REC at HOME

Weekend Activities

SOCKer Ball, learn how to make your own SOCKer Ball with Canada Scores:

https://www.canadascores.org/scores-at-home

Static Electricity Butterfly Craft/Experiment:

https://iheartcraftythings.com/static-electricity-butterfly-experiment.html

Spell Your Name Children Workout Activities:

https://www.730sagestreet.com/spell-your-name-workout

Games to Play / Get Moving

Physical literacy activity backpacks Encouraging physical activity as well as literacy all in one bag (includes balls, a frisbee, a skipping rope, and book)!

Outdoor nature backpacks: includes gardening, fishing, hiking, insect, letterboxing, snowshoeing, and stargazing

Bean Bag Toss

Using cardboard boxes cut a hole in the middle of the box. These will be your targets
Fill Ziploc bags with dirt, sand, kernels, rice etc. to use as your bean bags

Marshmallow Toss

Set up buckets about a foot or so apart from each other. Give each bucket a different point value.
Each participant gets 5 marshmallows to toss. At the end of each round tally up your points to find a winner

Flashlight Tag

This game is played best at dusk. The tagger gets a flashlight while everyone else hides outside in the dark. If the tagger shines the flashlight on you, you have been caught!

Rainbow Bubble Snakes

Only a few items are needed to make these rainbow bubble snakes. Follow along here: http://www.housingaforest.com/rainbow-bubble-snakes/

Flashlight Dance Party

Make sure everyone has a flashlight, crank up the tunes and DANCE!

Crafts / Gardening and more!

Star Gazing: Check out an Outdoor Nature Backpack from the County of Brant Public Library – Stargazing backpack (includes a telescope, binoculars, and more)

Check out gardening tools from the County of Brant Public Library for all ages and abilities:

Children’s gardening tools (forks, trowels, weeder for little hands)

Ergonomic hand gardening tools (ergonomic cultivator, trowel, and transplanter)

Seed Library: Choose from over 80 varieties of seeds, grow them in your garden, and then return your saved seeds to the County of Brant Public Library in the fall.

Follow the County of Brant Public Library on Social Media for Craft ideas and more!

Facebook.com/brantlibrary/

https://www.brantlibrary.ca

Fireworks Salt Painting

Items Needed:

• Cardstock (paper plates can work too)
• Salt
• White School Glue
• Watercolour Paints

Using your white school glue draw out firework shapes on your cardstock
While the glue is still well, pour salt all over your designs- would recommend using a baking sheet or plate to catch the excess salt!
Dip your watercolour brush gently into paint and dab your picture. Keep dabbing until all of our salt is covered. 

Build a Bird Feeder

Learn how to make a bird feeder from recycled materials you have at home:  Make a Bird Feeder

Other cool links to check out:

County of Brant Public Library

Offering free online programs for all ages year-round. Also take-home activities, gear and gadgets, and more.

Follow the County of Brant Public Library on Social Media for Craft ideas and more!

Facebook.com/brantlibrary/ (current link does not work on COB website)

https://www.brantlibrary.ca (current link does not work on COB website)

Sign up for Earth School

30 days of daily adventures – or Quests – that will help you understand and celebrate our natural world, while learning about how dependent we are on our planet.
https://ed.ted.com/earth-school

Take the Online Recreation Programs Survey

Let us know if you, or your family are interested in participating in registered online programs.

Please fill out the survey in the link below:

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/programsonline

Games and puzzles: Borrow games and puzzles from the County of Brant Public Library (video games,  jigsaw puzzles, fossil and geology kits)

Tumblebooks for kids: Access audiobooks, read-along e-books, electronic graphic novels, National Geographic videos, games, and puzzles for elementary and middle school kids online

Bath and Water Friendly Play Dough Recipe

1/4 cup Bubble Bath – I like to use a more natural product with no additional scents (we add essential oils to create our own scents), but you can use your favourite bubble bath. Just pick one that makes lots of bubbles!

