Greetings, Fellow Quarantiners: A Note of Encouragement (and ideas!) from a Preschool Teacher
Greetings, fellow quarantiners! Who among you thought this day would come? A day when, during this house-ridden phase, YOU would become your child’s teacher?
Teaching, just like practicing medicine or opening your own business, brings to mind the word calling. Education is not for the faint of heart. As teachers, we are called to build rapport with each personality, to learn each student’s strengths and weaknesses, to acquire and maintain the attention of young ones, to expand their horizons and to encourage original thought — all within nine months. It’s nothing short of incredible.
And people from all wires of the brain and all walks of life are being forced into this position during a worldwide epidemic. We know you moms and dads didn’t volunteer for this! But alas, this is the hand we’re currently dealt, so we might as well put on our “teacher hat” and get teachin! Or as we teachers in the preschool world would say, let’s PLAY!
The Importance of Play
Play is essential to a child’s development. It is their job. It teaches them invaluable skills like problem-solving, leadership, negotiating, sharing, cause and effect, spatial awareness, conflict-resolution and self-advocacy, to name a few. Children learn through observing, experimenting and communicating with others.
Play is essential to their well-being from all angles — mental, physical, social and emotional — so we, as their primary care-giver and current educator, need to provide opportunities to encourage this creativity and imagination! Here are some simple activities you can do with your child during this extended time at home. Most of them will use items you probably already have in your house!
Fine Motor Activities
Fine motor movement usually refers to coordinating hand muscles with the eyes. Your kids need to develop these skills as they learn to do daily tasks like button buttons and write their name.
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Work on cutting with a paper plate – cut the lines around the rim.
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Make shapes and letters with Play Doh.
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Find “How to Draw” tutorials online.
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Build with jelly beans and toothpicks (it was just Easter!).
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Lace beads on a necklace.
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Use tweezers to pick up cotton balls.
Gross Motor Activities
Gross motor activities encourage BIG movements that involve a child’s legs, arms and torso. Kids play as they master walking, running, jumping and playing with a ball.
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Play with sidewalk chalk outside – work on shapes, colors, numbers, or letters. Draw a cape or outfit, have them lay on the drawing, and take their picture! It’s like their own personalized book with your kid as the character! You can use tape to create a “stained glass” window, and have the child color each section a different color. Then remove the tape and…voila! A masterpiece!
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Make targets for nerf guns or water guns.
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Use crepe paper streamers to create a “Laser Maze” in your hallway.
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Make towers out of blocks and play a Ring Toss game with pipe cleaners bent into circles.
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Create an obstacle course around the house or yard.
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Find a movement, fitness or yoga video on Youtube.
14 More At-Home Activity Ideas!
Need more ideas? Here are more activities that work on motor skills, let a kid explore a subject or just plain have fun.
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Look at old pictures and tell them stories (for example, look at wedding pictures and tell them the story of how mommy and daddy met).
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Make puffy paint, moon sand or cloud dough. Recipes can be found online!
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Get cookin in the kitchen — slice an apple horizontally to create round disc shapes, spread peanut butter on each slice, and let them decorate their “apple cookie!”
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Attach popsicle sticks to paper plates and let them hit balloons around — you could even pretend the floor is hot lava and the balloons will melt if they fall!
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Conduct a blindfolded taste test.
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Provide a treasure map and have them go on a hunt for buried treasure.
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Play with a flashlight in a dark room.
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Go camping (inside or outside) — complete with tent and s’mores!
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Conduct fun science experiments, like Magic Milk or Fizzy Rainbow. You can find these on Pinterest.
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Hold Time Challenges. Explain the challenge, set a timer and watch the frenzy unfold!
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Plenty of museums, amusement parks and other destinations are offering virtual tours to watch at home.
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Have a good, old-fashioned movie night. Pop some popcorn, and let the kids take turns picking out the movies.
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All of this extra time at home could be a great opportunity to finally implement age-appropriate chores for your children. Create a chore chart and teach them that as a part of your family, they are responsible for helping around the house.
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Come up with a “Quarantine Bucket List” as a family. This will make your kids feel like they have a voice in what your family does together!
Hopefully this list of ideas will help fill in the gaps of time between feeding hungry tummies, wiping dirty tushies, cleaning messy floors, rocking sleepy babies, and crashing…just to do it all over again in approximately 12 hours. Happy Quarantining!
Whitney and her husband, Daniel, have two children. They live in Little Rock. Whitney has worked in early childhood for eight years. She enjoys watching her students try new things and grow in their skills and confidence!