SMILE PARENTING:
With schools being closed as of today, just shy of the school holidays, there is this sense of cabin fever worry. If this was a normal school holiday, we’d be setting up playdates and sharing excursions, but with the Coronavirus Pandemic, the safety of all citizens is of the utmost importance and we need to be responsible with our social distancing.
I know that kids are going to be watching a lot more TV and have tablet screen time…. But I’ve gathered some ideas on how to keep kids occupied while at home for these next few weeks.
Take all the kids’ books from their bedrooms and move them to a shelf in a different area of our home. Set it up like a library! Make a sign-out sheet on a small desk and set up comfy reading spaces. With all of the books in one place, arranged differently, the kids rediscover stories they haven’t read in a while or books that had been in one another’s room.
Kinetic sand is always fun.
Create a fishing game using fish cut out of paper. Tape a paper clip to the back, made rods using chopsticks, ribbon, and a magnet at the end. Then make a little lake out of a box that and go fishing. Switch out the fish with letters, numbers, colors & words to kind of mix it up.
Use masking tape on tiles to create hop scotch and make bean bags with socks and beans.
You can never go wrong with a fort! Blankets, pillows, and chairs are all you need. Include some Christmas lights to make it a little more special
Board Games – always a winner.
Drawing and colouring in.
Make your own playdough.
Make your own slime – I actually shared a great recipe – it’s on the Smile App as a podcast.
Have a fashion show with adult clothes. Kids LOVE it.
Kid Olympics: jumping jacks, summersaults, running, balancing on one foot
Have a scavenger hunt in your home and garden.
Baking.
Have kids help with the meal preps – wash fruit and veg, help with the cutting, the stirring and so on.
Do you have any extra ideas? Please share your tips and ideas so that all us parents can get inspired
by: Bailey Schneider
