![[For 4-year-olds] Ideas for group games and craft activities that can be done indoors](https://i.ytimg.com/vi_webp/yIwQOIQY3MU/maxresdefault.webp)
[For 4-year-olds] Ideas for group games and craft activities that can be done indoors
Four-year-olds are at a stage of major growth toward independence, developing social skills as they learn to express their feelings and thoughts in words and deepen their relationships with friends.
In this article, we’ll share plenty of indoor play ideas that help promote the development of four-year-olds.
From group games that are fun while following rules with friends to creative projects that let them express themselves freely as their imaginations grow, we’ve gathered lots of activities that children can join with excitement!
Even on days when you can’t go outside, let’s spend fulfilling time with children by incorporating a variety of indoor games.
[For 4-Year-Olds] Indoor Group Games and Craft Activity Ideas (1–10)
Monster Hunter Game
Whether indoors or outdoors, and even with a large group, everyone can play “Let’s Go Hunt Wild Beasts.” It’s a very fun game that involves moving your body and also has a sing-along, round-like element.
It starts with “Let’s go hunt wild beasts,” and as you sing about carrying spears or guns, you look for a wild animal.
When an animal is called, you quickly form a group based on the number of syllables/characters in its name—so for example, with “raion” (lion in Japanese, 4 characters), you form groups of four to avoid getting caught by the beast.
For “tora” (tiger, 2 characters), you pair up, and for “gorira” (gorilla, 3 characters), you form groups of three, and so on.
Ring toss
It’s an easy game you can make with things you have at home, but ring toss always gets kids excited.
It’s also popular at fairs and festivals.
To make the rings, roll up long strips of newspaper into circles and wrap them all around with vinyl tape.
Using two colors or making them colorful will delight the kids.
For the targets, just fill plastic bottles with water and wrap them with colored construction paper.
You can also prepare bottles in different sizes and change the points depending on the size.
Musical Chairs
This is the classic children’s game, musical chairs.
Arrange chairs in a circle with one fewer chair than the number of players.
Walk around the chairs to the music.
When the music stops, sit in a chair.
Anyone who doesn’t get a chair is out.
Remove one chair at a time and keep playing until you decide the number one winner!
spinning top
Spinning tops have always been a popular pastime.
Why not enjoy making colorful tops with paper plates? It’s very simple: draw your favorite designs on a paper plate with crayons, then tape plastic bottle caps to the exact center on both the top and bottom.
Once you’re done, spin them together and have fun! You can even get everyone excited with challenges like “Whose top spins the longest?” Another great point is that you can experiment—adjust where you attach the caps, tweak the shape, and enjoy coming up with your own improvements.
Fruits Basket
It’s a classic group game for children, a variation of musical chairs.
The children sit on chairs arranged in a circle facing inward, with one child standing in the middle.
Each child is assigned the name of a fruit, and the child in the middle calls out a fruit name.
The children with that fruit name must stand up and move to a different chair.
The child who can’t find a seat switches places and becomes the one standing in the middle.
The excitement peaks when the caller shouts “Fruit Basket!” and everyone has to stand up at once!
Bowling
Introducing a DIY toy you can make with everyday materials.
It’s a simple bowling game that even small children can enjoy—perfect for getting everyone excited together.
No special supplies are required.
Just gather common items you already have at home or can find at a dollar store, like paper cups, colored paper, newspapers, and tape, and you can make it and start playing right away.
There’s no complicated tool-making or difficult crafting steps, so adults and kids can have fun creating together and sharing ideas as they play.
Another great point is that you can play anytime, anywhere with the toys you’ve made.
Animal pretend play
Kids love animals, so pretend play where they become animals is always a big hit.
Teachers or parents can call out an animal, and the children simply imitate it—making for a very fun indoor activity.
Imitating the teacher or parent is, of course, fun too, but it’s also great to give prompts and play an animal gesture game.