10 Tips for Keeping Preschoolers Active During the Winter

Keeping kids active during the winter can be tough. When it’s cold outside, many just want to huddle up on the sofa, watch TV and play video games. My preschooler, Nikolas, is no different, so I have to pay special attention to ensure he stays active during winter months. By keeping him active all year long, he’s shown the importance of physical activity. Plus, he has tons more fun when he’s being active than when he’s wasting away on the sofa.

These are 10 tips for keeping a preschooler active during the winter:

Limit TV time

If you’re committed to keeping your kids active, be committed to turning off that television. Since I am very consistent with my one-hour limit of TV every day, Nikolas expects it and doesn’t cry about it. By limiting TV time, it’s one less passive distraction in the house. Without it, kids will look for other ways to keep occupied.

Encourage snow play

If you live someplace where it snows, take advantage! Kids love snow, so encourage as much snow play as possible. We have to travel about an hour to get some snow during the winter, but the many hours of sledding, snowball fights and creating snow forts and snowmen make the trip worth it.

Go to your local community center

My city has tons of community centers where my kids can play indoors. Community centers may offer basketball courts, heated swimming pools or even classes where kids can be active, such as karate or tumbling.

Chores

You can’t go wrong with old-fashioned chores. Even younger children can help clean up by picking up dishes and toys. Nikolas also loves to dust, but keep the cleaner away from the little ones.

Ice skating

Ice skating is a wonderful, exhaustive physical activity for kids. If you give them an hour on the rink in the evening, they won’t argue when it’s time for bed.

Dance

My little boy loves to dance. Turn on some loud music and get the kids grooving. Kids also love it if mom or dad join in for the fun.

Play hide and seek

Kids this age love hide and seek. Let them be the active ones by seeking you while you hide around the house. Even my 2-year-old son has a blast with this one.

Find an indoor playground

Whether it be a play place at a fast food restaurant or a structured playground facility, kids can have a lot of fun climbing and sliding down playground equipment. My family doesn’t eat a lot of fast food, but I will take the boys to McDonald’s for ice cream just so they can play.

Indoor scavenger hunt

I use this to practice math and keep Nik active. I’ll tell him that I have 10 cars hidden in the living room, and he will hunt every last one of them down.

Walk at the store

Keep your preschooler out of the buggy and have him or her walk next to you. Nikolas loves to hold onto the cart and pretend to push it for me.

These are all tips that have helped me keep my preschooler active during the winter. They will make the transition to hours of outdoor play easier once spring finally arrives.

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