By Wishes Diva
At my house, I have a very energetic preschooler who is constantly looking for new things to do. Despite our house of a thousand toys, you would think we are forcing him to sit and do nothing all day. Ever since my son was old enough to decipher shapes and colors he has been a huge fan of all things Disney, especially Mickey Mouse! So we have come up with clever ways to incorporate Disney into our everyday activities. Most of the things we do require little to no prep work and include things you already have laying around the house!
See below for my list of 6 Disney Themed Ways to Entertain Your Preschooler:
1. PJ Movie Party– Ever since Disney+ came out, they have done new releases on Fridays. So every Friday night after dinner we get into jammies and have a movie night. Typically it is something new from the Disney+ lineup, but sometimes our viewing will be of an old favorite. If you don’t have Disney+ this is just as easy to do with any movie or DVD that you have at the house.
Watching Lilo & Stitch at our PJ movie night
We usually pop popcorn and get all of the blankets and pillows into a big pile on the floor. Dim the lights and turn up the volume for a completely immersive experience! Or if you are really motivated you can do a whole theme night! Check out the links below to see what other talented Diva’s have done with their theme nights!
Character Diva takes on a Moana theme
Fancy Free Diva gives into the Frozen craze
Character Diva heads to the bayou with a Princess and the Frog theme
Character Diva shows us how to have a rootin’ tootin’ good time at a Toy Story movie party
2. Hidden Mickey Scavenger Hunt- This idea takes just a few minutes of prep work. I did this activity this week with my 3-year-old and now it is his favorite thing to do! Most people know about the Hidden Mickey’s at the Disney Parks, but we adapted this fun search to an in-home activity. All it took was some construction paper, markers, and tape. We took the construction paper and cut the pieces in half. On each half, we drew a Mickey or Minnie head. We then used masking tape to stick them up.
Read more about Hidden Mickey’s in the parks here.
The way the game works is whoever is going to be finding the hidden Mickey’s goes to sit and close their eyes in a designated spot. The second person takes all the Mickey’s you made and “hides” them around the house. After all the hiding is done it is up to the finder to collect all the Mickey pictures! Pretty basic concept. For my 3-year-old we started off hiding the pictures basically in plain sight but as he gets better I am slowly making it harder for him to find them.
We also got my 18-month-old in on the fun! She had special Minnie pictures that were hers to find while brother found his Mickeys. Now you can certainly go more elaborate with your pictures. I just used what we had and wanted them done quickly so we could play! But eventually, I’m sure I’ll upgrade to printed pictures that I laminate to use for months to come!
Mini Wishes Diva finds her hidden Minnie!
3. Disney Karaoke/Disney Sing-a-Longs: This idea takes me back to my childhood. When I was a kid my sister and I had all of the Disney Sing-a-Long VHS tapes we could own and we wore through them! Once I had kids I searched and found a few on DVD that we watch and sing with from time to time.
Even just playing Disney music to sing with in the house is a fun activity. You can see who remembers the most words, or see who can guess the movie that each song comes from first! It may even turn in to a Disney dance party!!
4. Virtual Disney Videos: In recent weeks there have been many videos shared that give the ability to watch a first person point of view video for many of the Disney World and Disneyland ride. A quick google search will bring you up tons of links for these videos. We have also found videos of parades and fireworks shows online too. These videos can be fun viewing for the whole family, especially to help build the anticipation for an upcoming trip, or to test the waters to see if your kiddo will like a particular ride. So many options here as well that these videos can be spread out across several weeks. No need to jam all the fun into one day!
Mini Wishes Devo acts out the Lion King!
5. Read Aloud/Act it Out: If your house is like mine then you may have what feels like hundreds of Disney books. One thing we have started doing with our preschooler is now that he knows the stories pretty well we do read aloud or act it outs where one person reads the story and the others act it out! We assign characters and sometimes use costumes and props to help us really get into the story. We also like to utilize toys and stuffed animals that we have to add a layer to our storytelling.
6. Fashion Show/Dress Up: Speaking of characters and costumes, host a fashion show! Turn up some Disney dance music and put on a fashion show using all the costumes in your house. Or if you don’t have costumes, make them! Paper crowns and blanket capes can go a long way for little imaginations! There is no wrong way to do it, as long as you’re having fun!
I hope this list is helpful for those rainy, cold or snowy days that limit your options outside of the house. It has been extremely helpful for us in recent weeks as we wait for the weather to clear up!
