HOW TO KEEP YOUR KIDS BUSY DURING COVID-19 PANDEMIC
Last Updated on January 26, 2021 by Anjum
The World has not seen a year like 2020 where everyone globally has suffered or faced difficulties due to the Corona Virus Pandemic. It is an extremely delicate time where everybody is concerned about their own and their family’s well being.
With this ongoing Corona Virus (COVID-19) Pandemic taking a complete toll on us, the major concern for everyone nowadays is to stay safe and away from it. For that matter, every single person is trying their best to stay at home and maintain social distancing.
COVID-19 – AN UNPRECEDENTED ISSUE
Since the situation is so new and unpredictable and never seen before that most of us don’t know how to go on about it. Even the Governments are unsure what to do. They are trying to bring everything back to normal but whenever they open up a sector new cases start to emerge and they have to go into the Lock down mode again. Countries who were the first to control the spread are witnessing increasing number of Corona Virus Cases just because they opened up the businesses again.
MAINTAIN SOCIAL DISTANCING
With the virus spreading all around the world, the best option for everyone is to just avoid social gatherings, crowded places and maintain social distancing. But unfortunately it is not as simple as it sounds. Many people still don’t believe in the severity of the virus and are still not following the SOPs. The need of the hour is to maintain social distancing, only then can we stop the spread of the virus and save as many lives as possible until the vaccine comes.
As much as people value their freedom to do what they want , this has become a reality that if they want their loved ones to stay healthy they have to follow the SOPs.
Staying at home for days during this pandemic is difficult to say the least. Specially when we were always away from home during normal times for whatsoever reason, be it eating out, shopping, work, buying groceries, sports or just hanging out with our loved ones. Unfortunately going out is not as easy anymore if we have to ensure the safety of our families.
COVID-19 IS HARD FOR KIDS
Corona Virus (COVID-19) is specially hard for kids who are having a really tough time. They are losing an important year when it comes to their education and not only that they are losing a year where they should have developed much better and learnt so much as a kid. Fortunately where there are so many negatives, there will be a positive side as well which is that the kids will come out of it much stronger and better prepared for future than they would have otherwise.
You can expect adults to easily accept maintaining social distancing as the new norm but it is hard for kids who cannot fathom the unfortunate consequences of going out and not following the SOPs. Parents have to make the kids understand the severity of the situation but it is not an easy task to keep your kids entertained at home for so many days.
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HOW TO KEEP YOUR KIDS BUSY DURING COVID-19 PANDEMIC
Every parent’s concern these days is ‘how to keep their kids busy during this COVID-19 pandemic?’. Before COVID19, in a regular day, the children had a routine in their lives. They would wake up on time, eat on time and get busy with their daily normal life routine for the rest of the day. Basically, they had an orderly life. Now the parents have extra responsibility, they are on a 24 hour job to look after the needs of their children without the luxury of taking them outside.
Since, kids are after all just kids and they will act their age, they need to be kept busy and entertained in these unusual and difficult times. If they are getting bored then they will get frustrated and will in turn will become extremely finicky and cranky.
Therefore, maintaining a healthy and busy schedule is not only important for the kids themselves but also for the sanity and peace of the parents.
Here’s a list of things we can indulge our kids in to keep them engrossed and happy for the entire day in this COVID 19 Pandemic:
1.EDUCATIONAL ACTIVITIES
Kids during this COVID-19 Pandemic are having a hard time with their education. Schools being closed have become a hindrance in the development of the kids. Where ever there have been a decrease in the number of COVID-19 cases there has been the debate about re-opening the schools but as soon as the number of cases starts rising the answer becomes clearer that keeping the schools closed is the right way forward.
In order to keep your kids entertained during COVID-19 educational activities can be a real go to activity.
It is imperative in these times, for us, as parents, to keep their educational learning process going on. we can do this by creating fun games and tasks for the kids to indulge in and learn as much as they can. for e.g.;
- Give them some math problem solving activities by using home based items based on the kid’s age. Such as there are 5 beans in a plate, if you eat 3 how many will be left. If the kid is a little older then make them check the grocery bill or something similar.