1/2 – 3/4 cup Corn Starch (varies slightly based on your bubble bath type)

1 tsp Coconut Oil – You can substitute sweet almond oil or grape oil, but we always have coconut oil in the house, so that’s the easiest for us. You can also leave out the oil if you wish, and simply increase the bubble bath a bit. It is so dry where we live, the oil really helps my son’s skin. It also gives the play dough a much smoother, silkier feel.

Essential Oils – optional, it depends if your bubble bath is scented already

Colouring – optional, but fun!

In a bowl mix together the bubble bath, essential oils and add the colouring (if you want uniform colour or leave it until later for a marble effect). Melt the coconut oil in the microwave if it’s solid, then add that to the bowl.

Finally, add the corn starch. Start with 1/2 cup and mix it in, if it doesn’t pull together add another 1/4 cup of corn starch and continue mixing. As you mix it will pull together into a nice, solid ball. Start kneading with your hands to really mix it all in. This is a great activity for the kids to do.

There may be some extra corn starch left in the bowl, that is fine. Simply discard it.

If you wanted the marble effect, add the colouring now to your bubble bath play dough, or leave it creamy white for a beautiful, natural finish.

Store in an air tight container and use within a week. We found it started to dry out and pull apart after a a few days. Of course, once you are in the bath and getting it wet, you don’t notice that anymore.

How To Use Homemade Bubble Bath For Kids

To use simply give your child about a tablespoon sized ball of the playdough bubble bath to play with in the bath. Holding it under the water will help create more bubbles.

You can also use it in sensory play, as part of a water table, for your kids to use when cleaning toys like Lego or figurines.

The making of this DIY playdough is also a fantastic sensory experience and fine motor strengthening activity.

Boks Canada October Fitness Calendar

Sign up for a free account at bokskids.ca to access the October Fitness Calendar and the Pumpkin Race

Walking Trails

Be sure to check out various walking/biking trails throughout the County of Brant this fall!  For more information including our Outdoor Adventures Map please visit www.brant.ca/trails

Storybook Walks in the Park: Take the family outside and enjoy and picture book as you stroll. Visit the Green Lane Sports Complex (8 Green Lane, Paris) or the Mt. Pleasant Nature Park (755 Mt. Pleasant Rd., Mt. Pleasant).

Sign out a FitBit from the County of Brant Public Library –

FitBit One activity trackers: monitor how many steps you take

FitBit wristband trackers: online tracking of your steps, heart rate, and more

Visit an Ontario Provincial Park with a day pass from the County of Brant Public Library. Day pass includes unlimited daily entries for one vehicle to over 100 provincial parks

Easy & Moderate Walking/Biking Trails

TH & B Rail Trail

LE & N Rail Trail

SC Johnson (Brantford to Paris)

Cambridge to Paris Rail Trail

Brantford to Hamilton Rail Trail (Cainsville to Jerseyville)

Lions Way

Vigorous Walking/Biking Trails

Barker’s Bush

Grand Valley Trail

Jacob’s Woods

Brant Pedalers and Paddlers

Check out the web page for Brant Pedalers and Paddlers. They offer multiple organized walks every week for active adults visit http://brantpandp.yolasite.com for more information.

Try out these fun ways to get moving at home!

Penguin Waddle Relay

Set up an area either inside or outside of your home to complete your relay. Place an object in between your legs and waddle through the course. Use a bucket or mark an area for items to be dropped into.

Concentration Ball

Standing in a circle all players must underhand toss the ball to another player. Pick a theme such as animals, colours, fruits, etc.
One person starts with the ball and says something that fits the theme, and the name of someone else standing in the circle
Try and see how many rounds you can complete without repeating any words!

The Floor is Lava

This game can be played either inside or outside. Use objects (couch cushions, pillows, sheets of paper, books etc.) to make your way from one end to the other without touching the floor. See how creative and how far you can get.

