Indoor games and recreational activities recommended for daycare and kindergarten
Even on days when the weather is bad and the kids can’t go outside, they still want to move their bodies and play! At times like that, many teachers and parents wonder what indoor activities to do.
Here, we introduce indoor recreational activities that can be enjoyed at nurseries and kindergartens.
You’ll find lots of ideas that kids can dive into with sparkling eyes—full-body movement games, activities everyone can enjoy together, traditional games, and sensory play.
Have fun staying active with the children, even indoors.
These are also great as references for games at events!
- Popular recreation ranking for toddlers
- Indoor games that different ages can enjoy! Ideas for fun everyone can get excited about together
- [Childcare] Play Right Now! Recommended No-Prep Games
- February: Liven up childcare! A collection of ideas for indoor play and physical activities
- Indoor Games for Small Groups: Exciting Recreational Activities
- Get the party started at the preschool graduation! A collection of party game ideas
- Parent–child interactive play. Fun activities popular in childcare settings and at parent–child observation days.
- [For 5-Year-Olds] Recommended Indoor Play! A Collection of Exciting Games
- Recreation for daycare centers and kindergartens: fun activities for children
- [Childcare / Physical Play] Fun Activities to Get Moving
- Recommended for 3-year-olds! Fun indoor activities and group game ideas
- [Kindergarten/Daycare] Games and Performances for Fun Events
- [Childcare] Let’s all play! A collection of recommended ideas for group play and games
Indoor activities and recreation games recommended for nursery schools and kindergartens (151–160)
Block play
Playing with building blocks—little kids just love it.
They stack blocks like squares, triangles, and cones, keeping the balance as they go.
It’s fun to play quietly on your own, and it’s also great to team up and make something big.
You can build a tall, tower-like stack, or work together to create a huge wall—both are exciting.
And at the end, everyone knocks it all down at once—crash!—which really brings the excitement to a peak.
Picture-matching card game
A picture matching card game played in the same way as the card-matching game Concentration.
For toddlers, pictures are easier to use than playing cards, and if you make your own cards, it’s easy to adjust the difficulty.
If you don’t have time to make them, you can quickly start playing by preparing two sets of the same karuta deck, or by using food cards or vehicle cards.
Train play
“Train play” recommended from around age two, when kids start walking! There aren’t any strict rules, so let them play freely.
If you make something to serve as the train cars—like a hula hoop or a square loop made from cardboard—the kids will get excited.
If you pretend mats or balance beams are the tracks, a simple game suddenly becomes much more fun!
Fishing game
It’s the ever-popular “fishing game,” perfect for indoor summer play or as a festival booth! Make sea creatures using construction paper, plastic bags, toilet paper rolls, cups, and more.
For the fishing rods, tie kite string to a pair of chopsticks and attach a magnet to the end—done! For the ocean, a blue tarp works great.
Real fishing can be tough for preschoolers, but with everyday materials you can enjoy a fun fishing game.
Give it a try and have fun making and playing!
Seated tag
“We can’t play outside because of the rain, but I still want to move my body as much as possible today!” In times like these, here’s a childcare-friendly game we recommend: “Seated Tag.” First, the children start in a seated position.
The rule is that they must keep their bottoms on the floor at all times.
Set a time limit, then play tag while staying seated.
Since it doesn’t involve running, it’s safe and fun to play indoors.
It also helps build leg strength as kids move using their legs and bottoms, so be sure to add it to your play repertoire!
Balloon Bomb Game
How about playing an exciting balloon bomb game together and getting everyone hyped? Prepare themes like animal names, and pass the balloon to the next person without making it explode! If you can’t say the theme properly or fail to pass the balloon, you’re out.
Instead of actually popping a balloon, use your voice or sound effects to mimic an explosion so you don’t scare the kids.
You can also adjust the themes based on age to level up the challenge and make it even more fun!
Children’s song game “Nakanaka Hoi”
The children’s song game “Nakanaka Hoi” can be played with three or more people.
Two people face each other, each holding two strings, and move the strings together and apart in time with the song.
The remaining person must avoid getting their feet caught: when the song says “naka” (inside), they place both feet together inside the strings, and when it says “soto” (outside), they step outward, straddling the strings.
It’s exciting when multiple people can synchronize and succeed together, just like with a long jump rope!
Fruits Basket
Fruit Basket is a game that’s fun with lots of people.
When a question like “People who ◯◯” applies to you, you stand up and move to an open seat; if you can’t sit, you become “it.” You repeat this.
If small children are playing, it’s better to keep the questions simple.
Or you can divide everyone by fruit names instead.
When the call “Fruit Basket!” is made, everyone moves.
It’s so much fun when everything gets all mixed up.
Play with your whole body! “Let’s Clap Our Hands”
The popular children’s song “Te o Tatakimashou” (Let’s Clap Our Hands) encourages kids to express the lyrics with their bodies.
It’s been beloved for generations, and many adults today probably played it at least once! You clap your hands, stomp your feet, and spin your body around.
The movements vary depending on whether you’re sitting or standing, but in any case, it engages the whole body and can help with children’s physical development.
Kids can clap together with friends, stomp while hopping on one foot, and come up with endless ways to play! Be sure to try it with your children.
Exercise play using cloth
You can draw a ghost on a piece of cloth and play all sorts of games trying not to get caught by the ghost—dodging it, crawling under it, and more.
You can run away so you don’t get caught, slip through when the ghost isn’t there, or dodge flying ghosts; the ways to play are free and plentiful.
It doesn’t have to be a ghost drawing, but something that makes kids want to run away will make it even more exciting!