With the pandemic keeping people away from others and trapping them with their families, many have begun to run out of things to keep their boredom and existential dread away. Luckily, Orbiter editors have put together a list of suggestions to keep active. Here are a “few” suggestions of quarantine activities to keep people busy for hours!Ohio COVID-19  – Click on this link to view COVID 19 statistics, tips for coping and keeping busy, and more.

 Virtual Exhibits for Online Learning and Fun

• Google Art Project – Online exhibits from some of the most famous museums around the world such as the Van Gogh Museum, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Art Institute of Chicago, and more.
• Ohio History Connection – Learn about Ohio’s rich history from the Ohio History Connection.
• Musee du Louvre – View some of the world’s most famous masterpieces on display in Paris, France.
• National Gallery of Art – Online exhibitions, video, and audio from the Middle Ages to the present.
• National Museum of Nation History – Tour the Hall of Mammals, Hall of Geology, Gems, and Minerals, Hall of Fossils, and more.
• The Getty Museum is asking people to recreate artwork using random house objects
• Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden – Keep learning while the zoo is closed with a Home Safari video highlighting an animal each day along with an accompanying activity.
• Greater Cleveland Aquarium – Watch the sharks, moray eels, stingrays, angelfish, and a giant barracuda in a 230,000-gallon shark exhibit
• Monterey Bay Aquarium – Watch sea otters, sharks, jellyfish and more.
• Smithsonian’s National Zoo & Conservation Biology Institute – View the zoo’s elephants, pandas, naked mole-rats and lions in their habitats at the zoo.
• Toledo Zoo & Aquarium – Learn about the zoo’s conservation efforts of many endangered species.
• Zoo Atlanta – Check out the zoo’s live PandaCam.
• At-Home Learning for High School
• edX – Courses from leading universities and colleges. 
• Exploration of the Day – Artist Keri Smith provides daily creative prompts for making artworks at home.
• InfOhio – A digital library of resources for Ohio’s preK-12 students. 
• Manufacture Your Future – Learn about advanced manufacturing and digital technology at an Advanced Manufacturing hub in Alcoa, Tennessee.
• Nova – In-depth science documentaries and series from PBS.
• OhioMeansJobs.com – Map a plan to success after high school. Set up an account and online backpack to explore career options, build a resume, create future budgets, and find resources for college and career readiness.
• PBS Learning Media – Videos and activities for a variety of academic subjects.
• TEDEd – Educational and entertaining videos on a variety of topics, including the arts, health, science, social studies, technology, and more.
• World Atlas – Visit the seven continents of the world through an interactive map
• Sidewalk Chalk Art

Mazes

Hop scotch

Obstacles

Life-size board games

Tic-tac-toe

Quotes

Greetings to neighbors and friends

Positive affirmations

Hashtags (#stayathome, #myquarantaenagelife, #parquarantine, #togetherapart, #flattenthecurve #copingwithcovid)

Walk your dog (or your cat)

Theme nights (combined with movies, food, games, music with said theme)

• Hawaiian 
• Various Holidays
• Seasonal
• Decades
• Steampunk
• Futuristic
• TV show/movie marathon
• Camping
• Your dream destination vacation
• Pioneers
• Medieval 
• Prehistoric
• Space
• Underwater
• Escape room
• Mystery 
• Games
• Spa

[/sidebar]

Create new foods with the stuff you find in your refrigerator/freezer/cupboards

Rewatch old movies/TV Shows from your childhood

Holiday Specials (“Good Luck Charlie,” “Spongebob,” “Drake and Josh”)

Puzzles

Bike or hike outside 

• Portage Hike & Bike Trail
• Find an Ohio State Park
• Wild Hikes Challenge

Portage Trail Locations:

BERLIN LAKE TRAIL 

10228 ST RT 224, Deerfield Twp.

232 Kirkbride Rd., Deerfield Twp.

DIX PARK 

7318 ST RT 44, Ravenna Twp.

HEADWATERS TRAIL 

4633 Mill St., Mantua Village

10602 Vaughn Rd., Mantua

10446 Asbury Rd., Hiram Twp.

10480 ST RT 700, Hiram Twp.

10647 Freedom St., Garrettsville Village 

10482 South St., Garrettsville Village 

MORGAN PARK 

8828 ST RT 44, Shalersville Twp.

SHAW WOODS 

7075 Beery Rd., Ravenna Twp.

SENECA PONDS PARK

515 Mondial Pkwy, Streetsboro

THE PORTAGE HIKE AND BIKE TRAIL 

535 Cleveland Rd., Ravenna

1557 Lake Rockwell Rd., Franklin Twp.

784 Judson Rd., Franklin Twp. 

TOWNER’S WOODS PARK 

2195 Ravenna Rd., Franklin Twp. 

Scavenger hunt (take pictures)

