Indoor Recess Activities Teaching Resources
Do you need indoor recess ideas to take the stress out of those days when rain or snow keep the kids indoors at playtime? This teacher-created collection of activities, games and more is ready to save the (rainy) day!
From movement games that give students a way to get their wiggles out in small indoor spaces to coloring pages, drawing challenges and partner activities, there's something for every grade level in elementary and middle school and an option to fit every kind of student!
And we didn't stop there! Read on for some indoor recess ideas from our teacher team!
Our Favorite Indoor Recess Ideas for Teachers
The wind is howling. The rain is falling. And you have a bunch of kids who are bouncing of the walls. What do you do when you've got recess duty, and the kids are stuck indoors?
Explore this collection of activities, and peruse this list from our teacher team, of course!
- Create a Board Game Center — Ask classroom parents, friends and neighbors if they have extra board games that they no longer use to build a board game center in your classroom where students can turn on thosedays when it's too cold or wet to go out for recess. The advantage of filling your center with used board games is that you lose a lot less when pieces go missing! One member of our teacher team suggests putting all game pieces in large zipper plastic bags so when board game boxes start to fall apart it's easier to keep all those small pieces together.
- Build a Coloring Station — Print out coloring pages, add some crayons, and you have a quiet space for the kids who like to spend their recess quietly reflecting. Did we mention coloring is meditative for many kids?
- Create a Tournament — Are you a chess or checkers player? If the weather indicates that recess will be indoors for a while, why not teach your students to play and issue a tournament challenge to pass the time day after day?
- Turn to YouTube — Find a favorite (educational) show on YouTube that students can watch together. There are some great science-based shows that even we enjoy watching as teachers!
- Play Trash-Ket Ball. Have students ball up pieces of paper for a trivia game of trash-ket ball. Check our site for trivia questions you can use, or create your own. Each time a student answers a trivia question correctly, they get to attempt to make a basket in your classroom trash can.
- Create a Giant Rock, Paper, Scissors Game. Set students up in a circle, and select one student to go around the circle and play each student. When they lose, they take the seat of whoever beat them. that person continues playing around the circle until they lose. The first person back to their seat wins the game.
- Create a Class Drum Circle. Want to incorporate some movement into the day? Aside from the movement games in this collection, we suggest a class drum circle using their desks!
- Make Indoor Recess Bags. There's something extra exciting about bringing a toy from home, so why not lean into that excitement for indoor recess? Send parents a note asking them to create small plastic zipper bags with (quiet) toys that students are allowed to bring to school and store in their desk or cubbies to play with on indoor recess days.
- Set Up STEM Stations. Give your students a chance to stretch their STEM muscles with engineering challenges on the days they can't head to the playground.
- Indoor Snowball Fight. Throwing things in the classroom will never not excite kids. Roll up socks or pieces of paper for a simple snowball fight that won't make (too much of) a mess.
- Plus Plan
30 Mindful Drawing Tasks — Meditation Drawing for Kids
30 mindfulness drawing tasks to promote calm in your classroom.
- Plus Plan
Insects for Kids - Bingo Game
Learn about creepy crawly insects with a Bug Bingo Game for preschoolers.
- Plus Plan
Adverbs Activity - Grammar Charades
Have some fun and build grammar skills with an adverb charades activity.
- Plus Plan
Questions Only - Theatre Improvisation Game
An engaging theatre-style warm-up game to help your students stretch their brains by asking questions.
- Plus Plan
Pangolin Mindful Coloring Sheet
A pangolin mindful coloring sheet.
- Plus Plan
Cockatoo Mindful Coloring Sheet
A cockatoo mindful coloring sheet.
- Plus Plan
Infinity Coloring Sheet Template
An infinity coloring template that can be stuck together like a magical puzzle.
- Plus Plan
Verb Charades Active Game
An active game that allows students to consolidate their understanding of action verbs.
- Plus Plan
Easy Origami Animals Worksheet and Step-By-Step Instructions for Kids
Make origami animals with your students with printable step-by-step instructions plus a 2D shapes worksheet for your math lesson planning.
- Plus Plan
Technology Maze
A fun, technology-themed maze for students to complete.
- Plus Plan
Stegosaurus Mindful Coloring Sheet
A stegosaurus mindful coloring sheet.
- Plus Plan
Rhino Mindful Coloring Sheet
A rhino mindful coloring sheet.
- Plus Plan
Chicken Evolution Active Game
A whole class active game that encourages cognitive processing skills, physical activity, and social skills.
- Plus Plan
Yes Let's! Active Game
A whole class active game encourages the development of listening skills, confidence, and leadership.
- Plus Plan
Snake Sheds Its Skin Active Game
A whole class active game that encourages teamwork.
- Plus Plan
Fruit Salad Active Game
A whole class or large group active game that encourages listening skills.
- Plus Plan
Traffic Lights Active Game
A whole class active game that encourages students to develop their listening skills and to follow instructions.
- Plus Plan
Pirate Ship Model Building Activity and Ship Template
Make indoor recess fun with a pirate ship model building activity and pirate history project idea.
- Plus Plan
STEM Challenge Cards - Lower Grades
A set of 20 STEM challenge cards for students.
- Plus Plan
Editable What's My Card? Board Game Template
An editable template to create your own What's My Card? board game.
- Plus Plan
Corner Bookmark Craft Template
A template to use when creating a corner bookmark.
- Plus Plan
Tangram Treats - Tangram Puzzles
Have fun learning about shapes with a set of 36 tangram task cards separated into three levels, along with two tangram cut-out templates.
- Plus Plan
How to Make an Origami Dog — Step-By-Step Instructions for Kids
Teach students how to make an origami dog with an easy origami guide for kids.
- Plus Plan
Pack of Fun - Quick Fitness Games
14 quick, easy, and fun fitness activities for all ages.
- Plus Plan
Alphabet Coloring Pages - A to Z
Print a set of alphabet coloring pages to boost letter recognition skills.
- Plus Plan
Christmas Calendar - Advent Coloring Pages
Count down the days until Christmas in your classroom with printable advent coloring pages.
- Plus Plan
We the People - Constitution Day Coloring Page
Introduce your students to the Constitution and the Preamble with a fun Constitution Day coloring page.
- Plus Plan
How to Draw a Firefighter — Directed Drawing for Kids
Encourage creativity and boost fine motor skills with a pair of "How to Draw a Firefighter" worksheets.
- Plus Plan
Science Lab Dramatic Play Kit
Create a dramatic play center with this science lab decor kit.
- Plus Plan
Picture Puzzles - Team Building Activities
A set of 10 picture puzzles to use as a team-building activity.
- Plus Plan
Team Building Games – Upper Grades
Encourage communication and cooperation with this set of 10 team-building games.
- Plus Plan
Interactive Icebreaker Game
Looking for a fun interactive way for your students to get to know each other at the beginning of the school year? This is it!