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How to Keep Your Child Busy During This Lockdown?

Creator: Quadros Krystel Godfrey Lavina
Published: 2020-06-12T10:53:17-04:00

Written by

Published on Jun 12, 2020 and last reviewed on May 11, 2023 - 4 min read

Abstract

Parents struggled to find new and exciting ways to keep their children busy during the COVID-19 lockdown. Read the article to know more.

Contents

What Was the Impact of the COVID-19 Lockdown on Children?

How to Keep the Child Busy During Lockdown?

How to Keep Your Child Busy During This Lockdown?

Introduction:

Owing to the complete lockdown because of COVID-19, it was a challenge (but not impossible) to keep the tiny little souls sitting at home. They were used to going outside and playing with their friends. The home must be turned into a fun-loving place for them so that they enjoy being indoors too.

What Was the Impact of the COVID-19 Lockdown on Children?

Good mental health is equally important as physical health in children as it aids in developing social skills and emotional well-being. The COVID-19 lockdown has negatively impacted children’s mental health in the form of social isolation, grief, uncertainty, increased screen time, etc. The lockdown has also disrupted the family support and friendships of children. Parents are often unable to calm their children due to the stress and uncertainties they themselves are experiencing.

How to Keep the Child Busy During Lockdown?

The following are a few ways to keep tiny little tots busy during the lockdown period:

1) Make Them Build Castles out of Blocks:

Children love tall castles and towers. So, help them build a big one. Layout various colorful blocks and help them make their imaginary tower as desired. They surely are going to love being engaged in this entire fun-loving activity. After that, take their help to clear the blocks and put them back in place after the activity gets over. Teach them the art of cleanliness so that they learn to instill the art of cleanliness within themselves.

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2) Teach Them the Art of Fireless Cooking:

Whether it is a boy or a girl child, it does not matter. One can teach their child to master the art of fireless cooking. One can teach them how to make their sandwiches and salads. One can begin by giving them a plastic knife so that they do not injure their tiny fingers. They will even happily have those sandwiches if they prepare them themselves. This will teach them to be responsible, and they will feel a sense of independence.

3) Play With Them:

One can engage themself by playing cards with their children. If they do not know the rules of the game, one can explain it to them. They will be happy to learn something new. One can even teach them to play memory-sharpening games like chess. Business, monopoly, and ludo are other fun-loving games that one can play with their family. Kids will surely love it. These tiny tots need their parent’s time, affection, and love. So do not forget to give it to them during the lockdown period as they are the ones who need it the most at the moment.

4) Engage Themselves in Some Funtime Clay Activity:

Children love to make new things with clay. One can teach them to make various fruits, vegetables, and animals with clay. Parents can even show them what fruit or vegetable they have made today. Look at multiple clay-making activities on social media sites to learn to make more fun-loving things out of clay.

5) Organize a Small Home Picnic for the Kids:

Kids always love going to picnics. Since it is not possible to go outdoors during the lockdown, organizing a small picnic at home is better. One can lay a bedsheet in their living room and add a basket of eatables, maybe fruits and sandwiches. One can switch on some music and dance with their family and play passing the parcel. One can even organize a mini-karaoke event for the child to sing to the tune of her favorite nursery rhyme. The mini picnic organized for the child will make one’s child happy, and they will love being indoors.

6) Engage Children in Solving Interesting Puzzles:

Children will love solving various puzzles. Look at the little bundle of joy after they solve the puzzle correctly. It makes them feel like a genius. It is not necessary that one needs to purchase such puzzles. One can even make puzzles at home. It is time to showcase one’s skills during the quarantine and build a strong bond with their family, especially with one’s child. Please make the most of it.

7) Tell Them Interesting Stories:

Children love stories and listen to them very curiously. One can also show them various storytelling media forums where someone recites a story for the kids. The child will definitely love it and keep himself/herself completely engaged during the lockdown period. One can even make some cute little puppets with their help and tell them stories with the help of these puppets by organizing a puppet show for them.

8) Dress Them Into Their Favorite Character:

The child might love watching cartoons on television. Now is the time to make one’s child a cute little mickey mouse. One can use a mickey mouse hairband for that purpose and a blackberry fruit for the nose and use a make-up kit for this purpose. Use one’s DIY (Do it yourself) skills for this purpose. All will love this activity, and the child will be delighted to be dressed as his favorite cartoon character. Do not forget to click a picture after it is done and make the child recite some favorite line of his cartoon character. Make a video clip of that. All these things help create memories. One can show them all these when they grow up!

