fine motor skills. You can also change the items that are pushed inside the container, creating an almost entirely new game for your little one.

Snack egg hunt

What’ll you’ll need: Empty plastic eggs (if you don’t have these, you may need to buy them, but they’re fairly cheap) and your toddler or baby’s favourite little snack.

How to play: Fill the eggs with a few of your child’s favourite treats and pop them around the living room. Remember, they’re only little so don’t hide them too well! Show your child how to open them and let the hunt begin!

Why it’s good: This will be a tonne of fun for your toddler and what’s more, opening the eggs will be great for their grip strength.

Rainbow bath party

What you’ll need: Plastic, water-safe objects, water, and a little food colouring (optional).

How to play: Wander about the house with your toddler looking for items that are all the same colour and all water safe. Pop them in the bath and then fill it with water as per usual. If you fancy it, add a drop or two of food colouring to match the objects. Food colouring won’t stain, but it’s entirely optional.

Why it’s good: Besides toddlers loving water-play, this can be a great way to teach your little one about colours!

Ripping paper bucket

What you’ll need: A basket or bucket, lots of old newspaper, wrapping paper, tissue paper, and whatever else you don’t mind getting torn to pieces!

How to play: Place all the paper in the bucket and show your child how to rip and scrunch.

Why it’s good: To a little one, there are very few activities more satisfying than tearing at paper. Not only does it feel satisfying, but it also sounds great too! And if your child has a bit of a fascination with paper and has been known to tear a book or 2, this should put a stop to that urge.

Web basket challenge

What you’ll need: A basket, different-sized cuddly toys, and some string or rope.

How to play: Place the cuddly toys inside the basket and then wind and tie the string through the basket’s holes to create a web. Challenge your toddler to remove all the cuddly toys, pulling them between the web as best they can.

Why it’s good: Though this could prove a little challenging for your child, and you should stay on hand to help, it’s great for their spacial awareness, hand-eye coordination, and fine motor skills.

Sticky wall art

What you’ll need: Contact paper, painter’s tape, bits and bobs from previous arts and crafts activities.

How to play: Now we know this sounds like it may get a little messy but if it’s done the right way, it should prove easy to tidy up. Place some contact paper onto a wall with the sticky side facing outwards and tape it down. Then encourage your child to stick pieces of tissue paper, card, cotton balls, and pipe cleaners onto the contact paper, creating a beautiful and colourful collage!

Why it’s good: With the contact paper stuck on the wall, this will be great for your toddler’s arm strength and hand-eye coordination, and it offers them a chance to be creative! Leave it hanging for a few days, so they can come back to it and feel proud of their art.

What are some homemade baby-toddler activities?

Unii suggests some ways to engage your child's imagination while encouraging their development.