What Can I Do With The Kids!?
What Can I Do With The Kids!?
I’m Jo Starkey and mum to Toby who is in Year 3 and Isla who is in Reception – both at Bell Farm School.
I have been a primary school teacher for 15 years (wow that makes me feel old! ) and have taught in Reception, Key Stage 1 and Key stage 2.
I love teaching children anything new, watching their imaginations come to life and challenging them to achieve something they had dreamed of being able to do.
When the news came out about schools closing I felt like I wanted to do something to help parents and carers enjoy this extra time with their children and help alleviate some of the stress about what to actually do with them.
Just remember to have fun with them. This is hopefully a once in a lifetime thing. I want my kids to remember it as being that amazing, fun time at home with mummy (and daddy when he can take a break from hiding upstairs trying to work).
Learn together and make magical memories.
I am planning to add to this page and would love your help. E-mail me any ideas you have tried out that you and your children have enjoyed and I will add them on. jo@elmbridge.life
The first section of this page Just for fun has lots of ideas for fun things to do at home. Remember your children will be learning so many different skills by completing these activities. The second section – On-line resources – has links to a wide range of educational websites and resources.
Just for fun
Teach them a new skill or game from your past. E.g leap frog, cat’s cradle
Yoga – loads of different ones
This site has different stories or music themes for different ages
https://www.youtube.com/user/CosmicKidsYoga
Bake some biscuits/cakes and delivery them to a friend or neighbour
Story chain – set up a WhatsApp group with school friends or relatives. One child starts the story (write it, draw it, sing it. Next child continues the story. Aimed to help them feel connected.
Living room disco
Making music
Put on a play (write a script, rehearse, design costumes, film)
Build a den (maybe even have a sleepover in it as there’s now no school!)
Set up a snack shop for those kids that are always hungry! Have a price list, play till, real or fake money and every time they want a snack they have to visit the shop.
Have a couple of hours peace and quiet and stick a film on. Call it movie time and hide in another room eating chocolate and drinking gin.
Label everything in the house. How many things can you label in 10 minutes?
How many numbers can you find in your house? What is the most common number?
Alexa – She can entertain the kids with one of her games every so often.
Using 30 pieces of lego how many different things can you build?
Build a boat. Can you get it to float in the bath/sink? What materials will you use?
Keep a journal every day.
Write a letter/make a card for someone who is in isolation.
Help out and do some household chores.
Get out in the garden and do some weeding, draw some spring flowers
Who can design a paper aeroplane that flies the farthest?
Paint your own rock pet, build it a home, what will you feed it? Make a fact file/instructions on looking after it.
Make salt dough https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/howto/guide/how-make-salt-dough-recipe
Make friendship bracelets
Make a puppet (sock, peg etc). Put on a puppet show.
Decorate an old t-shirt – draw, sew, glue any design on
Make a thankful jar
Draw a self portrait – use different media
Make your own playdough. This is the recipe I use but loads on the internet : https://www.twinkl.co.uk/resource/t-t-289811-twinkls-best-quick-playdough-recipe
Put on a fashion show
Learn to draw a .. . .
Learn origami
Design an indoor/garden scavenger hunt.
Play board games
Learn a new card game
Play hangman
Do a sudoku, crossword, wordsearch
Read a book every day
Make a Penpal – could be a cousin, Granny or Grandad, anyone.
Joe Wicks kids workout Monday-Friday 9am – https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLyCLoPd4VxBvPHOpzoEk5onAEbq40g2-k
Play charades
Complete a 30 day lego challenge – Follow the instructions each day. The only rule is to have fun and follow your imagination https://www.freehomeschooldeals.com/free-printable-30-day-lego-challenge-instant-download/
Loads of authors have decided to share their own stories. https://www.weareteachers.com/virtual-author-activities/
Nigel from Elmbridge Life has kindly setup a YT channel to share so teachers, carers, parents and familiar faces can read a story. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC1vT8rGI4NTQqK0cHHNee7g/
Make an obstacle course. Time yourselves. How can we make it harder?
