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20 Ways to Keep Toddlers Busy

by Angela Thayer 133 Comments

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. Please use discretion with these activities, especially if your child puts things in their mouth. Always be right next to your child.

If you have a toddler, you KNOW that they constantly keep you on your toes! You already have your hands full and coming up with ideas for keeping them busy is not exactly at the top of your list. What if I told you that I have 20 easy ways for keeping toddlers busy?! These ideas are easy to set up and use supplies you probably already have in your home!

20 Ways To Keep Toddlers Busy

1. Color Matching Game

This game using colorful pom poms is perfect for toddlers! You will need to introduce this game to them before just letting them play independently. My toddler plays this game ALL the time. Check out this post for more details.

Color Matching Game

2. Playdough  Playdough is great. I like to put it on a tray or cutting board to contain the mess. I love playdough because kids can be creative and it also builds strength in their hands for fine motor skills. We use homemade playdough, and we especially love our jello playdough. You can find the recipe here.

playdough

3. Pipe Cleaners and Colander

Have your toddler stick pipe cleaners in the holes of a colander. This is excellent for practicing fine motor skills!

Colander with Pipe Cleaners

4. Shape Sorter

I made our own shape sorter using soft shapes from Michaels and an oatmeal container. We get this activity out frequently and keeps my little one occupied for a long time! For more details, see this post.

Activity with Shapes

5. Contact Paper Art Place a piece of clear contact paper on the table. Tape the sides down. Then give your toddler materials to stick on there. Check out this post for details.

Contact Paper Art

6. Paint in Bags  Place paint in a gallon sized Ziploc bag. Seal the bag, then tape them to a window. Let your toddler move the paint around in the bag using their fingers. (FYI: This activity usually goes pretty quick for my toddler.)

Painting in Bags 7. Pack ‘n Play

Set up a pack ‘n play and put books and stuffed animals inside. Let them play quietly. This may take some training for them play independently (and quietly!), but if you work with them starting out for just a few minutes playing in there per day, they can work their way up to 20+ minutes.

8. Chunky Puzzles Gather some easy puzzles for your toddler to complete. We use Melissa and Doug Puzzles and they are easy enough for my toddler to do on his own.

puzzles

9. Pom Poms Through a Tube

I love this activity! Just take a paper towel tube and tape it to the wall. Then have your toddler drop pom pomsthrough it into a bowl. It sounds so simple, but my toddler really loves it! And the best part is how quiet this activity is.

pom poms in paper towel tube

10. Race Cars on Tape

Create a race track using masking tape on the floor. Then let your little one play quietly with cars on the track.

Masking Tape Race Track

11. Fabric Scrap Box 

Cut up pieces of fabric and place them in an empty wipes container. Have your toddler pull the scraps out and then put them back in. This is great for practicing fine motor skills. For more on this, see this post.

Fabric Box

12. Magnets on Fridge

Simply have your toddler stick magnets on the fridge. We use alphabet letters and magnetic pom poms. I really like these foam alphabet letters.

magnets

13. Cotton Balls

Let your child play with cotton balls. They can sort them in an ice cube tray. This is also a very quiet activity. They can also have fun tearing the cotton balls a part, which can get messy!

Cotton Balls

14. Corner for Toys

Tape off a section of the floor for them to sit in. Also tape a spot where you place a bucket of toys. Have them stay in the taped off section for play time. This may take some training, so start off trying this for a few minutes at a time.

Corner for Toys

15. Bubble Wrap

Have your toddler pop bubble wrap. This one can get noisy, but if you need a quick activity for your toddler to do, this would be great! Just please make sure you watch them because this can be a choking hazard.

bubble wrap fun! 16. Build a Tower

Using cubes or blocks, have them build a tower. These unifix cubes would be great to use. We use this Discovery Toys Pegboard to build towers.

Tower

17. Coloring 

This is a simple activity, but have them color. Sometimes we get our window markers and I let them color on the windows.

Window Markers

18. Pipe Cleaners in a Tube

This is just like #9, but use pipe cleaners to put through a paper towel tube. My toddler actually came up with this activity. He loves it!

