Yvette Salvaris
Keeping touch can be hard at the best of times. As adults our everyday lives get in the way, however for children its completely different. Children are used to being social at school and after school with playdates and other activities. However due to the current pandemic, we are finding ourselves in and out of lockdown protocols. Unfortunately this can be isolating for children when they cant play with their friends.
Technology is a great thing, without it we would become more isolated. During this pandemic we are becoming more aware of ways in which we can maintain our social contacts and activities but in a virtual way. We are aware of different web based programs and apps that we can use to keep in touch its just a matter of finding fun ways to use this technology. As amazing as it can be to keep in touch via these means, it can sometimes get boring. The key to keeping children engaged and still socialising with friends is to make it interesting and fun. Here are some ideas to keep things interesting and fresh for children and the whole family.
ISO Cooking Challenge
This is something the whole family can do together. First of all choose a recipe that’s relatively child friendly to do. Eg cup cakes. Share the recipe with another family then all get together via a video chat and cook at the same time and see which team makes the best cupcakes. Depending on the age of the children, you could take it one step further and do a decorating challenge as part of the cooking challenge. You could pick a deign to decorate your cup cakes and see which team make the best design.
ISO Lego Challenge
What child does not love a good challenge especially when it comes to Lego. For this activity you will need some Lego. Each child is given a design brief that they have to create from Lego in a certain time frame. The children all get together at the same time on a video chat and start building their Lego masterpiece. At the end of the time, each child can explain their design and then a challenge winner can be picked by and adult. The winner gets to pick the concept for the next design.
ISO Gardening Group
Gardening is a fun way to get some fresh air and learn about the environment. For this activity all you need is some seeds and a pot and some potting mix. This also a fun thing to do as a family group with others virtually. You can have one instructor (a parent leading the activity) and teach children how to plant a seeds. You can then watch them grow and each week check in with each other to see whose seeds and sprouting etc.
ISO Physical Activity Challenge
Kids love to be active and play games. So why not play musical statues virtually. But to mix it up a bit instead of stating still lie a statue, call out and animal or a shape that the children have to pose using thier body. Make it fun and crazy and chances are the kids will love the idea.
Hopefully these ideas have given you some fun and social things to do online with others and also has a learning outcome and is healthy and fun. So next time you are thinking of jumping on a zoom chat, why not make it fun and interactive for the whole family.
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