November 5, 2026 • From the Ready Set Rackets coaches
It has been raining since breakfast, the playground is a puddle, and your toddler has energy to burn. Here are eight rainy day games for little ones that work in any living room, need nothing you have to buy, and take about five minutes each. Pick three, put a snack in between, and the morning is handled.
Blow up a balloon. Tap it up and count the taps out loud. One is a win. Then try with a paper plate instead of a hand. This is the game toddlers ask for first, every time.
Lay paper plates on the floor as puddles. Your child jumps from puddle to puddle across the room. Move them farther apart as they get braver. Splash sounds encouraged.
Roll up five pairs of socks and put a laundry basket across the room. Take turns tossing. Closer when it is hard, farther when it is easy. Count every one that lands.
Balance the balloon on a paper plate and walk it from the couch to the kitchen without letting it slide off. Then walk it back. Slow feet, steady hands.
Two pillows on the floor make a mountain. Your child taps the balloon over it to you, and you tap it back. The mountain can grow as they get better.
Your child taps the balloon up. “Red light” means catch it and freeze. “Green light” means tap again. You run the whole game from the couch with your voice.
Sit facing each other in the hallway and tap the balloon back and forth. Count every hit. Three in a row is a rally. A rally gets a cheer, every time.
Scatter the socks, the plates and the balloon. Your child races to put everything in the basket while you count to ten. Dump it out and go again. On the last round, the basket goes back where it belongs, and the living room is clean.
A balloon floats slowly enough that a toddler can actually hit it, and a paper plate paddle cannot hurt anyone or anything. None of these need running room, so they work in an apartment. And every one is built on the same five skills we work on in our classes: catching, carrying, sending, aiming and rallying, which is why little ones who play them at home walk into class already smiling.
Want the cards printed and ready for the next rainy day? Racky’s Play Pack has ten games, a 30-day play calendar, a star chart for the fridge and six coloring pages for $9.99. Or start free with Racky’s 10-day First Swing Challenge, one short game a day by email.
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