Up Your Lockdown Games. 101 Obtuse Activities For Supremely Bored Children

Lazy Dadding Can Be Good Dadding

You are not a Cruise Director, but neither is the computer screen. If that is all you do, then parenting will be an ugly mess that happens between programs. Build in creative stretch breaks for you and your kids. If the kids are hard to drag away, start something yourself in another room, go quiet with the occasional whoot. Curious kids will come and see what is going on and try and take over.

Wonder why little kids do so much playing and teenagers focus on the social drama? Motor skills, observational skills, cause and effect skills and social skills. Play is how brains wire themselves by creating safe experiences for them to discover their world.

Lead your kids then step back as they work out all the little bits. Let them make mistakes, fix them, try new things, over and over again. Step in when they are heading towards danger or getting frustrated. Give them hints, ask strategic questions or steer them a little then watch them again.

Use these 101 ideas not only as gap-fillers for when the cabin fever sets in, or as a good break from screen time but to build better, smarter kids.

Take Breaks

Remember if you feeling thirsty, hungry, lonely or starting to go loopy; odds are kids are already there.

Encourage Play

Want calmer kids that can actually occupy themselves?

Treat the world as one big walkthrough.

Play is their way of slowing it down and practicing.

Give them some missions. Maybe even some work assignments. Simple shite you have no worries about them messing up.

Talk to them about the whys and hows of how things work. Plan out run throughs, games and jobs with stuffed animals. Ask questions. Give simple but truthful answers. End with another question, to ummm keep the distractions going.

Your goal is to make the conversation flow. Smooth and easy.

So that later on, when the complicated life stuff happens, it will be easier for them to talk.

Play Dumb, Tactically

Encourage kids to seek out answers. Be forgetful when shopping; 'Daddy doesn't know which vegetables to pick. Can you help?'

Be a Mad Messy Scientist

Try going too tall for a block tower. Let it fall. Then discuss strategies to go higher!

When Things Are Quiet, Check In

Just do a walk by and see how they are doing. If they are mumbling to themselves organizing toys, keep walking. For the rest get down to their level and make eye contact to check in. Odds are if you are going for a snack, they are already starving.

Leaders Lead

Why argue with your kids or nag them to do shite? Simply start a project. Kids are curious creatures, especially when adults are having fun they are not involved in. They really do not like you having fun.

Kid's Eye View

Your #1 Activity

This is how a six-years-old sees the adult world; all knees, chest, gut and butt.

And maybe your face is behind a phone?!? Imagine seeing the world like that.

Frustrating? Very!

Want less frustrated kids? Get your eyes (and ears) level to theirs. So make it happen. It will mean the world that you hear and see them!

Goals. Goals and More Goals

Sounds fun? Well it damn well should be.

Play is how kids figure out life. A little fun at a time. The more they play, screw up and get right back to playing, the more they learn. This year's school goals dovetailed nicely with our homework and play this year. The easiest called for an old school rainy day skateboard practice trick.

Ask your little one about their curiousities and aspirations.

Write them down and use them as inspiration to dream up activities.

It really can be that simple.