Social Distancing Toddler Schedule

Our daily routines have certainly changed these past few weeks because of social distancing and seem to continue to change with each passing day. Starting tomorrow our Governor has issued a “Stay At Home” order to help prevent the spread of COVID-19. This will result in even more parents staying at home with their children.

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Parents who are used to working outside the home might be at a loss for how to entertain, educate, and occupy their kids all day every day. I’ve developed a visual picture chart geared more towards toddlers and preschoolers to help parents get through this strange time. What we do know is that kids (and adults) thrive with a routine!

   

Here is what our social distancing daily routine looks like;

You can print out this SOCIAL DISTANCING VISUAL TODDLER SCHEDULE so your kids can follow along each day. Our visual daily schedule is hung on the refrigerator door and I move a clothespin each time we transition to the next activity’s picture.

This solves the problem of toddlers and preschoolers constantly asking for snacks, to watch a movie, etc. They can visually see what activities are coming up next meaning you won’t have to repeat yourself as much!!

I created this infographic using Canva. You can certainly make your own schedule to best fit your family’s needs.

If you want more details on how our days run during social distancing I’ve outlined it directly below;

7:00 – 9:00 Wake Up/Breakfast/Yoga/Get Dressed

While staying at home during social distancing we have been trying out this Kids’ Yoga show every morning and it’s wonderful! Each episode has a little story that is told while the children are doing their yoga poses and stretches.

9:00 – 11:00 Learning Activity or Go Outside/Snack/Errand (or Cleaning)/Play with Toys

Depending on the weather, we will try to take a hike (avoiding playgrounds and people!) or doing a few homeschool preschool activities. Last week we focused on learning shapes. For young children try to keep any type of educational activity fun and incorporate play.

*See my Instagram (@PlanningForKeeps) highlights “Stuck at Home” and “Kids’ Activities” for learning activity ideas.

I made this visual before the Stay-At-Home order was given so we were running errands (mostly to the grocery store but otherwise staying in the car) at this time as well but obviously starting tomorrow we will not.

Instead, the kids can either play with their toys, continue to complete more learning activities or help me with a cleaning/organization task.

11:00 – 12:30 Lunch/Pick Up Toys/Reading

12:30 Nap/Quiet Time

If your children no longer nap or take short naps, try to give them a few activities they can do quietly in their rooms.

3:00 – 5:00 Watch TV or Movie/Learning Activity

If we are all going to be stuck at home I think we need to give parents slack about screen time during quarantine. We need screen time to get dinner on the table, get some laundry folded, etc. There are a lot of great streaming services that offer free trials – take advantage now!

Regarding snack, unless my kids ask for one I don’t offer a snack after nap because I find they eat more of their dinners without one. If a snack is asked for I let them eat a small one while watching a tv episode or movie.

5:00 – 7:00 Dinner/Bath/Books/Bed

I hope this visual toddler schedule has helped you come up with your own new social distancing routine. If you need more ideas for how to keep your kids busy please check out my list of activities for kids during social distancing!