Before tablets and TV, before game consoles and streaming, children on the American frontier found joy in the simplest of things. Their days were filled with chores, yes, but also with quiet pleasures that didn’t require batteries, apps, or Wi-Fi. Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Little House books are full of these gentle moments: gathering around the fire, listening to Pa’s fiddle, stitching samplers, or playing shadow games as the sun set behind the prairie grass.
What pioneer children lacked in modern convenience, they made up for with imagination, creativity, and connection. Today, as families search for ways to reconnect and slow down, there’s a lot to learn from the quiet beauty of those screen-free moments.
Here are 15 low-tech, frontier-inspired activities to bring back into your modern home, perfect for cozy weekends, rainy days, or intentional unplugged evenings.
Storytelling Circles
Before television and podcasts, families entertained each other by spinning stories, true, tall, or somewhere in between. Storytelling wasn’t just fun; it was a way to pass down memories, traditions, and life lessons. Sitting together around the fire or a flickering lamp, each voice took turns weaving the next part of a tale.
You can recreate that magic by gathering your family and starting a “pass-the-story” game. Start with a Little House-style prompt like, “The oxen got loose in the middle of a storm…” and let each person add their twist. It nurtures creativity, listening skills, and laughter.
Here are some ideas for Little House inspired stories to start with!
- You discover a strange animal on the prairie.
- Your wagon breaks down… what do you do to solve the problem?
- You see a locust swarm heading towards your house.
Pioneer Tip: Add props like a bonnet or toy wagon to “wear” when it’s your turn to speak, it brings an immersive frontier flavor to the circle.
Baking from Scratch
On the prairie, every meal was made by hand, there was no ordering out or grabbing a snack from the pantry. Baking was both a necessity and a treat, a time when children could participate by stirring, kneading, or taste-testing molasses or honey.
Choose a frontier recipe like flapjacks, Johnny cakes, or vinegar pie and let your child do as much of the preparation as possible. Talk about how ingredients were stored in barrels or cloth sacks and how much more labor it took to prepare food before electric ovens.
Pioneer Tip: Read the recipe aloud together and assign each step as if you’re running a pioneer kitchen, call your young bakers “Ma’s helpers.”
Churn Butter
Homemade butter was a daily delight on the frontier, often made fresh in the morning using cream skimmed from milk. While most of us don’t own butter churns, kids can still experience the satisfaction of making their own with a glass jar and some elbow grease.
Fill a mason jar halfway with heavy cream and shake, shake, shake until it separates into butter and buttermilk. Here are the complete instructions on how to make your own butter. Spread your finished butter on fresh bread for a snack Ma would approve of.
Pioneer Tip: Add a pinch of salt or a few drops of honey for a sweet prairie twist.
Hand-Sewing or Embroidery
Young girls like Laura and Mary learned to sew by stitching samplers and helping mend clothes. It taught patience, precision, and pride in handiwork. Even beginners can enjoy creating small embroidered shapes, patches, or doll clothes.
Use felt, embroidery thread, and a blunt needle to create a simple heart, star, or name on a fabric square. Frame it or use it as a sachet or bookmark, just as pioneer children would turn everyday practice into practical items.
Pioneer Tip: Save fabric scraps in a “rag bag” like Ma did and let children choose from real remnants for their stitching.
Whittling (With Supervision)
Whittling was both hobby and utility for frontier families, wooden toys, tools, and pegs were all made by hand. Children were often given small carving projects to keep them busy and teach care and responsibility.
With a safe carving knife or kid-friendly whittling tool, older children can shape twigs into animals, simple figures, or campfire sticks. Always supervise and ensure proper handling.
Pioneer Tip: Soften sticks by soaking them in water for a few hours, this makes it easier to carve for beginners.
Pressed Flower Crafts
Pioneer children often collected wildflowers to study or decorate their homes. Pressing flowers allowed them to preserve beauty long after blooms had faded from the prairie.
Go for a walk and gather small flowers or interesting leaves, then press them between the pages of a heavy book for 1–2 weeks. Once dried, use them to decorate handmade cards, bookmarks, or framed keepsakes.
Pioneer Tip: Use wax paper or parchment inside your book to prevent staining the pages while the flowers dry.
Braiding Rag Rugs
Nothing went to waste on the frontier. Old clothes were cut into strips and braided into rugs or chair covers. Even children could help by braiding the fabric into long ropes.
We have complete instructions here. Cut old cotton shirts or sheets into strips and let children braid them together. Then coil the braids and stitch them into a small rug or coaster. It’s a great lesson in repurposing and patience.
Pioneer Tip: Pin the end of the fabric to a pillow or use a clipboard to hold it in place while kids braid, it keeps tension steady.
