Social Distance-Friendly Activities and Fun: Staying Safe and Sane During Covid-19
Covid-19 has our lives in upheaval. It’s changing everything, and causing stressors we never knew existed.
I keep seeing one constant need: Whether you’ve suddenly found yourself teaching home school, alone and isolated, or a parent of special needs children (like me), it seems we’re all desperate to find fun things to do while social distancing.
Some of us can go out and enjoy a walk, others are in quarantine. This Utlimate Guide to Social Distance-friendly Activities and Fun has something for everyone.
Service Opportunities
Helping someone else is one of the best ways to distract from stress. These are simple and fun ways you can serve while having fun AND maintaining social distance during Covid-19.
- 12 Ways Kids Can Serve Without Leaving Home
- Find Local Service Opportunities in Your Area (Some can be done from home!)
- Put Up Your Christmas Lights!
Virtual Tours and Field Trips
Coronavirus has put us all on lockdown. Why not “get away” from a little bit with one of these great virtual tours and field trips? (You don’t have to tell the kids how educational these activities are!)
Virtual Tour of The Famous Winchester Mystery House
Experience Virtual Disneyland Rides
Virtual Tour of Claiborne Farm (Thoroughbred Horse Farm in Kentucky, former home of Secretariat and other famous race horses. FYI: No horses appear on the tour until about 16 minutes in—the first part is touring the grounds and facilities.)
- Guided Tour of the Hal Prince Exhibit at the NY Public Library for the Performing Arts
- Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza (Spain)
- Musée d’Orsay, Paris
- National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art (Korea)
- Pergamon Museum (Berlin)
- The Vatican Museums
- Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History
- Van Gogh Museum (Amsterdam)
- The J. Paul Getty Museum (Los Angeles)
- The White House
- LA County Museum of Art
Virtual Performances
“Art is much less important than life, but what a poor life without it.”
-President John F. Kennedy
The arts add so much beauty and fun to our lives. Take some time to enjoy them! These social distant-friendly performances will entertain and uplift during Covid-19.
- BroadwayHD (free 7 day trial)
- 15 Broadway Plays and Musicals You Can Watch On Stage From Home
- Broadway World
- Special Musical Numbers: A page that provides a growing list of special numbers appropriate for church meetings in the home.
Seattle Symphony
Berlin Philharmonic (Use code “BERLINPHIL” before 3/31/20 for free 30 day access)
The Melbourne Symphony Orchestra
- Ballet on Marquee TV
- On The Boards (free through April with promo code: ARTATHOME20) Contemporary Dance and Performances
Animals and Nature
I’ve always been fascinated with animals and nature. There’s something wonderful that happens when you connect with the earth and its creatures. These animal and nature cams can help you feel less isolated and expand your world during the Covid-19.
Check out the beautiful and therapeutic horses of Access Adventure (pictured above), a 100% volunteer-run nonprofit organization. Access Adventure enriches the lives of people with disabilities and other underserved members of their California community by providing outdoor recreation, open space access, education and therapy, through a working partnership with horses.
- Cheyenne Zoo’s Spring Break Zoo Camp on Facebook Live
- Monterey Bay Aquarium
- Jellyfish Cam from Monterey Bay Aquarium
- Oceans Initiative streams with Live Biologists about orcas, dolphins, etc.
- Boston’s New England Aquarium
- Transylvania, Romania Live Animal Cam (Wonder if we’ll see any vampires or werewolves! )
- Smithsonian’s National Zoo
- Brooks Falls, Alaska (“The best place in the world to watch brown bears feasting on salmon as they swim upstream”)
- 50+ Animal Cams
- EarthCam features live and timelapse footage from around the world including animals, landmarks, skylines, tropical destinations, and more.
Classes and Tutorials
Because of coronavirus, so many of us are suddenly teaching homeschool! These classes and tutorials will add a little bit extra fun to your day of social distancing.
- London Bakery Is Live Streaming Baking Tutorials On Instagram
- Free Digital Cooking Classes For Kids Every Week Day from Delish
- America’s Test Kitchen: Resources to help kids learn in the kitchen—and make something delicious along the way.
Free eBooks and Audiobooks
Libraries may be closed, but you can still access so many books during Covid-19! These great resources range from free ebook and audiobook access to videos of wonderful books being read to you.
- Neil Gaiman Offers Tons of Cool Stuff for FREE
- Listen to FREE audiobooks online with Audible (no membership or credit card required!)
- Choose from over 300,000 FREE eBooks from the NY Public Library (limit 3)
- Storyline Online: Watch Famous videos featuring celebrated actors reading children’s books alongside creatively produced illustrations. Readers include Viola Davis, Chris Pine, Lily Tomlin, Kevin Costner, Annette Bening, James Earl Jones, Betty White and dozens more.
- The Big List of Children’s Authors Doing Online Read Alouds & Activities
- Free Access to eBooks Through Scribd for 30 Days
Activities and Education
These activities are both educational and fun, and will add so much fun to your socially-distant day during Covid-19! From simple crafts to STEM activities and resources, there’s a wealth of fun awaiting you.
- 63 Easy Science Experiments for Kids Using Household Stuff
- 100 Activities To Do At Home
- Fun Craft Ideas for Kids
- Weird and fun ways to keep your kid from being bored
- Students From Harvard, MIT, UC Berkeley Give Free Tutoring To K-12 Students
- Science Buddies free resources help continue STEM learning at home with hundreds of fun videos and activities
- Biology Simulations (worksheets also available)
- Nasa’s website features everything from educational activities, videos, live events, podcasts, ebooks, etc.
- Download Free Coloring Books from 113 Museums
- Educational Companies Offering Free Subscriptions
- 10 FREE Learning Websites for Kids
TV and Entertainment
Let’s face it. Sometimes you just need to sit, relax, and enjoy something fun together, especially when things are stressful or scary, like Covid-19. These entertaining ideas are a great escape and social distance-friendly.
- Two Weeks of VidAngel for FREE (VidAngel provides a way to skip or mute things you don’t want to see or hear in movies and TV shows)
- Join us on Facebook for lots of memes, a geek-centric community you’ll LOVE!