Lockdown toddler activities - Tanjeela Sufi

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Quarantine is slowly coming to an end...

With the end of lockdown being nearby are you getting to grips with home-schooling? Struggling to keep our kids entertained? Trying keep your own mind stimulated? Well I can provide some help on how you could help improve on all these worries while remaining positive and maybe relaxing.

The below are a list of various ideas of quarantine activities. These activities will ensure your little one enjoys spending quality time with you and has lots of fun. The perks of lockdown are that we get to all have that family time we always wanted. So, what better way then learning new skills yourself and bonding with your child?

Quarantine Play ideas

Baking
Baking improves mental health which is very important especially right now. It is something everyone got into during the last quarantine, even people who do not usually bake. Baking also provides options you could bake a cake, shortbread, pastries etc the list is endless. Baking improves cognitive development in kids, it pushes children’s problem-solving skills, creativity and thinking. Counting can also be used when measuring and following directions. When decorating the cake, biscuits etc the children can get creative and really involved. Last of all the result is always advantageous as you all get to indulge into a yummy treat together.
I came up with an idea to create a teddy bear afternoon tea for Aydin. Aydin and I love going out to afternoon tea in various places and we were really missing it. As a child I never attended nursery, but my siblings did. The first day of nursery they would go on a ‘teddy bears picnic.’ This involved taking your favourite teddy to a picnic in the park or woods, if you have heard of the ‘Teddy bears picnic’ song you would most probably understand. I decided to take the teddy bear aspect as I remembered how excited my siblings would be taking their teddy bears.


We have a china afternoon tea set but you can buy paper ones too or just decorate it all out nicely. After we finished baking, we gathered all of Aydin’s teddy bears around a tea table. Aydin helped us with the preparation but when it dawned on him that we were having a ‘teddy bear afternoon tea’ he was ecstatic. It was such a simple idea which evoked so much excitement from Aydin. We all sat down and tucked into our yummy treats, this was ar unforgettable experience. We all felt like we were having afternoon tea outside in some posh hotel or fancy café and not just in our living room. I like creating experiences of being outside while being at home. As it provides us a sense of normality while taking us out of the mundane routine of just being at home.

Another time I incorporated afternoon tea with a picnic surrounded by Aydin’s collection of dinosaurs. Aydin adores dinosaurs and they are his current obsession so introducing that feature into our afternoon picnic provided so much more of the entertainment factor for Aydin. I surprised Aydin again this time and he was thrilled to bits.

Aydin loved sitting on the floor while eating his snacks. This time instead of cakes I made some samosas, spring rolls and other fried goods. Aydin and I found this dinosaur afternoon tea picnic so relaxing and magical. We felt like we had transported into the park and we both took in the scenery (The dinosaurs surrounding us). It was delightful experience which allowed Aydin to use his imagination and it evoked free thinking.

Dancing
I have always loved dancing so has my son. During quarantine I would blast music and we would just let loose and dance it was the perfect way to start our day. During the last quarantine I came up with this idea of a ‘kiddy rave’. I had always wanted to take my son to one of these and had planned on going and nearly booked the tickets just before the first quarantine. My husband and I used the sensory lights as our ‘disco lights’, we had an old dinosaur glowstick to really get into the feel of it and finally we also blew bubbles while the music was playing. Safe to my son absolutely loved it, he adores dancing, music, lights and bubbles. We had a fabulous time and it again it felt like we were in a different place not just in my son’s bedroom.
One of the benefits of sensory lights is that is provides fun and enjoyment. It also increases levels of concentration and general awareness.


Dancing is a great stress reliever and the physical benefits are the same as any other cardiovascular activities. So, this could be your exercise for the day. Dancing helps Children cognitive development especially for children like my son who struggle to articulate their emotions. Dance is the perfect way he can express himself within a safe environment. Another benefit of dancing is that it aids children to improve their balance, flexibility and spatial awareness.


Bubbles
Bubbles are universal any child of any age are passionate about bubbles. Playing with bubbles is Aydin’s most favourite activity. Pre covid times I would always carry around bubbles with me when we would go to the park and all the other children would gather round me while I would blow bubbles. So, it was a great way for Aydin to get that social interaction with other kids.


