50 Activities to do with your baby in lockdown

If you’re currently in lockdown with your baby (and possibly older children as well), chances are you’re getting bored, frustrated, and quickly running out of ideas to keep your little one entertained.

But, it’s not just about keeping them happy and busy. Your needs obviously matter too, so it’s about finding things to do that don’t stress you out, but that also allow you even a few minutes here and there to catch your breath.

We’re thinking of you, so we’ve compiled a list of tried and tested simple activities to do with your baby to help you survive these restrictions. Why don’t you print this off and stick it on your fridge, so when cabin fever sinks in, you’ve got a handy resource that will keep everyone smiling.

50 Activities to do with your baby in lockdown

0-12 months

  1. Fabric and scarves are colourful, tactile, fun, and easy to grab and manipulate
  2. Blow bubbles outside or in the bath (while another adult supports your baby)
  3. Sing nursery rhymes or action songs, such as ‘If you’re happy and you know it’ and ‘Twinkle, twinkle, little star’
  4. Darken a room and bring out some fairy lights or a torch and shine it on the walls or ceiling
  5. Tummy time activities (see these ideas and tips)
  6. Water play, which could be a bath together or a shallow tray with floating toys to splash in with their hands or feet
  7. Listen to different styles of music, and sing to them if you know the words
  8. Create some simple shakers by filling up used drink bottles with rice, dried beans, or pebbles from outside
  9. Read books aloud, even your own books
  10. Bring your bub with you to watch the washing machine spin, see the laundry being folded, preparing meals

0-3 months

  1. Lie down together on a picnic blanket outside and listen to the birds, watch the leaves blow in the breeze
  2. ‘Fly’ your baby by lying them across your arms tummy-down, fully supported, and gently move them around the room like a plane
  3. Baby massage (read the benefits and how to do it here)
  4. Make some sensory bottles or bags
  5. Lie your baby down in front of a mirror
  6. DIY some simple rainmakers like this one
  7. Dance with your baby in the baby carrier to your favourite music
  8. Fill a cushion cover with tissue paper or an empty packet of chips for them to kick and hear interesting crinkly sounds
  9. Play ‘Round and round the garden’, or ‘Once I caught a fish alive’ or ‘This little piggy’
  10. Make your own mobile by tying a few small household items onto a stick to hang over the change table, and change it up every couple of weeks

3-6 months

  1. Raid your kitchen cupboards for containers, colanders, utensils, and cups and leave them on the play mat
  2. Make a sensory hula hoop by simply tying ribbons and fabric to a hoop and placing bub in the centre
  3. Give your little one a puppet show using some soft toys or finger puppets that pop up from behind a cushion
  4. Bicycle ride your baby’s legs while they lie on the floor (great for gas, too!)
  5. Head turning activities where you place an object in front of your baby and move it from side to side so that they track it with their eyes
  6. DIY a tactile board by cutting a few circles in a piece of cardboard and sticking on some different textured materials, for example, bubble wrap, cellophane, and fabric
  7. Print off or make your own high-contrast images, such as black and white patterns, and stick them where your baby can see them
  8. Get some photos of family and friends printed and make a book for your baby to look at
  9. Walk your baby around the house and show them how things work, like light switches, the buttons on appliances, or the doorbell
  10. Look out the window and point out the passing cars, birds flying past, the clouds

6-9 months

  1. An old purse, a hairbrush, a packet of wipes, an empty lotion pot, and a remote control are all fascinating
  2. Make edible paint using natural yogurt and food colouring
  3. Make edible playdough to squish and squeeze (there are plenty of recipes on Pinterest)
  4. Make a tugging lid by finding a plastic lid (there’s always a few without bottoms in the tupperware drawer), poke some holes in it, and thread some ribbon through, knotted at each end
  5. Make them a treasure box filled with random safe and interesting things from around the home
  6. Baby fort with a blanket and some chairs, and then fill it with teddies and toys. Snuggle up inside together to chat and read some books
  7. Sit them in a laundry basket filled with balls or other toys
  8. A wipes case or tissue box stuffed with fabric or paper scraps to pull out
  9. Tie some toys onto ribbon, attach to chairs and allow to dangle down for bub to grab
  10. Discovery containers or bottles that are filled with interesting things that babies can’t usually play with, such as colourful buttons, pompoms, sequins, and beads (just secure the lids well, preferably with glue)

9-12 months

  1. Build a cushion hill on the floor and cover it with a blanket for bub to climb
  2. Get the pots and pans out to bang on
  3. Go for a walk and collect nature’s treasures (sticks, leaves, flowers) for your baby to feel and smell
  4. A muffin tin filled with any objects that will fit, for example, toilet roll inserts, silicone cupcake molds, blocks, puzzle pieces
  5. Make a sensory tunnel using by putting a cardboard box on its side and hang scarves, ribbons, stockings down for bub to crawl through
  6. Stick some clear contact paper to a window/door that bub can reach while sitting, and let them stick on scraps of paper and ribbon to make a collage
  7. Baby-safe magnets on a baking tray on the floor
  8. Use an inflatable pool indoors (order one online if you can) and fill it with balls, cushions, and soft toys to play in
  9. Give your baby the fruit bowl to explore with their senses by touching the different textures, smelling each one, and seeing the different colours
  10. Scooping and pouring play using a tub filled with flour, rice, jelly, or leftover cooked pasta

 

Note: Please remember to never leave a baby unattended at any time whilst playing

 

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