What to do when the kids have nothing to do

A National State of Disaster has officially been declared. For many the scariest part is that children will be at home for longer than was planned for.

School holidays were only supposed to be 10 days long, but now the kids will be home for nearly a month. Schools will close on Wednesday, 18 March and reopen after the Easter Weekend that ends on Monday, 13 April.

A few parents have been panicking since the announcement; an extra 16 days with the kids at home! But never fear, the Record is here! We have made a list of 10 different activities to keep your young ones entertained while they are at home. Most of them can be done without you there; they will just need a little guidance before you leave for work.

• Homemade crafts or greeting cards – Give your children some paper, cardboard, stickers and stationery, and let them be as creative as they want to be. You can even make potato stamps, or clay. These easy DIY crafts can be reused.

• Origami – The art of folding paper; key word: folding. If you don’t trust your child with sharp objects, like scissors, or if you would feel a little more at ease knowing they wouldn’t need to use them, then origami could be the craft you are looking for. Print out some designs and instructions from the internet, get the paper, and let your kid have fun while learning a new skill.

• Gardening – This could be the perfect chance for you to get your child away from the TV, phone, or computer. Show them how to plant a seed and have your little ones plant their own garden. You can either allocate them a part of your garden, or you can give them a few pots to plant their seeds or flowers in without touching your precious roses.

• Make a time capsule – A time capsule is a great way to keep the children busy while they sort through their belongings to find items that are significant to them, but which they don’t necessarily use anymore. Ask them to go through their rooms to find important items that they want in a time capsule for future generations to find, write a note to their future selves, and collect things that they think people in the future would be interested in. Be sure to tell them to make donations boxes as well, and throw away things that can’t be donated. They will be kept busy, entertained, and spring-clean at the same time.

• Family book club – Choose a book for the family to read, and you can have your own book club. Once a week, get some treats and talk about the book.

• Give them an ‘important job’ – The beauty of young minds is that if you tell them something is important, it is. Give your children a task to complete (even something like making a special birthday card just for grandma) and if you tell them it is very important, then chances are they will have no problem completing it. And because their task is so important, they might even want to do it without your help.

• Entertainment box – Fill an empty box with everything you can imagine that would keep your children entertained, such as games, decks of cards, movies, conversation topics, charades topics, or craft things – all of their entertainment needs in one convenient little package. That way, if the children are stuck for something to do, they can look in the box and find something fun.

• Idea box – One of the worst things any child can ever say is ‘I’m bored’. A way to deal with that terrible phrase is an idea box. This can even go inside the entertainment box mentioned above. Gather the children and get them to write down solutions to boredom on a piece of paper. If they are bored, they can go to the box and pick out a piece of paper with an idea of what to do to solve the problem. They may be more willing to do the task if they have written down the idea.

• Bake – If you are home and you are stuck for something to do with your little one, bake. Choose something easy and delicious, and get your children to help you prepare it. Craft ideas can tie into this; get your children to make their own paper chef’s hat before you start baking or cooking.

• Fancy dress – If you have a big box, a crate, or basket, fill it with old clothes, jewellery, and maybe even a few craft items and create a fancy dress box. The children will love being able to go into the box and be as creative as they want with what they find; they can even put on a play for you in their new outfits.

• Picnic – Make a few yummy snacks with the help of your little one, grab a basket and a blanket, and have a picnic in your garden, on your balcony, or even inside if you don’t have a garden. A picnic is a great way to spend some quality time with your kids and enjoy some good food at the same time. With teenagers in the house, you might actually find that they are able to talk without a cellphone in front of them.

There are so many things that you can do with your children, or they can even do themselves while you are at work, you just need to be creative. The Entertain Kids on a Dime website has expanded this list of 10 to 100, and even provides how-to links. If you are interested in the ideas, just follow this link: https://entertainkidsonadime.com/2020/03/13/100-activities-to-do-at-home-during-school-closures/?fbclid=IwAR3ULD713PP6vZ29qRCtQLSK2kDLNGFIsNDLPiBixyTBmEiihLpO52jRgfw.

Do you have any fool-proof plans and activities to keep your children busy during the holidays? Let us know by emailing amys@caxton.co.za.