We may be better used to the lockdown routine, but it makes it’s no less challenging to keep our kids entertained during long stretches at home, especially on rainy days. With schools closed, no visits to friends’ houses, sport or other activities in the daily schedule, parents and carers are having to come up with creative ideas to keep their children’s minds and bodies busy.
Feel free to send us your suggestions to communications@unitec.ac.nz and we will add them to the list!
This post is for parents and carers who are looking for fresh tips and ideas to keep the younger members of the family entertained during the lockdown. Now that school is back (although not as we know it) you can schedule some of these ideas into the day, around schoolwork and your usual routines.
Fun and creative activities
Fortunately, resources and ideas have grown, here are a few sites that offer simple and practical ideas to keep the kids busy, with suggestions like making a cardboard fort, setting up a treasure hunt, visiting a virtual aquarium, a picnic activity, training the family dog, a playdough recipe and lots more!
150 Ideas for Family Fun
115 fun activities to do at home with kids
Auckland Council Sites
Auckland Council and partners, including Auckland Zoo, MOTAT, libraries and museums have lots of ways to keep your children occupied with fun and inspirational online activities.
Stories/books
Storytime is RNZ’s collection of free children’s audio books. All written and produced in New Zealand for pre-schoolers, kids and young adults.
The Best of Storytime can be found here and on any podcast app.
Get musical and join the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra
If your child is a budding musician this fun exercise is definitely worth a go. Instrumentalists of all ages and skill levels who love orchestral music have a chance to join the APO with their virtual community play along. Instructions are on the APO Virtual Community page – the performance is Radetsky March by Johann Strauss Sr. and the music has been specially arranged so everyone can join in.
Parenting during lockdown
As you would have heard or read in the media, the key advice for parents and carers is to:
- Stick with routine, have a schedule, but don’t be too rigid – a ‘rough plan’ is OK. Kids need and like routine but allow some flexibility
- Balance learning and quiet time: Schedule in time for learning or quiet time, but then balance this with something they want to do later – give them the choice of what and something they can look forward to
- Connect with the kids by playing games, engage in what they are doing with their play time, engage through baking together, making music together, and dancing.
- Devices are great but stick with a time limit and ‘manage’ how they are using them. There are some cool things to do online and some great creative options.
Home Learning TV | Papa Kāinga TV
Here’s some info on the Home Learning TV initiative the Ministry of Education is providing on-air, in partnership with TVNZ. The content is designed to provide entertaining educational programming for our tamariki, including teacher-led lessons. Viewers will enjoy sessions from Suzy Cato, Karen O’Leary, amazing local teachers and more.
TNZ On Air and TVNZ have created HEIHEI – a fun space for our tamariki, chock full of quality kids’ entertainment. Lots of shows that will teach kids activities to cook, draw, sing and learn to play instruments. Join Nanogirl for some kitchen science
The Parenting Place – We’re here to help you through lockdown
The Parenting Place website provides a range of support for parents from the time your child is born to when they raise tamariki of their own. They also have a section that provides daily lockdown support covering a range of topics, that include looking after your relationship with your partner, soothing struggles between siblings, working from home and much more.
Explore our Universe from home
Nasa’s online Mars Exploration Programme allows you to move your way around the surface of Mars on the Curiosity Rover
Travel virtually to Mt Kilimanjaro
Explore our world with Google Earth, which lets you explore our globe and zoom into explore from home.
Explore a museum
#MetKids Microscope
is a show about the science behind the art (and the art behind the science!) at The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Learn true stories about real discoveries from scientists at the Museum, and do some experiments on your own!