Bored Kid? The Best 30 Ideas for Your Bored Jar
When our oldest first entered the phase of proclaiming “I’m bored” on a regular basis, I’d cheerily rattle off a couple ideas for something fun she could do. She’d pick one and disappear for 30 minutes, and I gave myself a pat on the back for a job well done.
But then she’d boomerang right back to me with another “I’m bored,” and the cycle would repeat.
So when I came across the idea of a “bored jar,” I knew I had to make one.
Bonus: As a bonus for joining my weekly newsletter, get a free printable of the best 50 bored jar ideas.
How to Make a Bored Jar: Non-Crafty Edition
Here’s the basic idea:
- Get a jar† and some jumbo popsicle sticks.
- (Optional) Decorate one side of the popsicle sticks with washi tape. (Note: I am not a crafty person, but I figured even I could handle sticking washi tape on popsicle sticks. It’s not necessary for your Bored Jar—some people even use slips of paper instead of popsicle sticks.)
- Write ideas for fun stuff to do on the popsicle sticks, and put them in the jar (hereafter referred to as the Bored Jar).
- When your kid says they’re bored, point to the Bored Jar.
- Your kid picks a stick and does what it says. PROBLEM SOLVED.
What I spent:
- Jar: $4.18
- Popsicle sticks: $3.74
- Washi tape: $6.03
- Total: $13.95
Here’s how my Bored Jar turned out. Not quite as adorable as my inspiration, but it’ll do.
But Will It Work on a Bored Kid?
Short answer: Yep! What’s surprised us is how seriously our daughter has taken the Bored Jar.
This weekend, she pulled out a stick that said “Do something nice for someone you love.”
Her: “What does that mean?”
“Just something you think would make someone smile, like drawing them a picture or doing them a favor,” I explained.
She disappeared for a while.
Then she came strutting out of my bedroom with a big grin on her face.
I was a little nervous. So I hurried into the bedroom, and this is what I discovered:
- She had pushed the cat beds under the dresser to get them out of the way.
- She moved a stray empty box from some recently ordered baby must haves into a corner.
- She’d taken the clean duvet cover from
the laundry basketoff the floor and spread it over the bed. The king-sized bed on a platform frame. With only her two little 5-year-old hands.
Related: Keep Your Kids Happy With This Road Trip Experiment
Our Own Special Twist
Sometimes I’m perfectly happy to play a game of Qwirkle per the Bored Jar, but other times I just need my child to entertain herself while I get something else done.
So for the activities that she can’t do on her own, we added a star on the popsicle stick. Before she draws a stick, she asks whether we can do something with her. And if not, she knows to keep pulling sticks until she finds one without a star.
Or Just Forget the Popsicle Sticks
To save you time, I made a handy printable of 50 activities for your bored kid—the 30 activities listed in the next section plus 20 more bonus activity ideas. Scroll to the end of this post to get the printable, cut it into cards, pop them into a jar, and you’re done.
Here’s a sneak peek of your printable:
30 Fun Activities for Bored Kids
- Have a picnic for lunch or after school
- Write or make up a story
- Listen to a podcast
- Play hide-and-seek
- Solve a puzzle
- Read a book or magazine
- Make art
- Play a card game or board game—Here are the best board games for all ages.
- Go for a walk
- Play catch
- Take photos
- Do yoga (our daughter loves this YogaKids DVD)
- Write a letter or thank-you note
- Design an obstacle course
- Listen to an audiobook—Get a membership to Audible or Libro.fm so they can listen to the best audiobooks. (By the way, Libro.fm is the same price as Audible, and you’ll support a locally owned bookstore with every audiobook you choose!)
- Build something with LEGOs
- Design a postcard, then mail it to someone
- Play dress-up
- Make food
- Do five nice things for someone you love
- Paint rocks
- Plan a treasure hunt
- Build something with boxes
- Take a bath
- Watch a documentary
- Turn on the sprinklers
- Write in a journal—Here are the best journals for kids.
- Chat by video with a friend or relative
- Build an epic fort
- Wash the car
Get Your Free Printable: 50 Bored Jar Ideas
- Get the free printable of 50 bored jar ideas for kids. Join my weekly-ish newsletter and as a bonus, you’ll get the printable! Just click here to get it and subscribe.
- Print. Any paper will do the trick, but card stock would be ideal.
- Cut into cards. Don’t worry if you don’t cut them perfectly straight. Your bored kid won’t care!
- Pop the cards into an empty mason jar or bowl, put it on your dining room table, and you’re DONE.
Before you go, get my FREE cheat sheet: 75 Positive Phrases Every Child Needs to Hear
Your Turn
What do you do when you have a bored kid on your hands? Share your tips in a comment below!
Megan {Country Cleaver} What a cool idea! I have seen these for date night ideas for couples – but equally genius for kids!!
Megan, ooh I like the idea of using a jar like this for date night ideas! We had so much fun with our Advent calendar for the holidays this year – all these jar ideas feel like of like a year-round Advent calendar. :-)
My mom never bothered with a bored jar or anything like that. My brothers and I learned pretty quickly not to admit boredom too loudly, because we knew the answer would always be, “Go read a book,” “Go play,” or “Well, help me by setting the table, then.” We learned to entertain ourselves, and that fostered a great deal of creativity in all of us.
Laura, I love your story of how you and your brothers learned to be so creative! It sounds like your mom had the magic touch. :-) Thanks for stopping by to share your perspective!
Honestly, as per our counselor (who is helping us with our daughter’s ADHD Combined diagnosis) and some other reading I’ve done, it’s GOOD for kids to be bored.
Kids don’t need us to provide an answer to their boredom all the time. But some of the time? I think this jar is a great idea!
This is very good for young children . A next step when the child is a little older could be like this. I wanted my kids to be resourceful and learn to entertain themselves. When they said , “I’m bored,”, i gave them a small job to do and they had to do it. They would rather play than work so they quickly learned to find things to do .