Beans on Toast

Choose 1 person to be the leader; they are going to call out different types of beans. Each bean will have an action associated with it. When the bean is called out the group does that action. The goal of the game is to see how quickly each action can be completed without any mistakes.

String Bean- stand up straight with your hands above your head
Chili Bean-Shiver like you’re outside in the cold
Red Bean- freeze
Green Bean- run as fast as you can on the spot
Dancing Bean- show off your best dance move
Beans on Toast- drop to the ground and lay flat on your back

Design your own obstacle course

What kind of obstacle course can you create in the backyard? Raining? No problem! Move your course indoors throughout your home

Family Fun Exercises

Nothing beats a little exercise, so why not do it all together?
25 Star Jumps

20 Squats

15 crunches

Hop like a bunny around your living room

Frog Races

Play a game of Popcorn!

How to play? Find anything you can toss in the air. Throw it as high as you can and see how many times you can clap your hands before catching it again.
Follow along with our friends at Playworks -  YouTube link

Freeze Dance

Put on some music and bust out your favourite dance moves. When the music stops don’t forget to freeze! Challenge family and friends over Facetime/Zoom

Keep Up

Using a balloon see how many times you can hit it before it hits the ground

Rock, Paper, Scissors, Stretch!

Challenge someone in your household to a game of Rock, Paper, Scissors, Stretch! The goal of the game is to stay balanced without falling over.  Start out by facing your partner and play a round of Rock Paper Scissors. Each time you win a game stay where you are and don’t move your feet! If you lose a game, stretch out by one foot length. Keep playing and stretching out after each round! The game is played until one of the players loses their balance.

Youth Activities

Registered kids programs are available for free through the County of Brant Public Library. Check out After School Celebrations  or Friday Winter Fun for some children and youth programming.

Sock Hockey

Balloon Tennis/Volleyball

Forts
Build a fort, or challenge your friends who can build a better fort!

Penny Boats 

Build a boat out of tin foil and see how many pennies it can hold before it sinks. Build a boat on your own or compete with your family members and see who can build the strongest boat!

Build a bridge and see how much it will hold

Drums Set with pots and pans 

Easy slime recipe

Show and tell with family/ who's the best dancer or singer.

Dream catchers

Paper airplane contest

Create your own board game - Design your own board game and teach it to your friends and family.

Create your own Obstacle course – see who can complete it the fastest in your family

Origami

Bowling with plastic cups- All you need is plastic cups and a soft small ball.

Long jump/ Run and Jump/ Jump backwards – tape lines on the ground so people can see how far they jumped.

High jump onto bed – hold a broom stick up while the children jump over the broom onto bed

Balloon Blow race – Set up a “course” and see if your child can blow a balloon all the way to the finish line. They’ll have to do lots of army crawls working their upper body and core strength along the way.

Sticky Spider Web: Use painter’s tape to make a web-like design on a doorway opening. Give your kids some newspaper to scrunch up and throw up at the web. Or get creative and use other light-weight objects like balloons. Have them count how many objects stick versus how many don’t for extra learning points.

Balloon or cup race tic tac toe

Hallway Laser Maze - Use tape to create a laser maze

Additional games

Family Activities

Get the whole family involved in these fun at home activities!

EarlyON

EarlyON is offering both virtual and in person programming. Check out their website for programming details:

EarlyON Website

County of Brant Public Library

Offering free online programs for all ages year-round. Also take-home activities, gear and gadgets, and more.

Autumn Scavenger Hunt- https://www.cbc.ca/parents/play/view/printable-autumn-scavenger-hunt

No Bake Spiced Playdoh- https://www.messylittlemonster.com/2018/10/easy-no-cook-playdough-recipe-autumn-scented-playdough.html

Visit an Apple Orchard in the County of Brant!

