The kids are home for the Christmas holidays. The household budget is tied up in gift shopping, big family meals and travelling, so what can you do that won't cost an arm and a leg to keep the little ones entertained until they get their Christmas presents? The answer may be at your fingertips.
The world wide web is chock full of things to print, directions to follow, and games to play that are free for everyone to enjoy. Introduce your children to the resources that let them search for fun things to do that are safe for them to enjoy. Bookmark some promising sites, and they'll soon discover many of the fun, free things online for them to do.
Color for free
The childhood pastime of coloring is a perfect fit for a computer with Internet access and a printer. New coloring pages are always at your disposal. You have much greater freedom to select only the images your child would enjoy when you download and print individual pages, and search engines make them easy to find. Crayola, long an authority on coloring, provides free online a wide selection of categories of images, including animals, cars, and holiday pictures. And some projects let you take your creativity further, with puppets, trucks, and holiday imagery.
Free arts and crafts projects:
Printers are handy to have around, but it's just a tip of the iceberg of fun ways to be creative that you can find online. You'll be able to find instructions for carrying out enough crafts and art projects to keep your kids busy for days. Learn how to make refrigerator magnets or a paper bag Santa Claus puppet. Teach your kids origami or beading. Or, if you're brave, experiment with paper airplane design.
Taking up arts and crafts may cost you some money, but if your children are inspired to create things by having the materials there waiting for them, then the initial investment will be worth it.
Kids Games for Free Online:
As much as you like to see them do something creative, the muse may take a break on occasion. Even if your kids spend hours playing games on expensive consoles, they may appreciate the vast, unexplored expanses of free online games for kids that are just a web search away. If you are concerned about your child being exposed to depictions of violence in video games, you can take the proactive approach, and bookmark sites with only family friendly content. Leave the games open on the desktop for the kids to find.
No matter which activity your family ends up preferring, parents and kids can use the Web to find plenty of free things to do during the Winter Break. Think about what they like to do and what they are good at, and you'll certainly be able to find something that you both can enjoy.
The world wide web is chock full of things to print, directions to follow, and games to play that are free for everyone to enjoy. Introduce your children to the resources that let them search for fun things to do that are safe for them to enjoy. Bookmark some promising sites, and they'll soon discover many of the fun, free things online for them to do.
Color for free
The childhood pastime of coloring is a perfect fit for a computer with Internet access and a printer. New coloring pages are always at your disposal. You have much greater freedom to select only the images your child would enjoy when you download and print individual pages, and search engines make them easy to find. Crayola, long an authority on coloring, provides free online a wide selection of categories of images, including animals, cars, and holiday pictures. And some projects let you take your creativity further, with puppets, trucks, and holiday imagery.
Free arts and crafts projects:
Printers are handy to have around, but it's just a tip of the iceberg of fun ways to be creative that you can find online. You'll be able to find instructions for carrying out enough crafts and art projects to keep your kids busy for days. Learn how to make refrigerator magnets or a paper bag Santa Claus puppet. Teach your kids origami or beading. Or, if you're brave, experiment with paper airplane design.
Taking up arts and crafts may cost you some money, but if your children are inspired to create things by having the materials there waiting for them, then the initial investment will be worth it.
Kids Games for Free Online:
As much as you like to see them do something creative, the muse may take a break on occasion. Even if your kids spend hours playing games on expensive consoles, they may appreciate the vast, unexplored expanses of free online games for kids that are just a web search away. If you are concerned about your child being exposed to depictions of violence in video games, you can take the proactive approach, and bookmark sites with only family friendly content. Leave the games open on the desktop for the kids to find.
No matter which activity your family ends up preferring, parents and kids can use the Web to find plenty of free things to do during the Winter Break. Think about what they like to do and what they are good at, and you'll certainly be able to find something that you both can enjoy.
About the Author:
For awesome kids games based on your favourite YTV shows, check out the latest and greatest at YTV Games!
