Even adults are getting bored at home, so how can we expect the kids to be any different? The past year hasn’t been easy and finally, restrictions are being lifted now. That does not mean we can go out and mingle with other people, living and interacting as we did before. The coronavirus pandemic forever changed our lives, so it’s best to make your home a fun place for the kids, too. You never know until when the threat will last or whether if it is nearing its end. For good measure, quarantining at home seems to be the best choice for families.
There’s nothing much to do at home once YouTube has run its course and Netflix can no longer satisfy the kids’ curiosity. Even their virtual classes seem dull since they cannot play with their classmates. No matter how much they try to entertain themselves, the house is just not the same when you can’t freely go out and play in the parks and playgrounds.
So the burden is on the parents to find activities that the kids will love. What can you do during these uncertain times? How can you turn your home into a place where they will learn, play, and simply not get bored?
Special Online Classes
Forget about your child’s schooling for now. That’s a given and your kids are probably expecting to sit for two hours straight during schootime. How about what they are interested in? Do they love to dance? Are they interested in playing a musical instrument? Sure, it is not ideal, but you can also enroll them in special classes for gymnastics, tae kwon do, and ballet.
The most popular special online classes now are those that have to do with music. Since music has the power to calm and relax kids, these classes are helpful during this time. Piano and guitar classes, in particular, are good introductory lessons for kids. Many start as young as five years old while other more gifted kids can learn to play the piano and guitar at the tender age of three.
Foreign Language
Do you want your kids to become a polyglot? Knowing different languages will be helpful for your kids in the future. Mandarin and French are the two most popular foreign languages being taught in the United States. You may want to explore this idea. You might even enjoy the activities that come with learning a foreign language. The instructor will ask you to watch movies and listen to music in the foreign language that your kids are learning. You’ll pick up some phrases, too, so it’s like learning together.
Treasure Hunt
Kids love mysteries. You can organize a treasure hunt for them. Hide the “treasure” (it can be anything) anywhere in your house. It will take up most of their afternoon to find the treasure, but they will love the mystery of it, as well as the time and effort you poured into making it a fun activity. You can make the treasure hunt super easy, or you can make it difficult. That is up to you, although you have to determine also the level that your kids can understand. Of course, a prize should be waiting for them at the end of the hunt.
Home Cinema
Since you cannot take the kids to a cinema these days, you may want to set up your own home cinema. It doesn’t take much. All you need is to arrange some sleeping bags and large pillows on the floor in front of the TV screen. If you want, you can put a mattress there, too. Let the kids eat snacks like popcorn, hot dogs, candies, and fries. Turn off the lights to recreate the ambiance of the cinema. Of course, play whatever they want—maybe watching a scary movie is a nice family bonding activity.
Family Contests
You’ve seen these videos all over social media. Families have fun with various competitive activities such as who gets to fly a paper airplane farthest or who can shoot the most ping pong balls in shot glasses. Make it kid-friendlier so your children can join in on the fun, too. How about asking the kids to compete on who gets to fit the most marshmallows in a jar?
The goal is to make these challenging times pass by while learning and having a bit of fun, too. It’s easy to let the pandemic swallow you whole. It’s depressing and anxiety-inducing. But families have to fight against the temptation of allowing themselves to get bored at home. This will lead to arguments and fights that will be more stressful to an already difficult situation.
