Play Activities for Children on Bed Rest

When children need bed rest after illness, surgery, or injury, it's important to stay busy with activities that follow your provider's recommendations. 

• Mobiles 
• Hand-held infant toys 
• Cloth balls to throw and catch
• Bubbles 
• Puppets 
• Listen to music and dance with arms
• Books and videos 
• Mirrors 
• Play gyms 
• Ride in a wagon with sides 

• Face painting 
• Cars, trucks, and action figures
• Felt board 
• Flashlights 
• Casio piano 
• Baggie painting (squish finger paints in Ziplock bags) 
• Silly string 
• Decorate casts with markers or stickers
• Magnetic boards, Magnadoodle 

• Beanbag toss 
• Remote control cars 
• Hand-held electronic games 
• Make mobiles to decorate ceiling
• Use easels for art and school projects 
• Draw with chalk, Colorforms, Etch-a-Sketch
• Let child help schedule daily activities 
• Plan an imaginary trip (include props and costumes) 
• Create a scrapbook 
• Nerf basketball and darts with strings attached for retrieving 
• Make birdseed “ornaments” (peanut butter & birdseed on pinecones) to hang outside child’s window 
• Get a pet fish to observe 

• Easel for school or art projects
• Access to telephone to call friends
• Letter writing 
• Make friendship bracelets
• Crossword and word puzzles 
• Fabric paint large T-shirt to wear over cast
• Diary, journal, or scrapbook 
• Videos, books, electronic games 
• Laptop computer 
• Decorate cast 
• Dry-erase boards and markers
• Audio record stories/singing (own voice)
• Walkie Talkie 
• Invite friends to visit