How to stay creative with your kids at home!

A complete guide on how to keep your kids busy for the coronavirus quarantine period and until the schools start again!

It certainly feels like summer has arrived early this year. Schools are closed due to the COVID 19 pandemic and kids are at home all day. No matter what the age range of your little ones is, they are certainly feeling the heat from not being able to meet their friends or to go outside. While the latest update by the Federal Office of Public Health is that the current measures will continue until end of April 26th, it feels that this situation may last. Consequently, parents have to also work from home and child-care is not always an option. Let’s admit, television helps, but it is not a real solution. Plus, we don’t want our children to miss-out on their academics, but homeschooling can be harder than it sounds.

To the question what can we do to make the hours and days in isolation pleasant for both us and our little ones, the message from the experts is loud and clear. Maintain a routine and a structured program that will help the family stay active, productive and creative at home.

We have a few ideas for you on how to design your own program:

Homeschooling- course schedule
Homeschooling can be challenging for both children and parents. Children may be negative to the idea and parents may not be prepared in knowing how to do it. It is important however for all those who have children at school not to lose touch with their lessons. You can establish a 2 hours daily routine during which you will check the online school platform for news and activities with your children. You can also do a small revision in some courses which you will also have agreed in advance (eg on Monday you can do grammar, on Tuesday math etc). For older students who have to study for university admissions, focus is key. And a regular line of communication with their teachers is as important as a structured study program.

During the spring and summer holidays, the traditional day camps are no longer open and again it is up to the parents to keep-up with new activities that keep children mentally active. A new skill that parents can introduce to children through virtual camps is coding and robotics, the language of the future.

Relaxing or activities time
Free play time is just as important as the time dedicated to formal learning. We must make sure that in everyday life there is enough time for free play and relaxation. I order to avoid making free play turn into more screen time there are some options. Many local businesses have ‘packaged’ their on-site services into creative craft boxes to send at home or even science experiments kits. These can be discovered online by searching for fun activities for your children at home.

Along with relaxing activities, movement is necessary and setting some time aside for a bit of stretching or aerobic activity is useful for physical development. A short walk outside, cycling (taking all necessary precautions of course), or a jog with the baby in the pram or toddler on the scooter will offer you and your little one the necessary oxygen for a good night’s sleep. If the outdoors is not an option, then try an online yoga course for kids that you and your little one can enjoy together.

Board Games or Movie nights
Let’s not forget the family fun! Board games can also be part of the new routine, especially for families with older children. In fact, most of them are an opportunity to learn about teamwork, strategy, and competition. On the other hand, now that cinemas are closed, you can organize your own premiere nights in your living room and watch classic family movies with plenty of homemade popcorn and snacks! You can still find everything you need on your next visit to the supermarket. Just make sure you are organized and go with a list as experts advise.

Daily routines
In all homes with children, for the sake of everyone’s well-being whether in quarantine or not, it is good to have some routines such as breakfast, lunch, bath time and sleep time. Since our children now do not have school in the mornings we could add some new tasks to the existing routine. The kindergarteners and primary school children in particular can participate in the household duties. They could, for example, make their bed, try to tidy up their room, and help set the table, place dishes in the dish washer, empty the washing machine, etc. It is important to define specific and short tasks so that they do not get bored easily, and to know which one they are responsible for each day.

On a final note, routines and plans are kept only when everyone agrees on them. Therefore, it is a good idea reach a consensus as a family on what everyone is to do and when. A good tip is also to write it down on paper and stick it on your fridge so that the whole family can see it!

About the author:
Maria Karachaliou Pradelli moved to Switzerland 7 years ago, shifting from a 10-year career in banking in Athens to a full-time mom of 3 children. She grew up traveling extensively around the world and spent part of her childhood in Dubai in the late 80’s. After the birth of her 1st child, Maria realized that the internet platform economy was booming in most fields except in parenting services. Focusing in particular on the need for finding things to do with small children, Maria took an entrepreneurial turn and partnered up with a talented team of developers to design Momizen.com, a technologically advanced web application for finding fun and educational things to do with kids on-the-go.She holds a degree in Psychology and a Masters in Business Administration from the University of Kent, in Canterbury. In her free time Maria loves reading, watching movies, sailing, surfing, skiing and most often she can be seen cycling around her neighborhood with her children in Canton Schwyz. She can be reached by email at maria@momizen.com, and is always ready to discuss new collaborations in order to bring together local or larger businesses with the families and communities that are searching for them.

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