Fun Activities for Families and Kids During "Social Distancing"


Who would have imagined that we would be discussing the topics of quarantine and “social distancing.”  These are crazy times.  With the schools closed and many working from home, families are suddenly finding themselves spending more time together than normal.  This presents some great opportunities to grow relationships with one another.  It also means that, in the coming days, there will be many kids who find themselves bored.  Below are some ideas concerning ways that you can help grow your family and develop relationships while also giving your kids something to do (besides Xbox and Switch that is).

The ideas below are grouped in terms of kids, older kids, families, and resources for more ideas.  While I have grouped the activities to be age appropriate, all of them can be adapted for different age groups if desired.

Ideas for Kids

  1. Make Homemade Playdough – Here is a link to 6 playdough recipes: https://www.familyeducation.com/fun/playdough/play-doh-recipes?slide=2#fen-gallery
  2. Make Homemade Slime – Here is a link to an article that includes links to 18 different slime recipes: https://www.thoughtco.com/recipes-for-different-types-of-slime-608233
  3. Make a Homemade Puzzle
  4. Try crafting, painting, or drawing
  5. Conduct Science Experiments – Here is a link to an article with 63 easy, kid-friendly science experiments using household items: https://mommypoppins.com/kids/50-easy-science-experiments-for-kids-fun-educational-activities-using-household-stuff
  6. Bake goodies for neighbors, less-fortunate individuals, or public servants
  7. Make cards and/or write letters to shut-ins and those in nursing homes
  8. Have a paper airplane flight contest  
  9. Utilize the free projects for learning and thinking available through scholastic learning – Here is the link to their site: https://classroommagazines.scholastic.com/support/learnathome.html  (You will have to create an account, but the account is free.)
  10. Visit the Cincinnati Zoo Facebook page.  Weekdays at 3pm they will live broadcast an event featuring a zoo animal and an activity.  The start date for this is 3/16/2020.

Ideas Specific to Older Kids

  1. Create a Tic-Toc Video
  2. Teach them to do basic household chores before leaving for college.
  3. Write a book 
  4. Design your own game
  5. Record the daily life experiences associated with “social distancing” and what they thought about it and learned from the experience.  This should be done in such a way as to record the experience so that they can explain it to their children.

Ideas for Families

  1. Play boardgames together
  2. Start a movie marathon – This is a great time to watch movies in a series such as Star Wars, the Marvel movies, Harry Potter, etc.
  3. Eat dinner together

Resources for more ideas

  1. Pinterest
  2. Facebook
  3. Splink – This is a newsletter from D6Family that presents ideas concerning how to teach children spiritual life lessons.  You can read their newsletter here: https://d6family.com/splink/



As the situation concerning the Corona Virus continues to develop, make sure that you talk with your kids about what they are experiencing.  Chances are they have heard many different things and may be experiencing levels of anxiety as a result of the uncertainty present within society.  Talk with them about their experiences, your perspective, and how to approach these challenges from a Biblical perspective.

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