There’s something universal about playing pretend. You probably have fond childhood memories of making up stories with your siblings, dressing up with your cousins, or going on imaginary adventures with the neighborhood kids.
Maybe it’s because pretend play and creative games are so accessible. All a child needs is their imagination, and they can have a blast anywhere, anytime.
But creative games for kids aren’t just fun. Imagination-based activities come with many benefits for children, including freedom of expression, problem-solving skills, and social and emotional development.
If you’ve been looking to make creative play a bigger part of your child’s life, you’ve come to the right place. Today, we’re sharing nine creative games and activities for kids that will help spark their creative thinking and social skills.
How Do You Stimulate a Child’s Imagination?
Is there anything as magical as a child’s imagination? Kids seem to be natural-born inventors, creators, and storytellers. They come up with characters on the spot, draw never-before-seen creatures, and design fantasy lands from scratch.
While children do seem to have a knack for this kind of inventive play, imagination is a skill like any other. That means you can nurture it.
As a parent, guardian, or caregiver, you can support your child’s development by stimulating their mind and imagination.
How can you achieve this goal? There are countless ways to help younger children explore their creative side, but it starts with encouragement and freedom. Simply allowing your kid to express themselves—and recognizing the value of self-expression—can make all the difference.
So, when you notice your child being curious, nurture that curiosity. Ask them open-ended questions, listen to their answers, and encourage them to do more and go deeper. As you do, you’ll discover that almost any activity can be considered creative, stimulating play.
Games and Activities That Foster Creativity
Although parental support and a vivid imagination can turn any activity into an opportunity for creativity, some outdoor and indoor games are made to stimulate the mind while also helping kids learn through play. To help you decide what to do at playtime, we’ve put together this list of creative games and activities.
To make navigating this guide easier, we’ve also split the activities into three different categories:
- Make-Believe
- Hands-On Creation
- Arts and Crafts
Let’s start with those games of pure imagination.
Make-Believe: Playing Pretend
With no requirements but the mind, make-believe games are the ultimate games to play at home with siblings, at school with friends, or on the go alone. Here are three creative games for kids that can kick their imaginations into overdrive.
1. Role-playing and Dress-Up
Role-playing games allow for endless creativity. Kids can pretend to be scientists, superheroes, or anything else they come up with—and you can pretend along with them.
You can initiate role-play by providing a prompt, such as, “What if you were a veterinarian? What would we do?” You could then take turns treating their stuffed animal or snuggler collection.
To take role-playing a step further, you can provide your children with a wardrobe for dress-up. It doesn’t need to be anything too fancy! A trunk full of old clothes would do the trick, as would some Halloween costumes from past years.
If you’re looking to stock up your dress-up collection, some fan favorites for this classic game include:
- Fairy wings
- Necklaces and jewelry
- Capes
- Crowns
- Stethoscopes
Don't want to make a big mess with a trunk full of clothes? Have them explore dress up in a mini world with Unicorn and Dragon with our Play Kit for Self Expression. Our kits also lead you in engaging adventures with your child inspired by play therapy.
2. Kitchen and Restaurant Play
For a more specific brand of role-playing, you can turn to the classics. Kitchen and restaurant play are indoor game staples, and it’s easy to see why.
Kids tend to imitate what they see. When you cook a family meal or go out to eat, your children may be inspired to mimic the behavior on display. Pretending to cook, clean, or serve fulfills that desire and is a simple game for younger children to try.
When kids play restaurant, they can serve imaginary food to their toys and stuffies—not to mention their parents and caregivers! Be sure to play along and order a meal with all the fixings.
3. Adventure and Exploration
There’s also a world beyond the kitchen for your younger kids to explore. Dress-up and role-play can lead to the creation of full-on characters. Those characters can go on to discover magical lands, sail the seven seas, and save the world.
Adventure and exploration games foster a sense of curiosity and wonder in your kid. They make new things seem exciting—not scary.
Plus, these games for younger kids double as opportunities to explore the real world. You can encourage this type of play by bringing your kids to new environments, like:
- The beach
- The forest
- The park
- The mall
Wherever you go, ask plenty of questions that inspire your child to explore the outside world and their inside world of feelings.