Nature Walk with “Torn Calico Pockets”
In On the Banks of Plum Creek, Laura’s pocket famously tore from holding too many pebbles and natural treasures. Make your own fabric pockets to gather nature finds, mimicking Laura’s love of collecting.
Make your own torn calico pockets with our instructions. Sew or glue together a pocket-sized pouch from scrap fabric, attach a ribbon to wear around the neck, and let kids collect pinecones, feathers, and stones during a walk.
Pioneer Tip: At home, have children sort and display their finds on a “nature shelf” just like a prairie child might have done on her windowsill.
Make Corn Husk Dolls
Simple dolls made from dried corn husks were a favorite of pioneer girls. Without access to manufactured toys, children relied on imagination and handmade charm.
Soak corn husks (often found at craft stores) and use twine or string to bind them into doll shapes. Use markers or fabric scraps to add faces, aprons, or bonnets.
Pioneer Tip: Save a few husks to make a tiny “baby” corn husk doll to tuck into the arms of the bigger one, just like Mary and Laura would’ve.
Sing Songs from Little House
Music brought families together after long days of work. Many of the songs in Little House on the Prairie were real folk songs of the time, and they still hold magic today.
Print lyrics and play recordings of these old songs (available online), or sing them aloud as a family. Favorites include “Buffalo Gals,” “Sweet By and By,” and “Oh! Susanna.”
Pioneer Tip: Let each child pick a favorite song and explain what they think it would’ve meant to a pioneer child.
We have a full collection of music from Little House too.
Fiddle Music and Dance
Even after the hardest days, Pa Ingalls would bring out his fiddle and fill the room with warmth and rhythm. Dancing was a joyful release for children and adults alike, simple jigs, square steps, and clapping games brought life to small cabins.
You don’t need a fiddle to recreate this frontier fun. Play old-time fiddle music from a playlist or YouTube and let your kids try a square dance, a basic two-step, or just jump and twirl to the beat. It’s energetic, uplifting, and brings prairie spirit into your home.
Pioneer Tip: Lay out a handkerchief “dance floor” on the ground and call out old-fashioned steps like “do-si-do” or “clap your hands.”
Handwritten Letters to Friends or Family
In the pioneer era, letters were a rare and precious lifeline to loved ones far away. Children learned to write carefully, using every inch of the page to share stories and news.
Have your kids write an old-fashioned letter to a grandparent, cousin, or friend. Add drawings, pressed flowers, or a homemade envelope. Not only does it encourage penmanship, it also teaches thoughtfulness and patience.
Pioneer Tip: Challenge kids to write as small and neatly as possible, just like Laura did, to fit more words onto one piece of paper.
Fourth of July Picnic
Plan a picnic like Laura and her family did for the 4th of July in Little Town on the Prairie. Holidays were a big deal for pioneer families, with picnics being one of the few festive outings available. Families packed cold fried chicken, lemonade, and cakes, often accompanied by races and games.
You don’t need fireworks or parades to enjoy an old-fashioned picnic. Lay out a quilt, pack homemade treats, and read a chapter from Little Town on the Prairie about their Fourth of July picnic. Add simple games like sack races or a beanbag toss to complete the feel.
Pioneer Tip: Wrap sandwiches or biscuits in cloth napkins tied with twine for an authentic pioneer-style lunch bundle.
Shadow Puppets by Candlelight
Before electricity, children used candlelight or firelight for evening fun. One favorite pastime was casting shadow animals and shapes on the wall using their hands or cut paper figures.
Dim the lights, light a candle or lantern, and let your kids create a “puppet theater” using the wall as a stage. Encourage them to make up a story or recreate scenes from the Little House books.
For safety, you can use a battery operated candle which mimics the flickering of a traditional candle,
Pioneer Tip: Use black cardstock to cut out pioneer-themed characters, like a wagon, bonnet girl, or log cabin, and mount them on sticks.
Buttons weren’t just functional, they were treasures. Children saved them, traded them, and strung them together for toys. Games like “Button, Button, Who’s Got the Button?” were easy and endlessly entertaining.
Gather a pile of buttons and let kids sort by color or size, then string them into necklaces or decorations. You can also teach the classic guessing game with friends or siblings.
Pioneer Tip: Tell children the story of Laura’s glass button gift and challenge them to find their “favorite button” in the pile to keep as their own special token.
Build a Blanket Fort Cabin
Pioneer homes were often one-room cabins made of logs, with children sharing space for sleeping, playing, and eating. You can recreate the coziness (and creative space-saving) with a good old-fashioned fort.
Use chairs, blankets, and quilts to create a snug indoor “cabin” or “covered wagon.” Add books, flashlights, and a few wooden toys or blocks to make it feel truly frontier. It’s perfect for rainy days or long evenings indoors.