Brantview Apples and Cider- https://www.brantviewapples.com/
Orchard Home Farm- https://www.orchardhomefarm.com/
Scotview Orchards- https://scotview.ca/

Try some fall inspired ideas in the kitchen!

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies- https://kidsactivitiesblog.com/1442/pumpkin_chocolate_chip_cookies/

Apple Chips- https://www.foodiefun.net/easy-apple-chips

Roasted Pumpkin Seeds- https://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/toasted_pumpkin_seeds/

Colour Scavenger Hunt

Set a timer, pick a colour and see how many household items you can find that is the same colour. The person who finds the most can pick the colour for the next round.

Marble Painting

Items Needed:

A cookie sheet or container big enough to hold your paper
Paper
Different colours of paint
Marbles or other small balls

Directions:
Place dabs on paint onto your paper
Place the marbles onto your sheet of paper and move your cookie sheet around to make the marbles roll through all the different colours of paint

Minute to Win It Challenges!

Cookie Face
Place a cookie (Oreos work best) on the child’s forehead. They’ll need to use their facial muscles to move it down their face and into their mouth—without using their hands.

Stack Attack
Give each player one single stack of plastic cups. Everyone gets one minute to stack all of the cups into a pyramid and then unstack them, making a single column again.

Johnny Applestack
Each player has one minute to stack five apples (or three for younger kids) on top of each other and stay for three seconds.

Noodling Around
Start this minute to win it game with one strand of uncooked spaghetti; the player puts the end of the dry noodle in their mouth. You then have 60 seconds to pick up six uncooked pieces of penne pasta—with the spaghetti, without using your hands!

Cereal Scramble
Cut the front of a cereal box into equal pieces. Stack the pieces into a flat tower and set a timer for one minute. Everyone has their own minute to piece the cereal box together.

Go Fish!
All you need is straws and 2 plates. In one minute see how many goldfish (mini marshmallows also work!) you can transfer from one plate to another only using the suction from the straw.

More fun ideas for at home!

Family Movie Night: Borrow the latest movies and TV shows from the County of Brant Public Library. Bring your own snacks!

Get creative and check out a maker kit from the County of Brant Public Library. Kit types include paper punches, rubber stamp kits, spinning wheel kit, stamp mats, wood burning kits, and more!

Paper Airplane Races

Have everyone make their own paper airplane and choose a designated start and stop line. See who’s airplane can go the farthest, the highest, who’s has the best crash landing etc.

Fort Building Contest

What kind of fort can you build in 30 min? Challenge your families and friends to a fort building contest. Once the timer is up share your pictures with your competition to determine a winner.

Family Movie Night

Pretend you’re at the theatres. Create tickets and have someone collect before the movie begins.

Don’t forget to purchase your snacks from the Snack Bar Attendant!

Backyard Bird Watching

What kinds of birds can you see and hear from your backyard?

Hawaiian Beach Party

Throw on some Hawaiian music and dress in your best beach wear for an at-home beach party. Try out a game of limbo and learn to do the hula dance.

Family Talent Show

Organize a family talent show where everyone can show off their hidden talent. Create posters, set the stage and get ready to perform!

Lego Colour Stack Challenge

What can you build using only one colour of Lego? Have everyone choose a different colour of Lego and see what kind of structure they can design.

Lego Sky Scraper

See who can design the tallest Lego structure without falling down.

Around the World Trip

We may not be able to travel right now but that doesn’t mean we can’t bring their cultures to us. Explore new countries and what makes them unique. Print off a world map to colour in with each new country you’ve visited.

Family Camp Out

Plan a camp out in your living room. Set up your tent (or build a fort) and roll out your sleeping bags. Take turns telling spooky stories and singing campfire songs.

How creative can you be?  Try these DIY at home activities!

The County of Brant Public Library offers tools and other gadgets like a power drill & accessories, multimeters, a toolbox (includes basics like hammers, screwdrivers, and more), digital radon detector, sewing machines, soldering iron kits (includes soldering iron, holder, solder) and more.

