20 Creative Ways to Use Cardboard for Kid-Friendly Activities

As we are all trying to adhere to social distancing and staying in our homes, it is getting even harder to be able to acquire things without going out. Thank goodness for Amazon and other companies who have still been willing to ship things.

With that said, if you are like me you just might have a plethora of Amazon boxes around your house. And since we need all the entertainment we can get our hands on at the moment, I put together an awesome list of things that you can do with cardboard that are just for the kids.

So gather up those cardboard boxes and supplies lying around the house and get ready to have some fun.

Cardboard Activities for Kids

Create a dollhouse with cardboard and wrapping paper or scrapbook paper! This will keep your kids busy for hours!

I love this idea! Instead of a standard fort, why not build a castle? You can get super creative here with using multiple boxes, paint, tape, etc.

The Craft Train had a great idea to make a giant dice that you can use for games you love. Kids love anything when it becomes "giant".

Turn those cardboard boxes into a fun maze for the kids to crawl through! You could even add obstacles they need to pass through like hanging streamers or putting blown-up balloons inside.

Use that cardboard box to make a marble run! This is super fun to make a game of and get a little competitive.

Create a puppet theater and have your kiddos put on their very own show for you.

Help your kids to create a cardboard car like this one! So fun.

Make a fort or house for your small toys, like Legos or dolls.

Make a shadow puppet theatre box! This requires a few more supplies, but hopefully things you already have around the house.

You can get really creative and make costumes with cardboard, like a dragon or robot. So many more ideas here.

Making a musical instrument like a guitar is a classic, but a good one to pass the time. Plus, the music isn't obnoxious!

Get creative by making a pirate ship!! This is bound to get a few hours of play time and you can change up the design to fit your needs.

Create an awesome learning match game for your toddlers!

Make a fort with Christmas lights poking through the top of the cardboard. So much more fun than a typical box fort.

Do something a little more active by making a cardboard skeeball. What a fun idea from Beau Baby.

Mini golf anyone? I couldn't find a direct source for this image, but I love the idea! If you have any golf balls and golf clubs lying around, make a target golf box and have some indoor fun!

Make a race car track to race and compete! You can even have them create cars out of legos to give them something else to build with it.

Does everyone remember making these in school? Put together a cardboard TV that scrolls through your kids' artwork or stories.

If your kids love animals, try a hand at making cardboard animals. This is such a cute idea from Recycled Crafts.

If you're looking for something with a bit more longevity, build a cardboard play dome like this one.