Hands-On Creation: Building a New World
Next, we turn to the activities that require imagination and some supplies. Luckily, these games rely on everyday items that should be easy to find.
4. Block Building and Construction
Blocks are a classic creative toy for young kids. From wooden blocks to plastic bricks, building materials let children improve their motor skills and their minds. When kids can build anything they dream of, the sky’s the limit. And that’s the perfect kind of creative play.
Building-block games also encourage children to make mistakes—and learn from them. For example, kids will quickly find out what makes a structure stand and what makes it fall. From there, they can experiment with ways to build even higher.
5. Fort Building and Pillow Forts
For something softer, change out the blocks for pillows and blankets. Pillow fort building is the perfect imaginative activity for a rainy day.
To make this activity more creative, ask your child to describe what they’re building. Is it a castle? A supervillain lair? Decorations can make these imaginary locations come to life.
You can also tie in the fort building with other indoor activities. For example, you can make movie night more interactive by first building a pillow fort together.
6. Creative Building Challenges
If your kids love a challenge, you can foster creativity by presenting them with a building problem to solve. Below are some examples of simple, low-cost building challenges:
- The egg drop challenge – Grab some eggs, and have your kid design something to keep a falling egg from breaking. Make sure you have some towels on hand, though—this one can get messy!
- The airplane challenge – Give your kids paper, paper clips, and other household supplies to make an airplane. Then, build a plane together and see how far it can fly. Challenge your child to improve the design to make it fly even farther.
- The raft challenge – Instead of an airplane, encourage your kids to build a boat. Provide some materials and a small pool of water, and see if they can create something that floats.
Activities like these can help promote spatial awareness and problem-solving skills, and lead to a lifelong interest in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math). When done in teams, they also foster communication and collaboration.
Arts and Crafts: The Beauty of Self-Expression
Finally, let’s look at creative, crafty projects that any kid with an artistic spirit can enjoy. These projects and games allow kids to express themselves artistically and explore their imagination.
7. Drawing and Painting
Wondering what to do with your kids today? Painting and drawing are both fun kids activities that can be done anywhere at any time. With a piece of paper and a few crayons or colored pencils, your child can create a masterpiece worthy of hanging on the fridge.
Some kids love to doodle anything that comes to mind. Others need a theme or suggestion to get started. You know your child best, so give them either a blank canvas or a prompt, and let them do the rest.
Later, when their art is complete, you can stimulate their mind by asking about their creation.
8. Sculpting and Playdough Creations
For kids who prefer a more hands-on experience (or may have eyesight limitations), modeling clay may be the right choice.
Playdough and sculpting clay allow children to make 3D models of buildings, animals, or their imaginary friends.
As with drawing, you can either give them a theme or have their imagination run wild. For example, you might suggest that your child shapes an imaginary creature. Then, you can ask them all about their new animal, with questions like:
- What is it called?
- What does it eat?
- Where does it live?
- How big is it?
9. Collage and Mixed Media
Your kids may already be familiar with drawing and painting. But they may not know about mixed media arts and collage.
Mixed media involves taking all kinds of materials—like pipe cleaners, buttons, and string—and bringing them together to make art. Collage, meanwhile, combines scraps of magazines, newspapers, and photos.
These activities are accessible because you can use something old to create something new. All you need are kid-safe scissors, some glue, and lots of imagination.
Choosing Fun Creative Games for Kids
Whether your child prefers to act, paint, tell stories, or build, these pretend-based activities will keep them entertained. What’s more, they can also help develop lifelong skills of creativity, communication, and critical thinking—not to mention a healthy imagination.
At Slumberkins, we believe in the importance of a child’s imagination. That’s why we foster it every chance we get.
If you want to learn more about play and creativity, read through some other resources from our caregiver blog.
Sources:
Parents. 5 Benefits of Pretend Play. https://www.parents.com/benefits-of-pretend-play-6828493
Sanford Health. When imitating others, toddlers learn new skills. https://news.sanfordhealth.org/parenting/imitation-in-toddlers/
