Today’s fun for kids idea is going to make for a very short and sweet post! And that idea is…playing train!
The picture makes it pretty much self-explanatory too. Just line up a bunch of chairs in a row and invite all children, stuffed animals, dolls, adults, pets (even the neighbors if you’re feeling desperate) to come ride on your train! (Or school bus…or city bus…or mommy’s van…) If you have enough room, making 2 rows of seats with an aisle down the middle makes it even more realistic. Let the child be the driver and if there is a special hat for them to wear as the Train Engineer, all the better! Our granddaughter happily played train in the dining room while I was able to get some work done in the kitchen. There are all kinds of questions you can ask or comments you can make that will help them use their imagination and have a wonderful time pretending to be the train engineer and in charge of all the passengers on their train.
Here’s a few questions or comments to get you started:
1.) Where are you (we) going?
2.) Does it take a long time to get there?
3.) Are we there yet??
4.) What are we going to do when we get there?
5.) Did you check to see if everyone has their seat belt buckled?
6.) Did you punch every passenger’s ticket?
7.) Oh, no! Buddy Bear forgot his ticket! What should we do about that?
8.) If you are riding in the train…Wow! You are driving this train so fast that I almost fell out of my seat!
9.) Fall out of your seat with as much drama as you can manage. Depending on what type of personality the Train Engineer has, this could be quite hilarious to them or you might get reprimanded for not staying in your seat like you are supposed to. 😉
10.) Are we there yet??
11.) I’m hungry! When do we get to eat? And what do we get to eat?
12.) Dusty the Dog has to go to the bathroom!
13.) Can we go shopping at a toy store?
14.) It’s too cold/hot in here. Can you make it warmer/cooler?
15.) Wait! Stop! I think Mark the Monkey wants to go for a ride too!
16.) Is there a bathroom on this train?
17.) Are pets allowed to ride on here?
18.) Can we stop somewhere for some ice cream?
19.) When are we going back home again?
20.) Sing “The Wheels on the Bus (Train) Go Round and Round”.
21.) Pretend you are walking up the steps when getting on the train and walking down the steps when you get off.
22.) Can we go to the zoo?
23.) Is it daytime or nighttime?
24.) I’m sleepy. Can I take a nap on your train?
25.) Are we there yet??
If you haven’t guessed by now, yes, I can act pretty crazy when I play with my grand kids. But we have lots of fun and giggles and they still love me when we are done. 😉 I guess with all the questions I added, this post isn’t so short after all! But the idea of playing train is easy and simple and can be another fun time spent with your favorite kids or something to entertain them while you get some work done.
The Kids Niche 