The Daily Telegraph

40 fun things to keep kids entertaine­d

From bug safaris to mapping the virus, making music and searching for spring, Sally Peck has ideas for toddlers to teens

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For most working parents, there are at least 12 waking hours in a day. And that was before coronaviru­s. As families face lockdown, with no end in sight, the days are somehow longer. Much longer. Now, once they’ve completed your home-learning plans, you need activities to keep the children occupied until you can all settle down for the evening.

Here, then, is a list of things to do with children, from toddlers to teenagers, to keep them engaged and happy – and to keep you sane.

PRE-SCHOOLERS 1 Head out on a bug safari

We’re going on a bug hunt, we’re going to catch a big one. Turn over logs and peep underneath for worms, centipedes, woodlice. Look for sleepy bumblebees in heather and crocuses. Spy ladybirds awakening on leaves and branches.

2 Create a colour wheel

Find flowers to match all the colours of the rainbow. You could press the flowers between heavy books or make a rainbow picture with petals.

3 Look for signs of spring

Get out on a walk – maintainin­g your distance from others – and look for frogspawn, the earliest lime green leaves, long yellow catkins, birds singing and nest-building, daffodils, crocuses, wild garlic.

4 Make a witch’s potion

Grab a bucket or bowl and find ingredient­s for a “witch’s potion”: grass, leaves, pine cones, petals, fallen feathers, beech seeds, lingering acorns. Mix with a big stick.

5 Make a nature mobile

Let them touch and explore leaves, sticks and bark, feeling the different textures and movements.

6 Move and shake

The first thing my children learnt in nursery, after friendship, was yoga. Cosmic Kids Yoga on Youtube instils mindfulnes­s and focus in 10-minute segments for children three and up. PRIMARY

NATURE 7 Loo roll Koinobori

To make colourful, carp-like Japanese windsocks, paint with a fish-scale pattern, then cut a dozen strips of tissue paper and glue around the base. Punch holes in the other end for string and hang in the breeze.

8 Egg box caterpilla­rs

Cut a row of cups from the carton for its body. Paint, draw eyes and glue on pipe-cleaner antennae.

9 Jam-jar lanterns

Stick shapes of coloured tissue paper to the outside of your jar with a mix of glue and water. Wait to dry, then pop a tealight inside.

10 Cereal-box puppet theatre

Cut the back panel from your box, leaving top, bottom, sides and front intact. Cut a large, square window into the front panel. You’ve made your proscenium arch. Now paint.

11 Lolly-stick finger puppets

Use the discarded cereal box card to cut out characters and glue lolly sticks to their heads (they will be lowered in from the top of your theatre).

12 Tin can planters

Glue goggly eyes, a pipe-cleaner mouth and bottle-top nose to your can (be careful of sharp edges). Then fill with compost, plant seeds, and water.

13 Newspaper fort

Lay three sheets of this paper on top of each other. Starting at a corner, roll tightly into a long tube. Tape securely and repeat till you run out. Take three tubes, and staple into a triangle. Repeat. Add them together with tape and/or staples to build forts and more.

EDUCATIONA­L ACTIVITIES 14 Visit The Literacy Shed

A resource beloved by KS2 teachers, with animations and suggested questions for sparking literacy lessons. Give the films a quick viewing to check for content beforehand, and then use this as a jumping-off point for writing projects. literacysh­ed.com

15 Become well versed

Poet and former child laureate Michael Rosen has lots of poetry readings online, while Oliver Jeffers (Lost & Found, The Way Back Home) is reads a daily story live on Instagram at 2pm. Tom Gates has daily challenges and ideas to make, bake and doodle.

16 Write a letter

Think of an author, look at their books, and think about what you’d like to ask them. Find the contact details and write them a letter.

17 Start a discussion

Scholastic has a 20-day learn-from-home programme about subjects from place-names to eating bugs, with questions to provoke discussion.

18 Science mysteries

Mysterysci­ence.com supplies lessons featuring films and fun activities, such as: Why does a woodpecker peck or how do germs get in the body?

19 Parlez-vous corona?

Learning must go on when schools are closed. Duolingo (duolingo.com) is a first-class way to learn a language.

GARDEN TASKS 20 Download a challenge

At Pawprint (pawprintba­dges. co.uk) you can get free challenge packs on a variety of subjects, from V-E Day to gardening. Children can work towards bronze, silver and gold badges.

21 Nature Detectives

The Woodland Trust’s Nature Detectives has activities for the Early Years age group, such as maths with conkers and handprint art.

22 Oxford Owl

Oxford Owl is superb for KS1 maths, with materials from early years (age 3 and up) to age 11 SATS, including games and challenges.

23 Let’s get physics-al

Excellent for all subjects at secondary level, Khan Academy has maths and computing for all levels. It’s Us-based but with crossover, such as in physics.

24 Go travelling

Virtual reality headsets such as the Samsung Gear VR or Oculus Go are finally worth using. Google Earth VR or Realities. io for tourism and flying are spectacula­r.

TWEENS 25 Think positive

When I was growing up, the neighbours had a “Joy and Think” board, on to which they pinned inspiratio­nal messages and cheery clippings.

26 Trade tomes

A Little History of the World by EH Gombrich is back off the shelf; Mythos by Stephen Fry is on order. Organise a book-swap with parents but wipe down afterwards.

27 Tuck in to recipe books

Based on whatever food is left at the shops, everyone can learn a new recipe for each week of isolation. Freeze portions for elderly neighbours; Instagram the results.

28 Signs of life

The garden is just coming back to life – we have bulbs to plant, while a vegetable patch may hold longerterm significan­ce.

29 Card and fast

Poker is a great mental workout; Texas Hold ‘Em is easiest to learn. For younger kids, Spoons is brilliant.

30 Basketball, tennis, cricket

These can all be played at distance and in smaller numbers. Wipe the balls down afterwards…

31 Barter with time

Every minute helping with chores earns you two back in “fun” – be it Tiktoking or shooting stuff online.

32 Make music

A Fender Squier Stratocast­er Bullet edition guitar costs £109 with delivery. The weekly Fender Play tutorials cost £9.59 per month.

TEENS 33 Nurture inner Spielberg

Make screen time about creativity, rather than passivity: apps like Procreate, Auxy and imovie can be used to make art, music and films.

34 Junior Bake-off

Turn mealtimes into a cooking club, of sorts, with kids responsibl­e for the creation of the menu, as well as the prep and clearing up.

35 Prove their mettle

Get kids to be responsibl­e for their own revision as much as possible, with the help of online resources, where necessary. FOR EVERYONE

36 Get out while you can

The National Trust is making open spaces available to visitors (for the time being). Take walks and explore nature – but stay 8ft from others.

37 Keep a diary...

These are strange times. Keep notes to refer back to. Americans call it “journaling”.

38 …and a visual record

Set up a still life and paint. Like the diary, this is a great way of keeping a log of what goes on.

39 Party!

Singing and dancing are great mood boosts. Download Just Dance for the Nintendo Switch and Lucky Voice Karaoke for IOS or Android.

40 Embrace silence

Noise-cancelling headphones – because “alone time” is important.

Contributo­rs: Abigail Blasi, Ian Douglas, Matthew Hampton, Lucy Jones, Hattie Garlick, Sally Peck, Sarah Rodrigues

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