You may be telecommuting and your children are home from school.  How do you keep your children occupied, engaged, and learning during this pandemic, and remain productive yourself?  Here are a few ideas.

• The Des Moines Public Library as well as other local libraries are a great resource to rent e-books and audiobooks, stream movies and TV, learn new skills, and more. This can all be done online. Cowles Library is also physically closed, but all electronic resources are available remotely.
• The dsm4kids website has a number of online learning resources from reading and vocabulary to math and history for children of all ages.
• USA TODAY and CNET shared a variety of online learning resources for pre-K-12 children. It includes sites such as Scholastic and PBS.

Try to create a daily schedule to help your children have a routine.  Some of the activities should be educational — your child’s formal structured educational assignments or the online educational resources mentioned above.

Mix in fun activities.  Depending on the child’s age it could include board or video games, streaming movies, baking, arts and crafts, or any outside the box ideas. Also, alternate between busy and quiet activities.

Even with social distancing, it is important for everyone to go outside for some fresh air and physical activity.  Families can spend time safely outdoors, maintaining safe distances.

When the day is done, maintain a regular sleep schedule.  Don’t let your children stay up too late or sleep in.  This will help them keep a routine.

For more information on ways to stay healthy, and tips for working remotely, please visit drake.edu/coronavirus and click on the Health & Wellness Guide from HR found in the Human Resources section of this page.

— Linda Feiden, Human Resources