or, How to Stay Sane During a Pandemic

by Kate Spaulding

Friends, neighbors, countrypeople, this is an unprecedented time in our world. We know some of what we have to do: wash our hands, physically distance ourselves from each other, wash our hands, limit grocery runs, be kind to ourselves and our community, wash our hands, and work together. But we're also learning to navigate working from home (sometimes for the first time), cooking more, battling cabin fever, and managing kids who aren't in school. It's times like these that demonstrate the strength of our communities and adaptability of the human race. You're not in this alone.

To that end, we're rounding up resources to help you reach the light at the end of the tunnel. Do you have more great ideas? Please, add them to the conversation in the AWCA Facebook Group!

Working from Home

• 8 Tips To Make Working From Home Work For You
• How to Work From Home the Right Way
• The most important thing is to have a routine - it can be the same for 5 days a week and then slightly different for 2 days a week - like that you can try to keep a similar rhythm to normal (whatever that is). Don't be afraid to do things that use to seem stupid - move furniture away from walls so you can walk around rooms completely. Create different spaces in your home so that it is clear what happens where to support routines - this is the play corner - or we play when we put this out etc. This is the eating time. This is quit time. Create virtual community groups - there are other people out there that you know with small children that can organise whatsapp singing a longs or reading stories etc. But ROUTINE and virtual communities will save you! --from Aine Markham via Facebook
• The Remote Work Mega Guide
• How to Work from Home Like a Boss

Activities

• When It Comes To Exercise, 'All Movement Counts'
• Get Fit — Faster: This 22-Minute Workout Has You Covered
• Exercise Ideas for Adults and Kids when the Gym is Closed
• Walk, run, bike and keep track of distances covered. Maybe you can walk as far as it is from New York City to Washington D.C., or bike the distance between Amsterdam and Paris!
• Your Gym Might be Closed, but Coronavirus Doesn't Have to Keep You from Your Workout
• Virtual Field Trips
• Visit a National Park
• Stuck at Home? These 12 Famous Museums Offer Virtual Tours You Can Take on Your Couch
• NASA's Entire Media Library is Free and Publicly Accessible
• Plan a Trip
• How to Bake Everything
• Read a Great Book (or Twelve)
• Learn or reengage with knitting, sewing, crocheting, embroidering, quilting, sashiko, quilling, macrame, punch crafts, cross stitch, needlepoint, beading, painting, drawing, photography, meditation, prayer, journaling, podcasting, coding, reading, writing, songwriting, music, puzzles, games, memorizing poems or plays, gardening, building, cooking, baking, fermenting, exercising, yoga, a new language, bird watching
• 12 Productive Things You Can Do to Feel Better About Being Stuck at Home
• Lunch Doodles with Mo Willems
• A Compendium of Recommended TV Shows to Watch on Streaming Services
• Netflix Party
• YouTube Streaming Free Anime Movies for Inuyasha, Sailor Moon, and More
• Pay TV Channels, Business Services Free During Outbreak (Netherlands specific)
• Metropolitan Opera "Nightly Met Opera Streams"
• Wiener Staatsoper Live at Home
• The Environmental Film Festival in the Nation’s Capital - many of the films are free to view
• How to Create and Invite into a Group on WhatsApp: instructions for iPhone and Android
• How to Make a Video Call in WhatsApp: instructions for iPhone and Android
• Use FaceTime with your iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch
• To learn how to join a Zoom meeting, please click here for a tutorial.
• 7 Science-based Strategies to Cope with Coronavirus Anxiety
• Social Distancing Comes with Social Side Effects – Here’s How to Stay Connected
• How Hope Can Help You Healthier and Happier
• Many religious services are being conducted via video. Check with your local community and with any larger umbrella parts of the organization as appropriate (for example, check with your local Catholic church and also on the Pope's website).

Especially for Parents

• How to Work From Home With Children
• I Homeschool My Kids and Also Work From Home — Here's How I Do It
• Working From Home & Managing Childcare
• Resources to Use with Kids While Schools are Closed
• Little Stories for Tiny People
• Actor Josh Gad Is Reading Books to Kids Online Every Night During Coronavirus Quarantines
• Storytime Online
• Flannel Boards and Songs from a librarian
• Scholastic Learn at Home
• Education Companies Offering Free Subscriptions Due to School Closings
• A Mega List of Things to Do with Kids While Quarantined
• Resources to Engage Kids at Home
• Making the Most of School Closures
• Practical Guide to Home Learning (Based in Hong Kong, but still applicable. Starts around 4:20)
• Teens at Home: A Survival Guide
• Coronavirus and Kids: Talking, Doing, Learning
• 4 Ways to Help Kids Relax as Coronavirus Upends Everyday Life