The 20 Best Family Quarantine Activities
As the COVID cases continue to rise, many of us find ourselves at home together again. But there are lots of ways you can hunker down with your favorite people for a lot of fun togetherness time! Here are a few of our favorite family quarantine activities while you’re social distancing.
Family Quarantine Activities for Older Kids
What do you do when you’re stuck at home with older kids, and everyone has cabin fever? Here are a few options for family quarantine activities. Keep in mind, if anyone is experiencing COVID symptoms, be sure to follow the CDC guidelines. You’ll also want to stay away from some of these suggestions, like family baking if you’re in isolation due to COVID.
1. Create a Time Capsule
Though this might not be a time you want to remember forever, this could be the perfect opportunity to put together a time capsule of what life was like during Omicron.
2. Make a Family Memory Book
If a time capsule isn’t your thing, but you’re still interested in preserving memories, now is the perfect time to go through your old photo albums for a photo book. If you were together with extended family over the holidays, you could even make one documenting that fun time spent together.
3. Do a Puzzle
Most of us don’t really take the time out of our busy lives to enjoy the quiet satisfaction of completing a giant puzzle, but when you’re home in a corona cocoon, now’s as good a time as any! If you want a real treat, purchase a Liberty Puzzle– these wooden jigsaw puzzles with whimsical shapes are the best!
4. Plan a Family Spa Day
While quarantine can be a stressful time for all of us, planning an at-home spa day can be a great way to spend quality time together. Whether you opt for mani-pedis or finally get a chance to use that new massage gun you got for Christmas, plan a quiet time to prioritize mental health.
5. Watch a Baking Show and Have Your Own Competition
This activity would work best once everyone is relatively healthy and any symptoms clear up. Regardless of COVID status, you can all watch a baking show, and if everyone’s healthy, put those skills to the test. Are you ready for MasterChef or Nailed It?
6. Play a Family Video Game
If you don’t really feel up to sorting through game pieces, try a fun family video game. Several gaming systems allow for multiple players, so whether you want to race around in MarioKart or feel enough energy for a Just Dance family dance party, there are lots of fun options.
Family Quarantine Activities for Younger Kids
If some of the above suggestions would never work in your house, here are a few kid activities that are sure to delight the youngest family members.
7. Snuggle in Bed With a Favorite Book
Assuming you’re not in isolation, there’s something so magical about getting together under a blanket and reading a classic children’s book aloud to your kids as you both get sleepy. If you’re feeling extra tired, you can listen to an audiobook together.
8. Build a Fort
Don’t let your inability to leave the house stop you from your next family adventure! Transport your family anywhere in the world with a pillow and blanket fort. It’s a great way to keep the kids busy for hours.
9. Make Playdough
Full disclosure– I’m not the biggest fan of playdough. But in this unprecedented time, even I can see how much fun it can be for little ones to make and then play with their own creations. Make things extra fun by adding extras, like food coloring or glitter (which I actually love, despite the mess). Or roll it out with rolling pins and make cookie cutter shapes. Here’s a recipe to get you started.
Easy No-Cook Playdough
Equipment
- 1 Pair latex gloves Optional. You can sub with plastic bags instead.
- 1 spatula or whisk
Materials
- 2 cup all purpose flour
- 1/2 cup table salt If you have coarse salt, you might want to blend it finer before adding to the recipe
- 2 tsp cream of tartar
- 1 Tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 cup boiling water
- 30 drops food coloring You can use more or less depending on how bright you want your dough.
- 1 tsp glitter optional
Instructions
- Mix the dry ingredients (flour, salt, cream of tartar) together in a large plastic bowl.
- Create a hole in the middle of the dry ingredients and add the wet ingredients (boiling water and vegetable oil.) If you want one color of dough, add your food coloring now.
- Using a spatula, combine the ingredients together into a dough.
- If you want multiple playdough colors, separate the colors into smaller bowls and add food coloring. Stir the color until it mixes in.
