Indoors

Games for a rained-out afternoon

Rain does not cancel energy. Every parent knows the particular hum of a kid at the window on a wet Saturday, and most of what we build is designed with that Saturday in mind. Here is how the indoor half of our workshop divides the job.

Games that hang on a door

The over-the-door hoop is the patron saint of rained-out afternoons. It borrows a surface every room already has, plays with a ball soft enough for plaster walls, and comes down without a trace when the sun returns. If there is one toy that converts a hallway into a court, this is it.

Games that stick to a window

Suction archery was practically invented for glass. The arrows grab windows, mirrors and fridge doors, the draw is light enough for indoor distances, and the target stands wherever there is a spare wall. On dark winter afternoons the light-up sets pull ahead, because glowing rings in a dim room are their own weather.

Games that count for you

Arcade cabinets and scoreboard hoops carry an afternoon further than plain ones, for a simple reason: a score gives the game a shape. Best of ten becomes best of twenty, siblings queue up for rematches, and the electronic beep does the refereeing so nobody has to. On a long afternoon, structure is stamina.

Games for the smallest teammates

Toddlers do not need a sport to be busy. The walkers, spinners and cash registers on our toddler bench are indoor toys by birth: floor-based, weather-proof by definition, and built around pressing, pushing and sorting rather than throwing. When the big kids take over the hallway, this shelf keeps the youngest in the game.

• Clear one lane. Indoor games go better with a defined court, even if the court is a rug.
• Soft balls only past the doorway. Every indoor set we build ships with them for a reason.
• Rotate, do not pile. One game out at a time lasts longer than four out at once.
• Let the scoreboard end the game. A final score is the easiest cleanup bell ever invented.