Whether you're trying to juggle working from home or just need to entertain they kids, these time-consuming activities will give you some "me-time". Photo / Getty Images
Whether you're trying to juggle working from home or just need to entertain they kids, these time-consuming activities will give you some "me-time". Photo / Getty Images
As isolation boredom sets in for children, and work for parents continues, unsupervised activities are what make the home go round.
Here are five time-consuming things that the kids can happily do, unsupervised.
1. A food challenge
Set a timer for 45 minutes, give them a minimum of five ingredients and recipes that can be safely done unsupervised.
Sydney mother-of-three Amy Cadwallader set her daughters Coco, 11, Lily, 10, and Evie, 7, the challenge – and was thrilled with the delicious results.
"I needed to get some work done so set the girls a MasterChef challenge – with the added rule of whinge and you are disqualified," she said.
"I basically put a heap of ingredients along our bench and they had to create a dish using at least five ingredients – I gave them 45 minutes and I left the room.
"Coco is almost 12 so she was in charge. I felt fine leaving them in the kitchen unsupervised as they all cook a little bit.
"They created their menus, wrote them up and they also had to plate up their dishes."
It's like a MasterChef mystery box. Photo / Supplied
She and husband Toby scored each meal out of five for categories including presentation, taste, creativity and menu.
"The creations were so good – who knew pizza sauce with cheese could actually make a nice and simple pasta dish," she said.
"It was a risk but with awesome results – I'll be pushing the repeat button on that one."
2. Get creative
Older kids craving technology can be given the time-consuming task of compiling and editing old family footage into a movie. There are free editing apps that are perfect for young tech heads, giving them plenty to do, while ticking off a monotonous job for parents.
Sydney mother-of-three Nic McClanachan said they came up with the idea to make videos and start a YouTube channel dedicated to the escapades of their new kitten Bella.
"We wanted to find something the kids could project manage themselves, and they jumped at it," she said.
"The first thing we did is set up a shared album on photostream so the kids could access it, and then we downloaded iMovie onto their shared iPad.
"While they got busy editing one video each, I set up a YouTube channel Bondi Bella, and I also found them free music to download so they could use that when they were editing."
You could be nurturing the creative talents of the next Steven Spielberg. Photo / Supplied
Linking the account to social media, she said the kids have grand plans for their work.
"The kids are so pumped they're creating something and connecting with people, they just want to keep making more," she said.
"I think they've got grand plans of thousands of subscribers, but right now I'm just loving that they're working on this fun, creative, self-managed project."
3. Trusty Lego Lego is always a winner. But instead of spending hundreds of dollars on big, intricate sets, why not set them their own challenge of creating something using every piece of Lego in the house.
Yes that's right. Every. Single. Brick. It will entertain them for hours, and rediscover all of the pieces normally stuck at the bottom of baskets filled to the brim with forgotten Lego of all shapes and sizes.
"My boys are obsessed with Lego; they love it," said Mudgee mother-of-three Licia Curro.
"It's such a great outlet for creativity and keeps them entertained for hours, and it's something they don't need me for.
"My boys have also started making a cubby house which they are loving – they have a hat rack, and a table and chairs and hung up paintings – it's their own little sanctuary, which is important too."
Draw a chalk caterpillar down the whole street, from corner to corner. Or cover the back wall in rainbow-coloured chalk bricks, or draw intricate hopscotch creations down the path.
"Four kids on our street have been busy drawing the world's longest caterpillar," said Northbridge resident Bonnie Moroney.
"They did about 120m in one go and the next day they continued with about another third of the street.
Genius. Photo / Supplied
"Now other kids have continued it and it's an ever-expending landmark – such a great idea."
5. Do a puzzle
A big puzzle – the kind that takes days for each family member to do their bit, piece by piece. If you've done all the puzzles in your house, set up a swap with friends for something different. For the wow factor, you can also buy personalised puzzles online, to keep them extra interested.
A tried and tested way of passing the time. Photo / Supplied
Venus Puzzles cost about $50 for a 500-piece, and it's as easy as uploading your favourite photo and customising the box – and the best news? They'll land on your doorstep in just a few days.
