For 4-year-olds! Introducing recommended indoor activities, group games, and crafts
At age four, children’s vocabulary grows, they start expressing their feelings and thoughts in words, and they can find their own favorite play activities and things they want to try.
This time, we’ve gathered play ideas that are perfect for the development of four-year-olds.
In addition to easy-to-implement indoor physical activities and group games, we also introduce many DIY toy-making ideas that let children freely enjoy expressing themselves while expanding their imagination.
We’ve collected many activities that, through playing with friends, help children experience the importance of following rules and the joy of sharing feelings.
Use these as a reference to find play ideas that match the children’s interests.
- [For 4-Year-Olds] A Collection of Indoor Play and Game Ideas That Get Everyone Excited
- [For 4-year-olds] Ideas for group games and craft activities that can be done indoors
- For 4-year-olds! A collection of indoor home play ideas that make time inside fun
- Craft activity ideas for 4-year-olds
- Age 4: Simple and Fun! Handmade Toy Ideas
- For 3-Year-Olds! Indoor & Outdoor Physical Play and Game Ideas
- Ideas for indoor activities, games, and group play that 5-year-olds enjoy
- Games and activities everyone can enjoy together. A collection of fun play ideas.
- [Childcare] Recommended for 3-year-olds! Play ideas everyone can enjoy
- [Age 5] Exciting and fun! A special feature on ideas for at-home play
- Exciting for 4-year-olds! A collection of sports day event ideas for preschoolers (middle class)
- [Childcare] Fun for October! Craft ideas recommended for 4-year-olds
- Recommended for 3-year-olds! Fun indoor activities and group game ideas
For 4-year-olds! Introducing recommended indoor activities, group games, and crafts (51–60)
Shape Finding Game
Let’s develop discovery skills, imagination, and expressive ability! Here’s an idea for a shape-finding game.
It’s a simple yet effective game where you look for shapes in everyday life.
Start with basic shapes like circles, triangles, and squares, and once you get used to it, raise the difficulty with stars, diamonds, pentagons, and more.
This will broaden interest and make the game more fun.
Plus, drawing the shapes you find on paper helps cultivate expressive skills and creativity, which is a great bonus.
It’s a playful way to deepen shape recognition and boost the power of discovery!
Rock-Paper-Scissors Balance Game
Here’s a rock-paper-scissors balance game that gets your whole body moving.
Play rock-paper-scissors with your friends.
If you win, do a one-legged balance for 5 seconds.
If it’s a tie, spin around twice and then do a one-legged balance for 5 seconds.
If you lose, spin around three times and then do a one-legged balance for 5 seconds.
For children who find one-legged balancing difficult, it’s recommended to hold onto something while balancing.
When playing the rock-paper-scissors balance game, secure a spacious area and keep a safe distance from one another to ensure safety.
Crawling tail-chasing game
Let’s introduce a crawling tail-tag game that gets kids excited.
Give each child a “tail” made by braiding plastic ribbon (like florist’s raffia).
The teacher is “it” and chases the children.
At the start signal, the children crawl away to avoid being caught.
If a child gets their tail taken by “it,” they can rejoin the game after doing five jumps and putting the tail back on.
Try swapping who’s “it” or increasing the number of chasers to keep the game fun!
Handkerchief-snatching game
The classic indoor game you can play even on rainy days, the “Handkerchief Grab,” has lots of fun variations depending on the rules.
In this version, players sit on chairs facing each other with their knees touching, place a handkerchief in the middle, and grab it when the whistle blows.
It works well with a larger group, or you can do head-to-head matches and make it a tournament.
There’s also a high-level version where someone keeps chatting to distract players, then blows the whistle when their attention slips.
It’s a recommended game that everyone can enjoy while training reflexes and coordination!
For 4-year-olds! Introducing recommended indoor activities, group games, and crafts (61–70)
Bomb Game
A simple “Bomb Game” you can play with a rubber ball.
The rules are like a preschool version of dodgeball: set up areas in advance using tape lines or mats, and have the children move from mat to mat while avoiding the ball.
First, explain, “The ball is a bomb, so you mustn’t get hit.” Start by tossing the ball gently with an easy arc, then raise the difficulty as they get used to it by changing the ball’s trajectory or throwing faster shots off the wall or floor.
The kids will love the thrill—guaranteed excitement!
Stacking paper cups
Let me introduce a fun stacking game with paper cups.
Stack 15 paper cups into a pyramid shape, starting from the bottom.
Time each round and compete to see who can finish their pyramid the fastest.
Because you have to think about the best way to stack the cups as you go, it trains both concentration and problem-solving skills at the same time.
Plastic cups are smooth and glossy, so for children, paper cups are recommended.
Give it a try!
Picture shiritori
Let me introduce a drawing shiritori game that gets everyone excited while you draw.
The drawing shiritori game can be enjoyed by two or more people.
First, decide on a theme for the first drawing in turn.
The first person draws a picture on paper based on the theme.
The next person looks at the previous person’s drawing and draws a picture that starts with the last letter of the previous drawing’s word.
Take turns and keep going.
It gets even more fun if you set final rules in advance, such as what happens if a word ends with “n” (which would normally end the game) or if someone can’t draw on their turn.
Have fun and give it a try!