Keeping Kids Happy and Learning During Social Isolation

I said goodbye to my class on what we thought was a normal Thursday afternoon. Later that evening, we got the message that schools would close one day early for spring break to allow for cleaning and sanitation due to the coronavirus pandemic. 

Sadly, Covid-19 has now caused our schools to be closed until at least April 24th. I miss the kids in my third grade class and I worry about them during this unprecedented global crisis. This crisis is nerve-wracking for adults and can be even more stressful for children. 

With that concern on my mind, I've been sharing ideas for fun family-centered activities on my Instagram account. Here is a round up of some of the ideas I've shared. 

Family Game Nights

Family game nights are a great way to have some fun and keep kids learning at the same time. In this picture from December, my great-niece(age 4) and my great-nephew were playing Shut the Box. It’s a great game for little ones to practice counting, number sense, and simple addition. For older students, Monopoly, Rummy, Yahtzee, or Scrabble would all make for a fun family game night. Best of all, no technology is allowed!

Get Outside! 

Take a nature walk. Encourage your children to act like scientists. Have kids bring a camera and/or a journal to record their observations. Point out signs of backyard wildlife. Look up information online about the things you see.

Or you can create a Springtime Scavenger Hunt. 

You don’t need a commercially produced form to go on a scavenger hunt with your kids (although there are many available online). Before going for a walk, sit down together and make a list of things people might see in the springtime. Then, grab a camera or a journal and see how many of those things you can find on your nature walk! Activities like this encourage careful observation, categorizing, and a growing knowledge of the natural world. You can easily incorporate art, writing, reading, and math activities, too. Ask kids to draw or create one of the things they saw. Ask them to write a story or poem about the their walk. Encourage them to ask questions and then research the answers by reading non-fiction books online. Before going on the hunt, assign numbers to each item (10 yellow flowers, 15 trees with green leaves, etc) so they can practice counting, using tally marks, or adding numbers. This is a great learning activity that the whole family can enjoy! 

Try Something New!

Being stuck at home is a good time to try something new. For me, that was making bread! It didn't turn out exactly like the recipe, but I think it was a pretty good first attempt! It looked good and it tasted pretty good, too! There's nothing like warm, fresh bread with butter to satisfy a need for comfort food.

Go for a Drive

Remember when people used to go for “Sunday drives?” It’s a good time to revive that tradition. Take your kids on an exploration while staying safely isolated in the car. Make sure to keep the DVD player turned off and put away all phones. Encourage little ones to find letters or words on billboards and signs. Play the license plate game (how many states can you find?) or the alphabet game (Find words in alphabetical order on signs - who can get from A-Z the quickest?) Go down roads you’ve never traveled before just to see what’s there. Point out livestock or signs of spring. Or, just talk and enjoy each other’s company.

Start a Journal

Writing in a journal can be a healthy outlet for you or your children during times of stress. It’s a great place to express emotions or figure things out. It’s also a creative outlet! Journals can be a great place to brainstorm ideas, to write poetry, to sketch pictures, or to outline a novel. You’ll enjoy surprised at how much better you’ll feel after journaling!

As my friend Crystal at Primary on the Prowl pointed out, "Also journals that are kept now will be considered primary sources in the future!" Can you imagine your journal informing historians 20, 50, even 100 years from now? It's mind-boggling!

Begin a Family Read-aloud

This is a good time to start a new tradition - the family read aloud! Reading together provides not only a shared experience, but a sense of comfort and escape from current troubles. There’s also ample opportunity for conversations that strengthen reading comprehension! Your child will benefit from listening to fluent reading, making connections, predicting upcoming events, evaluating character choices, and visualizing settings or events. That’s a lot of learning for just ten to thirty minutes a day!

Two More Things

I'm trying to do my part to help. With that in mind, I've recently posted two new freebies in my Teachers pay Teachers store.

The first one contains more ideas for family activities during this crisis (or for any time kids are out of school). You can download your Family Friendly Activity Calendar by clicking here. 

My other freebie is about helping children stay mentally healthy. I wrote this poem and added some conversation starters/writing activities so adults can help kids process their feelings and develop coping strategies during this scary time. You can download The World Can Be So Scary here. 

I hope everyone stays healthy and safe. Keep busy and stay positive! We're all in this together.

Until next time,