At-home Activities for Sick Kids

There will be days when your child calls in sick and you have to pitch in, to provide comfort and care for your ailing child. However, there will also be times when you will have to engage your little one in some activity to lessen the instances of him/her feeling sick and cranky. That's where we come into the picture to help you with certain home activities.

Children tend to get mighty cranky and clingy, and for most part of the time, get highly irritable when they are smitten by the flu or by any sort of sickness. What they crave for, at such times is, undivided attention from their parents and family members. As a parent, you have to be ready to take on all the duties of caring and fending for the child as well as provide means to keep your child's mind engaged, so that it takes their mind off the sickness. In situations, when the child is affected with chickenpox or scarlet fever and is forced to stay off the school limits for days on end, it is only but natural for the child to get bored and lethargic. With the help of some activities, you can ensure your child is kept busy in something productive than have him/her get cranky all the time. Besides, it will prevent depressing moods from brewing at home level as well.

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SICK-DAY ACTIVITIES FOR KIDS

Your child is on the road to recovery and in the meantime, you are fed up looking at him/her sleeping in front of the television the whole day like a zombie. Agreed, that your child needs some much-needed rest, but that doesn't mean making him/her highly inactive during the tenure of sickness. Enlisted here are a few activities that you can engage your child with; it will help keep his/her mind diverted as well as give you some free time.

G ET A BREATH OF FRESH AIR

Kids love to play outdoors and having to sit at home all day will add up to their crankiness and irritability. Allow them some time daily to soak up some essential vitamin D and breathe in some fresh air; this will help make them feel better as well as speed up their recuperating process.

C REATE A TREASURE COVE

Throw around a few pillows and create a treasure cove for you and your child to rest during the daytime. To make it more interesting for your child, stack the fortress with books, puzzles and movie DVDs. Dress up your child (only if he/she is feeling up to the mark) and treat him/her like a true prince/princess; just playing this game will definitely make your child feel better and will surely take away the sickness blues.

B RING CHEER

Do not allow your child to get the sickness blues; instead keep boredom away with some games they will enjoy. Just to see your baby smile, try 'horsing' around. I can guarantee you that your child won't show a hint of boredom with this activity. The mere presence of a smiling face can cheer up your sick child and keep the spirits soaring, by simply being there.

C OLLECT AND OBSERVE

A good move will be to get your child involved in your hobbies (the one's you enjoyed as a kid!). Take out that old treasure box you have hidden in the attic and get your child to spot the different types of coins/stamps/pens that you have collected over the years. You never know your child may carry forward that legend one fine day. Probably, you could team up this activity with a gist of how you acquired the particular stamp or coin.

B ECOME A DUMMY

Children love toys for the mere reason that the toys allow them to try out stuff with them without complaining. For a change, play a dummy with your kid, and boost your child's creative streak. So what if you end up looking like a clown who has run away from the local circus? At least you'd have brought cheer to your child's face.

P APER SCISSOR ALERT

Snip, snip, snip. There you go; give your child some colorful papers and a scissor and let him/her unleash their apparently active minds. Help out with making paper men and lanterns and use it to decorate the house. Ask your child to help out with decorating the living room or any other room with these paper cutouts. It will keep your child engaged in the activity as well as keep their crankiness at bay.

P REPARE GREETINGS

If your child's not too comfortable with scissors and cutting, then simply hand some crayons and color pencils/pens and ask him/her to prepare greetings. After all, playing with colors makes the mood vibrant, and there is absolutely no harm if the child is sitting quietly and coloring his/her way to glory.

P LAY WITH TOYS

Leave your child alone for a brief period of time and let him/her play with soft toys. One of the observations made by many parents is that, allowing the child to play with toys puts them on a faster road to recovery. Besides, there's an unspoken comfort when it comes to cuddling up with soft toys even when you've surpassed the age limit to play with one.

C OOKIE IN THE KITCHEN

How nice to have your sweet little cookie help you out in the kitchen! With your child's help, prepare something he/she likes to eat. This way, the food you prepare won't go for a waste and the two of you will have a nice time together. Allow them to have the upper hand here, as that will ensure they do not get cranky.

W ALK DOWN MEMORY LANE

Revisit some of your fondest memories with your child by taking out old albums and scanning pictures. You can even create a mosaic of the best pictures with his/her help and use it to decorate the house. Another activity that you can do with them around is, create a music CD or DVD with your child's selection of songs. This will surely keep his/her spirit soaring for a long time.

E NTERTAIN WITH MUPPETS

Bored, eh? We will see that you won't be anymore. One fun activity you and your child can try is make dolls out of paper foil, wool and socks. Once you're done, ask your child to narrate a story with these dolls. You will have a nice time making them and then listening to interesting stories of your child.

P LAY WITH YOUR KID

Daddy dear, make some time for your precious little one and race a toy car please. Play with your child; it could be video games or simple car races, but your child will enjoy this activity the most. You can even build a rail at home; this way, you can deliver goods to your child and he/she can return some back to you. Indulge in some board games if your child is not feeling up to the mark to move around the house.

L OTS OF PAMPERING

How very nice if someone sings, 'You are my sunshine, my very sunshine ...' Take a guess at what will happen; your child will begin feeling better almost instantly. Now for that little smile, you can indulge in excess pampering, can't you? It worked for me though!

T UCK ME TIGHT

Remember that your child needs rest; make it compulsory to keep time aside for rest time. During this time, you could tuck your child to bed with a nice little story or song. Cuddle up close with your child and give him/her your undivided love and attention; that's one of the best activities your child will love doing.

A little "pick-me-up" and "tuck-me-tight" time won't take away anything from you or your pocket; and the best part is that it comes free of cost. Before signing off, I'd like to wish your child a speedy recovery; take care!

By Cheryl Mascarenhas
Published: 4/16/2012

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