View, print, or download repair information for your vehicle with the County of Brant Public Library’s Automate DIY Auto Repair online research page.

Leaf Painting

Items Needed:

Blank paper
Paint
Paint Brush
Fall leaves

Directions:

Go outside and find different kinds and sizes of leaves
Paint one side of the leaf making sure the paint isn’t too thick, but the entire area is covered, using as many colours as you would like
Carefully pick up the leaf and lay it on your paper paint side down and gently press on the leaf to make the print

D.I.Y Puzzle

Items Needed:

8-10 Popsicle sticks
Marker

Directions:

Lay out all of your popsicle sticks side by side
Draw a picture over the entire wooden surface, adding as much details as you would like
Once you’re finished, mix up the pieces and give to a friend or family member to solve!

Tire Truck Painting

Items Needed:

Blank piece of paper
Paint
Toy cars

Directions:

Add drops of paint all over your blank piece of paper
Using your toy cars make tire tracks throughout the paint and see what type of tracks each car leaves behind
*Don’t forget to fill up your sink with soapy water for the car wash once you’re done!

Design your own Maze

Have lots of sticks in your backyard? Create your own maze and challenge others in your home to make their way through

Fort Building Contest

What kind of fort can you build in 30 min? Challenge your families and friends to a fort building contest. Once the timer is up share your pictures with your competition to determine a winner.

Family Kitchen Challenge

How creative can you be? Use ONLY ingredients you currently have in your kitchen that are not essentials (think sprinkles, jello, etc) create a fun treat! Set a time limit and GO!

Build your own structure

What kind of structure can you create using only recycled materials?

Design your own Puzzle

Draw a picture on a piece of paper making sure to cover the whole area (cereal boxes work great too!) Stencil out your puzzle pieces and cut along the lines to create your puzzle pieces. 

Cardboard Boat Challenge

Using supplies you already have in your home create a cardboard boat that can float! Test it out in your bathtub or sink. 

Fluffy Cloud Dough

This fluffy cloud dough is easy to make and only requires 2 ingredients!

Ingredients:

2 heaping cups cornstarch

1 cup conditioner

Food Colouring (optional)

Add corn starch and conditioner to a bowl. Begin stirring it with a spoon until it gets too tough to stir. Begin kneading with hands until completely mixed together, if using food colouring add it now (don’t forget gloves)

Rock Painting

Look for rocks in your backyard for a fun art project. Create your own Rock Monsters or garden markers for your vegetable garden.

DIY Calm Kits for Kids

https://www.andnextcomesl.com/2016/09/homemade-calm-down-kits-for-kids.html

12 Quick and Easy Craft Ideas from Crafts Pal

Visit the websites below top take a virtual tour - all from the comfort of your home!

Virtual Field Trips

Visit Mars

Tour Ontario’s Parliament

The Royal Tyrell Museum

LEGOland

Tour the Amazon Rainforest

Parks Canada

Parks Canada 360 lets you explore Canada’s national parks and hidden gems.

Ripley's Aquarium

Check out the live Shark camera from the Ripley’s Aquarium in Toronto

Farm Food 360
Immerse yourself in Canadian farm and food tours.

Click on the links below!

Action Songs:

Monster Shuffle Link One

Monster Shuffle Link Two

Halloween Dance Party

Scarecrow Song

Sensory Activities:

Check out an acoustic guitar or a soprano ukulele and teach yourself to play a musical instruments or register for the County of Brant Public Library’s ukulele program

Listen to music from the County of Brant Public Library’s catalogue to find musicals and concerts on DVD or download or stream music for free from Hoopla and Freegal.

