There\u2019s no shame in turning to technological advancements for keeping kids entertained and holding their attention, so you can at least check your work emails, attend a short Zoom meeting, and continue to provide support for your team with less distractions. You do what you can to make things work! Although the balancing act may be tough to juggle, it\u2019s not impossible to work from home even if you have young tots. With a few helpful hacks, you can keep your kids busy with fun and productive activities while keeping them safe while you\u2019re working from home.<\/p>\n This is one of the best tips to keep your kids busy at home. Keep toys organized in bins and don\u2019t take them all out at the same time. Rotate the toys weekly to prevent your kids getting bored with their toys, and to keep kids excited, since the toys will look fresh and new in their eyes. Toys that usually hold a kid\u2019s attention for hours are: <\/p>\n Encourage your kids to role-play to stimulate their imagination. They can pretend to play in a restaurant and cook. You can also give instructions with challenges like building a gas station from the blocks as this will keep them focused and immersed.<\/p>\n Stay efficient while working from home<\/a> by communicating with your leaders or team members. Tell them what your situation is like at home, so they can manage their expectations and you can plan your schedule better. Managers appreciate honesty in the workplace, and in turn, this fosters trust and openness which are elements needed for a productive and pleasant working environment.<\/p>\n Whether your little one is suddenly home due to illness, school break, or it\u2019s a regular scenario because of homeschooling, being upfront with the people in your office would enable them to understand your situation. Most likely, there are fellow parents in your office that have the same setup so you can support one another. <\/p>\n At the same time, getting things off your chest will help you be more relaxed around your kids as you\u2019re sharing space. You also don\u2019t have to force your kids to tiptoe around you in their own house all the time. There will be set rules while you\u2019re working, but they\u2019re also free to get comfortable. For example, if there\u2019s sudden noises in the background, your co-workers won\u2019t be surprised since they\u2019re aware you have children with you. This also means if there\u2019s an accident or if the kids need help with something, they can comfortably come to you. Communication is a win-win situation for all.<\/p>\n Working from home while the kids are around can get tricky. But with a routine and a bit of organization, you can succeed. Make sure your kids wake up and eat breakfast at the same time to prevent them from getting cranky. Organize nap schedules so you can have video conference calls without kids running in the background. It would also help to keep toys and crafting supplies where your kids can readily reach for them. If possible, designate areas in the home for toys, reading, or crafting. Having delineated spaces is very helpful if you have multiple kids that want to engage in various activities at different times. <\/p>\n Moreover, you can also pre-plan activities to make your days go smoothly. And of course, be realistic and anticipate disruptions. Kids are a ball of energy so anything can happen even if you try your best to prepare for every eventuality. Instead of feeling resentful because your days aren\u2019t perfect, enjoy the extra time together while your kids are young. And again, remember that you may have some coworkers stuck in the same boat and they\u2019ll hopefully be empathetic.<\/p>\n It would be nice if your kids get lost in a task and give it their undivided attention. It could be something as simple as doing paint with numbers or stringing beads. Susan Perry Ph.D.<\/a> is a psychologist and author of Playing Smart who says that getting into a zone where kids are completely absorbed in what they\u2019re doing is helpful. When this happens, children are immersed and fully engaged so they could even lose awareness of their surroundings and time. When you encourage play ideas and activities for kids that fall in this \u201cflow\u201d category, you help build creative thinking, bolster resilience, and improve impulse control.<\/p>\n Hence, as a parent, you need to set up activities or encourage hobbies<\/a> that will get your children into the zone, especially while you\u2019re working as this could spell fewer distractions for you. You can start by choosing activities that target your kid\u2019s interests. For example, if they like arts, you can prepare supplies together. And of course, don\u2019t forget to permit them to make a little mess in one area where it\u2019s easy for you to still supervise them while you\u2019re working. This allows you to control some bit of the chaos without limiting their creative juices. Furthermore, it\u2019s easier to become fully immersed in activities when they know you\u2019re not hovering and they\u2019re not being judged with eagle eyes.