We know how tough it can be to occupy your little one's days during the school holidays. That is made even harder when you are unable to leave the house, for whatever reason. In this blog post, we are going to show you how you can effectively manage your child's day and keep them happy, healthy and occupied.
First things first, you need a way to get organised and plan their day. You can easily add some routine to your children's day with our Daily Kids' Planners. Perfect for children that are homeschooled or those that are having to spend some extra time at home for whatever reason. This children's activity planner will allow you both to keep organised and will stave away any potential boredom.
Now the fun part, coming up with activities to add to your planner! Below you will find some of our favourite ways to keep your children busy during any free time at home they may have.
Now would be the perfect time to teach your child something new and hobbies are a great way for your little ones to stay busy and learn a new skill set at the same time. Whether it’s photography, coding, astronomy, cooking, needlepoint or dancing, most hobbies are a great way to spike their creativity and interests. Schedule in some time in your little ones day for them to explore a new hobby.
Learning to play a musical instrument, for example, has many cognitive benefits for your child including improved memory, hand-eye coordination, fine motor, auditory, reading and comprehension skills. It is also super fun and will keep your little one entertained for hours. (You may, however, want to invest in some decent noise-cancelling headphones!) Also, don’t worry if you aren’t up to scratch on something, there is always the internet which has a myriad of helpful online tutorials for beginners up to experts.
You may be surprised to hear this bu utmost children love doing odd jobs around the house and one of the easiest ways to get children involved in chores is to make them routine. Using our Daily Kids' Planners is the perfect way to schedule in some basic tasks that will not only help you out but will also help your child learn about responsibility for one's space and other basic life skills.
One potential downside to having the kids home all day is constantly empty food cupboards. To get a handle on snacking and teach them about budgeting at the same time, why not use our personalised kids tuck shop price list. You can come up with a menu of available snacks, give your children £1 - £2 a day in change and let them spend it at the family tuck shop. Simply collect the money up and redistribute it the next morning. Older children can even take turns to play shopkeeper for one another, practising simple maths along the way!
Good old fashioned jigsaw puzzles are wonderful of keeping little hands and minds occupied when the weather is being inclement. Simple puzzles create a fun learning opportunity for kids and can help them develop finger strength, perseverance and problem-solving skills. Puzzles can also aide in the development of memory skills, as well as an ability to plan, test ideas and deal with frustrations.
If you are fortunate enough to have a garden then this presents a unique opportunity for your child to stay active and get involved in exploring the natural world. Why not sow some seeds, which is a great way to educate your child about where their food comes from. You could also get them to hone their artistic skills with some nature sketching or chalk drawing. A scavenger hunt is also a fun way to encourage young gardeners and naturalists to practice using their observation skills.
We hope you have been inspired by some of these ideas for keeping your little ones occupied. You can shop our entire range of family resources here which are available to download for free, or we can send you a printed and laminated copy.
