Family Support Connecting with others Free family activities Free family activities We thought it would be a nice idea to share some fun free activities to help make days fun for our families. We'll be growing this area over time and would love to hear your ideas, so please email us at [email protected] if you'd like to add an idea to our free family fun list. Our free activity categories are: Mother's Day fun Weekly activity planners Colouring activities Things to do in the kitchen Reading fun Animal adventures Science fun Keeping active at home Where to look for more ideas Apply for a Free Activity Pack! Thanks to our generous supporters and wonderful leading toy suppliers, including Tiger Tribe and Kaleidoscope, we have developed these Activity Packs to help children with neuroblastoma and their families whilst isolated indoors at home or in hospital. The packs are designed to help keep children entertained and engaged, with fun, practical games for long-term use. Packs contain quality brands including Djecco, MudPuppy and more, and all arrive in a handy cotton tote bag. We have now recently included a great wipeable colouring in set, perfect for hospitals. Families and Friends who would like to nominate a child with neuroblastoma cancer can apply using the link below. Apply for your activity pack here Mother's Day fun Delicious Frangipani Cupcakes Present Mum with a stunning bouquet of frangipani cupcakes! Download the recipe here and get baking! Printable fun Download your own frangipani frame to colour in here. Fill it with colour and put your favourite family photo in the middle or draw your family inside as a pretty gift for Mum. Northshore Mums have put together a range of wonderful free Mother's Day printables from breakfast menus to Mother's Day cards. Northern Beaches Mums have a Mother's Day Guide and gorgeous do it yourself Mother's Day card template. Weekly activity planner Sometimes a bit of routine can go a long way to making the days at home easier. Whether you're working from home or just looking for a way to structure your day, we've put together a couple of weekly activity templates that have helped us. The Neuroblastoma Australia Activity Template This Excel spreadsheet has been designed so you can copy and paste a range of activities for each child into a weekly schedule. The schedule is loosely based on the NSW Primary School day. The idea is to add activities around meal times into the schedule for each child in your house. We've added some activities (broken into: Preschool, Lower Primary and Upper Primary) into the template and added links. This means you can print out the full schedule (so everyone can see what the week ahead looks like) AND keep an electronic copy on your device to easily open each activity as you move through the day. Download the NBA Activity Template The Neuroblastoma Australia Activity PDF If Excel is not your friend, never fear! Here is are two PDF activity planners you can print out. We have a simple black and white version and a colour ready for you below. Just print out and hand write in your activities for the week. We've included a frangipani boarder for your kids to colour in and make the week ahead their own. Download NBA Activity PDF Simple Black and White Download the NBA Activity PDF Colour Colouring Fun Get colouring with lots of great print outs and activities available on Crayola. There are some fantastic Australian Easter themed colouring in from the Brisbane Kids website. Just visit the site directly or download these now: Colouring_Easter_Eggs Koala_Colouring_In Bilby_Colouring_In Kangaroo_Colouring_In Things to do in the kitchen Kids in the kitchen The Anzac biscuit recipe from 1920 is a great activity for Anzac Day on Saturday 25 April. Culinary historian Allison Reynolds the author of 'Anzac Biscuits, the power and spirit of a national icon' kindly shared this recipe with Sydney Living Museums and it is based on a hand written recipe found in a notebook that belonged to Carolyn Warner in South Australia. You can see our Superhero Maddie and her brother Levi making a delicious batch of modern day Anzac biscuits on the Facebook page Levi's Kitchen. Missing an ingredient? Great article from The Guardian which lists fun recipes to try when your cupboard is short on some baking staples such as flour or eggs. Take a look next time you head to the kitchen! Reading fun Walker Books activity centre Stay at home with your favourite book characters. Wonderful games, colouring in sheets, mazes, videos and author information from Walker Books. Have fun with Where's Wally? Guess How Much I Love You, Alex Ryder, Maisie Mouse or Go on a Bear Hunt. Take time to explore this faulous hive of activity inspired by Walker Books. Storytime Tune in to one of Berkelouw Books' Rhymetime sessions which are streamed through both Facebook and Instagram generally at 9.30am. Audio books Listening to stories is a wonderful way for children to unwind, escape and enjoy