SSSHHHH! SIT STILL! BE QUIET! I remember a time when I dreaded any moment which involved waiting quietly with my young ones. Keeping a child busy and content during a situation where quiet is required becomes a survival skill for motherhood. A restaurant, church services, doctor’s offices…the list goes on and on. Adults seem to have no problem hanging around a dinner table…but young kids cannot wait to leave it as soon as they are finished eating (or even before their meal is complete!).

Over the years I have found that there are some simple, non-electronic items which allow open ended play in these scary motherhood moments. Eventually I developed a mini-toolkit of small items which could be brought out during these moments. The bonus is that they are simple, easy to find play items which are actually good for your child’s learning and creativity. You will be surprised at how quickly time passes as they learn to entertain themselves. You may even finish a restaurant meal in peace. For mothers of young children that is considered a treat!

5 Ways to Entertain a Young Child

{without electronics}

  1. Silly Putty – Yes, I am seriously recommending something that can ruin Sunday clothes. Why? Because Silly Putty is honestly a great learning tool. Take the time to teach your kids how to work with it on top of a book – say, a songbook – and it will keep them entertained for a long time. There are several cool things you can do with Silly Putty: Take impressions of various items like coins, design an impression using a pen or fork, make a snake which forms a letter, copy a newspaper comic or pencil drawing and then manipulate them into funnier positions, make a snowman or animal, and bounce it like a ball. Keeping little hands busy increases fine motor skills. This hand strength will improve handwriting skills as your child develops.

  2. MagnaDoodle – My oldest learned to write her name during church on a MagnaDoodle. The travel size which came out about fifteen years ago has been perfect for a diaper bag or Mom’s purse. (I often include this as part of a sibling gift because there is nothing worse than nursing a baby while out in public and having a four year old who is bored.) The MagnaDoodle allows writing and drawing without a mess. Be sure to follow the initial instructions to color (black) and then erase the whole screen before handing it to your child for drawing. This allows the product, which is made of a magnetic technology, to work better.
  3. PlayDoh - I love PlayDoh! Did I hear someone groan? The secret to PlayDoh is knowing when and where to bring it out. A restaurant is the perfect place for PlayDoh because there is a smooth surface, church is not the best place because PlayDoh is not meant to be laid in a child’s lap or on a fabric pew cushion. Keeping a small party sized container of this basic clay in your diaper bag can keep even the most wiggly child fascinated. A homemade recipe can be customized if your child has sensitivities to the commercial product. (Saves money too!) A side benefit to this activity is that the manual stimulation and problem solving necessary to create with clay can calm and relax a child. Seems like any preschooler could benefit from “calming”!

  4. Tangoes and Tangrams – As a child gets older you can bring out logic and problem solving puzzles which will keep them challenged for quite a while. I like the Travel Tangoes because the shapes are magnetized. Inside there are animal shapes and other designs which the child recreates with basic shapes. Finding the right combination and orientation helps their hand and mind connection develop critical thinking skills.
  5. String and beads – This is one I discovered by accident. A small baggie with wooden beads and leather cording had been given to me during a boy scout event. I had put them in my purse and forgotten about them. Grace was threatening to stand on her head and I was hissing “Stop!” when I realized that those simple items would keep her entertained. You only need a few beads (Maybe the letters in their name and some shapes?) and a shoelace as shown above to keep little hands (over age 3) busy. A sidenote, only you will be the best judge of what beads would be safe with your child. If you have a child who puts items in their mouth habitually then you may want to modify or delay this activity until you have had time to instuct them at home.

Do you have any other non-tech ideas for keeping little hands busy? Maybe your kids are older, like mine, and you remember a good stand-by I haven’t mentioned here – please leave a comment. You may just save a young mother’s sanity!