EASTER GAMES COMPENDIUM

KIDS’ ISOLATION ACTIVITIES BEYOND THE IPAD SCREEN

1. SCAVENGER HUNTS. Mr Tuttle said hunts were fun for all ages with varying degrees of difficulty. “Some towns are doing bear hunts, where on walks you have to spot different toy bears around the neighbourhood,” he said.

2. CUBBY HOUSES. “Kids like having their own private place they can be in and invite people into,” Mr Tuttle said. “It can get more and more complex, they can plan it out with multiple rooms and decide what they need.” He said cubbies made perfect role playing settings.

3. ROLE PLAYING. Mr Tuttle said younger children “really enjoy” role playing, especially with their parents. “A lot of children aren’t yet at the stage where they want to sit and write stories, so acting them out is a good way of keeping their creativity going,” he said.

4. OBSTACLE COURSES. Rearranging your loungeroom or yard into obstacle courses can entertain children of all ages. Mr Tuttle recommended filling doona covers with cushions for a fun, uneven surface to crawl or roll over.

5. STRING LASER COURSES. A more inventive approach to obstacle courses, Mr Tuttle said creating a maze with “laser beams” made of string hanging wall-to-wall would entertain children re-enacting their favourite Hollywood movie scenes. “Be careful when sticking string onto the walls that it doesn’t ruin your paint,” he said.

6. WOOL CRAFT. Rather than hanging string from the walls, Mr Tuttle said knitting pompoms, or even basic finger threading, was a fun, messy and crafty way to engage kids.

7. BOX CRAFT. For fun on a budget, Mr Tuttle said old cardboard boxes could be transformed into anything, from houses to robots to rocket ships. He said glue, sticky tape, string and scissors made the possibilities greater.

8. DANCING. Mr Tuttle said music and dance were a fantastic mood booster for children during gloomy times. “Having music on and playing freeze games are great,” he said. If dancing and music fails to amuse, he suggested adding bubbles to the mix.

9. MEMORY GAMES. Whether it’s with cards, a selection of toys, or “anything around the house”, Mr Tuttle said taking one item away and asking your child to remember which was missing was fun and handy for developing memory skills.

10. HIDE AND SEEK. An old favourite, Mr Tuttle said hide and seek occupied children for sustained periods. For smaller homes with less room to hide people, he suggested hiding toys or teddy bears for the other person to find.