Free family activities to keep you occupied during the lockdown
There are plenty of new things that you can try during the current lockdown, many of which are great for the kids too – here’s some of our favourites!
With the country currently locked down in an effort to halt the spread of Covid-19, many of us may be thinking about all the things we’re not able to do at the moment. However, there’s also plenty of new things that you can do, many of which are great for the kids too!
Here’s some of our favourite ideas to try out:
Choose from hundreds of free audiobooks for the kids
With the majority of school children now learning from home, Audible has released a collection of audiobooks for free, saying they will be available “for as long as schools are closed”. Books include Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, The Secret Garden, Winnie the Pooh and Timeless Tales of Beatrix Potter.
Online PE lessons for kids every weekday morning with Joe Wicks Every weekday at 9 am, Joe Wicks (aka ‘The Body Coach’) is live-streaming a 30-minute PE class on his YouTube channel for free. If you can’t tune in then don’t worry – you can watch them back whenever you want. If your kids are getting restless, this is a great way to get them burning off some energy and a fun way to start the day if you’re home-schooling.
Find your zen with free meditation via the Headspace and Calm apps They’ve both released free content specifically to help those struggling with anxiety and stress at this time.
New classic box sets on BBC iPlayer The BBC has added loads of new content to stream on iPlayer, offering lots more entertainment options while we’re stuck indoors. These include classic box sets, and there are some decent films available too.
Free three-month language course for schoolkids from Rosetta Stone Another fantastic learning tool ideal for home schooling or even just learning something new – Rosetta Stone is offering school children free access to its popular language courses for three months. There are more than 20 languages to choose from and if you have more than one child, you can sign up multiple times – you just need to use a different email address each time.
Free home-schooling resources, including Carol Vorderman’s Maths Factor Kind-hearted Carol Vorderman has announced that access to her maths school The Maths Factor will be free while schools are closed. It’s ideal for 4 to 11-year-olds and is matched to the national curriculum. You can also access fun spelling app Sir Linkalot for free until the 12th of June 2020. To get access, you’ll need to sign up to the mailing list, and then receive a free code.
Free workouts from Thor for six weeks Ok, so it isn’t actually Marvel’s god of thunder, but it’s close enough with Thor actor Chris Hemsworth announcing his health and fitness programme will be free for six weeks. It includes workouts with world-class trainers, meal plans and mindfulness exercises. If that wasn’t enough, you can also get a free 30-day membership of Davina’s McCall’s Own Your Goals fitness programme, which includes a number of different classes such as interval training, boxing and dance. No payment details are needed to access the free trial.
Free ballet and opera broadcasts from the Royal Opera House
If you fancy something a little more reserved or want to take the opportunity to try something different altogether, why not tune into The Royal Opera House’s free broadcasts on its Facebook and YouTube channels, including:
Così Fan Tutte, The Royal Opera, 2010 – 7pm on Friday 10 April
The Metamorphosis, The Royal Ballet, 2013 – 7pm on Friday 17 April
After they’ve been broadcast, these performances will be available on those channels to view ‘on demand’, so don’t worry if you can’t tune in at the times above. There’s also free content from the Royal Opera House available on BBC iPlayer to watch anytime.
Free online guitar lessons for three months from Fender
If rocking out with air guitar is more your scene and you’ve got a guitar lying around, now could be a great time to learn a new skill. Legendary guitar manufacturer Fender has made its online guitar courses free for three months. You’ll need a code to access the courses, but don’t hang – there were only 100,000 available when the offer was launched on Friday 20th March. You can choose from acoustic, bass, electric or ukelele, plus a variety of different music styles.