Borrow a SADD Light Therapy Lamp from the County of Brant Public Library to boost your health and wellness this season

Check out the County of Brant Public Library’s Technology kits to learn computer coding, develop logic and knowledge with fun games (basic starter kits, Code-a-Pillar, Makey Makey kits, Osmo kits, Ozobot) or have fun with a GoPro Hero kit or a Launchpad

Sensory Crafts:

Outdoor Sensory Motor Scavenger Hunt

https://theinspiredtreehouse.com/activities-for-kids-sensory-motor-scavenger-hunt/

What you’ll need:

-Outdoor Sensory Motor Scavenger Hunt Printable (fill out the form below with your first name and email address)

-pencils or crayons

What to do:

Print the scavenger hunt list, round up your little ones, and head outside!  Give everyone a pencil or crayon to bring along so they can mark off the things they have found.

The kids will notice right away that this isn’t just any old scavenger hunt.  Rather than just finding and collecting items on a list, they’ll have to find the listed objects and perform a variety of gross motor tasks.

They’ll use all of their senses, looking, touching, and maybe even getting a little messy along the way.  Who will be the first one to find everything on the list?

How to change it up:

-Make it a photo scavenger hunt!  Take a picture of your child performing each activity and pictures of each of the items they found to complete the list.

-Make it a team effort – have two groups competing against each other to find everything on the list!

DIY Calm Kits for Kids

https://www.andnextcomesl.com/2016/09/homemade-calm-down-kits-for-kids.html

Let's get physical!  Check out the links below:

Kick Off - Strength Training and Cardio for Personal Fitness

10 exercises for a great parent and kid workout from ActiveKids

Get moving with Disney Family and the Incredibles with their super hero inspired workout

YouTube link

Join a challenge individually, as a family or a team challenge. Visit Participaction website for more details.
 

Cosmic Kid’s Yoga teaches Yoga and Mindfulness to Kids—while keeping it fun! Cosmic Kid’s offers a variety of different videos for a variety of ages and skill levels.

www.youtube.com/user/CosmicKidsYoga

Alphabet Fitness

https://www.canadascores.org/scores-at-home

Seniors Section

Healthy Aging Without Walls Program – City of Brantford / Brant County Health Unit / Adult Rec and Therapy Centre

https://www.brantford.ca/en/living-here/healthy-aging-without-walls.aspx#

Safe Zone

https://www.safezonebrant.ca/exercise-videos.html

Brant Pedalers and Paddlers

Check out the web page for Brant Pedalers and Paddlers. They offer multiple organized walks every week for active adults. Please visit http://brantpandp.yolasite.com for more information.

The County of Brant is offering Zoom fitness classes for winter 2021. To view available programs visit our virtual programs page for more information. Register through C.O.B Connect.

Check out the following online links to fitness classes:

Yoga With Cassie - Free online yoga classes - Check on Facebook for dates and times

CORE Dance Studio - Offering virtual workout classes

https://crunchlive.com/

Pop Sugar Fitness

Home workouts for seniors

Believe in Yoga Online

https://shop.lululemon.com/story/yoga-videos

https://ymca360.org/on-demand#/category/85

https://www.fitnessblender.com/videos

View a comprehensive guide on how to build your own workout routines on our sister site, Sport Fitness Advisor. Visit https://www.sport-fitness-advisor.com/workout-routines.html

Try out the following at home exercises using minimal equipment:

Check out the following Free* workout apps!  Download where ever you get your apps!

Nike Training App

Sworkit App *Some in-app purchases may apply

Fit App *some in-app purchases may apply

My Fitness Pal

Fitbit App

Have your Kids Create by picking up a free craft kit from the Library—new activities available each month!

Scholastic Canada is allowing free access to their digital platforms to keep kids reading, thinking and learning. Resources are available from Kindergarten to Grade 12.

http://scholastic.ca/education/free_digital_resources/

Sesame Street offers ideas to help your family to breathe, laugh and play together. Online and Offline resources are added weekly.

https://www.sesamestreet.org/caring

Crayola Canada offers a number of create-it-yourself activities for all ages and FREE colouring and activity sheets for kids!