During these uncertain times of social distancing, our kiddos look to us for direction. Currently, schools have been closed for two weeks and they just announced their plans to close for the remainder of the school year!
As a result of COVID-19, families have found themselves in a unique situation where parents have been placed in the temporary role of schoolteacher. In between the school lesson plans, you find yourself creating a school agenda full of music, art, and even recess. Here are some great ideas to help you while in lockdown.
Children can enjoy a virtual play date with their friends by downloading apps such as DUO for one-on-one communication. Also there is Houseparty or Zoom apps when talking or playing with multiple friends. Come up with some funny songs or skits to record to send to family members and friends to brighten up their day. You can even pose in old costumes or colorful clothes to send digital postcards.
Meanwhile, Mom and Dad can enjoy a virtual happy hour with friends in which they can grab their favorite drink and schedule an hour of great conversations and laughs.
There are several things you can do for family fitness. You can visit Planet Fitness Facebook page at 4 p.m. daily for their FREE online class.
- How about a household dance contest? This promotes exercising and can lead to a conversation about fitness.
- Got chalk? In the driveway, a classic fun game of hopscotch is always fun. Spice things up with a jump rope contest or a throwback game of frisbee (watch out for cars though).
- A family scavenger hunt can be quite fun throughout the neighborhood. This will incorporate walking to assist with fitness for the whole family.
- Board and card games are always fun to keep family connected and engaged. Charades keeps the mind sharp and the creative spark in play time, two words sounds like BIG FUN!
Suffering from a sweet tooth? Baking can always be fun and include the whole family. I find baking and decorating your favorite flavored cupcakes and cookies can be loads of fun and a welcomed alternative to just cooking dinner. You could also teach a cooking class on how to prepare each person’s favorite dish.
Everybody is watching Netflix! Take time to find out this week’s new releases and pass the word around for everyone to meet in the living room at a specific time. Don’t forget to bring your favorite snacks. You could also put together a slide show of favorite family photos of vacations and special occasions to reminisce with the family.
Last, but certainly not least, gather several pairs of socks and roll them into balls and prepare for a snowball fight. Whoever lands the most snowballs on their opponent wins a sweet treat.
No one can forget the always classic and fun pillow fight! The more, the merrier. Soft pillows only please! LOL!
Speaking of treats. You can shake things up a bit with a blindfold taste test. Prepare some quick items with different textures and see who guesses the most correctly. I tried this with oatmeal, okra, guacamole and hummus. The laughter never stopped. Be sure to take plenty of pictures and or videos because this will be fun to watch with the family later.
Sheltering in place is what you make of it. If you are creative, this is the time to think outside the box and plan some things you wish you could do if you had more time! Right now, we have nothing but time!
About Merlisha Henderson: Merlisha lives in Arizona with her family. As a wife, mother and disability advocate in her community, she stays active and independent, working toward bringing equality and access to all. Click here to learn more about Merlisha.