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How to keep Your Child Engaged at Home

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This is a difficult time for many people, especially parents. It’s hard enough to be working from home, and now you have a little one home from daycare or school to make it a little more challenging. Here are some ideas to help parents struggling to keep their toddlers and preschool kiddos engaged during the day in quarantine. Some of the key ideas include exercise, play time, and building new skills. Also, you should always remember to keep a steady routine throughout the day!

Exercise is the most important element in building gross motor skills in young children. Get them outside as much as you can during the stay-at-home order. Plus, if you can find the time, take your child to some place they are able to run around that doesn’t involve encountering other people. This may include parks and trails. Be aware of these facilities’ COVID-19 alerts and policies. If the weather permits you to stay in, think of ideas you are able to do inside to keep them active as best as you can. These kinds of activities can include obstacle courses, indoor hopscotch, yoga, etc.

Play time can help keep children engaged along with, helping them build lifetime skills. Whether it’s your child playing with a baby doll or coloring a picture, they are learning communication, language, and physical skills. They are able to create scenarios through playing pretend and this builds necessary language and communication skills. Coloring a picture with a crayon or marker can help build fine motor skills. If your child becomes bored of the current activity they’re doing, don’t hesitate to give them a few choices to choose from. However, don’t give them more than they can handle. Keep it to 2-3 choices. And always try to make time to play with them as well! Either if it’s 5 or 20 minutes, they LOVE playing with you.

Building new skills is also a good idea to help build during the quarantine. Have your child do something that they have never done before. That could include:

  • Having them help you clean up the house
  • Letting them make their own lunch with your guidance
  • Baking or cooking a new recipe with their help
  • Having them help you fold laundry

The list can go on and on! Always think of new ways to help your child experience the current world around them.

Exercise, play time, and building new skills are just a few ways to help keep your child engaged in quarantine. These activities may only last a few minutes, but the skills will last a lifetime.