If you have toddlers at home, this list of DIY busy board ideas will inspire you to make one for them and keep them happily occupied.
12 DIY Busy Boards To Keep Your Toddlers Occupied
‘Busy' takes on a whole meaning when there's a little child in the house. With endless amounts of vitality, curious minds, and fingers that need to jab, pull and prise open almost everything, toddlers simply need to keep themselves busy to satisfy their curiosity (which means moms and dads become even busier entertaining them). Toddlers are the ultimate explorers, eager to learn and play. But on days when you just can't go outside to dig for hidden treasure, these DIY busy boards are an amazing alternative that's safe, educational, and inexpensive to put together.
1. Fabric Busy Board
Tweak those little motor skills with this fabric DIY busy board. Zips, bows, buttons, buckles, and velcro – ooh yeah. If you love sewing, those tiny scraps will now come in handy.
2. DIY Latch Board
With all kinds of latches in a perfectly sized board offer a boundless entertainment for kids. They will have all the fun opening and shutting the latches and hinges. This amazing DIYer even included a few vividly-colored carabiners fastened to some handles to provide extra fun stimulation.
3. Felt Busy Board
Filled with felty goodness! Your famished little caterpillars will have non-stop fun organizing tiny bits of food. With just a few easy-to-find crafting supplies paired with the step-by-step tutorial, you can recreate this busy board in just 15-minutes.
4. Peek-A-Boo Board
Open, close, open, close, have a little clap as kids find family pictures concealed behind the flaps. This peek-a-boo busy board offers long hours of fun guessing who's and what's in the picture. A sure family fun game!
5. Motion Busy Board
WOW! If you want a board that not just opens and shuts but also provides lots of cool stuff to play with, this motion busy board is your perfect project. Test your woodworking skills, and add doors to your own busy board. Teach your toddler some basic skills like opening and closing a door with this busy board.
6. Car Dashboard
Beep, beep, broom, broom and off we go! This car dashboard comes with everything a little learner needs – rear view mirror, fuel gauge, gears, speed, and, of course, a radio for on-road tunes.
7. Zipper Board
Simplicity at its best! This zipper board is super easy to make and fun for everyone. Toddlers appreciate zippers because of the sound it creates when it opens and closes. Grab a piece of cardboard, glue, and a couple of vibrant colored zippers. Once your board is done, your little one can easily bring this zipper board from room to room, and it's the right size for easy storage.
8. Busy Board By The Letter
Add your personal touch to make your busy board project even more special. Shape your board into your happy toddler's initial and add a few surprises to make it more fun. If you're handy with a jigsaw, that's an advantage. That's the tool you'll need.
9. Padlock Busy Board
Great things also come in small packages, and this padlock busy board is no exception. Make sure to attach the keys to the board to avoid losing them, or you'll have a very frustrated little one!
10. Peek-A-Boo Sensory Board
Don't throw those empty baby wipes containers away. You've got here a perfect DIY to develop your kid's sensory skills. Any child would love touching all new textures and flipping a cover to open and close.
11. DIY Travel Busy Board
Who says a busy board needs to be stationary? This DIY travel busy board is perfect for every kid who is always on the go, making the long travel hours more fun than ever.
12. Sensory Busy Board
This sensory busy board is great for toddlers and babies because it has the perfect blends of sensory play and other learning activities. Perfect to recreate for the ever-curious toddler at home.
Want to see how to create a busy board? Check out this video from JB Family:
I definitely love these simple ideas for toddlers! They help babies and toddlers with sensory play and fine motor skills development while providing us a couple of minutes of peace and quiet. I do hope your little ones love these as much as mine!
Which DIY busy board ideas are you excited to try? Tell us in the comments below!
Want another cool DIY you can do with your kid? Check out these four ways to make a homemade bubble solution. Make buckets of it and you’ll have an unlimited supply to use anytime the mood strikes!
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