Great Internet Activities for Children

Having a young nephew has taught me that toddlers aren’t shy about going online and playing games. As a matter of fact, he became Internet savvy at a very young age. The mouse didn’t intimidate him at all. His comfort with searching online was eventually accompanied by a real thirst to explore the online world.

His mother let me know his favorites, so I’ve had a chance to play on them. I get nearly as much enjoyment out of them as my nephew does! You might find that your children like them too.

Please note that some of the games and activities on some of the sites (or those linked from them) are for older children but many are suitable for toddlers.

Nick Games (http://www.nick.com/games/)
Nickolodeon has established a great games site based on their cartoons. Along with plenty of other offerings, they feature The Pollution Solution game, starring The Penguins of Madagascar, Race to the Goo Lagoon and nine other games starring SpongeBob Squarepants, Otis’ Chopper Challenge game from Back at the Barnyard and the Space Blast game from Jimmy Neutron. There are also many other categories of games for kids of all ages.

Disney Preschool (http://home.disney.go.com/foryou/preschool/)
Disney offers a pre-schooler web channel, which is filled with fun videos to watch and music to listen to. They also have plenty of games, like The Great Sky Race, Inspector Ooh and Rhythms in the Warehouse. Kids can also enter the “worlds” of a variety of Disney characters, such as Tinkerbell, Buzz Lightyear, Imagination Movers, Little Einsteins (or “Iddle Dine-dines” as my nephew calls them) and many other kid favorites.

HubPages (http://hubpages.com/_coloringpages/)
HubPages is a communal bloggin site that offers all kinds of information and resources, including kids activities. There are free flower coloring pages for kids, free Halloween coloring pages, and Christmas coloring pages for kids, as well as many others. You can either click the links in this article or search the HubPages site for other coloring pages and activities.

Coloring.com (home page: http://www.coloring.com/, categorized index page: http://www.coloring.com/pictures/choose.cdc)
This site is actually relatively low tech, making it simple to navigate. Their large selection of coloring pages are accessible by those who can read the categories. These can be accessed by going to the “categorized index page” URL shown above. The home page, however, has pictures, so your child might be able to find everything without your help.

I hope your children enjoy these sites!