Just because its not summer doesn’t mean we cant all enjoy a good picnic! So why not grab your hats, coats, picnic blankets, baskets, hot water bottles and hot chocolates and head outdoors for a good old fashioned picnic! Our 15 best places to share a family picnic might provide some inspiration for places to go. Most offer ample space for social distancing but please consider certain popular places could be busier during half term – maybe mix it up and have a breakfast picnic instead?
Geocaching is an outdoor recreational activity, in which participants use a Global Positioning System receiver or mobile device and other navigational techniques to hide and seek containers, called “geocaches” or “caches”, at specific locations marked by coordinates all over the world —there are probably some near you right now. Download the free Official Geocaching app to your phone and start finding.
You can find out more about Geocaching in Wharfedale & Craven here
If you have all the gear and nowhere to go why not set up camp in the back garden? Spend a couple of nights (or just one!!) on a Staycation at home. Leave your phones indoors, light the BBQ or make a fire, roast marshmallows, tell stories and enjoy some family time disconnected from the world.
No gear? No problem. Set the kids to creating a den or tent indoors. Use the dining room table or the backs of the sofa to create the tent and away you go!
There are more Staycation at home ideas here
Check out our February Half-Term Boredom Buster for the national days happening over the week and have a go at enjoying a themed day!
You can download a PDF version here
Mix up your daily exercise with a Strava map art walk: all you need is the Strav map app on your phone and the kid’s imaginations! It’s a great way to get the kids engaged in a walk and running around creating their masterpieces.
With no home school to be getting up for the kids can have a bit of a later night, wrap up warm, take some hot drinks and take a night walk to go stargazing, we love the free app Star Tracker so we can tell which stars and planets we are looking at!
We are always a big fan of Deershed at Mumbler and unfortunately, it could not go ahead this year. But there are so many things we can do to create the festival vibes at home! Get the face paints and fancy dress on, see above for some camping ideas, decorate the house with bunting and lights if you have them and then watch highlights of your favourite festivals online! You can catch most festivals on YouTube, or take a look at the BBC iplayer for some great Glastonbury highlights!
You could also hire a hot tub or bouncy castle as a treat for the kids for the garden to give a real festival feel!
As there has been no Olympics or European championships this year why not create your own? Pick a country to represent, dress up in their colours, create your own competition numbers and start your competition!
You could try one of the below events
You could buy cheap medals online to present to the winners!
During the pandemic, a local village has initiated some great community initiatives including window rainbows and they have started a COVID-19 rock snake!
Children and adults are being encouraged to decorate rocks and pebbles and add them to the snake to see how far we can get her (they have called her Corona the Snake!) to go throughout the village.
As we can’t all be together with our family and friends, this is a perfect way to all to work together and show community spirit. Also a great art and crafts project for the kids over half term!
You can spend the whole week in Disneyland, a day trip to London or even a virtual trip to a Local Leeds Museum Galleries and Attraction. The Vlog of the cute baby animals at Temple Newsam is one of our favourites! For lots more ideas of virtual day trips visit our dedicated blog here.
When I heard about the idea of a virtual cookalong from our friends at Ryedale Mumbler I thought it sounded a great idea! My daughter and her friends are really into cooking and before lockdown, they had planned a bake sale which sadly we had to postpone. The idea with the virtual cookalong is you all make the same recipes linked via zoom – (e.g. quiche and a pudding, we have some recipe ideas here) then you zoom again (or stay on) for the kids to eat together. A great way for the kids to see friends! you could also create a theme for the cookalong and dress up if you fancy!
Another idea I heard from a friend is a zoom sleepover! This might be one for the older kids but apparently, they all zoom and play games, listen to music, get ready for bed, have a virtual midnight feast and then go to sleep!!!! Anyone else tried this?!
For more inspiration of things to do over February Half Term click here.
