Summer holidays are here. So, welcome this holiday spirit while keeping your toddler’s creative juices flowing with these easy, quick, and fun-to-create homemade toys. 

Super bouncy ball

Things you need: 2 cups, measuring spoons, stirrer, 2 tablespoons warm water, ½ teaspoon borax, 1 tablespoon glue, 1 tablespoon corn starch, food colour (optional), and plastic bag (for storing your ball).

Ask your tot to pour the water and borax into the first cup. Allow him to stir this mixture until it dissolves completely. Using hot water will liquefy the mixture quickly. Then, guide him to add glue, corn starch, food colour, and ½ teaspoon of the mixture from the first cup into the second cup, allowing the ingredients in the second cup to blend for about 15 seconds. Ask him to stir until the mixture thickens. Help him to scoop the thick mixture out of the cup and roll it into a ball. Voila! You have a super easy ball ready in minutes. Your kiddo will be eager to test his fun toy. Watch him jump with delight as he bounces the ball and watches it roll, skid along the living room floor, bang off hard surfaces, and pick up speed. Just ensure that your little one doesn’t chew on the ball as borax is non-edible.

Frothing ocean in a bottle

Things you need: Water, cooking oil, blue food colour, large bottle (2 litres) with a child-safe lid, and funnel.

Help your tot to fill one-third of the bottle with water. Then, ask him to add some drops of food colouring and shake the bottle gently to see how the colour dissolves. Top up the bottle with oil and close it. Guide him to tip the bottle upside down. He will be fascinated to discover an ocean resurrect in the bottle complete with rising waves — the more he shakes the bottle, the more bubbles the ocean creates. Watch him smile as he sees big blobs of colour swoosh and fall through the yellow oil. Advise him to stop for a while to let the bubbles settle, before starting all over again.

Portable checkerboard

Things you need: Pinking shears, canvas, ruler, pencil, knife, plastic art eraser, and ink pad.

Help your toddler cut a 12 by 12 inches square using pinking shears, which will protect the edges from fraying while making the board look decorative. For making the stamp, use a knife to slice a plastic art eraser into a 1 ½ by 1 ½ inches square. Go ahead and guide your tot to stamp a single square in one corner of the board, a second, cater-cornered to the first. Assist her to add a third square along the border, cater – cornered from the second and a full square space from the first. Continue to fill the board up to eight squares – four stamped and four blank in each row and column. Now for the checkers, collect mismatched bottle caps (12 for each side). Let your tot to paint the top of the caps with tempera or acrylic paints. Start playing with your toddler for him to grasp the tactics of the game, and he’ll always have something to do indoors!

This summer, let the good times roll for kiddo and you!