Mumbai rains – you never know when they turn from charm to chaos. Roads are flooding, trains are moving at turtle pace, but the only thing that bothers you is the kids at home because when they get these unexpected leaves, their energy levels go way up.

“I am bored”, the only sentence you hear after every half hour. And while handing them a phone or iPad feels like the easiest way out, it won’t give you the peace of mind. 

How Do You Keep Kids Busy Indoors, Without Relying On Screens?

Here are 9 simple and fun indoor activities that can keep your child busy and off the screen during heavy rains

1.Cardboard Box Creations

We all have those old Amazon boxes lying around. It’s time to use them for some creativity.  Give your child markers, tape, and scissors, and let them create something out of it. It can be a car, house, or a robot. 

2. Bake Together
Choose something easy, such as cookies or banana bread. Let your child do the mixing, pouring, and may be decorating if the child is old enough to handle it.
Don’t worry if the final product doesn’t come out as expected; the whole point here was about spending time together.

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3. Treasure Hunt at Home

Hide a few small toys or treats around the house. Write clues and let them find them. It’s exciting, and keeps them moving.

4. Build a Blanket Fort

Use bedsheets and cushions to create a cozy fort. They can sit inside and play. They can also use it at night to read stories.

5. Storytime Fun

Start with one sentence,  “Once upon a time, in the middle of a stormy night…”
Then let your child add the next sentence, and you add the one after that. It’s a fun game where you will end up creating a new story that didn’t exist.  You can also record this on your phone and play it later for some laughs. 

6. Easy Science Experiments

There are so many fun experiments you can do with things you already have at home.

Baking soda + vinegar = a mini volcano

Oil + water = a science lesson on density

Cornflour + water = oobleck (a non-Newtonian fluid that’s gooey and fun!)
It’s fun, messy, and secretly educational too.

7. Living Room Dance Party

Play your child’s favourite songs and dance with them! You don’t need to be a good dancer, just have fun and be silly.

8. Play Board Games Together

Remember Ludo?  Get those old board games out of the cupboards. If your child is younger, even simple memory card games or puzzles can work.

9. Window Doodles

Give your child some washable markers and let them draw on the windows while it rains outside. The feeling of a parent giving permission to draw on the window itself is exciting for kids. 

So, next time Mumbai rains hit, you know what to do. And if all else fails, there's always story time under a blanket fort.