Screen time alternatives – My top 20 play ideas

Try this recipe for a different take on the classic playdough. Explore the garden together to see what sensory plants you could mix to make a unique scent.

Find some buttons, stones or even coins to hide in the sandpit. Dig through the sand together to find your treasure.

Collect some sheets, chairs, pillows, boxes and blankets to create your very own hideaway. Remember to take in a stash of your favourite books to share inside when you are finished.

Chat with your little one about some of the things you might see together on your outdoor adventure (for example, a bird, a dog, a gumnut, a stone etc). Make a list or draw pictures of these items and tick them off or colour them in as they are found.

Blend together your favourite fruit with vanilla yoghurt. Poor into icy pole moulds or ice block trays, set in the freezer and enjoy outside in the shade.

Your little one will have hours of fun using giant chalk to draw on the concrete or fence outside. Use a spray bottle with water to make your graffiti disappear instantly.

Now that summer has hit, it’s time to go outside and get wet and dirty. It’s easy to make mud, just get the hose or a bucket of water into the sand, get out your bucket, spade, digger and play!

Collect containers, milk lids, boxes, ribbons, tissue paper and catalogues for endless hours of imagination and entertainment for your little one. Give them some masking tape and watch them create their very own masterpiece.

Visit your local park for a picnic and hours of active fun. Perth has a range of fantastic nature play areas for kids. Check them out at this link.

Play one of these simple board games together: Beetle, Mr Potato Head Pals, The Shopping List Game, Memory, Honey Bee Tree, Pop-up Pirate or Memory.

Put together a box with hats, scarves, jackets, sunglasses and necklaces and let your little one’s imagination run wild. You don’t need to spend money on expensive costumes – look through your old clothes or in op shops. You can even make some things yourself, like tails made out of old stockings stuffed with newspaper, or capes made out of old pillowcases.

Check out this recipe for making rainbow rice with your little one.

Make your very own musical shakers by using empty containers and items such as dried beans, rice, gumnuts and even nuts and bolts.

Cooking with kids is lots of fun. Try this simple melon treat with your little one.

Cut potatoes into some unique shapes to create your very own mural (or wrapping paper for Christmas). Find the instructions here.

An old cardboard box can be easily made into a stage for your very own puppet show. Try making some puppets out of old socks or by following these instructions to make wooden spoon puppets.

There are many outdoor areas in Perth near water and kids love to create and float their very own boats. Be resourceful to see what materials you could use to make a boat (an old ice cream container, old rubber thongs, corks, sponges or even bark from a tree). For more boat ideas, click here.

When it gets a little too hot outdoors why not make your very own indoor fishing game. All you need is some paper, a stick, a strong magnet and some paper clips. Find the instructions here.