9) Encourage Them to Draw and Paint:

Children love to draw and color. Teach them to use all their artistic skills during the lockdown. One can draw fruits like apples and teach them that they are supposed to color them red and green for the leaf. Teach them that colors should not go outside a particular boundary. This will prepare them to be more artistic before the actual school begins.

10) Teach Them Their School Lessons:

Along with engaging the child in fun-loving activities, do not forget to teach them their lessons for at least one hour daily before school begins. This should be done so that they do not forget what was taught in their previous class. Children need to be taught things repeatedly so that they can keep it in their memory. Hence, revise and teach them lessons regularly. Teach them that balancing studies along with playing is essential.

Conclusion:

Keeping the children busy is a challenging task, especially during a crisis like the lockdown. But there are many fun things that parents can do to keep their children engaged during the lockdown. These activities not only help in overcoming boredom but also contribute to the growth of the child, make them independent, and help in building a better family relationship.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. How to Keep Children Entertained for Hours?

The following activities can be performed to keep children entertained for hours:
- Building a fort using blankets, couches, coffee tables, and boxes.
- Children can increase their skills and learn to draw some popular characters.
- Children can watch stories read by astronauts in space with story time from space.
- Simple activities like collecting all the broken crayons in the house and then peeling and discarding the paper wrappings.

2. How Can ADHD (Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) Children Be Kept Busy at Home?

Children with ADHD can be kept busy by involving them in games like memory games or word puzzles, active games like musical chairs, and activities like indoor scavenger hunts. These games help them focus their energy on things that help and entertain them along with building valuable skills.

3. How Can Children Be Entertained Without Toys?

Children can be entertained without toys by playing hand games lik
- Rock, paper, scissors.
- Arm or thumb wrestle.
- Patty-cake or other clapping games.
Verbal games should also be encouraged like
- Truth or dare.
- Simon says.
- Dumb charades.

4. How Can Children Be Kept Busy Without a Phone?

Children can be kept busy without a phone by encouraging the following activities:
- Creating a play box containing things that the child can play with, like puzzles, playing cards, and coloring books. Ask the child to put together this box themselves so that they look forward to using it.
- Instead of watching cartoons, children should be encouraged to make their own cartoons.
- Children can also be kept busy by involving them in cleaning or cooking activities that are age appropriate.
- To keep the children involved for a long duration, indulge them in creative activities like legos and play dough.

5. Can Being an Only Child Feels Lonely?

An only child with no siblings to interact with is considered lonely. They are also believed to be unable to cooperate with others and incapable of sharing their toys and parents' attention with others. However, some studies show that only children have the same number of friends as those with siblings.

6. What Should Be Done to Prevent Spoiling an Only Child?

Spoiling an only child can be prevented by practicing the following:
- Expose the child to different social settings and encourage them to interact with their peers from childhood.
- Usually, a lot of attention is given to an only child. This must be discouraged, and space should be given to these children to encourage individualism.
- Help the child participate in outside activities and community practices to increase human interaction.
- Parents must promote empathy in an only child and make them understand the need of others as well as the ability to compromise for others.

7. How to Keep Children Positive and Entertained While Waiting in Line?

The following activities can help children to stay positive and entertained while standing in a line:
- Playing hand games like rock, paper, scissors.
- Making plans for the next trip.
- Sharing jokes and life experiences.
- Having snacks.

8. What Activities Can Be Performed by Children Themselves?

The children themselves can perform the following activities:
- Dress-ups.
- Board games.
- Art and craft.
- Reading.
- Puzzles and jigsaws.
These activities must be self-directed and unstructured to help children think creatively, explore their own ideas and build problem-solving skills.

9. What Is the Appropriate Age for Children to Be Left Alone?

The most appropriate age for children to be left alone is considered to be 11 or 12 years. At this age, the children can be left alone for a few hours after considering the situation. The parents should trust their instincts, and the right age varies according to different families and upbringing.

10. What Happens if a Child Is Often Left Alone?

Children left alone often show greater levels of stress, fear, loneliness, and boredom. They are also at a high risk of being victimized by strangers and friends. They might develop a feeling that can lower their self-esteem and may result in feelings of sadness, malaise, alienation, and boredom. Moreover, early childhood loneliness might lead to loneliness during adulthood.