10. Three Tips to Help Parents Keep Children Busy During COVID-19

8/7/2020

Do your children spend too much screen time at home during the stay at home order?Are you struggling with what to do with them besides watch TV? Are you frustrating of your children keep coming to you while you are working from home, so you end up letting them play digital media? Stay at home with your children all the time can be a challenge, especially when you are working from home. It is important to have children be involved in daily play, because play promotes learning and development. Today I will share with you three tips to keep your children away from screen/busy during the shelter in place.

The first tip is making a routine. Children are used to following a schedule, so making a blueprint for the day will help everything fall into place. Plan ahead and map out how the days will look at home. You may use childcare routine as the framework, like when do they used to eat, recess, naps, activities. The goal is to keep children busy and learning while allowing you to get other things done too.

Second tip is offer playful, open-ended learning experiences. Once you mapping out the frame of the day, you are ready to fill in the rest of the day. Provide opportunities for child led play. When a child is imagining, creating, building or inventing, they are doing some serious learning. Parents may put out multiple open ended materials out for children to choose. For example, areas for block building, art activity and literacy center to allow children to playing dependently. Families may ask open-ended questions to your children while engaging in the activities to help broaden your children’s thinking processes.  

The last tip is to be creative with the materials you already have at home. Parents don’t have to pressure yourself to buying a lot developmental materials for your children all the time. Using materials you already have at home can be fun and help your children make real life connections. It is also an opportunity to nurturing your children’s creativity. It can be simple as cardboard box coloring or crafting. Creative projects help develop your children’s sensory stimulation, imagination and fine gross motor skills. May reduce stress, foster self-esteem and help children focus. One reminder, don’t forget to testing for choking hazards before offer it to your children.

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