50+ Indoor/Outdoor Independent Play Ideas for Kids

Independent play has so many great benefits for kids (not to mention for parents who need to get stuff done!). Here are 50+ ideas for indoor AND outdoor independent play for you to save for your parenting files!

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Do you get tired of hearing your kids say, “I’m bored!” or “There’s nothing to do!”?

Do you want them to be able to play on their own part of the day so you can work or get stuff done?

Do you want them to develop important life skills like problem-solving, creativity, and emotional regulation?

Me, too. (To all three!)

That’s why I came up with this list of 50+ ideas for independent play. And the best part is — the entire list is SCREEN-FREE!

Check out the list, save it to your parenting files, and start reaping the benefits of independent play.

Benefits of Independent Play

What are those benefits? Here are just a few of the things your kids will gain from independent play:

Self-reliance
Creativity
Imagination
Improved focus
Increased attention span
Greater independence
Problem-solving skills
Emotional regulation
Self-confidence
Self-soothing techniques
Increased comfort with solitude

It also benefits YOU as the parent by providing you with some downtime and/or opportunities to tackle some of your other tasks and responsibilities!

Are you ready for the list of 50+ ideas? I’ve broken them down for your convenience into indoor play ideas (for those yucky days) and outdoor ideas!

Indoor Independent Play Ideas

Art — crayons, markers (we love Color Wonder for little ones!), paints, clay, stamps
Crafts — pipe cleaners, beads, string art, origami, paper crafts, craft kits
Stickers — We love sticker activity books at our house! Here’s a tip for little ones: peel off all the outside borders, leaving the stickers stuck to the page. It makes it so much easier for them to get their own stickers off!
Books and magazines
Puzzles
Sensory bins with rice, oatmeal, pasta, shredded paper, beads, or other materials
Kinetic sand
Activity books — some of our favorites are the Bear Grylls activity books and the Highlights Hidden Pictures books
Play-Doh
Building toys
Kitchen play — in a pretend kitchen or in your actual kitchen with pots, pans, spoons, etc.
Dress-up
Tea parties
Forts
Obstacle courses
Cars & trucks — we bring out this car mat from time to time for extra fun!
Magnetic boards or easels — or you can use a cookie sheet in a pinch!
Draw/write in a journal
Sticky wall activities
Simple construction projects
Indoor bowling
Sorting activities
Magnadoodles and digital doodle pad (Aidan LOVES his!)
Geoboards & tangrams
Audiobooks — use the Libby app to download FREE audiobooks through your library!
File folder games

Outdoor Independent Play Ideas

Sidewalk chalk
Exploring
Leaf rubbings
Riding bikes/scooters/skateboards
Digging
Planting/tending a garden
Play on a play set
Squirt bottle art — with paint OR (mess-free option) water!
Catch and release bugs & critters
Bubbles — we LOVE these no-spill bubble buckets!
Sprinklers, splash pads, and water tables
Group games — freeze tag, hide & seek, capture the flag
Make flower chains
Finger paint
Outdoor crafts
Sports games
Lawn games
Take pictures or videos — you can get them their own inexpensive kids digital camera if you don’t trust them with yours yet 😉 )
Roller skate or roller blade
Water guns, water balloons, or sponge bombs
Swing
Play with rocks — here’s a list of 10 DIY outdoor games you can make with rocks and here are 9 ways you can play with rocks
Nature scavenger hunt
Make “mud pies” — check out this ADORABLE “recipe” for mud pies
Gravel or sand digging pits