365 TV-Free Activities You Can Do with Your Child by Steve Bennett

365 TV-Free Activities You Can Do with Your Child Reviews

• 
  Betsy Lowery

  The very premise and scope of this book make it worth reading!! Some of the ideas given may be redundant among themselves, but anyone who wishes to foster personal interaction, hands-on creativity, inexpensive crafting/engineering, and brain activity over television will benefit from it. I bought it decades ago. It is still on my bookshelf, perhaps awaiting the arrival of any grandchildren I may have!
• 
  Caranna

  "Do you have an egg carton candy? An old magazine? What about some toilet paper rolls or a cardboard box?"
  
  We've all had those days when our kids lay around complaining, "I'm bored..." "There's nothing to do..." Or we reach the point where we are ready to do something other than watch TV and play video games.
  
  This book is set up in such a fun way. At the beginning of the book there are thumbnail illustrations with a title and page number for each activity. This makes it easy for the kids to go through and choose activities that look fun.
  
  Once you turn to the page there is a description of the activity with any instructions as well as a list of required materials.
  
  Not all of the activities are awesome, but there are a lot of new ideas and great boredom busters. We've had a lot of fun with this book. I find myself wishing that I had a copy of my own and didn't have to take this one back to the library.
• 
  Molly

  Some favorites:
  
  - Divide a celery stalk's bottom in half and place one foot in a jar with red food coloring and the other in a jar with blue and the next morning, see the pattern traveled. (Along with putting carrot tops in water, potato roots and prints and other garden adventures.)
  - Flashlight activities: placing primary color balloons on the tops of flashlights and "mixing" on the ceiling; cutting out star systems in paper bags and shining a flashlight through juice containers.
  
  Also: Family history record keeping, family tree making, family crest, family flag, family gazette. Or something similar with countries/cultures--using what you've learned to translate into a new medium, such as a newspaper, etc. Includes recipes for clay and gloop and whatnot. Brads and tempura paint good to have on hand.
• 
  Suzanna

  I saw this at my library and picked it up hoping for a few new ideas to pull my kids away from the TV. There are lots of great ideas, not all crafty. Some are simple word games or guessing games. I wouldn't say every single idea in the book is amazing or life changing but I marked a bunch of activities and have started working through a few of them with my kids. There were lots of things I never even thought of before. It's a great book for anyone looking for some new ideas (though Pinterest works just as well!)
• 
  Randi

  This is the book you keep on hand to grab when you have no idea what to do with your bored child. These activities are really fun and have different levels of parental involvement, so you can choose an activity that works with a free afternoon or keeping a child occupied while you make dinner. The ideas encourage creativity in children and use spare household objects.
• 
  Ashley

  great for the 4-12 age range in my opinion. Most were a little too old for my kids just yet. All of them were a lot of fun and most were things that cost nothing or were done with things you probably already have. I will have to remember it in a few years.
• 
  Julie Suzanne

  From toddler activities to stuff for older kids, mostly free. Definitely NOT a craft book--there are many word games, paper games, and silly stuff to do as well. Great for a rainy day if your kid isn't busy with lessons of one sort or another.
• 
  Coreyann

  I still have this book from when my older kids were children back in the early 90's and now I've cracked it out again for activities to do with my littlest one who just turned 3 years old. This is definitely a keeper forever with kids around!!!
• 
  Roberto Gameiro

  Nem sempre é fácil ter a TV como concorrente do tempo das crianças, este livro ajuda-nos a sermos mais criativos e envolver as crianças em atividades lúdicas, educativas, que estreitam os laços entre pais e filhos
• 
  Kelly RAley

  This book saved my tail many times when I babysat. Now I use it with my own kids. GREAT things to do without television.
• 
  Alicia Krauchuk Fenton

  Great ideas...I wish I would have thought to put it in a book like this one.
• 
  Delia Huitema

  Loved it and used it all the time when my kids were smaller
• 
  Karebear

  Great! Some fun activities for various times of the year and great for Family Home Evening, too!