Create fun and entertaining learning opportunities at home with these simple activities! Create a DIY laser maze at home, conduct simple science experiments, and incorporate short mini-lessons from workbooks to keep children thinking and learning during school breaks. Listed below are free downloadable activities, workbook recommendations for all ages, and how-to’s for fun activities. Plus, don’t miss the free printables and social and emotional learning activities!
DIY Laser Maze
This is a fun activity that will help your child take a break from workbook pages and get him or her moving. It can be adapted for any age level with easy adjustments! All you need for this activity is painter’s tape and a hallway!
Using painter’s tape, tape one side of the tape to one wall of your hallway or staircase and stretch it diagonally or laterally across to the other side. Repeat this process, leaving enough space between each tape piece for your child to fit through to make a laser-esque maze! Make some “laser beams” low, some high, some diagonal, some parallel to the floor, etc.
Challenge Tip: Make it more difficult to complete the maze by adding more tape 
and asking questions that have to be answered correctly before moving on the next stage.
- What’s 2+2?
- What color is a banana?
- Spell the word “cat.”
- What is 9×8?
- What are three adjectives that describe you?
- What is a nonfiction book?
- Is a fiction book real?
- What is a noun?
- Are bears mammals?
Build a Fort
Forts are magically capable of making anything more fun. Turn your bunk bed, couch, or kitchen table into an awesome fort using sheets, pillows, and blankets. Use flashlights or lamps inside to turn your fort into a workbook, reading, or homework space that your kids will love.
Create a weekend fun night with your fort!
- Watch a family movie in your fort together.
- Have a family living room sleepover in your fort.
- Build a Lego or doll world inside your fort.
Children will love feeling like a spy in this super fun and simple activity! It will provide hours of endless, mostly hands-free fun!
Cardboard Construction Company
Using cardboard or other pliable building materials you have around, such as pool noodles, blocks, and pager, make a play space. The possibilities are endless, and it will keep your kids busy, thinking, and having fun! Here are some more ideas for what you can make with cardboard:
- restaurant
- school space
- cardboard airplane
- playhouse
- airplane, bus, or car
- dollhouse
- soccer goal
- puppets
- DIY painting canvas
Use paint and markers to turn just a box into anything you want!
Underwater Fireworks Science Experiment
This simple at-home science experiment is great for younger children who like hands-on activities. All you need for this experiment is water, oil, food coloring, a fork, and a couple of glasses. Simply follow these directions to experience an underwater fireworks show!
- Fill a tall glass nearly to the top with room temperate or slightly warm water.
- In the other glass, pour a tablespoon or two of oil.
- Add a couple drops of food coloring (the color of your choice) into the oil.
- Using a fork, briefly stir the oil mixture. The oil mixture does not need to be thoroughly mixed, just enough to break up the food coloring.
- Pour the oil mixture into the tall glass and watch!
Oil and water don’t mix, and food coloring will dissolve in water but not in oil. As the coloring sinks in the tall glass, it will slowly start to dissolve, and you’ll be treated to an underwater fireworks show!
Top Activity Books to Inspire Learning
Creativity and a desire to learn are born from boredom! Encourage your child to learn about topics that he or she is interested in from Evan-Moor’s favorite at-home activity books. With books on STEM, math, reading, writing, science, geography, social studies, and more, there are plenty of activities and mini-lessons for your child to explore and engage in.
STEM and Science
Smart Start: STEM for grades PreK–1
This workbook uses hands-on activities to teach mini-lessons about earth, life, and physical science. Each grade level uses different concepts such as magnets, animal habitats, and weather to explore different areas of science. Each unit provides concept reading pages, comprehension activity pages, and hands-on experiments and activities to apply the lesson.
Skill Sharpeners: Science for grades PreK–6
Study different areas of science, such as physical, life, space, environment, and engineering science with Skill Sharpeners! The older grade levels teach children about anatomy, waves, energy, and more! This activity book uses full-color pages and hands-on activities to keep children engaged in their learning, and plenty of different topics so they can learn about what interests them.
Top Student Activity Book Has It All!
Top Student for grades PreK–6
Give your child practice in every subject with Top Student activity books for grades PreK–6. Top Student is a workbook that covers all subject areas and provides over a hundred pages of activities and mini-lessons to help your child learn. It covers basic subject areas like writing, social studies, grammar, reading, math, and science, but also has activities in more advanced subjects such as computer science, social and emotional learning, and STEM! This workbook is great for at-home learning and provides a variety of activities so your child won’t get bored. Also included are mindful moments lessons to help children connect with their emotions and actions. Each activity book for grades PreK–3 includes reward stickers.
Download free Top Student kindergarten activity here. These free workbook pages are from Evan-Moor’s Top Student grade K.
Download this free sampler for social and emotional learning activities from Top Student for grades PreK-6 here.
A healthy mix of workbook pages and hands-on projects will keep your child engaged and learning during school breaks! The workbooks recommended will provide resources and activities that encourage at-home learning, while the other activities focus on at-home fun and creativity!
For more free lessons and activities, subscribe to our monthly e-newsletter!
Christine Wooler has experience working with children as a youth soccer coach and summer camp counselor. She is currently studying English Literature and journalism in college. She enjoys exploring educational topics that help students have fun while learning.