Free and Simple Activities for Toddlers

Are you wondering how to entertain your toddler on a budget? Are you looking for fresh ideas for activities that won’t break the bank? I’ve compiled a list of my favourite toddler-friendly activities that will fuel their imaginations, support their development and burn off some energy without cluttering your house with even more toys or leaving a hole in your wallet!

The toddler stage can be challenging. These tiny tornadoes are into everything and have a knack for finding the danger in any given situation! Toddlers need time for unstructured free play, to move their bodies as they continuously master new skills. They also need some more structured activities to support them across all areas of development.

Entertaining your toddler can feel like a relentless task. It probably would be easier to sit them in front of a screen. But the more you invest in your little one, the sooner they will learn all kinds of exciting skills that will make your life easier! For example, supporting their fine motor development will help them to learn how to feed and dress themselves. Supporting their speech and language development will help them to learn the words they need to express themselves, reducing frustration and tantrums.

And the best part? You can do all of this without any expensive toys or equipment.

Free Activities

Join your local library: Reading is one of the most powerful and important activities to engage in with your little one. It helps them to expand their vocabulary and also learn patterns of speech. Books based in reality can also support your toddler in learning about all sorts of topics, such as: managing big feelings; daily routines; colours; numbers; shapes and more! Creating a collection of books at home can be a big expense. But did you know that everyone in the UK is entitled to borrow books from a public library for free? So, make a routine of going to the library once a week. Spend some time perusing the shelves, and maybe even read a few books while you’re there. And then take a stack of books home with you to enjoy throughout the week.
Spend time in nature: This will look different depending on where you live. If you’re near the seaside, head down to the beach. Let your toddler run barefoot on the sand and splash in the water. Use a stick to draw letters, shapes, or pictures in the sand. Talk about the waves as they come rolling in, the plants and wildlife, and how the tide goes in and out. Or if you have a local forest, pay a visit there. Try to identify the various plants and trees by their leaves. Talk about the different animals, birds and insects that live in the forest. And perhaps even see if they can climb a (small) tree!
Find your local play park: Play parks are a great place for toddlers to run about and burn off some energy. Swings, slides, climbing frames – what more could a toddler want? If your route to the park allows, let your little one walk to the park or use a trike or balance bike to maximise their opportunity to move their bodies.
Water play: You don’t need a bespoke splash table or sprinkler system to introduce your toddler to water play. Fill your washing up bowl, or another large plastic container, with water. Submerge a few objects (a spoon, a water-safe toy, a clothes peg) and ask your toddler to “rescue” the items. You can also give your child a measuring cup, a jug or a small watering can and teach them how to scoop up and pour the water back into the washing up bowl, describing the actions as you go.
Build a Blanket Fortress: What better way to spend a rainy day, than to create a cosy den to snuggle in? Bring your favourite cuddly toys and your library books, and you’ll be all set.
Have a Dance Party: Play some upbeat music and prepare to get a little bit silly as you and your toddler bop along.

Low-Cost Activities

Drawing: All you need is a box of crayons and some paper. Encourage your little one to start making marks on the paper. Name the different colours as your toddler tries out each of the crayons. Draw some shapes and name them also. If you’re brave, you can experiment with painting. Or even just water painting to start with, describing how the water on the brush or their hands changes the appearance and the feel of the paper.
Baking: Either sit your little one in their high-chair or stand them in a learning tower, and let them “help” you in the kitchen. The reality might be that you give them a small bowl of flour to play with while you make some cookies, but before you know it, you’ll have your own little sous-chef!
Play dough: You can make your own salt dough at a much lower cost than commercial play dough. Talk about the texture of the dough as you play with it together. Describe the different shapes and objects that you make. If you’ve added food colouring to the dough, name the different colours.
Sidewalk Chalk: Draw hopscotch squares, a maze, an obstacle course, or any number of things on the pavement. And then show your child how to play the game. Hours of fun to be had!
Board Games and Puzzles: Charity shops, Facebook marketplace and Vinted have plenty of second-hand games in good condition. These are a good way to grow your child’s attention span, whilst they also hone their fine motor skills and learn how to take turns.
Make Music: As mentioned above, there are several places that sell second-hand toys, including children’s musical instruments. Or you can improvise with wooden spoons, colanders, pots and pans. Try to hum a tune as your toddler sets the rhythm!