Choose one familiar activity, put the supplies in a suitable place, and check that you can provide the help your child needs while cooking. That is a useful starting point for a screen-free part of dinner preparation.
Screens may help while you work, cook or care for someone else. Wanting another option does not mean you need to replace every screen session. Start with a moment when an activity fits the time and attention you actually have.
These six ideas are for school-age children. They are original suggestions for this article, not pages from our paid guide. Adapt them to your child's interests, abilities and support needs. None comes with a promise that your child will play alone or stay busy for a set number of minutes.
Pick an activity that fits what you have
- Paper and crayons: Try the menu, picture story or guessing game.
- A familiar puzzle or book: Choose an old favorite that your child already knows how to use.
- Clean socks: Try matching pairs if your child enjoys sorting.
If your child dislikes drawing, you can skip the drawing ideas. You don't need to try all six.
Before choosing an activity, check the space and adult help
Use a table or other suitable space away from the stove, hot pans and your cooking path. Nationwide Children's Hospital recommends keeping children at least three feet from an operating stove. Distance alone does not replace supervision. Choose materials your child can use with the supervision available. Keep small pieces away from younger siblings and anyone who may put them in their mouth.
If your child needs more help than you can give while cooking, choose a different plan. Another available adult might help, or you might try the activity at a different time. Being nearby does not always mean you can supervise both jobs at once.
1. Draw a pretend restaurant menu
Supplies: Paper and suitable crayons.
Setup: Put the paper at your child's place. Invite them to invent a restaurant and draw three things it serves. The food can be real or imaginary. A moon restaurant might serve star-shaped soup.
Adult help: Explain the idea before you begin cooking. Your child may want help writing food names. Drawings alone are enough, so writing does not need to become another job for you.
Easier option: Ask them to draw one food they would put on the menu. They can tell you its name when you are available.
2. Make a three-picture story
Supplies: Paper and suitable crayons.
Setup: Draw three large boxes on the paper. Suggest a simple story: “A dog finds a hat. What happens next?” Your child can draw the beginning, middle and end.
Adult help: Help them choose an idea if the blank page feels difficult. Let them know when you can look at the finished story. They do not need to write sentences unless they want to.
Easier option: Draw one picture about the dog and its hat. Leave the rest of the story for another time.
3. Return to a familiar puzzle
Supplies: A familiar puzzle with pieces suitable for your child and everyone who can reach them.
Setup: Clear enough table space and set out the box picture. Choose a puzzle your child already knows rather than introducing a much harder one during cooking.
Adult help: Check whether your child needs you to start the puzzle with them. If they usually need frequent help, save it for a time when that help is available.
Easier option: Begin with a small section, such as one character or a clear edge. There is no need to finish the whole puzzle before dinner.
4. Look for details in a favorite picture book
Supplies: A familiar picture book.
Setup: Choose a book your child can enjoy looking through. Give one optional prompt: “Can you find a place in this book you would like to visit?” They can mark the page by leaving the book open.
Adult help: Explain unfamiliar pictures or words when you are available. If your child wants someone to read aloud, check whether you or another adult can actually do that. Looking at pictures is an option, not a substitute for promised reading time.
Easier option: Choose one page together and ask what they notice.
5. Match a few pairs of clean socks
Supplies: A few pairs of clean socks and an empty basket. Choose socks without loose decorations or other small parts.
Setup: Put the socks on a suitable surface away from food and cooking equipment. Invite your child to find matching pairs by color, pattern or size. Keep it optional; this is an activity idea, not a job they must finish before eating.
Adult help: Show one pair before cooking. Leave out pairs that are hard to tell apart. If your child asks about a match while you are busy, they can leave that pair aside for later.
Easier option: Put out only two clearly different pairs. Your child can match one pair and stop.
6. Create a picture guessing game for later
Supplies: Paper and suitable crayons.
Setup: Ask your child to draw a familiar animal, object or place for someone to guess after dinner. They can keep the picture turned over when it is ready. No cutting or small game pieces are needed.
Adult help: Agree when the guessing will happen so your child does not need to interrupt cooking to start the game. Help choose an idea if needed.
Easier option: Draw a favorite animal without keeping it secret. Talk about the picture when you can give it attention.
Choose one activity and plan how to put it away
Ask your child which of two suitable options they would like. Set out the supplies before you start cooking, when possible. Say where unfinished work can go when dinner is ready.
For example: “You can draw a menu at the table. When dinner is ready, put the crayons in the box. We can keep your drawing on the side table.”
If the hard part is planning how screen time ends, rather than finding an activity, start with our free after-school screen-time routine for ages 6–12. It shows how to choose a stopping cue and have the next activity ready. For a longer practice plan with words to try and activity menus, explore The Screen Time Reset, our paid downloadable guide.
Tonight, choose the activity that fits your available help, rather than the one that looks most impressive.