Pipe Cleaners in Tube

19. Pipe Cleaner Sprinkles 

This activity is simply cutting up pipe cleaners (into 2 inch pieces) and have your toddler poke them through the holes in a parmesan container. This is awesome for working on fine motor skills!

Pipe Cleaners

20. Sensory Balloon Animals

We made sensory balloon bugs a while back and they are a huge hit. When I want my toddler to play quietly, I get these out and let him play with them. To learn more about them, see this post. Once again, please use discretion with this activity. If your child puts a lot of objects in their mouth, this may not be a good activity for them.

Sensory Balloon Animals

Want more toddler ideas? My new book has over 200 ideas for toddlers! The book will be available on March 27th, but you can preorder it today! Order it on Amazon right here.

Check out some of my favorite resources for toddlers!

 

The Toddler JourneyThe Toddler JourneyMelissa & Doug Latches Wooden Activity BoardMelissa & Doug Latches Wooden Activity BoardMelissa & Doug 2053 Shapes Knob Wooden PuzzleMelissa & Doug 2053 Shapes Knob Wooden PuzzleMelissa & Doug Hide and Seek Farm Wooden Activity Board With Barnyard Animal MagnetsMelissa & Doug Hide and Seek Farm Wooden Activity Board With Barnyard Animal MagnetsMelissa & Doug Puzzle Storage Rack - Wire Rack Holds 12 Puzzles(Puzzles Not Included)Melissa & Doug Puzzle Storage Rack – Wire Rack Holds 12 Puzzles(Puzzles Not Included)Play-Doh Modeling Compound 10-Pack Case of Colors (Amazon Exclusive), Non-Toxic, Assorted Colors, 2-Ounce CansPlay-Doh Modeling Compound 10-Pack Case of Colors (Amazon Exclusive), Non-Toxic, Assorted Colors, 2-Ounce CansCaydo 240 Pieces 1 Inch Pom Poms for Hobby Supplies and DIY Creative Crafts Decorations, Assorted ColorsCaydo 240 Pieces 1 Inch Pom Poms for Hobby Supplies and DIY Creative Crafts Decorations, Assorted ColorsMagnetic Letters and Numbers for Educating Kids in Fun -Educational Alphabet Refrigerator Magnets -82 PiecesMagnetic Letters and Numbers for Educating Kids in Fun -Educational Alphabet Refrigerator Magnets -82 PiecesDozen Plastic Toy Safari AnimalsDozen Plastic Toy Safari AnimalsDISCOVERY TOYS GIANT PEGBOARD #1562DISCOVERY TOYS GIANT PEGBOARD #1562Crayola; Washable Window Markers; Art Tools; 8 Different Colors; Bright, Bold Colors; Works on All Glass SurfacesCrayola; Washable Window Markers; Art Tools; 8 Different Colors; Bright, Bold Colors; Works on All Glass SurfacesCreativity Street Chenille Stems/Pipe Cleaners 12 Inch x 6mm 100-Piece, Assorted ColorsCreativity Street Chenille Stems/Pipe Cleaners 12 Inch x 6mm 100-Piece, Assorted ColorsSticker Activity ABC: Over 100 Stickers with Coloring Pages (Sticker Activity Fun)Sticker Activity ABC: Over 100 Stickers with Coloring Pages (Sticker Activity Fun)Melissa & Doug On the Go Water Wow! Reusable Water-Reveal Activity Pads, 3-pk, Animals, Alphabet, NumbersMelissa & Doug On the Go Water Wow! Reusable Water-Reveal Activity Pads, 3-pk, Animals, Alphabet, Numbers

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Filed Under: Indoor Activities, Toddlers Tagged With: activities, toddler activities, toddlers

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  1. Sabonete Artesanal says

    April 1, 2019 at 6:53 pm

    Great ways to keep them busy, better than use a cellphone!! Nowadays the parents use the cellphone to entertain the kids with the cellphone, addicting them since they 1 year old!! Great post

