Top of mind this summer: keeping your kids busy without turning your living room into a toy-tornado zone. Good news: We uncovered plenty of ways to play and get creative that are mess-free. From engaging digital coloring activities you can download with one simple click from the Amazon Appstore Family to transforming a pool noodle into a light saber, scroll down for seven ideas that’ll take you from the first day of summer to the last—no slime or glitter required.
Kids Coloring Fun
There’s no better summer boredom-buster than good old fashioned coloring. Take those coloring books into the future with an app that allows little artists to color and create to their heart's content without any wasted paper or worry that those colors will end up outside the lines and on your walls. Pink Fong’s Kids Coloring Fun app, available in Amazon Appstore Family, your go-to hub for top apps for kids ages three to 12 years old. This Coloring Fun app offers hours of mess-free creativity with over 220 coloring pages and tools that include digital stickers, and even glitter, and all you have to do is turn it off when you’re done—no clean-up required!
Origami Transformers
Avoid summer brain drain and have some no-mess fun making origami stars. Kids will put their STEM skills to the test with math art that’s so much fun to play with they won’t even realize they’re learning. Get the full tutorial on folding origami paper into ninja stars from What Do We Do All Day?
Make a Light Saber
Soft pool noodles aren’t just great for water play, they're also the perfect accessory for a safe and mess-free light saber battle. Take advantage of the abundance of pool noodles on sale for the summer to make this out-of-this-galaxy craft. After kids have designed their light sabers you can let them loose to play without worrying about anything breaking. Check out the full details from Muddy Boots.
Kids Doodle 2 - Color and Draw
Neon and glow-in-the-dark projects are always fun for those warm summer nights, but they can get a little messy. Get your glow on with the Kids Doodle 2 app—available in Amazon Appstore Family—which offers the perfect way to get creative without any mess. A great option for your older artists who need something more than a coloring page, the app features endless bright colors and 18 different brush styles including glow, neon and rainbow, and once the masterpieces are completed, the young artists can display their work in a mini movie gallery.
Yarn Doll
Popsicle sticks, yarn and a little imagination is all you need for this fun, low-mess craft that offers hours of creative play. Kids can decorate the sticks in different colors and add faces, then they can put on a puppet show or just play. Check out the full details at Happy Hooligans.
Baby Shark Catcher
If your playful tots can’t stop singing Baby Shark, they’ll love doo-doo-doing this cute paper craft shark from Easy Peasy and Fun. With nothing more than paper and scissors, they’ll have a mini shark made in no time that they can use to chomp away the day, pretending to be under the sea without actually needing any water. You can download the full instructions and free template here.
Tape Town
Those dog days of summer can get long when the kids have already played with same toys over and over. You can spice things up and get creative with nothing more than a few roles of washi tape. Transform those been-there, done-that cars and dolls by letting your kids tape out a city on the floor for creative play. When they’re done all you have to do is pull the tape off, no mess guaranteed.
Check out more creative, mess-free ways to play this summer with Amazon Appstore Family.
—Shahrzad Warkentin
Featured photo: Amazon