magical worlds. Although Australian libraries may be closed many are still leanding eBooks and audiobooks. Search for your local library to find out how to borrow music, magazines and interactive learning. You should also be able to join your library online and access your state library with your library card. Harry Potter at home Visit the Harry Potter At Home hub where you’ll find all the latest magical treats to keep your family occupied - including special contributions from Bloomsbury and Scholastic, nifty magical craft videos, fun articles, quizzes, puzzles and plenty more for first-time readers, as well as those already familiar with the wizarding world. Animal adventures Royal Botanic Gardens Sydney Discover online activities and resources for families, schools and communities through the Royal Botanic Gardens Sydney website. Entertain your kids with activities you can do at home. National Geographic Kids Club For kids who love exploring, learning and discovering new and exciting things The National Geographic Kids Club has fun activities, stories about other children around the world, games, competitions and entertainment. Wild classroom Help kids explore and understand the world around them through World Wildlife Fund's resources. Bring the zoo to you Fancy having a lion in your loungeroom or a tiger in your kitchen? If you search for one of the animals below through Google on your smart phone and click View in 3D the animal will appear in your camera! It's great fun taking photos of the kids with an Alligator, Angler fish, Ball python, Brown bear, Cat, Cheetah, Deer, Dog (Bulldog, Pomeranian, Labrador Retriever, Pug, Rottweiler), Duck, Eagle, Emperor penguin, Giant panda, Goa, Hedgehog, Horse, Leopard, Lion, Macaw, Octopus, Racoon, Shark, Shetland pony, Snake, Tiger, Turtle and Wolf. Check out the article from Google for a full 'how to' guide. Also, many zoos around the world are inviting you to join them for feeding times or to watch the animals play: Wildlife Park Sydney live stream Science fun Become a home astronaut The Space Station Explorers developed by the International Station and the U.S. National Laboratory brings together dozens of no-cost activities for the whole family. Out-of-this-world activities including story time in space, toys in space and loads of experiments to do at home. Take a look through the featured activities or search their entire catalogue for age appropriate ideas. Reach for the stars Visit NASA at Home for some wonderful family friendly activities including videos, activities and craft ideas to engage in the science of astrophysics and astronomy from home. Great for explorers! Staying active at home Rock painting Create gorgeous rocks at home with bright colours and messages of hope. Share the joy by creating a garden for others to enjoy, leave a happy rock for someone to find or brighten up your own back yard. Take a look at Whitsunday Rocks or the Kindesss Rocks Project for ideas and free online workshops. GrowFit toddler fitness fun at home Grow Fit have launched an interactive Da Fit Club, with loads of games for parents and educators to keep kids engaged and energised. Take a moment to check out their videos and activity schedule through their Facebook page. Play the wall game From the home of pre-school football Little Kickers comes the wall game - you just need a wall, chalk and a ball. That's all you need to practice your balls skills at home. Check out the game rules here. Yoga at home Join Cosmic Kids Yoga for Yoga, mindfulness and relaxation designed specially for kids aged three plus, used in schools and homes all over the world. What's your name activity game Here's a great exercise game from 730 Sage Street. Your kids will get a workout without realising it when you make fitness into a fun game with this spell your name workout. Where to look for more ideas ABC Education There are some incredible education and entertainment resources to be found through our national broadcaster through their ABC Education portal. ABC TV Education provides school programming during the school term, 10am–12pm weekdays. iview Education offers on-demand, curriculum-matched programming for primary and secondary students. Behind the News is a fun, high-energy way for students to learn about current issues and world events. ABC Kids Early Education offers an inspiring range of curriculum-linked ABC programs and podcasts for pre-school aged children. They also have a range of downloadable Apps and Games for kids to enjoy. Family Matters with HWK Family Matters is a new publication from Holidays With Kids and has some wonderful low cost or free options for online learning for kids and best educational apps for children. Check in with your local parenting groups We've listed a few of our best picks here but you might find your local parenting or community group has wonderful lists of free activities that other parents have recommended for your area. Manage Cookie Preferences