Quality Time with Kids

Whether you are a working mom or a stay-at-home mom, kids need our undivided attention. Being around kids might work most of the time but apparently, it's not enough for these little munchkins. They need our involvement in small things. On the surface, those things might seem trivial to us but being present for these things matters to them. While maintaining a work-life balance, it might get difficult for us to manage time and still be mentally available for the kids.

So here are a few activities that you can easily incorporate into your daily life and ensure that you are spending quality time with your kids.

1. Learning music together:
From my personal experience, it is a great way to learn a new instrument or any form of music with your kid when you both are newbies. It's a great way of bonding with your kid. An added advantage of learning music is that it's a great stress buster. You can even do your impromptu music jams and sing your heart out with the kids.

2. Studying:
It may sound absurd to think about studying as quality time, but accompanying your kid during his study time can morally boost him. This does not make them dependent on you but in fact, you can share your set of study tips. Regularly planning these study routines can help ease out the exam stress too since you can clear their concepts at an early stage. Some study times can also end up with kids sharing their little secrets with us.

3. Storytime:
A bedtime routine which includes reading a book can become a lifelong memory for kids. This is the time when both of you are calm and the day's work is done. It can end up in a sound sleep so, choose a positive book. This ritual can go a long way even when kids can read on their own. After all at any age listening to the stories from your mother is what every kid loves to do. So go ahead and invest in that reading lamp and a good library.

4. Watching TV:
Kids like to share their world with the ones they connect to the most. Sharing TV time with them gives a glimpse of their likes and dislikes which also reflects in their personality. While most of us monitor their screen time a movie once in a fortnight doesn’t hurt. A movie date with popcorn can be fun on weekends. You can relax in your pyjamas and enjoy a movie that you both love. Going a little overboard you can even have a sleepover party followed by the movie.

5. Playing indoor games:
Be it monsoons or harsh summers kids can get bored sitting at home which can lead to them accessing screens. We can indulge in traditional indoor games (like cards, board games, carrom) or even invent new ones with them. Don’t worry about the mess they create while creating a pillow fortress or while they create a new toy. Eventually, children can be trained to clean their mess. After all, it's our perspective whether to focus on the mess or the happy, innocent faces building things out of their imaginations.

6. Playing outdoors:
Playing with kids outdoors can be a great way to encourage kids as a first step toward making them aware of physical fitness. A simple game of hide and seek or chasing them around can be a great form of physical movement. For older kids, any outdoor game that the family loves can be turned into a family ritual during holidays or evenings. A good time spent outdoors can reduce their need for screen time and ensure their physical fitness.

7. Walking/Hiking, nature walks:
As we are moving towards urbanisation we are drifting apart from nature. Children are seeing more artificial turfs than the ground. Awakening the senses when in nature can rejuvenate you, while your kid can have their first-hand experiences with nature. Taking a walk through the woods, hiking on a nearby hill, planning a trek, going camping, or visiting a wildlife sanctuary with your child can be a few ways to approach nature. To treasure these times spent in nature you can name a few trees, and help them create a nature journal to note their experiences is a valuable treasure that can be passed from generation to generation.

8. Painting and Crafting :
This doesn’t require any set of rules to follow. Ranging from toddlers to teenagers kids love it when you draw or paint with them. You can have a common scenery or a theme to draw from. Any medium of paint can be used. For crafting old boxes, scraps of paper, or any material lying around can be used to unleash creativity in kids. Just give them these materials and some glue and scotch tape and witness their imagination run wild.

9. Experimenting:
Children will be surprised to find out how their own house can turn into an interesting science lab by using materials we have a home. Experimenting with balloons to experience static electricity, colour experiments like changing of colour when you put lemon on the salt, effervescence created by putting soda in water etc; and similar experiments can trigger the little scientist in your house to be more inquisitive and pique their interest in science.

10. Cooking and baking:
The most basic needs of man to live his life are food, clothing and shelter. But to satisfy the first need, man needs to know how to cook. The earlier they start the better it is so that it does not become a boring chore in the future. Baking can be a fun way to introduce the basics of cooking as the reward is definitely sweet. For younger kids, we, can use softer fruits and vegetables and a blunt knife and start by introducing simple activities like washing them and chopping. No gas cooking can be trusted for kids who are still too young to understand the fire hazards.

11. Cleaning and organizing:
Charity begins at home and so does cleaning. You will be amazed to see how your child enjoys cleaning and organising. You can assign age-appropriate chores and responsibilities to the kids like folding clothes, and tidying up the room, cleaning dishes. Even toddlers can help with cleaning (they love playing in water!).

12. Shopping:
From adults to toddlers who don’t love to shop? The shopping does not always have to be toys or clothes. You can involve the kids in your daily grocery shopping. Hand them a basket and ask them to select vegetables and fruits of their choice. That way you can interest them in eating vegetables that they usually avoid. With you around you can give them smaller money transactions to do; it's a practical way to apply their math skills in daily life.

Children will enjoy when you do these activities with them and you won’t have to worry about making time for them differently. Try out these activities and tell us what difference it made to you and your child. How do you manage to make quality time for your kids? If you have any experiences to share, write to us in the comment section below.

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