Any plans for half term?

[NoGoodPunsLeft]

Slightly tongue in cheek because we are so restricted but what is everyone planning to do to fill the week?

I'm off work which makes it easier but need some ideas so DD doesn't end up watching hours of tv

If you're looking for virtual events there's lots in my latest post: museummum.com/2021/02/09/february-half-term-2021-virtual-things-to-do-with-kids/

We plan on walking to some playgrounds that are a bit further away, going on a mural hunt round the area and trying some takeaway hot chocolates. That's an hour or two a day outdoors which will be plenty.

Then we've booked onto a different zoom each day, mostly from museums - make our own Poo replica with Yorvik, spring crafts with Royal Parks, World Tour with Westminster Abbey, some storytelling and an illustration workshop. All the details for these are in the blog.

We're also working on our Pawprint Badges. They have tons of free activity ideas on their website pawprintfamily.com/. We're having a Lunar New Year dinner and doing some museum LNY craft zooms. We'll bake some brownies for Valentine's Day. Then work on our Pancake Badge on Tuesday - we've already made blinis and healthy biscoff pancakes so only need 2-3 ideas to finish off that badge. Chuck up in some Disney films - I'm trying to watch all the animated ones in order with the kids - and our week is looking full!

Putting mine in holiday club all week. Woop woop!

@museummumblog that info is amazing, thank you for sharing.

I've booked us into a couple of things so far, I'm not sure how to book the Royal Parks activities though, so you know please?

Probably get up late and go to bed early. DCs will be going A level and GCSE work so will be busy all week.

We were supposed to be going to Seville, a trip to help DD (Y11) with her Spanish having lost her language trip which was supposed to be last Easter. But that's not happening, so might try to have a Spanish themed cooking day. Am taking a couple of days off work, imagine the kids will be sleeping until late, so long solo walks 🙄. Probably checking my work emails...

-Trying to prise the teen/tween dcs off the PlayStation and their phones

• longer walks and a bike ride if the weather is decent
• baking, cooking nice food, eating
• I'm vaguely thinking I might try and do something creative

We've also got eye tests and dentist for the dcs booked. If poor ds15 doesn't get his braces soon I don't know what he'll do.

Play Minecraft.
Referee lots of fights.

I'm relieved to not have argue about home school with them, and we're more flexible to escape the house in daylight, but I'm so done at trudging around various parks with unenthused children.
Feb half term is never the easiest to fill, but being stuck in the house for 7 weeks means it's not going to feel like much of a break.

I love the idea of themed days. My kids are with they dad for the week, thank god, but maybe for weekends after.
For pancake day last year, we spun it out a bit by designing and drawing a menu and our best, dream, pancake, then there was the actual making and I got loads of different toppings all laid out in bowls and they made patterns and stuff. Totally agree that new ideas are thin on the ground so repackaged old ones are a good idea.

If you have older tweens, have a look at Magic the Gathering. There's an online version called MoG arena which teaches ou how to play or you can get the cards. It's like complicated top trumps with a fantasy / magic theme. If your kids are of the rugt kind of mindset it could be a rear thing to learn together as you can spend days playing it and building decks etc.

Christ.. Sorry for typos!

Pancake day
Two visits with grandma and grandad (which we're very excited about)
Exploring the muddy (and slightly undesirable) fields at the back of our house.
Um probably lots of Roblox.
Baking, board games, drawing/art and craft and treasure hunts.

To be honest, by heart sinks slightly at the thought of this "holiday" which is basically just parents trying desperately hard to make it fun whilst continuing to juggle work.
Maybe Easter will be better?

We've hired a sex pond
I mean hot tub
I plan on eating and drinking far too much
And spending hours in the tub

We work and DD, 13, is on her own. She has a couple of projects set by school and her hobby, totally optional but to help them pass the time.

We will ask her to review science topics and practice Spanish in exchange to unlimited Netflix afterwards.

Today I went online panic buying of activities from The Works, hoping they don't take too long to be delivered. They had a 3 for £12 deal on with each item allegedly costing £7 or 8 so it is a good deal. We got a soap making kit, a board game and a marble paint kit. I also got some books and colouring stuff.
DC also want to make a cake. DC2, who is 6, wants to make a worry monster, which is something she did at school last week. Otherwise, play board games, do crafts, drag them out for walks (bribing them with hot chocolate after sometimes works), arguing with them about doing something that isn't watching stupid youtubers on tv in their pyjamas.
museummum that looks like an amazing list of ideas.
I saw this on Facebook earlier from the British Library www.bl.uk/childrens-books#
but not sure if they will think it is too much like school
I might try and convince them to start a Rainbow/ Brownie interest badge.
The last weekend of half-term Guiding locally is doing an online activity weekend with 2 days of activities and a requirement to sleep somewhere different to usual, which will keep us busy as there are different activity sessions for each age group and I have a Rainbow and a Brownie and am a Guide leader.

@NoGoodPunsLeft You're most welcome, so glad it's useful! You register your interest on the Royal Parks site here (www.royalparks.org.uk/whats-on/virtual-discovery-week-emerging-from-winter) and it emails you a daily schedule from the 14th. There's one sensory storytelling on Thursday you need to email directly to book onto.

www.royalparks.org.uk/whats-on/virtual-discovery-week-emerging-from-winter

Hopefully this link will work!!

We have a den kit so going to build that in the garden and hopefully get the fire pit going so we can toast marshmallows and tell spooky stories. Board games, baking, making sock monkeys, tie dying T-shirt’s, making bracelets, watching films and the usual walks and basketball games we do most days.

@museummumblog

We're having such a good half term thanks to a lot of your suggestions, we've done things we wouldn't ever have known about & thoroughly enjoyed it all. So thank you so much!

If we're still in a similar situation at Easter I'll check out your blog for more ideas ☺️