    Reply
  2. Connie says

    June 15, 2018 at 10:25 am

    Hi Angela I love your ideas and I have successfully tried the paint bag and pipe ideas with my 2.5 year old Son. One thing he can play at for couple of hours are lots of barley grains and an assortment of wares from the kitchen – I gave him a funnel, a deep measuring cup that fitted the funnel, a spoon, a small bowl, a large bowl, an empty plastic bottle and a tray. The idea is to vary the shapes and sizes. It’s amazing how interesting he found transferring barley grains from one spot to another in as many ways as he could imagine. I have also mentioned this post in one of my stories . It’s a brand new blog – I hope you will give it a read and leave me a comment, thanks! Connie

    Reply
  3. Kids Songs says

    December 7, 2017 at 4:43 am

    Children are naturally born creative. With doing this kind of stuff they will learn more. Keep it up and keep sharing.

    Reply
  4. aadila says

    December 2, 2017 at 10:16 am

    Such an educational toy for kids!!

    Thanks for sharing

    Reply
  5. estudar e aprender says

    September 9, 2017 at 3:58 pm

    This is a very beatiful website

    Reply
  6. betty Wang says

    April 4, 2017 at 6:44 pm

    An educational toy can help your toddler learn quickly and make the learning path smooth for him.Playing is learning & learning is playing.Thanks for your post.Nice one. Enjoyed reading it.

    Reply
  7. Maria says

    February 2, 2017 at 6:54 am

    These are great tips, thanks for sharing with us. 🙂

    Reply
  8. Emma says

    September 12, 2016 at 1:22 pm

    Ahh, thats really good ideas! Lovin it! I’m going to use them immediately when I get home!

    Reply
  9. derKraken says

    March 25, 2016 at 6:01 pm

    Really great list. Reached it by googling “toys to keep 2 year old busy.” There are many ideas I plan on hijacking, so thank you!

    Another thing on my mind is that my family, with our 22 month old, will be going on a trip that will involve a 2.5 hour flight each way. Not a long flight, but wondered if you had any ideas on how to keep your toddler busy on the plane. Have you adapted any of these for flying?

    Reply
    • Angela Thayer says

      April 11, 2016 at 2:43 am

      One thing that comes to mind is taking some masking tape and putting pieces on a tray. Have them pull up the tape. Toddlers LOVE this simple activity!
      Angela Thayer recently posted…Sight Word Reader for the Word “I”My Profile

      Reply
  10. Rolene says

    November 15, 2015 at 3:26 pm

    So much fun activities! Can’t wait to try some of them. Thank you.

    Reply
  11. Michelle Pearson says

    November 2, 2015 at 2:00 pm

    I have never thought that If I gave my child pipe cleaners he would play with them. I was sooooo surprised. The result was 1 hour wild games. Thank you for sharing your post! Keep posting!

    Reply
  12. Nikki says

    August 17, 2015 at 1:30 am

    Wow! There are so many great ideas here. Affordable, easy ones at that. Thank you for this list. It’s just what I needed and I’ll start using these ideas tomorrow. 🙂
    Nikki recently posted…Moving!My Profile

    Reply
  13. Faye says

    April 27, 2015 at 3:57 pm

    I work at home as a Licensed Family Child Care Provider and I always work to find ways to use “trash” and turn it into a meaningful learning activity for the children. I really like the Parmesan cheese container activity. My hubby used to comment on my trash stockpile, but after seeing some of the things I have created he now asks and brings things home before getting rid of it to see if it could be of use.

    Thanks.

    Faye

    Reply
  14. Lorena says

    April 13, 2015 at 7:22 pm

    Great Ideas! I’m gonna have to try some of them soon. I need to keep my toddler from playing his tablet a lot and in to physical activities.
    Lorena recently posted…Jamming to the MusicMy Profile

    Reply
  15. Tumble Tastics says

    March 31, 2015 at 1:35 pm

    I like the idea of the taped off areas! You could almost set up like a play station obstacle course
    Tumble Tastics recently posted…Baby Sensory Christmas 2014My Profile

    Reply
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