Family Fun to See You through Bank Holiday Lockdown

Easter might not be eggs-actly what you planned this year but it doesn’t mean that you still can’t have some family fun. Action for Children’s parenting coach Joanna Thurston, has some indoor and outdoor ideas to see you through a long weekend in lockdown.

1. Hold an old-fashioned Sports Day.

It can be in your garden or indoors (if you’re brave enough!) but challenge the family to an egg and spoon race, hula hooping contest or a wheelbarrow race. Maybe give the hurdles a miss if you’re in the front room though…

2. The Great Easter Bake Off.

Pretend you’re in the tent and every member of the family has to make a bake over the weekend – it doesn’t have to be sweet, pies and pasties would count too. The rest of the family then get to channel their inner Prue or Paul and judge the results.

3. Holidays at home.

Lots of us would have been spending Easter on the road either heading off for a short break or visiting friends and family, but this year, why not have a mini trip to the back garden (if you have one) instead? Set up a tent or build a den – at least you won’t have to go far if it starts to rain, or you need the loo!

4. Create a home cinema.

Thought you were going to see the big Easter release this weekend? Grab some popcorn/hot dogs/sweets, dim the lights and pull the curtains and recreate the big screen experience in your front room instead.

5. Virtual Easter Egg Hunt.

You’ll need to rope in the family for this one but it’s a great excuse to get all your loved ones together even if it’s online. Ahead of your hunt let each family member know where you will be hiding ‘their’ egg so that they can start to think about clues to give to the little ones. Use a videoconferencing app like Zoom to invite everyone to your hunt and when the party starts, ask your kids to welcome the guests while you hide the eggs around the house. Team each child up with a family member and then they have to follow the ‘clues’ to find their prize.

6. Tie Dye Easter Eggs.

An oldie but a goodie – and you should be able to do it with items you have at home. Add your natural dye and eggs to a saucepan of water, bring to the boil and simmer for 20 minutes. Remove the eggs from the pan, place in a heatproof jug or bowl and cover with the liquid from the saucepan. Add a tablespoon of vinegar for every 250ml water and allow to cool for at least four hours (or overnight if you can) – the longer you leave your egg the more intense the colour will be. Some suggestions for dyes:

Pink to red: beetroot
Blue: red cabbage
Brown: brewed coffee
Yellow: turmeric
Purple: blueberries
Green: spinach

7. A Grand Day Out.

Technology means we can visit any number of museums, galleries and other attractions for a day trip, all from the comfort of our own living rooms! In the UK the Natural History Museum and National Gallery can both be toured online but head further afield and you could see the Taj Mahal, Bilbao’s Guggenheim or Yosemite National Park.

Visit Action for Children for more suggestions of fun, family activities for the Bank Holiday weekend and beyond.

To support their emergency coronavirus appeal which will help families cover the cost of the basics, visit actionforchildren.org.uk , call 0300 123 2112 or text ‘ACTION to 70175 to donate £5.