Pioneer Tip: Pretend a “blizzard” is outside and you must stay inside your cabin for warmth, play, read, and snack without leaving your fort!
Shell Beans or Peas by Hand
Tasks like shelling beans or peas were shared family jobs that sparked conversation and taught kids patience and hand coordination. Sitting around a bowl was a social and meditative act.
Give your child a bowl of dried beans or peas to shell (or sort) by size, color, or type. It’s a quiet, soothing activity that’s surprisingly absorbing, especially if paired with storytelling or soft music.
Pioneer Tip: Use a timer and have a “race” to see how many they can sort or shell in five minutes, just like Ma might’ve encouraged during chore time.
Read Aloud by Lamplight
Evenings were reserved for reading aloud around a lamp or fire. Whether it was the Bible, a letter, or a favorite storybook, the act of reading brought the family together.
Turn off your overhead lights and read by lamplight, candlelight, or a soft flashlight. Choose a chapter from a Little House book or a favorite story, and let children listen while cuddled under a blanket or in your blanket fort.
Pioneer Tip: Let older children take turns reading aloud and help them practice using expressive “Pa-style” voices.
Make Name Cards
In Little Town on the Prairie, Laura made calling cards with her name and flourishes, a fashionable and exciting custom of the time.
Let kids create their own name cards using cardstock, colored pencils, and fancy script. They can add doodles, floral borders, or quotes, and trade them with siblings or friends.
Pioneer Tip: Soak the edges of the cards in tea for a vintage look, then dry them flat under a book.
Grind Wheat
During The Long Winter, the Ingalls family had to grind wheat by hand to survive. While that was out of desperation, the activity today helps kids understand effort and food origins.
Use a manual wheat grinder (or even a mortar and pestle) to grind wheat berries into flour. Once you have enough, try making a small loaf of bread or a biscuit from your own flour.
Pioneer Tip: Let your child measure the flour they made and compare it to how much they’d need to bake something, a great hands-on math lesson.
Twist “Hay”
One of the most memorable moments from The Long Winter is when Laura and Pa twist hay into tight sticks to burn for fuel. It’s a creative and physical activity that teaches problem-solving and perseverance.
Find long grasses or strips of paper and try twisting them tightly into fuel-stick shapes. Wear gloves if the material is scratchy and twist slowly to keep the shape even.
Pioneer Tip: After twisting, line them up in a “woodpile” and talk about how many you’d need to heat your cabin through one night.
Pictures in the Frost
In Little House in the Big Woods, Laura and Mary drew frost pictures with their fingers on icy windowpanes. You may not get frost indoors anymore, but you can still make it magical.
Take kids outside on a cold day and use breath or fingers to make temporary art on fogged-up windows or even mirrors inside. For warmer climates, try using washable window markers on cold glass.
Pioneer Tip: Mix Epsom salt with warm water and paint it on windows to mimic frost, let dry and watch the crystals form.
Paper Dolls
Toys were often made of paper, cloth, or wood. Paper dolls were a favorite for girls, letting them create entire wardrobes and stories using simple materials.
Use printable templates, purchase the official Little House paper dolls or draw your own dolls and clothes on cardstock. Let kids color and cut them out, then store in a shoebox or envelope for repeated play.
Pioneer Tip: Create a whole prairie family, Ma, Pa, Mary, and Laura, and design outfits for each season, from sunbonnets to winter cloaks.
Simple Hand Games
With no toys or electronics, kids often played games using just their hands and imagination, clapping games, rhymes, and games like “Cat’s Cradle” were popular.
Teach a simple hand-clapping rhyme or string game and let kids practice with a sibling or friend. It builds rhythm, coordination, and connection.
Pioneer Tip: Look up 1800s children’s rhymes and challenge kids to learn the verses by heart, just like Laura and Mary would have.
Dry Apples and Make Apple Leather
Pioneer families preserved fruit by slicing apples and drying them in the sun or near the stove. Apple leather was a special treat that could be tucked into pockets or lunch pails.
Slice apples thinly and dry them in a dehydrator or oven on low heat. You can also make apple leather by pureeing apples with cinnamon and spreading them on a baking sheet to dry.
Pioneer Tip: Once dry, store in wax paper and label it with a handwritten tag for a full frontier-style experience.
Remembering the Pioneer Way of Life
The frontier lifestyle may have been hard, but the pleasures were real, and often deeply fulfilling. These simple, screen-free activities help you slow down, foster creativity, and build warm family memories rooted in tradition. You don’t need prairie land or a woodstove to bring a little of that Ingalls spirit into your own home.
Sometimes, the best kind of play isn’t plugged in, it’s passed down from generations ago
