Things to do with Your Kids During the Quarantine

There are many more homeschooling families now because of the quarantine.  During this time of homeschooling there are many activities you can do with your kids or have them do independently.  Try to limit the amount of tech time they have and let them make things, have fun, and learn some new things!

Below are some suggestions for things you do with your kids during this time of quarantine and even AFTER the quarantine is over. 🙂

Leaf Collecting and Identification

Recently in our homeschooling, we have been studying Brazil and talking some about the Amazon rain forest in Brazil.  My Father’s world offers a free activity pack.  We have been using one of the activity packs to learn about Brazil.  As a connection to this, we went outside and started collecting our own leaves.  To do a leaf collection of your own, give each child a bag of some sort to put their collection in.  Let them walk around your yard and collect leaves.  You can have them take a pencil and rub and shade over the leaves.  Also you can help them to google search to try to identify the leaves.

Let Your Kids Help You Make a Snack

At our house we enjoy eating homemade granola. To make our granola we use:

2 cups oats, 1/2 cup pumpkin seeds, 1 cup unsweetened coconut flakes, 1/2 cup honey or maple syrup (or a mixture of the two), 1/2 tbsp cinnamon or pumpkin spice, 1/4 tbsp vanilla extract, a couple big spoonfuls of melted earth’s balance, 1/2 tsp salt.  You mix all the ingredients together, and then you pour the ingredients on top of some parchment paper.  Set your oven to 280 degrees Fahrenheit.  Bake for 7 minutes, and then stir it up. Bake for an additional 8 minutes.  Pay close attention to it and don’t leave it in the oven for much longer as you don’t want it to burn. With smaller children, you can just let them mix the ingredients together and then you take care of the cooking part. 🙂

Here’s a link to a granola recipe you can try.

It’s a simple enough snack to make such that the kids can mix the ingredients themselves.  Another idea is to have them make their own popsicles.  We did this recently after making a smoothie.  You can let the kids get creative and decide what types of fruit they would like in their popsicles.

Let Your Kids Build a Fort

An activity your kids can do independently is to build a “fort” or “house.”  My brother and I used to have fun building “forts.”  The nice thing about it is that after the kids build it, then they can play in it!

Challenge Your Kids to Build Their Own Toy

We want to give our kids opportunities to be creative and to make things.  The next time your kid says he is bored (or before he gets bored), challenge him to make his own toy.  Recently, I suggested to my son that he make his own foosball table.

My son Andre ended up using a video on youtube for guidance.  The video is called 13 Crazy Smart and Easy Cardboard Boxes Ideas.  The section he looked at starts at about 6:35.

Review Math Concepts

Ok, so your kids might not like this idea too well, but while you have extra time, use this time to review math concepts that the child has been struggling with.  If your child is in 6th grade or higher, and is struggling in math, consider checking out my ebook 20 Possible Holes in Your Child’s Math Education.

Here’s a sample page:

During this time of extra time at home, try to create great memories with your child!