During this time of quarantine/pandemic, many parents are seeking out activities online for their kiddos. Deciding what activity can be overwhelming with so many choices available. The good thing is some kids have a favorite activity, or main interest. In this article, I will name ten different topics that kids may be interested in with correlating websites. 

For the kid who loves science-

NASA Kids Club- This website has games and fun activities that kids can do at home. Link: https://www.nasa.gov/kidsclub/index.html

OMSI Oregon Museum of Science and Industry website- OMSI has a section on their homepage for fun, scientific activities that kids can do at home. Link: https://omsi.edu/

PBS Kids- This website has Science games and recommended scientific activities to do at home. Link: https://pbskids.org/games/science/

For the kid who loves movies-

Knowalot Kids Movie Quizzes- This website has quizzes about movies according to the kiddos’ age. They have Disney movie quizzes available as well. You can either print out the questions for a fun family night or take the quizzes online. Link: https://www.knowalot.org/movie-kids-quiz.htm

Triviaplaza- This specific link provides a quiz relating to Disney and Pixar characters- https://www.triviaplaza.com/disney-characters-1-quiz/

Quizglobal.com- This link provides a kid’s movie quiz, along with many other types of quizzes. Link: https://quizglobal.com/quizplay/quizplayqanda/Kids%20Movie%20Quiz%20Questions%20and%20Answers

For the kid who loves spooky stuff-

“RoomRecess.com” has educational “spooky games” at this link: https://www.roomrecess.com/pages/SpookyGames.html

Safe Kid Games- This website is geared toward appropriate “scary games” for young kiddos. Link: https://www.safekidgames.com/halloween-games/

For the kid who loves to cook- 

Delish.com Live Instagram Kids Cooking classes- Each weekday at 1 p.m., the editorial director of Delish.com and her kids will host a live cooking class on Instagram. The website lists the schedule ahead of time to ensure you have the needed ingredients. Fun! Link: https://www.delish.com/food-news/g31786555/delish-instagram-live-kids-cooking-class/

Chopchop Cooking Club- Free to join. Do a cooking challenge, upload a picture, and receive a “virtual badge”. Link: http://chopchopcookingclub.org/

For the kid who loves animals- “National Geographic for Kids” website has a section for animals that includes games, pictures, videos, information, books, etc. Link: https://kids.nationalgeographic.com/animals/

Defenders.org- This website prompts kiddos to become “junior defenders of wildlife”, and includes fun activities like building a birdfeeder, and creating a nature journal. They can also print out a “junior defender membership card”. Link:  https://defenders.org/junior-defenders

Switchzoo.com- A fun website with games, animal music and videos, and animal lesson plans. Link: https://switchzoo.com/teach_learn.htm

For the kid who loves to dance- 

It looks like YouTube is largely the place to be for kiddos who would like to learn different types of dance. Jamtimedance.com or Jam Time Dance Crew has a variety of dance videos available on YouTube, it looks like mostly Hip Hop. Link: http://jamtimedance.com/youtube-dance-classes/

Gonoodle.com- This website focuses on “movement and mindfulness” for kids. There are games available, yoga, and movement and mindfulness videos. You must “sign up” but it is a free, online resource. Link:https://www.gonoodle.com/

Easy Kids Choreography video from YouTube: This video is almost 14 minutes and is described as a Hip-Hop dance tutorial for ages 4 and up. Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JWTyO8npkOQ

For the kid who loves theater-

Dramanotebook.com offers 40 different theater activities for kids and teens. The website will ask for your email, and then send you a downloadable PDF. Link: https://www.dramanotebook.com/drama-games/

Childdrama.com has tons of lesson plans available; sorted by age and lesson type. Link: https://www.childdrama.com/lessons.html

For the kid who loves sports-

Kidsworldfun.com is a website that provides a variety of free sports games for kids. The homepage showed choices including basketball, soccer, and football related games. The website includes more choices below the sports games such as racing games, action games, and puzzle games. Link: https://www.kidsworldfun.com/games/sports-games.php

Learn4good.com is a website that provides free games for a PC, mac, or iPad. The website features sports that are not as common as basketball or football. Some of the games listed include hockey, skateboarding, and snowboarding games. Link: https://www.learn4good.com/games/sports4.htm

For the kid who loves the environment- 

Kidsforsavingearth.org has some awesome, free “eco-activities”. Quizzes, tasks, and information are plentiful on this webpage. This website is both entertaining and inspiring for kiddos and adults. Link: https://kidsforsavingearth.org/programs/eco/

Naturespath.com. This brand is usually one that I see in the grocery store, but their website is full of good ideas for young environmentalists. This page has 20 ideas for activities to teach kids about sustainability. From doing a water pollution experiment to making their own laundry detergent: there are some great activities listed. Link: https://www.naturespath.com/en-us/blog/20-activities-kids-learn-sustainability/

For the kid who loves music-

Classicsforkids.com- This website gives kids options in creating their own music. Kids can learn about composers, instruments, and design their own music. Link: https://www.classicsforkids.com/games.html

Merriammusic.com- Kids can learn about music notes, composition, and “aural training” (working with sound to identify patterns, note identification, etc.). There are seven large categories with fun games within each section. Link: https://www.merriammusic.com/images-2/music-teachers/online-music-education-games/

Our kids likely have plenty of different interests. The internet is a wonderful tool for us parents to use to find free, informative resources for our kids’ hobbies. In the early days of the internet, my dad would always say: “Whatever you want to know is right at your fingertips, baby”. Turns out, he was right. I hope these suggestions can provide some engagement for your little ones!