This is a time in our lives when everyone, adults and children have all had to sacrifice a certain amount of freedom in our everyday lives to keep ourselves, loved ones, and others safe. Yes, it is serious and scary, and our young children don’t understand why they can’t go to school, their favorite children’s restaurant, or play with their friends. Birthday parties, extra curriculum activities such as dance, soccer, baseball, gymnastics, etc. have all been cancelled. So that leaves parents, many who are also trying to work from home, in charge of keeping their children busy, happy, learning, and away from others! That is not an easy task. It may be the toughest thing you will do during this next year. If you look at it through a child’s eye though, this time can start a string of, “BEST DAY EVER!” moments for the children in your life. All children have a need to feel loved, and they seek the attention of the adults in their life to get the love they desire. This shelter in place can be a time for you to give your children the loving experiences with you they need.
Being together 24/7 can be a time to remember for everyone, if you can get organized and do a little planning. To be productive in our work, we usually create a plan of action, a schedule to help us be productive and focused. Try being intentional with your children and create a schedule that is strictly adhered to. The same time daily for meals, snacks, art time, reading aloud, quiet time, puzzle time, etc. Put everything on a schedule for everyone to see, even if they cannot read it. You can read it to them. Keep it as consistent as possible, so that children learn quickly what is next each day. Build into the schedule one fun thing to look forward to each day, something you can do as a family. Every household also needs a quiet time whether it is a naptime or a quiet time in their rooms, that will allow you to get those calls made, or critical thinking time you may need. The following are some ideas to make your shelter in place an experience that is fun and exciting.
1) Go OUTSIDE and play! Children who typically go to preschool are accustomed to short 30 minute play times in the morning and another in the afternoon. Try extending that time and encourage play with balls, and games that involve running, hopping, skipping and jumping, this will give them aerobic and muscle strengthening opportunities. Limited on outdoor space or bad weather? Move the furniture up against the walls and put on some music, DANCE together, do yoga, or google fun work out videos! Try sweating to the Oldies with Richard Simmons! These are fun times that will be remembered!
2) ART! ART! ART! If needed, order online or pickup an order of paints, paper, glue, scissors, construction paper and get everyone’s creative juices going. We spent two different evenings, using the McDonald’s Happy Meal boxes and turning them into castles with construction paper, tape, and a stapler. These were prized possessions for a week. Don’t have a happy meal box? Then use the boxes that are coming to your door from your orders…of course spray with Lysol first! Once we used duck tape and put together several boxes and made a space ship that was played with for weeks.
3) Read together as a family. Start a chapter book with the children and read aloud every day at the same time. You may even read a favorite book and change it up a little by placing your child’s name in the book instead of the main character.
4) Have an indoor scavenger hunt. This is really a lot of fun! We had one looking for a treasure that a leprechaun had hidden on St. Patrick’s Day. There are many different types of scavenger hunts for children on the internet, just google indoor or outdoor scavenger hunts. Print or read off your phone or tablet. This is a must do activity. For children who can read this can be a great comprehension lesson.
5) Cook and prepare meals together! Using a step stool, children can assist with washing vegetables, rinsing dishes, stirring and measuring ingredients. I have never met a child who did not enjoy helping in the kitchen.
6) Create a family favorite playlist of music. Everyone in the family gets the opportunity to choose their favorite song to add to the list and play it during times to clean up, bath time or transitioning from one activity to another.
7) Take a Nature Walk. Give each child a ziplock bag or any type of container and walk through your neighborhood allowing the children to pick up things from nature such as leaves, acorns, twigs, small pebbles, etc. Watch for butterflies, caterpillars, birds, squirrels, bird nests, lady bugs, grasshoppers, crickets, anything that moves! Check out the internet for nature scavenger hunt lists with pictures. Observing and watching things in nature is a great learning activity.
8) Outdoor time is planting time. If you do not have access to a plot of soil to plant flowers, plants or vegetables, use a cup and plant a seed or bean! Watering and caring for the plants becomes the responsibility of the child. Harvesting and eating the vegetables is truly a rewarding experience.
9) Build an indoor tent with sheets, blankets and chairs. Then watch as the children fill it with their favorite things! This is hours of fun. Once this is built, the children will play together for hours pretending to be camping or creating their own homes, each with their own tent.
10) Play Indoor, Hide & Seek. This is another favorite of my grandchildren, and it is practice counting to ten! This can get a little crazy but it is so worth the fun it brings.
11) Make cards or art work to mail to family members or friends. This activity can help your children think of others and bring a smile or happy moments to those who are alone at this time.
12) Dust off the board games and jigsaw puzzles!
13) Have a family movie night complete with popcorn and a drink.
14) Go outside and fly a kite!
15) Take a little masking tape and use it to draw a line on the floor for the children to walk as in a balance beam or create a large Tic Tac Toe and use paper plates with Xs and Os drawn on them.
16) When ordering your art supplies don’t forget sidewalk chalk. This can also bring hours of fun and you can play games as well such as Tic Tac Toe and Hop Scotch. Adults can draw the outline of an image with chalk and the children can color them or just practicing writing their names or numbers. We live on a corner lot with a sidewalk all the way around the house that can bring hours of fun.
17) Create a chore list for each child according to their ability level. Simple things like dusting, making their bed, brushing their teeth, setting the table, taking out the trash, folding clothes, vacuuming, etc. The chores build a child’s independence and life skills.
18) This should probably be at the top of the list but pray together! Together make a prayer list of people to pray for such as our first responders, nurses, doctors, policemen, firemen, soldiers, shut-ins and don’t forget to make a list of things to be grateful for!
With just a little planning your shelter in place experience can build your child’s independence, ease your own fears and anxieties as well as the children’s, and can feel more like a stay at home vacation to be remembered.