Go for a walk/jog/run/bike/scooter ride.
Interview a family member. Find out about their past.
Make a family tree
Measure the area and perimeter of each room in your home.
Graph the types of birds that frequent your yard or windows.
Learn Morse code and use it to communicate with your siblings through walls and floors.
Alphabetise the spices in your kitchen.
Stay up late and stargaze.
Call a grandparent or older relative. Ask them to teach you the words to a song from their childhood days.
Using household materials, build a working rain gauge, barometer, and wind vane.
Determine and chart the times that different liquids require to turn solid in the freezer.
Draw a map of your home.
Sit silently for 15 minutes while you write down every sound you hear. When you are done, classify the sounds (high/low pitch, high/low volume, man-made v. naturally occurring, etc.).
Learn, practice, and perform a magic trick.
Learn, practice, and tell three new jokes.
Use household materials to make and play stringed, percussion, and wind instruments.
Learn to clean and polish a pair of shoes.
Collect leaves from ten different (non-harmful) plants. Sort them by size, colour, and texture.
Put your favourite book, toy, and keepsake on a small table in sunlight. Draw or paint a full colour still life.
Find, pick, and dissect a flower.
If you have stairs, walk up and count them. Walk down and count by twos. Walk up and count by threes. Continue through tens.
Determine the volumes of ten containers, them display them in order on your patio.
Draw out a hopscotch grid using chalk and play.
Classify twenty everyday objects by shape, size, colour, height, mass, and material.
Measure the length of your bed using five different nonstandard units.
Create and use a secret code.
Using paper, tape, and string, design, build, and test a device that warns you when someone opens the kitchen cabinet.
Imagine, create, and fly a flag that tells the world about you.
A special mention to twinkl who have made everything free (I think).
Almost anything you want to teach your children whilst not in school is on here. Power points, games, stories, resources, crafts and worksheets are all available here.
https://www.twinkl.co.uk/resources/covid19-school-closures
Online Resources
General resources
Lots of simply easy to play maths, English and topic games. https://www.ictgames.com/mobilePage/index.html
Got to love Ceebies. Loads to do not just watch https://www.bbc.co.uk/cbeebies/shows
Loads of lovely craft activities and games for younger children https://www.orchardtoys.com/dept/things-to-do_d0127.htm
Book worms
This site has loads of free resources and ideas for different ages. https://clubs-kids.scholastic.co.uk/
This site has just made all resources free. https://worldbook.kitaboo.com/reader/worldbook/#!/bookshelf
Free for parents and children. There are loads of spellings, phonics and maths games too. https://www.oxfordowl.co.uk/for-home/
While schools are closed audible have made 100s of kids’ audio books free. Just click and enjoy a story. https://stories.audible.com/start-listen
You can sign up for a one month free trial. Spelling, reading, comprehension and games for children aged 2-13 https://readingeggs.co.uk/
Coding
Online coding for kids. You have to sign up but it is free. https://scratch.mit.edu/
Foundation subjects
Just explore his site with your kids and see where it leads you. Find just about your favourite animal, make a poster to share what you have found out, write a script and film your own wildlife documentary.The list is endless. https://www.natgeokids.com/uk/
Maths wizards
Loads of different games. Just choose what interests your kids and go for it. https://www.coolmath4kids.com/
Again lots of different games. Very user friendly https://www.topmarks.co.uk/maths-games
Loads of problem solving activities you can do at home with the kids. They give you instructions on what to do. https://nrich.maths.org/14536
Phonics fun
This site has made it’s resources free while schools are closed. Link should give you the details. https://www.phonicsplay.co.uk/
Another phonics games site for reception and year 1 mainly. https://www.phonicsbloom.com/
This phonics site gives information about the phonics system as well as games to play. http://www.letters-and-sounds.com/
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