By Varese, adapted for 13 Stars Newspaper by the Editorial Board.
This year our Easter break falls during the nCOV-19 quarantine period. It doesn’t sound very exciting, but it is still possible to have a great holiday.
With your help we collected ideas how to make it happen.
If you have any other ideas, send them to us through our Instagram button in the corner of this website and we will update the article.
1. Family time together. Apart from some well know social family games, like: cards, chess, domino, table games (like Monopoli), try out these new suggestions:
- Taboo,
- Concept (test your logic!),
- Spot it!,
- Melissa & Dough Suspend Family Game,
- Hasbro Clue Game,
- Wonder Forge Richard Scarry’s Busytown Eye Found It!,
- Chutes and Ladders,
- Trivial Pursuit,
- Hasbro Gaming Mouse Trap Board Game,
- Telestrations – The Telephone Game Sketched Out,
- Calliope Tsuro,
- Ravensburger Labyrinth Family Board Game,
- Yahtzee.
- CASHFLOW is a bit more expensive but it indirectly teaches essential life skills of money management. This game is developed by Robert Kiyosaki, author of the #1 personal finance book of all time, “Rich Dad Poor Dad”.
You will find all these games on Amazon or other online platform.
2. Construct something together with your father or mother.
Build your own robot from the kit. 14 in 1,powered by sun, transformable and will keep adults and teens aged 10 and up focused for quite some time.
Build-your-own STEAM toy! This one by Curate company features 25 different models to construct trucks, cars, helicopters, airplanes, cranes, and more, with working 6V motors.
Search online for more similar activities.
3. Write up your family history. If you are fortunate still to have your grandparents, use this time and interview them over the telephone or Skype. Write down the family history, adventures and collect some old, black and white photos to illustrate.
4. Create your story. Notebook, pen and creativity: you can write whatever you wish. Decorate it with scrap booking techniques to make it unique.
5. Write your diary and decorate it with scrap booking.
6. Write a letter to yourself in 10 years.
7. Take part in our school’s poem and drawing competition (Varese). The theme of this year is ADVENTURE: DISCOVERY, TRAVEL AND LOVE. If you get an inspiration, write a poem or draw and submit your entry by the 24th April 2020 by email: [email protected]. The poem can be in all European languages. If you have questions, you may contact the two coordinators: Mr. Philippe Vincent and Ms. Erika Szemecsko. Take a look at the submissions and winners from last year.
8. Write an article for your schools’ online magazine or 13 Stars Newspaper, on whatever topic you wish and submit to us through “contact us button” (13 Stars–>Contact). You can also send us your drawing, stories, videos and anything else you create, and feel free to express your opinions about climate change (some resources can help, e.g. Cut11Percent.org).
9. It’s time to work out together.
Have you tried some fitness with your family? The Insider magazine has collected free online sources to exercise alone, with other family members, or to learn martial arts: a collection of free online resources in English.
In need for something more? Here are must know self-defence (autodifesa) exercises for girls and moms.
Ecrosskidss is an Italian sports company, which is now posting daily 30 minutes video workout sessions in Italian and you can subscribe to receive daily newsletter by email: check online.
10. Camp in your garden. If you are a lucky one to have a garden, build an Indian tent and make a fireplace (surround your fireplace area with stones).
Some have suggested fire baked potatoes, and some of us prefer marshmallows roasted over. Some of you suggested singing a tune or joke telling competition around the fireplace.
On this website there are several inspirational outdoor forts to make.
11. Indoor Picnic. Don’t have a garden? Lay out the picnic blanket, set out plates with snacks and drinks and napkins, and enjoy an indoor picnic.
12. Build a fort with blankets and pillows at home. If you don’t have a garden, make a tent at home. From pillows and blankets, cutting off an old box, or even building up one from wood. Here you will find some indoor forts to make at home with your younger brothers and sisters.
13. Be creative.
If you like drawing, on Instagram there are several arts tags to be followed.
You can find inspirational ideas on Arte per Te Facebook and their Youtube lessons online.
Make a comic story from your drawing and send to us (through “contact us” button).
Put your drawings together and make a cartoon animation. You will find plenty of online tutorials how to turn your drawings into animation.
Here is an interesting TED talk to be watched: “Why people believe they can’t draw – and how to prove that they CAN“.
14. Indoor Games. This web page contains 15 games to play at home. Many ice breaking games and ideas can be played in small groups and with few family members.
15. How to make shadow figures with your hands? Here is the video online.
16. Try some experiments:
- crystal-growing kit by National Geographic is a hands-on and affordable way to experiment geology,
- Snap Circuits “Arcade”, Electronics Exploration Kit,
- conduct physics, chemistry, and biology experiments with tools and ingredients found in any kitchen.
