Are you struggling to provide enough activity for your kids while they are stuck at home? Here are some ideas to help get them moving and have fun while doing so. The most efficient way to make sure your kids are getting enough movement is to limit their screen time. Most of the time when we are watching tv, playing video games or on a tablet we are sedentary. Limiting screen time helps encourage creativity and physical activity in children.
Here are some ideas and activities to consider for you and your kids during quarantine:
Dance parties. Turn on your favorite music or your child's music.
Hide and Seek. Encourage your kids to run around the house.
Get outside! Although we are safer at home, we are still allowed and encouraged to get outside for fresh air, making sure we are keeping our distance from others.
Foot race. Inside or out, see who can get from point A to point B the fastest!
Bike ride. Head out as a family an enjoy the spring season.
Obstacle course. Use furniture, tape on the floor, blankets, pillows, etc. to create an obstacle course.
Build a fort. Gather all your blankets and sheets and set to build giant fort!
Blow bubbles. See who can catch or pop the most bubbles.
Charades. Create your own game of charades by writing different animals, actions, etc. on index cards. Draw them out of a hat and act them out to see who can guess the most correctly.
Sidewalk chalk. Pull out the chalk. Draw fun pictures or write funs sayings. You will have a colorful space when you are done.
Hula hoop. This can be done inside or out! See who can keep the hula hoop going the longest.
Balloon volleyball. Blow up a balloon and play a game of volleyball! You can do this inside without the risk of breaking something.
Yoga. Kids love yoga! Search YouTube and you will find many great videos, some of which are created specifically for kids.
GoNoodle. Although screen time, this is a fun website for kids to dance along to some silly songs and move their body with different games.
Jump rope. A great way for kids to have fun and stay active. If you have multiple kids at home get them all involved in a large group jump rope or Double Dutch!
Backyard soccer. Set up "goals" with sticks and play a game of soccer.
Catch. Grab a baseball or football and play a game of catch outside.
Basketball. Don't have a hoop? That's okay. Practice dribbling and passing.