Nearly Free Kids Toys that Keep On Giving

[dylanjohn]

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[moof]

Cardboard boxes.
Rocks.  Seriously, my 6 year old picked up a rock about 1/3 of a mile into a 9 mile overnighter backpacking trip and it was his only "toy" for the two days.  He would carry that sucker and talk about it, and make sure he knew where it was.  Basically a kids imagination will fire up once you stop pelting their brain with excess stimulation.  I am sure if it was not a rock it would have been a stick.  He did find a deer bone, and that lead to an hours' worth of discussion about how why I thought it was from a deer and not a dinosaur or some such.

[Parizade]

Garage sale and thrift store scarves. My mother kept a box of old scarves for her grandchildren to play with, when she passed away the grandchildren (now grown) divided up the scarves for their own kids to use because they had so many good memories. Kids can turn these into different "costumes" and they cost next to nothing.

[Just Joe]

Minecraft. I know, I know - it cost more than a nickel. Best ~$30 we ever spent. Both kids have used it for years now. Other games have come and gone, Minecraft remains a big deal.

[havregryn]

Cardboard boxes.
Rocks.  Seriously, my 6 year old picked up a rock about 1/3 of a mile into a 9 mile overnighter backpacking trip and it was his only "toy" for the two days.  He would carry that sucker and talk about it, and make sure he knew where it was.  Basically a kids imagination will fire up once you stop pelting their brain with excess stimulation.  I am sure if it was not a rock it would have been a stick.  He did find a deer bone, and that lead to an hours' worth of discussion about how why I thought it was from a deer and not a dinosaur or some such.

Yes, one of most played with things my 5.5 son has right now is a huge stick, partially covered with moss, that he dragged home from the forest. He calls it his staff and it's more precious than any toy we actually paid for. We store it in the guest bathroom (otherwise I think he'd sleep with it) and just the other day a visiting 11 year old was impressed by it. So it's not just that my son is weird, kids of a wide age range seem to think it's a cool toy.

I also second Minecraft, also because the Internet is full of tutorials how to make fun Minecraft inspired toys that kids actually play with (most crafts usually end up as clutter so that is refreshing). I am no master crafter but I've converted old cardboard boxes into a crafting table and different types of blocks. It was also fairly easy to make a diamond sword. The only Minecraft gadget that he has that is not homemade is a bow and arrow that he got as a bday present.
We also made this http://www.pixelpapercraft.com/project/chess  to get the son excited about chess.

Legos are also not free but can be bought cheaply second hand or some wannabe legos cheap brands (basic blocks are most versatile anyway, sets are overrated), they get a lot of playtime and stay interesting for a long time.

I have two boys and still we get a lot of use for years now out of having a wooden doll house https://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/50290785/
I am sure somehow handy can make this at very little cost.

That's pretty much it, everything else we ever bought was a waste of money.

[twe]

Cardboard boxes, sticks, leaves, dirt, a big bin full of dried beans, balloons, a wooden train track with train cars, dump truck / backhoe, blocks, crayons / markers and paper, water (hose, bath, etc.) and books. Other things come and go, but my two boys play with several things on this list every day. Oh, and my boots-they both love to clomp around the house in them.

[talltexan]

Legos depreciate basically not-at-all.

They are the used Toyota Corolla of toys.

[seattleite]

There are a lot of board games that are very easy to re-recreate for free, or nearly free. Take for example Blokus (https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/2453/blokus). My kids love this game and while we own a copy it would be super simple to make with cardboard and markers, or your library's laser cutter.

[Hula Hoop]

We recently started playing a family game of Yahtzee every evening with 5 dice that we already had from other games, rules from the internet and a hand drawn score card.  Another free/low cost game that we have enjoyed is charades with a free charades app on my phone.  My kids have also enjoyed playing monopoly with a junior monopoly set that we got at a thrift store for 1 euro.

Others are Minecraft, lego, dress up clothes and fleece blankets that used to be baby blankets.  Paper, pens, tape and glue are also popular.  My 8 year old daughter is currently constructing an aquarium diorama with these supplies and earlier she made paper dolls.

[talltexan]

I've just purchased a monopoly, JR, set of the houses. I want to try using those rules with the adult boards, because the adult boards have fun themes (my daughter is really partial to "Catopoly"), and I don't believe my kids are ready for the full adult rules to be fun, yet.

[Britan]

Very old topic warning but I’m going to risk resurrecting it. I’ve found a few lately that have been almost infinite in their price:joy ratio for my 2 year old. My kid barely plays with the fancy expensive toys we’ve bought him, with the exception of his puzzles. Instead he prefers to play with:

Almost free:

• Some dry rice/beans in a bucket or small plastic box, plus something to scoop/pour and/or things to hide and bury in it. When the weather is warmer, will replace rice with soapy water. Outside use only and clean up as much mess afterwards to avoid killing birds with dry pantry goods. I used some ikea kid play utensils we already had and my old “baby silver cup” that I don’t care about but can’t donate because it’s engraved with my name. My son and the neighbor kids will play with this for hoooours.
• Cardboard boxes. Because toddlers=cats. Add markers, pens, colored pencils, crayons, or whatever writing utensil is nearest on hand = art box. Can be free if a friend or a neighbor gets a lot of packages, else you technically have to get a package to have a cardboard box.
• Sidewalk chalk
• Hot wheels. Not the big sets, just literally a couple of the $1/car hot wheels. He likes to drive them up my face. Now if only my local thrift shop would stock them. There’s already so many in the universe, I cannot bring myself to buy new ones.
• Bubbles. I tried DIY but it’s just not as good as store bought, which at $5 per 128 oz, isn’t so bad.
• Mini flags, streamer wands
• *Soapy water in the kitchen sink + plastic dishes + towel on the floor. Technically paying for the extra water, and requires a step stool for toddlers, but nearly free.

Free:

• Bird feathers (wash with dish soap first)
• Rocks from the park
• Library books - I think he likes the novelty over some of the books we own, plus HE picked them