Indoors 42
- Tummy time with Dad3–5 min, a few times a day · $0 · Ages 0–1
- Toy cleanup race: picture bins, a song and a timer15 min · $0 · Ages 1–4
- Picture-book point-and-name for toddlers15 min · $0 · Ages 1–3
- Toddler bedtime: a 15-minute wind-down, then the routine40 min · $0 · Ages 1–3
- Toddler pouring station with cups and funnels30 min · $0 · Ages 1–3
- Blanket-fort reading den45 min · $0 · Ages 2–8
- Rainy-day hallway obstacle course30 min · $0 · Ages 2–6
- Set up a calm-down corner30 min · $0 · Ages 2–7
- A week of “when-then”: calm limits that stick10 min a day · $0 · Ages 2–8
- Catch them being good: a week of specific praise10 min a day · $0 · Ages 2–10
- Remote-control Dad: pause, rewind, fast-forward15 min · $0 · Ages 2–6
- Freeze dance with Dad's playlist20 min · $0 · Ages 2–8
- Kitchen band: pot drums, shakers and a song45 min · $0 · Ages 2–8
- Library card day: their own card, their own books90 min · $0 · Ages 3–12
- The screen-free swap box30 min · $0 · Ages 3–10
- The feelings check-in: a number, a word, what helps15 min · $0 · Ages 3–8
- Pretend shop and a wait jar (ages 3 to 5)20 min · $0 · Ages 3–5
- The dice-roll rainy day1 hour · $0 · Ages 3–10
- Telling your kid someone has died20 min · $0 · Ages 3+
- Trash-can basketball league30 min · $0 · Ages 3–10
- Spend, save, give: three jars30 min · $0 · Ages 4–9
- Sort, fold, put away: the laundry crew30 min · $0 · Ages 4–10
- Living-room campoutOvernight · $0 · Ages 4–12
- Balloon volleyball in the living room30 min · $0 · Ages 4–10
- Audiobook and coloring hour: a calm reset1 hour · $0 · Ages 4–10
- Show your kid what you do at work30 min · $0 · Ages 5–12
- A chore chart you'll actually keep30 min · $0 · Ages 5–14
- Make a family media plan together45 min · $0 · Ages 5–17
- Play Kim's game: remember the tray20 min · $0 · Ages 5+
- Play Quicksight and Farsight: two eye games30 min · $0 · Ages 5–12
- Co-op game night: think out loud45 min · $0 · Ages 5–12
- Chapter-book nights: 20 minutes, voices, cliffhangers30 min · $0 · Ages 6–11
- Talking with your kid about scary news20 min · $0 · Ages 6–14
- Set a holiday gift budget with your kids45 min · $0 to plan · Ages 6–14
- Play their video game with them45 min · $0 · Ages 6–14
- Grocery price detective60 min · $0 · Ages 7–12
- Send secret words with the wig-wag code30 min · $0 · Ages 7+
- The online safety talk: photos, secrets and sextortion20 min · $0 · Ages 9–17
- Extra jobs, a 24-hour wait and a dad bank45 min · $0 · Ages 10–13
- The first-phone talk and agreement45 min · $0 · Ages 11–16
- Read a first pay stub together45 min · $0 · Ages 14+
- Plan your teen's first real job45 min · $0 · Ages 14–18
Outdoors 17
- The after-dinner family walk30 min · $0 · Any age
- Water-safety rules before summer swimming30 min · $0 · Ages 3–12
- Teach a kid to ride a bike, balance first30 min a session · $0 with a bike and helmet · Ages 3–8
- A no-flashlight moon walk40 min · $0 · Ages 4+
- A first campout in the backyardOvernight · $0 · Ages 4–12
- Find five plants on a neighborhood walk45 min · $0 · Ages 4–12
- Skip a stone five times45 min · $0 · Ages 5+
- Find north with a stick and the sun30 min · $0 · Ages 5+
- Read tracks in mud, sand or snow60 min · $0 · Ages 5+
- A Junior Ranger day with DadHalf a day · Park fee, if any · Ages 5–13
- Lay a trail with 1911 trail signs45 min · $0 · Ages 5+
- Find Orion, the winter hunter30 min · $0 · Ages 5+
- Build a backyard lean-to2 hrs · $0 · Ages 6+
- Make a sundial and mark the hours1 hr, spread over a sunny day · $0 · Ages 6+
- Find south with an analog watch20 min · $0 · Ages 7+
- Measure a tree with its shadow45 min · $0 · Ages 8+
- Measure across a creek without crossing it45 min · $0 · Ages 8+
Inside or out 20
- The transition timer: they press start, then we switch5 min · $0 · Ages 1–4
- Two good choices, and the silliest-way game10 min · $0 · Ages 1–4
- A day home alone with a toddler, in blocks15 min to plan · $0 · Ages 1–3
- They're having a hard time, not giving you one10 min · $0 · Ages 2–10
- Repair after you lose your temper10 min · $0 · Ages 3+
- Consequences that fit: logical, not harsh20 min · $0 · Ages 3–12
- Throw and catch: a hundred quick reps with Dad20 min · $0 · Ages 3–10
- A 20-minute family workout in the living room20 min · $0 · Ages 4–14
- A summer reading streak20 min a day · $0 · Ages 4–12
- Dad builds, kid launches: straw rockets45 min · $0 · Ages 4–10
- Tie a square knot and a bowline30 min · $0 · Ages 5+
- The first-week-of-school check-in15 min · $0 · Ages 5–14
- Find the North Star with the Big Dipper30 min · $0 · Ages 5+
- Tie a clove hitch and two half hitches30 min · $0 · Ages 6+
- Join two ropes with a sheet bend30 min · $0 · Ages 7+
- Spell your name in semaphore flags40 min · $0 · Ages 7+
- Whip a rope end and tie a timber hitch30 min · $0 · Ages 7+
- The car-ride talk: hard topics, side by side20 min · $0 · Ages 10+
- A two-person book club with your teen30 min · $0 · Ages 12+
- Just be there: low-key time with your teen20 min, a few times a week · $0 · Ages 13+
Sorted youngest first. By age instead: Under 1 · 1–2 · 3–5 · 6–9 · 10–12 · 13+. Other lists: Free things to do with kids · 15-minute activities for kids.