Congratulations to all the parents for surviving 5 weeks of homeschooling during the lockdown period! And many thanks to the teachers who are continuing to support key worker children whilst providing activities for those stuck at home. Whilst there is an aim to have schools re-opened for some Year groups in June 2020, we still have a week of half-term to keep them entertained. You can also try these 10 lockdown activities if you haven’t done them already. 

Based on a few lovely activities arranged by the teachers at Cara’s school, I thought I’d share some ideas to keep them busy during the 2020 half-term lockdown. We found them to be both fun and educational. These ideas are in addition to the usual you might offer them, such as outdoor exercise and helping with baking.

1. Incy Wincy Spiders

Given the current lockdown, most families might be experiencing an excess of empty loo rolls. Rather than throwing them into the recycling bin, how about try making some spiders? You can find some guidance on this site, but there’s no right way of doing it, as long as the kids are having fun. This activity assists with their fine-motor skills and dexterity with the scissors, creativity in designing their spider, and some maths to count out Incy’s legs. Add in some music and dance, and you’ll keep them busy for an hour or two. 

ABC Dad Incy Wincy

2. The Very Hungry Caterpillar

Do you have some spare Playdoh lying around? Tired of making pancakes and pizzas? How about recreating the Very Hungry Caterpillar food diary instead? This activity helps with counting, teaches the days of the week and the brief life-cycle of a caterpillar. If you don’t have access to the book, you can watch the animated version on YouTube here. 

ABC Dad Hungry Caterpillar

3. Little Red Riding Hood

If Little Red Riding Hood was to be re-written now, she would have to socially distance herself from her Grandma and Wolf. To keep the little ones busy, why not try re-building Red Riding Hood’s basket? Below is Cara’s attempt to carry her little sheep doll. Here are some great instructions on how to fold a basket. Similar to the other activities, this helps with their creativity and fine-motor skills. You can try to get them to re-tell their version of the story, or help write a list of what they would bring to Grandma’s house. 

ABC Dad Red Riding Hood

4. The Three Little Pigs

In addition to being a great story, it’s a simple way to teach the kids the different types of materials, weak versus strong. You can recycle various materials (ice lolly sticks, scrap paper) and rebuild each of the homes. Cara decided to utilise some Lego bricks to make it even harder for the wolf to blow it down! 

ABC Dad Three Little Pigs

5. Shop time

A fun and novel way to introduce the kids to the value of currency. With the use of cash becoming less prominent, it’s important to teach them the different values and the basics of finance (i.e. money in, money out). Cara notices when we go shopping at the supermarket where we just tap and go, and may not necessarily realise where those funds come from! By setting up her own shop, she’s able to learn about the value of money (and hard work). Grab a few coins from the piggy bank, and get playing! Here’s an informative video from Twinkl about the different coins in the UK. Great activity to help develop their maths skills while having fun!

ABC Dad Shop

Hopefully these simple ideas will help you during the 2020 half-term! Feel free to comment below and share any other suggestions. Always looking for more things that Cara can do.