Stay-at-home holiday

theSun, Tue, 9 June 2009


IT’S the school holidays right now for Malaysian schools and most parents are wondering what to do with their children.

Going on a trip out of town is usually an option but with the current influenza A(H1N1) scare, we may want to avoid overseas travel.

And if you are a last-minute planner like me, or are unable to get time off from work, finding ideas to keep the children occupied and out of mischief at home seems like the only thing left to do.

This is the time when you need to be resourceful. You may not be making sand castles with them at a beach resort or going on a safari in the African plains but you can still have fun right at home or in your neighbourhood.

The key to this is letting your imagination run wild and making some simple preparations beforehand.

Think of activities and games that you had fun with when you were a child and re-live them with your children.

Children nowadays are into computer games, Nintendos and gameboys but back in my day, we played ‘five stones’, hopscotch and board games.

Dust off the old Monopoly set for some family fun or teach them how to make a kite from scratch.

Do something that you had always wanted to do when you were a child but didn’t get a chance to, like spend a night out camping in your garden with a small campfire barbecue dinner.

Here is a list of activities I have thought of that we could do with our children at home, or without having to travel far.

» Stock up on new jigsaw puzzles, activity books, storybooks before the holidays so that they come in handy when the children are bored.

» Check your local newspaper for activities around town that cater to schoolchildren. Some malls, museums, galleries, science centre or parks have special programmes lined up in conjunction with the school holidays. And they could even be free of charge.

» Have a breakfast or tea picnic in your backyard or garden on a cool morning or evening.

Get them to help prepare simple yet healthy homemade food such as sandwiches, pizza, burgers, drinks, salad, fresh fruits and pack them all in a cooler or picnic basket.

Find the perfect spot in yourgarden, spread the food out on a mat and start your picnic party.

» Bring the children along when you run errands or do grocery shopping so that they can learn about things at the bank or post office as well as make healthy choices for food, cooking, and how to manage money.

» Start them on a new hobby, sport or craft such as making scrapbooks, learning to ride a bike, play chess, cross stitch, swimming or gardening for example.

» Give them a notebook or journal. Encourage them to write stories or document their daily life.

This way, they can improve their communication skills, handwriting, creative thinking and writing skills.

They can also add colour and illustrations by drawing, colouring or sketching inside their books.

» Last but not least, the school holiday is a good time to create awareness among children about the underprivileged in society.

Visit homes for children, old folk or the disabled with your children, join their fundraisers and projects or offer your services – and your children’s – as a volunteer.

This way, they will learn to appreciate what they have a little bit more.