101 rainy day activities for kids

It’s raining, it’s pouring … but that doesn’t mean playtime has to be boring! There are still plenty of fun things to do with kids on a rainy day.

“Rainy days don’t have to mean just staying inside,” says Holly Homer, founder and CEO of the Kids Activities Blog. “Mud is awesome and sometimes it is worth a little extra laundry to embrace the weather!”

“Outdoor play is incredibly important for the physical and emotional well-being of children, even when it’s raining,” says Dr. Rallie McAllister, a family physician and coauthor of “The Mommy MD Guide to the Toddler Years.” She encourages kids to play in the rain, as long as they’re wearing waterproof hats, coats and boots — and the weather is safe enough to play.

If you’re ready to have some rainy day fun, here are 101 rainy day activities for kids to turn an otherwise dreary day into a magical adventure:

1. Jump in puddles! Really, sometimes the simplest ideas are the best!
2. Go outside to make mud pies — equip kids with a few old or disposable pie or muffin tins and some nonbreakable measuring cups.
3. Make mud creatures.
4. Then come inside and make an easy mud pie recipe (this one’s edible!) for dessert.
5. Look for birds. Which kinds of birds are braving the weather? How are they acting?
6. Make paper boats and have races blowing them across puddles.
7. Have a relay race — see who can get the wettest?
8. Put cups or buckets in the front, back and sides of your home — which one fills up the fastest?
9. Get a waterproof camera and take photos.
10. Take a walk with colorful umbrellas.
11. Make a hot chocolate stand.
12. Have a water balloon or super soaker fight.
13. Go swimming (you’re wet anyway!)
14. Find simple science experiments that involve water, such as making a rain gauge.
15. Pitch a tent and listen to the rain while reading books inside.
16. Wash your bikes.
17. Try a scavenger hunt. Check out these creative scavenger hunt ideas for a cool theme.
18. Blow bubbles and see how far they go until raindrops make them pop.
19. Hula hoop in the rain.
20. Create an obstacle course and let the kids have a relay race in the rain.
21. Draw with colored sidewalk chalk — when wet, it’s more like working with paint or watercolors.
22. Use a skimboard through puddles in the grass. Don’t forget knee and elbow pads and a helmet.
23. Get the Slip ‘N Slide out — or create your own with a tarp or thick plastic dropcloth.
24. For older kids: set up the Slip ‘N Slide on a hill.
25. Play “statues” — much trickier to hold still when you’re wet.

