After a hectic week of work and tantrums with the toddler, every mother looks forward to the weekend, where they can unwind and do things that bring them some pleasure. Like watching a movie, shopping or visiting their favourite restaurant. But the biggest fear for a parent is to engage their children in busy restaurants where the waiting time is longer and to keep kids occupied while we savour our favourite dishes. We have come up with a list of the best things you could do to keep your children occupied when dining at your favourite place the next time!
1.I'm thinking of….
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This is a popular game you would 've seen on TV. Think of a personality or place and prompt your child to ask questions to deduce what/who you’re thinking of. With simple Yes and No as answers it's upto the child to guess the answer within limited tries.
2.Tic Tac Toe with straws and sugar packets
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The sugar packets in a restaurant are life savers. Trust me. When we went as a family to a popular place, my daughter and niece- both 3 years old kept themselves fully occupied with just a handful of these packets! Sometimes, the simple things are enough to make your kids smile. Go creative. Use straws to create a Tic Tac Toe board and sugar and sweetener packets as the X’s and O’s. The options are almost endless.Recognizing and creating patterns helps with the development of counting, strategy, problem-solving, and algebraic thinking.
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3.What’s missing?
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Place 10 items from your purse on the table in front of you. Have kids try to memorize items for 10 seconds. While their eyes are closed remove 1-3 items. Find out if your kid can identify what is missing. Helps in aiding your child's visual memory.
4.How many can you name?
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A simple game that doesn't need any props. Name a category and your child has 10 seconds to name as many things in that category as possible. Make categories general (animals) for young kids, and specific (animals with no teeth) for older kids.
5. Magazine hunt
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Carry a magazine or pick one from the waiting lounge when you head out. Turn the magazine into a scavenger hunt. Tell your kids to find out certain items, words, animals or colours from particular pages in the magazine. Will keep them occupied and in the process they will learn something new!
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6. Listen closely
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Determine a word or phrase to listen for. Everyone stays quiet until they hear someone else in the waiting area say that word or phrase.
7. Thumb war
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A super addictive game, your kids will never get bored of! Challenge your child to a game of thumb war while to get things exciting at boring restaurant waits. Works wonders on their fine motor skills.
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Rushita Sheth
Mansi Zaveri
KSP Team
Tanya Lemos
