Mooshie Moments Blog

Activities for Nurseries, Daycare and Childminders

SCREEN-FREE PLAY · AGES 1 TO 4

Activities for Nurseries, Daycare and Childminders

Nursery activities for circle time, small groups and transitions, plus a free nursery partnership so families can continue the play at home.

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Nursery activities need to work for six children at once, not just one. A game that is perfect for a single toddler on your knee can fall apart the moment four more crowd round wanting a turn. The activities below are chosen because they hold up in a group: they have a clear turn structure, a low ceiling for equipment, and a way for a practitioner to step back once it’s running.

Below are ten activities from the Mooshie Moments app, adapted here for a nursery, daycare or childminder setting rather than a single family living room. Each one uses things most settings already have, fits into a session of 10 to 20 minutes, and comes with things to say to the group as you go.

What makes an activity work in a nursery room

A good home activity does not always survive contact with six toddlers. The ones that do tend to share a few features:

A visible turn structure.

“My turn, then yours” is easier to referee with a group than an open free-for-all.

Equipment that scales.

One drum and one spoon works for one child. A tray of pots and wooden spoons works for six.

A short setup.

If it takes ten minutes to prepare, you have lost half the session before anyone has played.

A natural end point.

Group activities need a way to finish that does not feel like a wrench for the child still enjoying it.

Circle time: activities the whole group can join

2 to 315 minutes

1. Sing While You Play

You’ll need: a shaker, drum or upturned pot for each child

How to play
  1. Give each child something to tap or shake and pick a song the group knows, such as “Old MacDonald”.
  2. Sing one line slowly while you tap along, so the group sees the rhythm before they’re asked to copy it.
  3. Sing the next line and let the group play together, loud or soft.
  4. Vary the volume as you go: sing quietly for a verse, then loudly, and watch the group’s playing follow.
Say this: “You’re all playing together!” · “Quiet voices, quiet instruments.” · “Loud now!”
1 to 210 minutes

2. Silly Sound Chorus

Sit the group in a loose circle. Make a silly sound, a raspberry or a “boo”, and wait. Whoever answers first with any sound gets an exaggerated echo back from you. Keep the volley going round the circle rather than back to one child, so everyone gets a moment of being copied.

3 to 415 minutes

3. Bubble Wrap Stomp

Lay a long strip on the floor and let children queue to stomp, one at a time, while the rest count the pops out loud. Ask “soft pop or loud pop this time?” before each turn. Counting together gives the group something to do while they wait, which is often the harder part of a queue.

You’ll need: a long strip of bubble wrap

Small groups: practising patience together

1 to 210 minutes

4. Magnifying Glass Pass

Sit two or three children round a leaf, a shell or a bug on a tray. One child looks through the glass, names what they see, then passes it on. Practitioner narrates the pass: “Your turn to look, then it goes to Priya.” The shared object of interest is what keeps the group settled while they wait.

You’ll need: a large, sturdy magnifying glass

1 to 210 minutes

5. Ramp Race, One at a Time

You’ll need: a board or track, and one toy car per child

How to play
  1. Prop up a board on a low box to make a simple ramp.
  2. Line the children up and let each one place a car at the top and let go.
  3. Cheer every car down, then hand the next child their turn straight away so the wait feels short.
  4. Once everyone has had a go, run it again from the start.
Say this: “Ben’s turn, then Freya’s.” · “Off it goes!” · “Whose car is next?”
1 to 210 minutes

6. Build It Together

One tower, added to in turn. Each child places one block and says “my turn” before stepping back, and the group watches to see how tall it gets before it falls. When it topples, that is the cue to start again rather than a reason to stop.

You’ll need: a set of blocks

2 to 315 minutes

7. Water Table Swap

Give two children a toy each at the water table and set a simple rule: when you say “swap”, toys change hands. Keep the rounds short so the wait between swaps is bearable, and step in with a calm “your turn is next” rather than removing a toy mid-play.