17. Take on a Lego challenge. You may print out a 30-day Lego challenge calendar and try out one a day. If you set a time limit, this could become also a family competition.
18. Create a home version of a popular game show or a theater performance.
19. Try a new language: something completely different, like Japanese, Chinese, Russian, Arabic, Hebrew, Sanskrit…Search for free online courses or download Duolingo.
20. Gardening. If you do not have a garden, try out planting some tomato seeds in the pots inside, cultivate mini aromatic plant pot in the kitchen, or plant some flowers in the pots at home.
“Il mio orto“and “Il mio giardino” books are for kids with samples to try out even in the apartment.
21. Try new flavours.
Learn how to choose tools, ingredients, how to cut and match ingredients and to make an Asian wok.
Quick and delicious, the chicken curry recipes in English will take you to India.
By now you have probably tried many cakes and sweats. Change the flavour and try French tartes salèes. You may find some totally unexpected combinations in the online blog in French here.
Stay healthy and mind the environment with “Plant Jammer” app. Download the app, choose your goal, and whenever you have to cook just add which ingredients you have at home, and the app will suggest recipes for you! It will help to avoid the food waste.
22. Forgotten handcrafts.
Try out your handcraft capabilities, such as knitting or pottery. Follow the Pinterest “Pizzi e merletti uncinetto” for inspirational ideas or this blog “Unicinetto e ricamo”.
Some books have collected lots of forgotten tips and trick for boys and girls.
”Avventuroso libro per Ragazze Coraggiose (tutto quello che una ragazza, di qualsiasi età deve sapere)”. It is a translation from the original in English “The daring Book for Girls”.
Similarly, here is another book with things to do: “Girl’s Book Per Ragazze in Gamba”. It is a translation from the original in French: “Le petit manuel des filles curieuses et débrouillardes” and is available in many foreign languages.
Boy’s book per ragazzi in gamba. Tutto quello che dovresti sapere per vivere l’avventura! It was also translated in many languages; search if it was translated in your language.
23. # Esco da casa con fantasia. This is a new encouragement by the Mondadori publisher. It encourages reading and travelling with fantasy.
Jules Vernes is known for travelling around the world in his room by reading. But one would never guess it from his realistic adventures! His capturing book “Captain Grant’s Children” (“I figli di capitano Grant”) is translated into so many languages that you should be able to find and buy one in yours.
The German historian and writer Liselotte Welskopf-Henrich wrote several bestselling books about the Native Americans. A well known saga of “Harka” describes the life, adventures and struggles of the native American Indian boy. You will not be able to stop until you read all six books. You may buy it online in German and try to search if it was translated in your languages.
If you like stories about the native American Indians, then you may like “The last of the Mohicans” by James Fenimore Cooper (“L’ultimo dei Mohicani“). It is well known novel and was translated into many different languages.
“The Time Machine” is the science fiction book, published for the first time in 1895 by H.G.Wells. It became classics translated into many different languages. Do not watch nor movie, nor cartoons, but immerse yourself in this amazing adventure.
The Three Musketeers (“Les Trois Mousquetaires“) is a historical adventure novel written in 1844 by the French author Alexandre Dumas. It’s popularity lead to many cartoons and movies, but nothing can be compared to the book. The intrigues of the French court will not let you stay away until you finish! The book was translated into many languages so you should be able to buy one online.
Gone with the Wind (“Via col vento”) by Margaret Mitchell is another bestselling novel, written in 1936. It won lots of prizes and is translated into multiple languages. The book will take you back to the American Civil war and will reveal you lots of historic details, notwithstanding being a difficult human life story. Don’t even try to compare to any movies! You will not be able to separate from this book until you finish reading it.
The Thousand and One Nights (Le Mille e Una Notte; Les Mille et Une Nuits) will take you into the mixture of Persian, Indian and Arabic stories. The book is written in a twisted manner which will grasp your attention just like Scheherazade got attention of the Sultan and by telling those stories each night during the three years she eventually saved her own life. The book is of nearly 1000 pages, so once you are over, probably the isolation will be over too!
24. Have a wonderful Easter time! We received these ideas:
- decorate your house,
- create Easter table decorations,
- decorate Easter eggs (samples on Pinterest),
- make original flower and vegetable bouquets (on Pinterest you’ll find lots of inspirational ideas),
- organize the Easter egg hunt (inside or in your garden, here are 10 original ideas),
- give a smile to your neighbors (even from a distance),
- and call your grandparents if they are not with you.
25. Watch some thought-provoking talks about politics, society and life from The Full Circular here and here and here.
