Yikes! What do I do with my kids over the next few weeks?

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I saw this image shared by Noah Daniel on Instagram:

 

and I said, YES! In a time of uncertainty, fear, and potential family illness, it is easy for us to be overwhelmed by negativity. Heck I am even overwhelmed by information. Every news item is about the corona virus. Every conversation. And now, amidst all this fear and uncertainty, parents are looking at the potential of having kids at home for long periods of time quite unexpectedly.

Some of our kids may have some sort of virtual programming and others none at all. The fact of the matter is, screen time battles may reach an all-time high in your house as you face long hours at home together. And if on top of that, you are worried about money and/or supplies, or facing anxiety which will heighten your emotions and possibly make things worse. Already my teenage kids and I are getting on each other’s nerves and it’s only Sunday.

You may be panicking right now about screen time. In my upcoming book, Raising Digital Leaders (Summer 2020), I share the advice of Dr. Henry Jenkins who talks about the idea of balance:

Dr. Henry Jenkins speaks of balance not as a day to day thing, but something to consider over time. That is, if your child is spending hours creating and curating for their channel because it’s their latest interest, that is completely normal. Just as they might be into Pokemon or Harry Potter or go through an obsession with magic. Nonetheless, it is important that you talk to your child explicitly about getting fresh air, exercise, and a good night’s sleep.

You and your kids may be on screens a bit longer than usual, but remembering that not all screen time is created equally is very important.

I have curated a few resources and ideas which may help.

YouTube

This may actually be a good time to explore the idea your kids have been begging you about. Starting a YouTube channel together. I offer some advice here (including a list of some YouTube channels which are great for learning).

I was so excited when I saw, young Louie DaCosta share this tweet about how he is going to have a “cool drawing” each day starting next week. Subscribe to his channel and draw with him!

Reading, Writing Thinking

The awesome @TheLivBits has used her superpowers and leveraged her connections to get authors to sign up for read alouds and activities to help you pass the time.

All of these are completely FREE. Check out the schedule HERE and mark your calendars!

My friend Jennifer Bond shared the idea of a lending library. I went up to my loft where I have lots of books that my kids no longer read and an old book shelf and put it outside our home inviting people to add to the collection and/or borrow books. The girls helped me sort through books and make a sign. We are going to put the bookshelf out in the morning and take it in at night. Cleaning out your own books and/or checking out some of the titles in the lending library provide a great distraction and may get your kids reading more. Maybe your own community can use one?

You don’t need to be a teacher to look at some of the offerings by New York Times Learning (Teens) in order to engage in some interesting educational opportunities including Writing Prompts, crosswords and a regular feature called, What’s going on in this picture, first introduced by my friend Melisa Hayes, which is a great conversation prompt that lets you and your kids practice prediction and inferencing skills.

TikTok

TikTok can have some incredibly negative and inappropriate videos, but with parental guidance (and privacy settings), rehearsing and recording dances together (try learning the Renegade) can be a fun family reprieve and provide some good physical activity too. Here are some guidelines I created to help you stay safe and have fun.

Physical Fitness, Mindfulness and Yoga

We always think about physical fitness as being tech-free and of course that is true, but there are ways that devices can give you access to physical fitness activities and resources. Depending on the age of your kids, you might get some eye rolling at this one, but there are many YouTube channels that offer Yoga and/or mindfulness classes you can engage in as a family. Check out The Daily Calm as an example.

When our kids were younger we loved to Geocache; it’s a great great way to get fresh air and physical exercise. Check out the site here. I would be sure to use disinfectant wipes to clean the treasures you put in and out. When we did this, we rarely came in contact with other people.

Also check out, 20 Screen-Free Things To Do with your Kids Indoors when school is closed, shared by George Couros

Gaming

Spending all day, every day gaming is definitely not ideal (especially if interferes with adequate sleep, exercise, or fresh air), but gaming helps kids to develop some valuable skills and is very social. Having a frank conversation about what kind of talk is appropriate or not appropriate sharing in game chats is important. This might be a good opportunity to play games WITH your kids which can lead to lots of conversations which will allow you to see how they are interacting with others, see the skills they are development, and show them you value some of the things they are doing. Convinced gaming is bad for you? Check out my Gaming post .Use a kitchen timer to agree on how much time you will spend gaming.

Movies & Television

Watching a Netflix marathon will make your brain mush, but staying in your pjs to watch films as a family has always been something we value especially during the summer or Christmas break.. As a family we take turns determining a movie we should watch together and make a pitch for why. Sometimes this means we are watching films we would normally not pick and it has often led us to having good conversations. My husband had an idea for the next three weeks. We are starting in 2020 and are going to watch one movie a day going backwards until our lives go back to normal. And did you know about the Netfix Party extension?? You can watch a show with another family or your kids can watch with their friends. Check it out here.

Maker Activities

In the education world, Maker activities range from creating things with cardboard, or circuits. This resource created by Brooke Brown is geared toward educators, but in it is everything you need to make and create using physical items and technology.

Deb Weston shared a post with loads of ideas. Check it out here.

When times are uncertain, kids thrive on routine. Consider creating routines for the next few weeks. Katie Martin wrote this great post about how she is scheduling time with her young children.

What other ideas do you have?

Stay healthy and well.

Peace, Jen

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