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The last week in September has been designated as the national ‘keep kids creative’ week. this week is often celebrated in schools with many activities to stimulate kid’s creative muscles. Parents can also take advantage of this week to do some fun things at home. many parents struggle with finding time to fit creativity in but here are 3 suggestions that can take less than 30 minutes and will still get the kids creative juices going.

House of Cards

Card games can be fun but cards can also be used for other activities. Introduce kids to the art of building a house of cards. this activity can be done almost anywhere with only a deck of cards and a flat surface to build on. use one or more decks of cards and challenge the kids to a contest to see who can build the highest tower or the biggest house. show them how to lean cards against each other so they stand freely. this activity does require some skill and steady hands. If the flat surface is too slippery try laying a dish towel or pillow case down on the surface. this will make it easier to stack the first level of cards. for extra difficulty add household items into the mixture of building material. These might include toilet paper rolls, paper plates, silverware or even small blocks.

Make Lightning

Lighting is a powerful form of static electricity. in this experiment kids can make their own small version of lighting.

Items Needed

Scissors
Styrofoam tray
Metal pie plate
Masking tape

Step 1:

Cut off the corner of the Styrofoam tray in the shape of an L. Bend the L up at the corner. Tape the L to the center of the pie tin on the topside so it forms a handle that can be used to pick up the pie tin without touching the metal.

Step 2:

Rub the remaining Styrofoam tray on your hair really fast for one minute.

Step 3:

Lay the tray upside down on the floor or a table. Pick up the pie tin with the handle.

Step 4:

Drop the pie tin onto the tray. Slowly touch the edge of the pie tin with your finger. it should create a spark.

Step 5:

Pick up the pie tin with the handle and touch it again. Drop the tin on the Styrofoam again.

The experiment can be repeated many times. If the static electricity runs out simply rub the tray on your hair again.

Water Sprinkler Obstacle Course

This is a great game for a hot day when the yard needs to be watered anyway. Set up the sprinklers throughout the yard. mark a starting line and place balls or cones throughout the yard, close to the sprinklers. Challenge each participant to run through the yard and touch the cones or gather the balls then get back to the starting line without getting wet. Time each participant and award prizes for the fastest.

To make the game more challenging have someone stand by the faucet control and randomly turn the sprinklers on and off. An additional challenge can be to see who can run around the course the most times without getting wet.

If you enjoyed these ideas stop by Creative Kids to see many more samples of fun and fast games, crafts, science and family activities.