Family: 5 ideas to keep kids busy this winter

ARE YOUR KIDS’ BRAINS FUNCTIONING AT BELOW ZERO? They might be in need of a brain boost to battle the winter blues. Beat boredom this season with these ideas from National Geographic Family. —By Laura Goertzel

PHOTOGRAPH BY BOB_GOLDENRETRIEVER / REX SHUTTERSTOCK

UNLEASH THEIR INNER ANIMALS Invite your kids to click through this photo gallery of animal friends, then have them draw the wildest animal friendships they can dream up (though dog+cat+mouse has already been done!). Need some inspiration? Check out our animal coloring pages. PRINT COLORING PAGES SHARE

TAKE A (FUN!) QUIZ Take a few of these just-for-fun-personality quizzes with your kids to find out which instrument they’re most like, what their superpower would be, what time period suits them best, and more. TAKE PERSONALITY QUIZZES SHARE

SAVE THE WORLD WITH CRAFTS Crafting can give kids a sense of accomplishment and keep them busy for hours. These Earth-friendly crafting videos provide step-by-step instructions for making cozies, tote bags, crafting beads, and more. WATCH THE VIDEOS SHARE

PHOTOGRAPH BY MATTHEW RAKOLA

DO AN ICY EXPERIMENT Ice cubes might be an unusual architectural material, but they’re the ideal building blocks for creating a small-scale arch. Add food coloring to the ice cube tray for a wow-worthy photo to add to your social media feed. (Be sure to tag @NGKids on Twitter and @NationalGeographicKids on Facebook!) GET INSTRUCTIONS SHARE

PHOTOGRAPH BY MATTHEW RAKOLA

BUILD A GUITAR Raid the recycling bin and office supply drawer for everything your kid needs to make a working guitar. Bonus: They’ll learn about the science of acoustics. LEARN HOW SHARE

MORE TO EXPLORE Keep your kids busy this winter—and year-round—with the book Make This! Building, Thinking, and Tinkering Projects for the Amazing Maker in You. BUY THE BOOK

MORE FAMILY GOODNESS For more ways to unplug, inspire gratitude, and bring the family together this winter, visit Nat Geo Family.  ››