Read more: 101 indoor games and activities for kids

26. Create your own mud run course.
27. Head to your local pond to see what animals are braving the rain.
28. Go water sledding! Cover a large piece of cardboard with a trash bag and slide down a grassy hill.
29. Dig for worms! The wetter the ground, the easier it will be to find these little squirmers.
30. Have contest to see who can find the longest or wiggliest worms. How many different categories can you come up with?
31. Once you have a bunch of worms, find a pond or lake and do a little fishing. Some fish may be easier to catch during or after a light rain.
32. Make a miniature boat out of household items/recycling. See if it floats. Attempt to put very small toys in the “boat” to see how much weight it can hold.
33. Use the swings at the park — they’re bound to be empty (just remember equipment could be slippery!).
34. This is a perfect time to play outside with the dog — or even give your dog a bath.
35. Race with ride-on on the driveway or backyard.
36. Ride bikes through the puddles.
37. Play charades.
38. Play Red Rover.
39. Tie-dye shirts inside and then wear them outside. Do the colors run in the rain?
40. Bring out blocks, Legos and other building toys and build on the patio.
41. Bonus! They toys will get clean!
42. Bring out the plastic toy and action figures and create a mud battle.
43. Then, wash them off of course!
44. Wash any outdoor toys or playsets.
45. Play with shaving cream and food coloring. Watch it rinse away.
46. Do spin art.
47. Pull weeds in the garden — it’s so much easier when the ground is wet!
48. Paint the fence with washable paint. Let it get wet. Do it again!
49. Have a talent show — every talent must involve water.
50. Have a fashion show using all the raincoats, boots and umbrellas you can find.
51. Make it a “trashion” show, using bags and other recyclables.
52. Wash the recycle bins — the rain does half the job!
53. Put out bowls of flour, sand, sugar and other kitchen substances. Watch what happens when they get wet.
54. Toss waterproof toys into puddles (this is more fun/satisfying than you could ever imagine!).
55. Is it getting cold enough to snow? Hide coins or little toys in buckets of water to see if they will freeze.
56. Break out the pool toys. Slide around on the grass, or play bumper cars with the inflatable tubes.
57. Go on a rainy day nature walk — what’s different?
58. Take along beach pails and collect fallen leaves and twigs.
59. When you get home, use your findings, glitter, glue and paint to create a rainy day collage, wreath or other nature craft masterpiece to hang on your front door!
60. Play with bath toys in a small inflatable or plastic pool.
61. Put out ice cube trays with three drops of food coloring in the rain and see how long it takes for them to fill up. Put them in the freezer to make colored cubes (to use in your next bath!)
62. Set up a large glass or measuring cup outside, and measure how much rain you get.
63. Make nature boats out of sticks and leaves — then let them set sail in an outdoor pool or your bathtub.
64. Set up a tent and have lunch inside of it. Rainy picnic!
65. While inside the tent, have a sing-a-long or tell spooky stories.
66. Throw a parade. Line up and march around the house with umbrellas and toys, singing songs as you go.
67. Play in the sandbox. The rain makes the sand perfect for sandcastles!
68. Have a contest to see who can build the biggest or most impressive castle — winner gets to choose the afternoon snack.
69. Make a sugar cube tower by stacking as many of them as you can and see how long it takes for the sugar to dissolve in the rain.
70. Then, see how many ice cubes you can stack on each other and see how long that lasts in the rain. Which one lasts longer? Sugar cubes or the ice cubes?
71. Make hot cocoa and sip it under your umbrellas.
72. Put a few drops of food coloring in puddles, and watch as the colors mix and run.
73. Splash ‘n dash! Take a dip in the pool or kiddie pool, and then jog around the lawn.
74. Bring out the boogie boards, and pretend to go surfing.
75. Make a rainy day playlist.
76. Have a rainy day dance-off.
77. Listen to the rhythm of the rain! Try to guess what the rain is hitting against.
78. Where does the water go when it’s raining? Explore what happens to those raindrops.
79. Get paper and sprinkle it with powdered tempera paint. Set it out to the rain and it will mix, creating your rain masterpiece.
80. Try something similar with a watercolor painting — see how the raindrops add to your original design.
81. Choreograph an original dance to the song “Singing in the Rain.”
82. Make a video clip of the performance to keep or share.
83. Listen to what the rain sounds like, then create a DIY rain stick to mirror the sounds.
84. Have a puddle jumping contest. Whoever jumps in the most puddles in 30 seconds wins. 
85. Play card games under a tent in the backyard.
86. Play hot potato in the rain.
87. Write your name in mud.
88. Figure out how many words you can rhyme with “rain.” Try to make a rhyming poem or song with all the different words.
89. Make a lean-to out of sticks, leaves and branches — or let them try this easier DIY shelter with a tarp and two knots.
90. Grab some soap and wash the car.
91. Make up a song about the rain.
92. Get crafty and make your own paper umbrella or parasol.
93. Bake a rainbow cake, so you have something to look forward to after playing in the rain. 
94. Reenact your favorite movies scenes (extra points if these scenes involve rain or mud!).
95. Put on your swimming suits. Grab some snorkels and masks and pretend you’re swimming while running around in the rain.
96. Have a water balloon toss and see how many times you can throw them back and forth before they break.
97. Take some more water balloons and have a contest to see who can throw them the farthest distance.
98. Cover yourself with face and body paint and see how long it takes for the rain to wash it off. 
99. Test different paper strengths — see how much weight different papers can hold, while wet, before breaking. 
100. Play Frisbee! Does the rain make it harder to toss?
101. When the sun comes out (even for a short time), search for rainbows.

Of course, while it may be fun to play in a little light rain, you do need to be careful. If it starts to rain hard or there’s any chance of lightning, head right back inside.