You’ll need: a water table or large tub, and two or three water toys

Kindness and settling in as a group

3 to 415 minutes

8. Welcome the New Face

Useful ahead of a new child starting, or after a settling-in week. Role-play being new somewhere: practise saying hello, asking to join a game, and including a figure who is standing alone. Children often rehearse with a toy before they manage it with a real classmate days later.

You’ll need: dolls or figures

3 to 420 minutes

9. Kindness Rocks

You’ll need: smooth stones, paint markers, somewhere outdoors to hide them

How to play
  1. Each child chooses a smooth stone and paints a kind word or a simple picture on it.
  2. Let them dry fully before the next step.
  3. As a group, hide the stones somewhere outdoors for a stranger to find.
  4. Talk together about how finding a painted stone might make someone’s day.

Linking the setting and home

Nursery activities work best when they don’t stop at pickup. A short note home, such as “we practised turn-taking with a ramp today, try it with a toy car after tea”, turns a group activity into something a family can repeat one to one. Mooshie Moments offers a free partnership for nurseries, daycare settings and childminders, which gives families in your setting access to activities that echo what happens in the room, and gives you a simple way to suggest home follow-up without writing a newsletter every week.

For planning across the wider curriculum, our guide to EYFS activities and the seven areas of learning and our nursery activity planning ideas cover how a week of play maps onto formal learning goals.

Hundreds more ideas like these are waiting in the app.

Plus one picked for your child every day, matched to their age and how today is going.

Download on theApp StoreQR code to download Mooshie Moments
LOVED BY FAMILIES

Parents and experts on Mooshie

“I used to spend 30 minutes looking for an activity on Pinterest, get overwhelmed, and just turn on the TV. Mooshie takes 5 seconds.”
Sarah J.Mum of a 2-year-old
“Finally, an app that tells me to put my phone away. The activities are actually doable with stuff I have in my junk drawer.”
Mark D.Dad of two
“As a pediatric OT, I love that these activities build core developmental skills without feeling like ‘homework’ for parents.”
Dr Emily R.Paediatric occupational therapist
This week's plan showing five activities and the areas they build
HOW MOOSHIE HELPS

How the Mooshie Moments app supports staff and families

Mooshie is built for parents, but its content overlaps with what happens in a good nursery room:

  • 5,918 activities for ages 6 months to 4 years, all using ordinary household or classroom materials, so ideas transfer easily between a nursery cupboard and a family kitchen drawer.
  • Adaptation tips for additional needs are built in, including autism, ADHD, Down syndrome, speech and language delay, hearing and vision impairment, sensory processing differences, and physical disabilities, which is useful shorthand to share with families in your setting.
  • A weekly plan spread across six areas (maths, science, language, movement, hands and feelings), which families can use to extend a theme you’ve covered in the room.
  • No account and no fee to begin: one activity a day, every day.

The free nursery partnership is the more direct route for settings: it connects your nursery with families using the app, at no cost to either side.

Download on theApp Store

Questions practitioners ask

How do I run one activity across mixed ages in the same room?

Pick an activity with a low floor and a high ceiling, such as the ramp race or block tower. Younger children release a car or add one block; older ones can predict speed or count the stack. The core action stays the same; only your questions to each child change.

What if two children want the same toy at the same time?

Name it plainly rather than solving it for them: “You both want the shaker. Whose turn is it first?” Turn-taking activities like these give a script for exactly this moment, which is often more useful than the activity itself.

Are these suitable for a childminder with a small group?

Yes. Every activity here works with two children just as well as with eight; simply shorten the queue.

What is the nursery partnership and does it cost anything?

It’s a free scheme that connects your setting with families using the Mooshie Moments app, so home play and nursery play can echo each other. There’s no cost to the setting or the families involved.

Can I use these ideas for circle time every week?

Yes, though children tire of exact repetition faster than adults expect. Keep the structure (sing, then play; look, then pass) and swap the materials or song each week to keep it fresh.

Mooshie is a play app, not medical advice. If you’re worried about your child’s development, speak to your health visitor or GP.

More ideas you might like

The free Mooshie nursery partnershipEYFS activities for all seven areas of learningNursery activity planning ideasNursery to home learning ideasKindness and sharing activities

Make memories. Build skills. Play together.

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