- Use Flash Cards to refresh their memory and make a game out of it.
- There are plenty of exciting activity books that keep the child hooked. These activity books sometimes have toys included with them to attract the kids. children learn a lot through these practical fun activities and tasks. For example, recognition of colors and numbers etc. There are all sorts of activity books available for all kinds of age groups in the market. Order them online so that you don’t have to go out.
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2. COOKING / BAKING ACTIVITIES
Due to COVID-19, parents should encourage their kids to stay at home and maintain social distancing. Which means that there has to be something so amusing for them to enjoy that they are willing to stay in quarantine. The activities should be so entertaining that the child looks forward to doing them everyday.
One such exciting activity for kids during COVID-19 pandemic could be ‘Cooking or Baking’. The internet is full of interesting and easy recipes for kids of all ages to follow. We can make this activity exciting for them by keeping them involved in the whole procedure.
Let them do everything that is appropriate for their age by themselves. Let them explore. If we don’t want them to try new recipes everyday, we can also just ask for their help in our daily routine cooking. Make sure to appreciate their efforts and the output to keep them encouraged and motivated.
This can be helpful for them in many ways. Firstly, they are spending their time on something creative, and secondly, they are getting to learn something, which is never a bad idea.
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3. TRY DIY (DO IT YOURSELF) ACTIVITIES
The world has advanced so much and things have become so easy and approachable that we can effortlessly do or make anything just sitting at home. We can watch any Do It Yourself (DIY) video from any website and start working on it with our kids. There is no limit to DIY activities, from making pencil holders to making super hero costumes to a huge doll house to simply anything, you can just about make anything with the right tools at your disposal.
Children can really enjoy this particular proposition. All we, as parents, have to do is to play a nice doable DIY video for them or just simply read them the instructions and they will stay so busy and engrossed in it that they wouldn’t have time to complain for boredom.
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4. READING BOOKS
If Books can be a man’s best friend than they can be a child’s best friend too. During this COVID-19 Pandemic we just need to figure out the category of our kids interests and the world of books is full of some amazing options.
If we can build this habit of reading books in our kids, half our job is already done to keep them busy. Specially with this corona virus spreading so much, it can be one of the best ideas to invest in a good book collection for our kids. This will enable them to spend quality time at home and not complaint about going out or about boredom.
Once they find their interest in this particular activity, it can only prove to be a better option for future. It will enhance their language skills, improve vocabulary and will keep them focused and imaginative at the same time. Furthermore, the learning process will be carried on too. On the the other hand, time spent reading the books of their choices would be a time well spent for them too. This will result in a win win situation for all parties involved.
5. OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES
When the child stays indoors the entire day, it is natural that he will get quirky, even if his day is occupied with plenty of activities to keep him busy. some outdoor time in fresh air is required by anybody, be it a child or an adult. If we could dedicate even a small portion of our day to an outdoor activity, it will do the job.
Parents can take their kids out for a walk, gardening, watering the plants, cycling, or any kind of activity while maintaining social distancing. All these things can be done outdoors. What we have to ensure is that all the S.O.Ps (standard operating procedures) must be followed to keep ourselves and the kids protected from COVID-19. The point is, to just come out of the closed walls for a little span of time, get some fresh air and feel better.
6. CONSTRUCTIVE GAMES
There are a large number of constructive toys and games available in the markets. These are specially designed for kids to get totally involved in and put their entire concentration in building them. These constructive games will improve the creative and constructive side of your kids.
Activities like playing with play dough, blocks, Lego, puzzles and even painting. These are the kind of constructive and creative activities that can bring out the inner Picasso of your kid. When a child starts working with blocks or Lego, or any other such constructive toy, he is also getting a chance to explore and showcase his creativity and innovative ideas.
More options may include making a little boat to float in a tub of water or making a small toy plane with the help of all the required accessories. There are complete sets available to keep the kids engaged for hours and if we are not willing to buy all these constructive things, then there is always an option of working with the toys they already have. Tell them to do something creative with them. This is a great option to keep the child totally engrossed in, making him feel busy and happy and at the same time, spending the day in a more qualitative manner.
