6 easy ways to keep your child entertained.
Photo by Allan Mas from Pexels
Especially during the times when your child is very young, you’ll want to do all you can to provide the ideal environment for them. At the core, each child needs love, attention, and care. As a parent, you know that this is a full-time job. While it’s easy to focus on the harder parts of the job like providing a roof over their head, don’t forget to ensure your child is entertained. Children love to have fun and enjoy life. Instead of becoming stressed out about how to fill their days, consider the following easy ways you can keep your child entertained.
Coloring/drawing
Purchase a few boxes of crayons, markers, and colored pencils in order to keep your child occupied with the arts. Coloring and drawing are excellent visual art forms that can be entertaining and communicative. By paying attention to your child’s drawings, you can get an idea of how they’re feeling, what they’re thinking and how they like to express their thoughts. Even as an adult, it’s a great activity you can do alongside them for fun.
Puzzles
When your child is first becoming acquainted with puzzles, it’s best to hold their hand through the process. Start with a 15-25 piece puzzle to build their confidence and help them become more comfortable. With more practice, they’ll be able to learn how to do 100-300 piece puzzles on their own. Puzzles are time-consuming as well. This is perfect for the parent who needs to occupy their child while they complete a work assignment.
Indoor tumbling
Many children love the idea of being able to enjoy physical activities inside the house. Somersaults, cartwheels, and other forms of tumbling are safest when they happen on indoor play mats. Create a play area where you can secure the playmats and other cushioned safety measures in order to make sure they have a safe yet fun time. If you have babies who need floor time, non-toxic play mats are excellent purchases to make.
Screen time
Screen time can be a pretty controversial subject. This is primarily because there are dangers involved with too much screen time. The key is to find the balance for your child. If an hour in the morning and an hour in the afternoon work well, don’t feel guilty about allowing them to enjoy some time with their favorite children’s programming. There are tons of educational shows that can help children improve their vocabulary, learn their numbers, and understand social cues. The main point to remember is that you don’t want your child to consume a ton of blue light before bedtime. Blue light emits through various screens and keeps the brain awake. Within two hours before bedtime, turn off all screens and find other entertainment that won’t stimulate the brain to stay up for hours.
Reading
If your little one knows how to read, collect interesting books for them to enjoy. If they’re in the process of learning, pick out some of the most popular children’s books. Then, find YouTube channels that read those books aloud. Your child can follow along as they listen to the audio version of the book. Meanwhile, you can catch up on some chores, take care of some paperwork or relax a little while they’re entertained.
Outdoor activity
Fresh air is such a mood booster for both children and adults. If you have a baby or a small toddler, walking in the stroller can be a wonderful pastime. If you have a child who can jump rope, ride bikes, or play at the playground, these are fantastic ways to create great memories and entertain your little one.
As you work on incorporating these activities throughout the course of a week, take note of the activities that need more hand-holding than others. Depending on the age of your child, you might need to supervise everything. Use your own discretion regarding how you implement different activities, but always remember to have tons of fun. That’s what it’s all about.