Lauren, from Essex, sent in this great idea. Let’s take a look at it…
What did you do?
Each week since the start of Lockdown we’ve had a new theme. (I’ve also divided every day into a sub-theme – may be a bit over the top Haha) But it’s really made things fun and made sure there is no monotony. We use the themes as much as possible when practicing maths, phonics, arts and crafts, storytelling, literacy, exercise, costumes – you name it! We’ve also started to finish with a themed party at the weekend to round off the week, which is something to look forward to and a good incentive for my boys to work well throughout the week.
This has worked so well for us. I was so worried at the start of Lockdown that my children would be upset and anxious with everything going on and miss going out and seeing their friends and going to school etc. They’ve had so much fun they’ve not been bothered in the slightest about not going out. Every night before bed my youngest asks me “what day is it tomorrow?” And I know he doesn’t mean what day of the week – he means “what theme day”. Every day we’re able to go to bed and look forward to a new exciting theme to explore in the morning.
Do you have any other projects planned?
This week we are having a Disney themed week and I’m very excited about planning a Mad Hatters Tea Party for us at the weekend.
Tell the Housebound With Kids community a bit about yourself…
My name is Lauren, I live in between Essex and London. I have two boys aged 4 & 5. I have been teaching Spanish and French in Secondary schools for over 10 years (and more recently Primary too) However I have a background in Fashion and Design. I love party planning (there always has to be a theme), photography and all things colourful and pretty! I’ve been able to use my creativity to make things fun for us all on lockdown and have enjoyed photographing and capturing all the special memories we’ve made together so we can look back in years to come and remember what an exciting time it was!
How are you finding being housebound so far?
Like every normal mum, there are moments where my patience has run very thin when getting my boys to complete all their learning tasks, however, I’ve got to say on the whole it’s been amazing! I have a small age gap so my boys have always been fairly close but their bond now has just grown immensely. I’ve found homeschooling them so insightful. I’ve really been able to understand where their strengths and weaknesses lie and seeing their progress over the weeks has been massively rewarding. It makes all the hard work seem worthwhile ! (I know when I’ve picked the right theme and activity as their faces light up and they don’t even realise they are doing learning. )
Do you have any tips for other parents?
Routines and planning have worked well for us. I like to be organised and have everything ready for the week ahead. We made a loose schedule for the day to ensure there are breaks and a mixture of written learning / play time / time to run around and burn off energy etc.
My favourite activities have been reading to my children and doing puzzles or colouring with them ( all of which are very calming! ) Like most of us on lockdown there’s a massive increase of using our devices to do everything online – It’s easy to multitask and do things on your phone or computer whilst ‘being’ with your children but when we read, colour or do puzzles the phone goes away and I feel like we get the best quality time together – it really is just the simple things!
Has being part of our community helped you?
I think it’s great so many people are coming together to inspire and support each other through these times. I’ve taken loads of inspiration from people’s posts on social media and I hope I can give others some ideas too that will lead to smiles and fun during lockdown.
