Some of us parents think that time spent with our children means hours of play in a mall-based kiddie play area or even out-of-town weekend trips. If you have 30 minutes before you head to work or 30 minutes just before you put him to sleep, here are some activities that you can do with your child. The secret to making the most of these 30 minutes is to be fully present without any distractions. Ready?
- Have ice cream on the sidewalk while playing âI spy with my eyeâ
- Play hide and seek
- Read a book and talk about it after
- Play a guessing game
- Go out for a walk
- Water the plants (Helps you get chores done too!) then play water fight after
- Draw and talk about what the best part of his day was (Journaling)
- Create greeting cards or postcards for loved ones
- Prepare a sandwich together
- Play treasure hunt (or Easter egg hunt)
- Give your child a nice bath and play water toys together
- Talk about how his/her day went and share yours too
- Talk about plans for the next days or the weekend
- Create DIY slime
- Do some DIY home experiments like a volcano explosion with baking soda and vinegar
- Fix each otherâs hair
- Make paper airplanes or paper boats, and race!
- Create your own pizza (Just buy the pizza crust from the grocery, add toppings of your choice and pop it in the oven)
- Decorate cookies (Baking cookies will take time, so you may opt to buy ready-to-eat cookies or cupcakes, then decorate it with whip cream and candy sprinkles)
- May a DIY toy together from scraps of paper, boxes or cardboard
- Play pretend â kitchen/restaurant, singer/performer, pilot, police, etc.
- Build towers with blocks
- Sort laundry (This can be a learning opportunity on âsameâ and âdifferentâ)
- Cook pancakes together (Tip: Put the pancake batter in a piping bag or a squeeze bottle to create your own pancake shape and design)
- Make your own countdown calendar to his birthday, Christmas or an upcoming family vacation
- Sort toys! (Okay, this one may take more than 30 minutes)
- Have a picnic in your garden
- Prepare a fruit shake or a milk shake (Perfect for summer!)
- Sing songs together or play name that tune/song
- Dance! (This can count as your work-out too!)
It doesnât really take a lot to spend time with your children. Even if itâs just 30 minutes of your busy day, if well-spent, it will make your child feel special and youâll be making positive deposits to his emotional bank account. Oh, and it can also be a good opportunity for your child to develop some skills too.
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