Not only is it entertaining but it is a good way to work on developmental skills such as: visual tracking skills, hand eye coordination, sensory processing skills, oral motor skills, social and communication skills, gross motor skills, following directions and identifying body parts.

My speech therapist also recommended this activity when Aydin was about 2 years old as it really helps with speech skills and language and cognitive skills. Years later I see the results of Aydin asking for “more bubbles” “pop” and following directions.


We purchased a bubble machine and Aydin would run around his room trying to catch them and pop them. It was magical to watch him being so happy and laughing away.

Family Movie nights
Movie night may seem like a basic quarantine activity. However, movie nights builds family bonds, creates good memories, increases happiness and helps build your little one’s self esteem.


Even though we are in lockdown there is currently a blurred line between work, home school and home. It can be hard sometimes to establish these boundaries of being in teacher mode, work mode and mum mode. I myself would sometimes feel mum guilt when I have been working all day and not spent actual quality time with Aydin. So, scheduling these family movie nights are very important to me. Taking that time out and focusing on our family even if it is to just to watch a movie is essential in maintaining that close family bond. My favourite memories consist of watching a good movie with my family it is when I am the most present. Aydin adores movie nights and cuddling up to us it strengthens our bond and makes us feel that close connection as a family. Children who experience quality time with their loved ones have more self-confidence. During Halloween we went to our first drive in Movie, Aydin dressed up as a pumpkin. It was a fantastic experience and Aydin really enjoyed it as he has been really missing going to the cinemas. I also get to sneak in loads of cuddles with him as he is 4 years old so it is very hard for him to stay in one place (toddlers are non-stop), which is why having these movie nights are so special to us.

Arts and crafts
One thing I learnt in quarantine is you do not have to be an artist or super creative to partake in arts and crafts. The benefits of arts and kids are endless: Fine motor skills, Identification of shapes, colour and texture and encourages creativity. I would suggest keeping old cartons, egg boxes and loo rolls etc. Arts and crafts do not need to be overcomplicated you can just use items you already have in the house.


Aydin and I created a shape lamp out lockdown’s most sought-after item the toilet roll! We cut out a star and stuck it onto the edge of empty loo role, we then flashed a torch through the star onto the wall and voila a star shaped shadow appeared on the wall. Aydin was absolutely delighted, and it was so simple. It was great for Aydin to identify shapes while having fun with shadow play.

The husband and Aydin created a papier mache mask using a balloon. The whole process took a while, but Aydin was so patient and enjoyed every step of the process. From sticking on the newspaper onto the balloon, to popping the balloon once the glue and newspaper dried up, to painting the mask. Aydin chose the colour blue, we cut out the eyes and mouth shape and that was it. Aydin wore that mask for about 3 days and acted like he was a monster whenever he wore it. It was a great activity for encouraging creativity and imagination.

The loo roll rocket paper. Aydin has always been interested in space and he loves rockets. We covered the roll with a blue colour card, we cut out triangles for the grid fins and circles for the rocket windows, we finally created the nose cone out of a rectangular card and stuck it on the top. Aydin learnt the various shapes, colours, and the names of the different parts of the rocket. We also got to incorporate our favourite arty equipment the infamous loo roll.

After reading the hungry caterpillar which I guess connotes many positive memories from everyone’s childhood we decided to create our own caterpillar. We used egg cartons for this simple craft activity. We cut out 6 cartons and painted it green, we painted the ‘head’ red. We drew in the eyes but if you want to be ‘extra’ creative I would suggest purchasing googly eyes. We than stuck in straws for the antenna. We named the caterpillar ‘Cameron the caterpillar’ It wasn’t just for the alliteration but because my husband’s name is ‘Kamran’ and his pet peeve is when people spell his name with a ‘C’.

Bio:

A full time working mother to 4 year old boy who lives in Milton Keynes sharing ideas for fun and educational activities. Please do check out my Instagram or facebook Aydinsamazingadventures for more activity ideas and outings.

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