Staying connected with friends and family is important, especially during these tough times brought on by the pandemic. But with no access to an indoor playground due to the pandemic restrictions, kids have been losing out on their time to socialize. However, social distancing should be no reason for your child to lose out on socializing, which is why it’s important to get creative with virtual playdates. Here are a few ideas that you could use to host regular virtual playdates.

No indoor playground playdates? How about some fun virtual playdates instead?

Storytelling/Story Reading

You could host a virtual playdate in which each kid could recite a story to their friends. Or you could simply draw names and let the kids take turns to tell a story every week. If you would like to avoid storytelling, you can opt for the simple option of story reading, in which, children can read short stories or chapters. While this activity will facilitate a great environment for kids to virtually hang out with their friends, it is also an excellent learning method to practice their speaking skills.

Book Discussions

Taking your kids to an indoor playground with their friends does sound good, but until that becomes a possible option again, you could host book discussions. You could recommend a book for the week (or every two weeks), and when all kids are done reading the book, they could discuss details of the book, such as their favourite character, their understanding of the plot, and if they enjoyed the book or not. If it’s not possible for all kids to read the same book, each child could pick a book of their choice and have discussions along the same line. This is an exceptional way for kids to learn different perspectives.

Show and Tell

If your child has participated in show-and-tell at school, it would be a good idea to organize a virtual session with their friends. For this virtual playdate, each child could show and talk about a highlight of their week or month. The object that they wish to show and tell about could be anything. While some kids will probably tell funny stories, others would share insightful ones, and it will be a fantastic experience for all the kids involved.

We at Jungle Land can’t wait to see you and your children at our indoor playground soon, but until then, we hope that our ideas for arranging virtual playdates and throwing a virtual birthday party bring some joy to you and your family.