7. ONLINE CLASSES
We as Parents, keep our children above all other things. That is why Schools are the first to close and last to open. Same is the case during COVID-19 Pandemic where kids are the ones whose schools got closed first. No Parent will be willing to send their kids to school knowing that they can contract the virus.
Online Classes have therefore become the need of the hour and have become the new normal. Everywhere around the world, this concept of online classes is flourishing with success. Everyone is trying day and night to improvise and improve it to create a ‘new normal’ for the society. Children are getting back to their old routines of waking up early for school and more or less everything learning wise is being covered in these online classes.
It is not only difficult for kids but it has also put an extra burden on the Teachers to make sure that every kid is getting the proper attention. Teachers have also been under great scrutiny because parents are now also attending the class in the background.
Apart from school’s online classes. Parents can enroll the kids for some of the fun activity online classes or extra curricular activities as well. For example, we can enroll them for following classes:
- Yoga
- Aerobics
- Creative Arts
- Zumba or Other Dance Classes
- Physical Exercise classes
- Cooking
- Etc.
Where everything before COVID 19 was physical, now almost everything everywhere has become virtual. Parents can get their kids enrolled for such classes without worrying for the S.O.Ps (standard operating procedures). Not only its a great time pass activity for kids but they will also learn a lot from it. Great option for Kids during COVID 19.
8. CLEANUP TIME
Cleaning up the house is a daily task for every household. A good amount of time is taken to do the household chores everyday. Why not involve the kids to help us in the chores and occupy some time of their day with some of the house work. All we have to do is make it fun for them. If they take it as a burden, they will be bored in no time. We need to make it look interesting to them.
For instance, buy some colorful and pretty props for cleaning (like mop, broom or maybe a bucket) for them that only they can use. Give them a different yet easy task everyday. Maybe ask them to clean a particular drawer one day and make them clean the pool the next day. Anything that doesn’t get too much for them and maintains their interest.
9. LIMITED SCREEN TIME
Even though Screen Time is discouraged everywhere but in some instances Screen Time with a limited restriction might not prove to be harmful at all. Though this option is not the best and is questionable, but Screen Time can get you through if you are having a hard time keeping the kids entertained.
Make it productive for kids, rather than making them watch random cartoons or playing rubbish video games, parents can encourage them to see interesting and learning based cartoons and make them play constructive and strategy based video games. In fact, kids get to learn a lot from their technological gadgets and videos. Just make sure it doesn’t become a habit for them and they are time restricted in front of the screen.
With the world advancing so fast, we have to make the kids get the hang of technological devices and understand the modern use of Technology. This is the need of the current situation specially for kids during COVID-19 Pandemic.
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10. SPEND QUALITY TIME WITH KIDS DURING COVID-19
This part is the most important out of all the activities. There are a numerous things we can do to keep our children active and engaged in, however nothing can match a bit of family time. Your kids will not be entertained if you are not involved with them no matter what activity they are doing.
Even though we want the kids to be as independent as possible they will always require our time to make them feel loved. We may be worked up all day but at the end of the day, some love and affection is needed by the kids to feel totally satisfied. Parents must see to it that they take out sufficient amount of time from their schedules, whether they are working from home or office.
Spend some time with the kids by watching television with kids, play their favorite games with them, help them in their school assignments or extra curricular class tasks, or just simply sit with them and give them some love. Eventually this is what matters to them the most.
IN A NUTSHELL
Covid-19 has affected everybody’s life in one way or the other. It is a virus that has shocked the entire world. The seriousness of its contagious nature has been proved to almost everyone ever since it has emerged. We need to understand that at a time like this avoiding any kind of social gathering and maintaining social distance is the most important factor. we must pass this information to our children as well and keep them updated on all the information regarding corona virus. We need to let them know what it is and how serious it can get if we do not follow the S.O.Ps. Educate them on the S.O.Ps and how to find the new normal out of their routines.
Parents should definitely try all these things for their kids to keep them busy during COVID-19 Pandemic. What really matters at this point in time, is their safety and nothing else.
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This post was on How to keep your kids busy during COVID-19 Pandemic.
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