The bank holiday weekend is finally upon us – meaning it’s time to come up with some activities to keep the little ones occupied (providing you haven’t already been doing that all week, in which cause you really deserve a cup of tea, chocolate bar and a sit down right about now).
A parenting and mental health expert has shared a list of free activities to keep children entertained over Easter – and none of them involve screens.
In fact, according to Jennifer Johnson, from on-demand expert service platform JustAnswer, these activities also aid child development – so it’s basically a win-win.
“Any activities which promote gross and fine motor skills are important for children of all ages,” she says.
So without further ado, here are her seven recommendations of things to keep kids quiet and stimulated over the long weekend.
1. Get crafting
Most kids love to get messy – and giving them the opportunity to make things is also great for their development. It just means a bit of a clean up job for you afterwards.
Johnson recommends making things from play dough, creating cards or anything else that includes grabbing, touching and bending fingers to develop their fine motor skills.
2. Bake together
Again, pretty messy. But baking is such a lovely activity to do with kids of all ages and often doesn’t require a huge amount of ingredients. Stuck for inspiration? Check out these easy baking recipes from Delicious.
If cakes are off the cards, why not let them help with making family meals over the weekend?
“Baking and cooking involve weighing and measuring ingredients (mathematics skills) and using their hands (gross and fine motor skills),” says Johnson. “Also, your child has an end product they can reap pride and satisfaction from.”
3. Create your own supermarket
What kid doesn’t love playing shops? Parents can use their kitchen as inspiration to create their very own supermarket, fashioning a basket from something lying around the house. You could even just give them a reusable tote to use.
Stack tins and packets in one area so your child can choose items to put in their basket/bag. Your child could even get creative and make their own money, which they can use to “buy’ the items.
“It’s simple and easy, and can help their understanding of real-life transactions,” adds Johnson.
4. Head to the park
With the weather set to be nicer over the bank holiday weekend, it’s certainly worth getting out and about to your local playground – or if you don’t live near a park, perhaps going for a long walk or bike ride.
Creating good social skills is also an important part of growing up, Johnson says, and playing in parks can help with this.
“Parks are great for a child’s gross motor skills as they are running, climbing and bouncing but they are also filled with lessons for children, too,” she explains.
“They can learn to share and interact with other children. For example, they can’t all be on the swings at the same time and they can’t go down the slide at the same time so they have to take turns.”
5. Experience nature
It’s also worth heading out for a walk in nature – whether that’s along the beach, through a forest, across a large park, or anywhere else where they can engage many of their senses.