Fun Video Call Activities for Grandma and Grandkids

Twelve activities that survive a video call

• Read-aloud with the book to the camera: grandma reads a picture book holding pages up to the lens. Even better, mail the child a copy of the same book so they turn pages along with her.
• Draw the same thing: both sides get paper and crayons, pick a subject ('draw our family as animals'), draw for five minutes, then reveal. The reveals are gold.
• Show and tell, both directions: the child tours their newest treasure; grandma shows something from her house with a story attached — her charm bracelet, a photo, the cookie tin.
• Scavenger hunt: grandma calls out 'find me something red... something soft... something that starts with B' and the child races off-camera and back. Burns energy, guarantees returns to the screen.
• Cook or bake 'together': same simple recipe both ends, or the child mixes while grandma directs from memory. Decorating cookies on camera is a full event.
• Puppet theater: socks or stuffed animals over the top of the screen. Grandparents who feel awkward on camera often relax completely behind a puppet.
• Build a story one sentence at a time: 'Once there was a duck who hated water...' — alternate lines. Absurdity is the goal.
• Simon says and freeze dance: movement games work fine on camera and are perfect for the wiggly ages.
• Guess what I have: one side hides an object and gives clues; the other guesses in twenty questions style.
• Sing the old songs: the songs grandma sang to your parent, taught verse by verse. This is heritage transfer disguised as a singalong.
• A running board game: keep a simple game set up at both ends across calls, or use a shared digital board so both sides move pieces on the same screen.
• Grandma's story time about the child's parent: 'Tell me about when Daddy got in trouble.' Reliably the most-requested segment ever invented.

Setup that makes or breaks it

1. Prop the device — never handheld, either end. A tablet stand or a stack of books at slight distance beats a phone at nostril angle, and it frees the child's hands to play.
2. Light the grandparent's face from the front (facing a window works). Kids engage far more with a face they can actually see.
3. Have the activity staged before the call connects: crayons out, book at hand, props hidden. The first ninety seconds are the attention window — spend them starting, not searching.
4. Match length to age: 10-15 minutes is a triumph with a toddler, 20-30 for early school age. End while it's still fun.
5. Give the parent a defined role: stagehand, not participant. Set up, stay nearby, resist narrating. The relationship being built is grandma's.

Tip End every call with the same tiny sign-off — a special wave, a rhyme, blowing a kiss to the screen. A recognizable ending makes the next call feel like a continuation instead of a fresh start.

Make it a ritual, not a surprise

The single biggest upgrade isn't a better activity — it's a fixed slot. 'Sunday after lunch is Grandma Time' does three things: the child starts anticipating it (anticipation is half the relationship at this age), the grandparent gets to prepare something, and it stops depending on two adults spontaneously coordinating, which is how most good intentions die. Weekly and short beats occasional and long by a mile.

Give the ritual a name and, if you can, a routine inside it: same opening song, activity of the week, story, sign-off. Children are ritual machines — the structure is what lets a two-year relationship survive being mostly remote.

For the tech-shy grandparent

If grandma finds the technology stressful, shrink it until it's one gesture: a device that stays plugged in and charged, the video app on the home screen, one tap to answer. Do a dry-run call with just the adults so the first grandchild call isn't also tech support. And let her host from strength — she doesn't need to master anything digital if her job is reading, storytelling, and directing a cookie operation. The activities above were chosen so the analog end can carry the show.

Common questions