<\/p>\n Arts and crafts projects are perfect for kids and their boundless imaginations. Studies attest<\/a> that participating in creative activities has a good influence on young kids as it promotes positive behavioral changes, increases self-confidence, boosts levels of knowledge, and also helps improve physical well-being like coordination. Encourage your kids to create something while you’re busy at work. <\/p>\n Even the youngest toddlers can keep busy with stickers, stencils, finger paints, play dohs, coloring books, crayons, stamps, etc. For older kids, you can add more complicated activities with cutting using a blunt pair of scissors and pasting with glue like creating collages. For some ideas, you can check out the following \u201ccraftastic\u201d projects below: <\/p>\n While you\u2019re busy working, make your younger kids feel like a grown-up by encouraging them to play office. Give them their own table, chair, and office supplies. Set up their workstation near your table. Just be sure to remind them to keep their indoor voice down. You can let them play with the following: <\/p>\n You can keep them busy by providing them with office work. An example would be filing papers and stapling them together. They can also practice their writing skills or get busy filling up their work log with stickers. Experts say<\/a> that pretend play is critical to a child\u2019s development since it fosters creativity, improves coping skills, and enhances emotional regulation.<\/p>\n When your kids are bored out of their wits but they can\u2019t play outside because you\u2019re still tied to your computer, you can let them burn energy with an online workout video. There are tons of fun workouts on Youtube for kids. And most of them are free. You can try the following ideas for kids: <\/p>\n These fun children\u2019s workouts usually have children on the videos. They also have themes and music that children are familiar with so they\u2019ll stay engaged. Hopefully, if you find something your kids love, they won\u2019t view it as a chore and have a great time. This hits two birds with one stone because they keep kids busy giving you free time to concentrate on work. <\/p>\n But more importantly, the kids get to move which is good for their overall health. The Center for Disease Control<\/a> recommends that children from 3 to 5 years old be physically active throughout the day to enhance their growth. As for children from 6 to 17 years old, they are recommended to move for an hour doing moderate to vigorous physical movement daily.<\/p>\n This is not an exhaustive list of activities to keep your kids busy, and there are many other activities your children can do based on their temperament and inclination. To help you find the best suited hobbies and activities that you and your family will enjoy, consider taking a CircleDNA<\/a> test. Test results could reveal talents and creativity levels that run in your family, as being gifted at dance, music, or art is often genetic.<\/p>\n You could find out your kids could have innate musical ability or drawing skills based on their genetics. The results can help you plan meaningful activities that will really resonate with your kids. Anything a kid is genetically gifted at will likely be something they\u2019ll enjoy doing in their spare time. Consequently, you can fill chunks of your children\u2019s time with productive activities that they enjoy while you\u2019re busy working from home. \u00a0<\/p>\n Caring for kids, especially younger kids who have higher needs and are more dependent on you, is a full-time job. Learning how to keep your kids busy… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":2874,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10568,1],"tags":[4741,10394,4481],"class_list":["post-1231","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-kids","category-uncategorized-en","tag-us-uncategorized","tag-working-en","tag-youre"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/magazine.circledna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1231","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/magazine.circledna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/magazine.circledna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magazine.circledna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magazine.circledna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1231"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/magazine.circledna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1231\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7044,"href":"https:\/\/magazine.circledna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1231\/revisions\/7044"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magazine.circledna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2874"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/magazine.circledna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1231"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magazine.circledna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1231"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magazine.circledna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1231"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![](\"https:\/\/circledna.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/content_images_2023_02_keep-age-appropriate-toys.jpg\")
<\/figure>\nKeep Age Appropriate Toys on Hand to Keep Your Kids Busy<\/h3>\n
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![\"circlemagazine-circledna-kids-don\u2019t-have-to-tiptoe\"](\"https:\/\/circledna.com\/blog\/content\/images\/2023\/02\/kids-don-t-have-to-tiptoe.jpg\")
<\/figure>\nInform the Team So Kids Don\u2019t Have to Tiptoe Around You<\/h3>\n
Stay Organized with a Routine<\/h3>\n
Help Kids Find Hobbies They Enjoy<\/h3>\n
Fuel Their Creative Juices with Arts and Crafts<\/h3>\n
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Play Office Together<\/h3>\n
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Play Interactive Dance Class Videos or Workout Videos<\/h3>\n
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What Activities Will Be Best to Keep Your Kids Busy?<\/h3>\n
References: <\/h3>\n
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