Stay at Home Activities for Kids

• A friend’s mom who’s an early childhood educator says the Scholastic Learn at Home site is very good. For first grade, for example, each “day” of learning is based on a story and a book (login to these is free) and there are little games surrounding each topic, like word matches or a little q&a. They offer lessons for grades Pre-K through 6+. Worth checking out! 
• Toddler Boredom Busters - lots of fun ideas here. Especially love the hunts. 
• Youngna Park of New York Times Parenting (and previously at Tinybop, our favorite kids app) and has compiled a good list of stay at home activity resources on her IG stories. She made it a highlight, so you can go back + reference. 
• Speaking of Tinybop, our kids love their apps. They’re fun, with an educational focus + are beautifully designed. You can check out their incredible offering here.
• Now is a great time for kids to send snail mail to friends + family. Our color-in cards are perfect for kids from the scribble-phase to neatly-within-the-lines phase. 
• Days With Grey is a great  instagram account with activities for keeping toddlers busy. Lots of the supplies are things you might already have, and the rest are quick amazon orders. 
• McHarper Manor is offering free online art classes every day at 1pm Eastern time, and she even has a list of the amazon supplies you might need to participate.
• Storyline Online is the SAG Foundation’s literacy website where actors read beloved children’s books, and often expressively :) A nice alternative to regular shows for little ones. You can browse by book here. 
• Starting soon: Oliver Jeffers reads one of his books everyday 6pm GMT / 2pm EST / 11am PST
• Schools are Closing for Coronavirus. Now What? - General thoughts + some resources on how to spend this time, if you’re feeling stuck, and How to talk to your kids about Coronavirus NPR edition. 
• Cosmic Kids Yoga on YouTube is fun for kids to stay a little active. 
• @gothamgymnastics in Brooklyn is hosting live gymnastics web-camps every day, six days a week via Instagram here. 

There are lots of creative opportunities out there to keep kids occupied. Here are a few we personally enjoy:

• Duct tape (hot pink here but any tape will do!) + cardboard boxes (or anything from the recycling bin)
• Giving our plastic animal figures a “bath” (bowl of soapy water on the table)
• Spray bottle of water + a rag to wash the windows
• Homemade playdough: 1 C Flour, ½ C Salt, 1 TB Oil, 1 TB Cream of Tartar, 1 C Water, Add food coloring as desired, or extracts like lavender or mint. Bonus: make a kit out of it by adding some sticks or little figures. (James’ school uses a tray, glass pebbles and penguins to create a little snowscape that is very cute.)
• Liz’s watercolor book, Splash of Color is great for ages 2+. Watercolor palette if you need.
• Perler Beads to engage tiny hands with very focused work.
• Grocery shopping is tough and scary right now ! Aisles are cleared, and delivery slots are booked. Here are 23 Pantry and Refrigerator Staple Ideas by Weelicous, and 30+ Healthy Pantry Recipes by Love & Lemons. And if you have more access to ingredients Love and Lemons also just posted 25 Super Fun Baking Recipes which is such a fun joint project for multiple age groups.  

A really wonderful all-encompassing resource guide to parenting during COVID -- recommendations for apps, podcasts, activities, ways to get involved in your community, and more.