Stuck at home? 15 fun activities for the whole family during social distancing

Getting everyone to participate in preparing simple recipes with ingredients you already have at home is something we all can do. Cookies, cupcakes and gelatin desserts are excellent options to sweeten up the day. But cooking isn’t only limited to making desserts and sweets, the little ones can also help out with savory meals for lunches and dinners: meatballs, lasagna, crepes and other dishes. The experience will teach them to work as a team, follow instructions, try new foods and appreciate things they’ve made for themselves.

You can set up little obstacle courses in the living room or other rooms with less furniture using plastic cups, empty plastic bottles and other objects around the house like stuffed animals and couch cushions. Make sure everyone takes turns and the kids will be overjoyed.

This isn’t just a game for kids, it’s also a great form of exercise with a lot of health benefits like strengthening the legs and improving coordination. It also helps with muscular and cardiovascular endurance and keeps your body toned. Everyone can take turns if you don’t have a lot of room or do it at the same time. The kids will burn off all that extra energy that’s common in healthy children.

There’s a reason why dance is an ancient form of artistic expression and today it is even sometimes referred to as dance therapy. Body movement helps us have fun, release stress, share joy and it’s incredibly healthy. Dancing helps lower your resting heart rate and can improve lung capacity. You can follow a dance video online, dance with a partner or even create your own choreography.

Let them do activities that allow them to harness their energy; yoga is a great option. You can find videos online that are designed specifically for children that use simple postures. They can practice in pairs as well to make it even more fun. The benefits include increasing flexibility, coordination and balance. It also improves self-confidence, self-control and self-awareness.

Being able to play any of the classic games with a ball depend on how much space you have. If you’ve got a lot of room—even indoors—you can have fun with your own versions of volleyball, soccer or catch.

An inflatable pool—weather permitting—can help the kids have fun and relax while staying at home. Water can help everyone to relieve stress and fun will flow on its own. Keep in mind you should teach them not to waste water, so this is an activity they can do from time to time. Show them to reuse the water for other things around the house, like watering plants.

Coloring mandalas is another activity that can help your kids align with their inner selves. This is a great option to let their emotions flow and express them on paper. The shapes and colors they choose will allow you to find out what their state of mind is. You can download mandalas online for them to color or make your own circles using a bottle or compass and then letting them color them in.

Origami or the art of paper folding comes from Japan and consists of making shapes out of paper, without using glue or scissors. The options are endless and the level of difficulty can vary based on the size of the paper, complexity and age. We all know how fun it is to play with paper airplanes and boats. With this craft, you can make cups, bookmarks, cards, butterflies, penguins, dinosaurs... there are tons of options.

Its benefits include improving coordination, focus and creativity. It also stimulates their imagination, memory and self-confidence. You can start with simple and traditional objects and work up to more complex designs following online tutorials.

Even if they aren’t great at drawing or sketching portraits, trying it out is a great art project that involves sharing and concentrating. They are sure to have fun during the process and it lets them learn a little more about themselves.

Try making cards for when they go back to seeing their friends, teachers and family members. During this time spent at home, it’s important for them to express their emotions and their affection for the people they care about. That’s why you can let their creativity soar and bring out their crafty side using supplies you already have at home like cardboard, construction paper, scissors, markers, crayons, fabrics and even magazine clippings.

We cannot leave out reading as one of the activities to include in our kids’ routines because it helps them to develop their personalities, improve concentration, build a strong vocabulary, be imaginative and be creative. But to add a fun twist to it, have the whole family choose a story and put on a play or puppet show. Each family member can play a role and you can use socks to make puppets or dress up in costumes to act it out.

With just a few ingredients in the pantry, you can make the fun playdough that kids for generations have loved. You only need water, flour and food coloring. The best thing about this recipe is that if they put a little bit in their mouth, either accidentally or on purpose, it’s not a problem. Making the playdough is a fun activity on its own and the little ones will appreciate using their imagination when they play with it.

It all depends on the children’s ages, although they can always play on teams with the adults if they’re too little. Games like Scrabble, memory, Chinese checkers, chess, dominoes, Monopoly, Twister, Scattergories, Pictionary or any other game you have in the closet works. They’re a lot of fun and a great way to spend some healthy family time.

Karaoke is always a lot of fun: just grab a microphone and record everyone singing their favorite songs.

This is just a short list, but you can make up a lot of other activities as well such as telling jokes, playing hide-and-seek, creating a treasure hunt and doing arts and crafts with recycled materials. You can even start a project building something like a robot, a race car track or a dollhouse. This may even be a great opportunity for everyone to learn how to play an instrument. Now’s the perfect time to think back on your childhood!