We are smack dab in the middle of hurricane season here in the Southeast region of USA. And with hurricanes come the dreaded power outages.
Since we live in an electricity-driven society, most of us freak out when the power goes out. No TV, iPads, no Xbox, or video games to entertain the children. No fear. I have had more experience than I would like with being home with children during power outage experience. We survived 10 days without power during Hurricane Sandy in NJ and 4 days without power during hurricane Irma in FL. Now that we have Hurricane Florence knocking on the coast of the Carolinas, I have compiled a list of things to do with children in power outage.
Things to Do with Children in Power Outage
- Read
- Make up stories
- Color
- Play cards (Blackjack is a great way to learn math LOL)
- Have a flashlight scavenger hunt
- Create an obstacle course with yarn
- Play Tic-Tac-Toe
- Make your own slime
- Pretend to be on a camping trip
- Have a puppet show
- Make things out of play-dough
- Play Simon Says
- Have a tea party
- Play hangman
- Play hide & seek
- Make a family tree
- Try to learn new yoga poses
- Have staring contests
- Write a story
- Play charades
- Build Lego buildings
- Have scavenger hunt
- Make your own jewelry
- Make a new scrapbook
- Play the silent game (I love this one lol)
- Complete a puzzle
- Write letters to loved ones
- Hide something & create a “treasure” map for the kids to find it.
- Paint toenails
- Make a gratitude list
- Teach them the state capitals
- Play volleyball with a balloon
- Make shadow puppets
- Learn how to knit
- Take a stroll down memory lane with old photos
- Put on a play
- Make up your own jokes
- Talk with funny accents
- Pretend to be superheroes
- Come up with seasonal bucket lists
- Play school (gives you an opportunity to help them brush up on academic skills)
- Learn Morse Code
- Paint family portraits
- Build a house of cards
- Make a television out of a big box and put on shows
- Rearrange your bedroom
- Play dress up
- Make a stuffed-animal zoo
- Use masking or packing tape to play hopscotch on the floor
- Board games
I know power outages can be daunting but they can be a perfect opportunity to have fun in an old-fashioned way and to encourage kids to amuse themselves using their creative abilities and minds. Can you think of other things to do with children in power outage? Drop them down in the comments.