Hide rubber duckies

Hide painted rocks

Spot 5 people outside

Hide individual letters or words that would create a word or sentence

Spot a pinecone

Spot an acorn

Spot someone gardening

Gardening 

Buy seeds from the store or go through your garage/shed and find seeds

Buy little plants for your room

Start a compost – using biodegradable products to fertilize a garden (you can get a kit from Aldi) (fruit peels, eggshells, dryer lint, rotting fruit or veggies)

Make an obstacle course with things from the garage/shed – #parquarantine

Check out online libraries that provide books, movies, and more

Books Selected for Choose to Read Ohio 2019 and 2020

Choose to Read Ohio

The Ohio Digital Library – OverDrive

Join an online book club: Online Book Clubs You Can Join Anytime 

I spy

Charades

Indoor/outdoor bowling

Simon says

Scrapbooking

Plan a dream vacation

Ohio. Find It Here. | Travel Ohio

Tripadvisor

Orbitz Flights, Cheap Vacations, Rental Cars & Hotel Deals

Jetsetter | Trip Ideas. Destinations. Food + Drink. Hotels. Style.

Movie marathon

“Harry Potter”

“Lord of the Rings”

“Transformers”

“Men in Black”

“Back to the Future”

“Indiana Jones”

“Marvel Cinematic Movies”

“DC Comics”

“Twilight”

“Pixar”

“Star Wars”

“Rom Coms”

Duck Duck Goose

Hide and seek

Order foods from different restaurants and see if you can tell the difference between their foods (mac and cheese, sandwiches, etc.) or have a family member do a blind taste test between your creation and the restaurant food.

Podcasts:

“The Bridge”

“Archive 81”

“Alice Isn’t Dead”

“Welcome to Night Vale”

“The Bright Sessions”

“Marvels”

“Point Mystic”

“The Daily  – The daily news from the New York Times”

Crafts

Make Slime – add glitter, charms, beads, food dye, gems

Purchase canvas, acrylic paints, and brushes

Paint fruits and vegetables Morgan Reece
Freshman Jessica Reece shows off her lemon painting.

Recreate logos like Campbell’s Soup or Nestle

Paint food company characters/mascots:

Morton’s salt girl with the umbrella

Tony the Tiger (frosted flakes)

Buzz the Honeybee (honey nut cheerios)

Snap, Crackle, and Pop (rice krispies)

Kool-Aid Man

Toucan Sam (froot loops)

Keebler Elf

Jolly Green Giant

Trix Rabbit

Lucky the Leprechaun (lucky charms)

Mr. Peanut

Chester Cheetah (cheetos)

Ronald McDonald

Wendy

Sun-Maid Girl (raisins)

Miss Chiquita (bananas)

Pillsbury Doughboy

Aunt Jemima (breakfast foods: pancake mix & syrup, mostly)

Count Chocula (chocolate cereal)

If you’re bold, try to recreate famous paintings like the Mona Lisa, or Starry Night, or The Scream

Make a wreath – materials:

Burlap fabric

Painted letter, preferably your family’s initial

Pom-poms

Ribbon

Wrapping paper

Wine corks

Fake/real flowers

Ornaments 

Twinkle lights

Glitter/sparkles/gems

Tassels

Paint

Twine

Fake/real leaves

Example with burlap fabric and family initial: ‘R’ for Reece

Morgan Reece
Freshman Jessica Reece made a wreath out of burlap for her family door.

Make bouquets out of fake or real flowers

Set up a photo booth with a tapestry and good lighting -props/accessories:

Sunglasses

Boas

Feathers

Sequins

Emoji cutouts on a stick

Brightly-colored, wacky clothes

Clean out a junk drawer and find the weirdest item possible

Post a picture of said object and challenge your friends to do the same, and possibly find something even more random and weird

Match food characters/mascots to the product – make it a game in which you ask your friends questions such as…

“What cereal does Tony the Tiger represent?” Answer: “Frosted Flakes”

“What character represents Honey Nut Cheerios?” Answer: “Buzz the Honeybee”

“What food product does Sun-Maid Girl represent?” Answer: “Raisins”

“What food product does Miss Chiquita represent?” Answer: “Bananas”

The Orbiter staff hopes students and staff make use of these tips and don’t put this quarantine time to waste. After all, everyone is living through a major time period in history right now, and no one will ever get this time back. At the end of the day, remember the most important thing: wash your hands!