- Using gloves or plastic bags on your hands as a protective barrier, knead the dough to work in the color over wax paper or parchment paper.
- Mix in glitter or any extra playdough accessories.
- Once your dough is cool, play with it and have fun!
- Store your dough in an airtight container.
10. Freeze Dance
If your kids are feeling up to some physical activity, try freeze dance. It’s the perfect way to combine the fun of a family dance party with extra listening and motor skills.
11. Explore the Backyard
Especially if you have a positive COVID diagnosis, this really isn’t the best time to make your way around the neighborhood or work on becoming a bike family. But there are still a few outdoor activities you can do with your little ones- like play trash or treasure in your backyard and see what types of leaves, sticks, or flowers you can find.
12. Have Fun With Sidewalk Chalk
Even if it’s a bit cold, you can still head outside and make beautiful creations outside. But if you’re looking for indoor activities instead, you can replicate the same experience with a chalkboard, or if you’re really brave, dry erase markers on a whiteboard.
13. Make Puppets and Put on a Show
Do you have extra lunch bags or mismatched socks around your house? Or even some stuffed animals that have been pretty bored recently? If so, then you’re on your way to creating some amazing puppets that can generate hours of family entertainment. And if puppets aren’t your favorite, have your kids put on a show or choreograph a dance for more fun family quarantine activities.
Family Quarantine Activities for the Entire Family
Whether your kids are older or younger, here are a few family favorites that everyone will enjoy. You can easily tailor these family quarantine activities to suit your specific family’s needs.
13. Play Your Favorite Game
When was the last time you and your family sat down together to enjoy a round of your favorite board game like Hungry, Hungry Hippos, Candyland, or Settlers of Catan? How about classic card games like Gin Rummy, Uno, and Crazy 8s, or newer ones like Exploding Kittens? You don’t need to wait for family game night to make this happen! Quarantine is the perfect time for family games. Here are a few of our favorites.
14. Try a New Craft or Art Project
Whether you’re painting, knitting, drawing, or even flower arranging, use this downtime to embrace your artistic side with lots of creative family quarantine activities.
15. Plan a Family Movie Day
Whether you want to see some classic movies, sports movies, movies about dogs, or winter movies— there are tons of great options. If the weather’s nice, you could even create an outdoor movie theater for evening showings. Don’t forget the popcorn!
16. Write a Letter
If you’re still behind on your Christmas thank you notes, this is the perfect time to get caught up! Or you can all write a letter to Grandma or someone else in your life who needs a little cheering up. Even the littlest family members can add a few scribbles into the mix in one of our favorite family quarantine activities.
17. Family Leisure Games
If you have limited outdoor space, there are still quite a few family-friendly activities you can all enjoy. From cornhole to bocce ball to foursquare or badminton– just pick a game and start playing.
18. Get a Jumpstart on Spring Cleaning
Did you find a little chaos when you reached into the closet for another family game? Are your drawers bursting at the seams? This downtime provides the perfect opportunity for some extra organization time and is a great way to start the new year fresh.
19. Start Planning Your Next Family Vacation
According to research, the anticipation of a trip can give you greater happiness than taking the vacation itself. So why not take advantage of this time to start dreaming about your next holiday. It’s the perfect antidote to your current condition, as you can dream about all of the fun you have to look forward to once the family quarantine is over.
20. Try a Boredom Buster
If you’re still feeling uninspired after reading about one fun activity after the next, try one of these 40+ boredom busters. You’re sure to find the perfect family quarantine activities you will love from this massive list.
The Best Is Yet to Come!
Just because you might be in a coronavirus quarantine– again– doesn’t mean you can’t make the most of these difficult times with these family quarantine activities. Whether you’re in bed drinking yet another cup of bone broth or full of energy and going stir crazy, the end is in sight!
What are your favorite family quarantine activities? Let us know on social #getfamilyapp, and be sure to share your favorites with family and friends on your favorite family app!
