Virtual zoos and yoga: What can kids do for free during the coronavirus quarantine
If you’re stuck at home with your children during the coronavirus quarantine, there are plenty of ways to keep them occupied.
For many stay-at-home activities, you won’t even need to break out your wallet.
Go to a zoo or aquarium — online
Many zoos throughout the country are offering live looks at their exhibits and animals. Your kids can see tigers, penguins, elephants, koalas and more through the the world-renowned San Diego Zoo’s live feeds. The Monterrey Bay Aquarium is offering live looks at jellyfish, sharks, sea otters and more.
Over at the Georgia Aquarium live feeds, they can feast their eyes on their beluga whale, sea lion and piranha exhibits. And if that’s not enough, you can see a lion or giant panda on the feed at Smithsonian’s National Zoo.
Stay in shape
They may not have their P.E. class or recess, but children can still remain active indoors. Joe Wicks, known as The Body Coach on YouTube, offers daily 30-minute videos leading children in exercises that include jumping jacks and kickboxing.
The Cosmic Kids Yoga channel on YouTube offers kids a fun way to participate in yoga.
Arts and crafts time
Let your children free their imaginations with a wide array of fun arts and crafts activities. Crayola offers free projects on its website and has live demos on its Facebook page. McHarper Manor also has live demonstrations on Facebook, showing children how to make miniatures, sew and paint.
Insider.com also offered many Instagram channels that offer arts and crafts activities for children.
Story time
Actor Josh Gad — you may know him as Olaf from “Frozen” or LeFou from the live action “Beauty and the Beast” — does a bedtime story time each night on Twitter. Actresses Jennifer Garner and Amy Adams also provide story time.
Or maybe you want an astronaut in space reading to your kids. On StorytimeFromSpace.com, astronauts record themselves reading children’s books.
Listen to a book
Audible.com offers many audio books for free, including “Winnie the Pooh” and “Anne of Green Gables.” The website offers hundreds of selections for kids.
Learn to cook
Maybe you have a Top Chef Jr. in the making. Delish.com has a cooking class for kids every day. In the coming days they will make cheeseburger cups, cookie icebox cake and Fruity Pebbles milkshakes.
Food Network also offers many ways for children to get involved in the kitchen. Tasty offers some fun recipes to make with your children as well.
What else?
Walt Disney offers a free online program called Imagineering in a Box, where children can learn theme park design and engineering.
Amazon Is offering some of its kids’ TV shows and movies for free during the pandemic. PBS shows like “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood” and “Arthur” are included in the deal.
