All over the world, parents are finding themselves having to step into new roles: the teacher, the remote employee, and the nanny. While parenting is nothing short of a full-time job in itself, having to do so while also aiding middle school math and also joining a work conference call can be exhausting.
To battle these new challenges that come with quarantining at home, we’ve compiled a list of essential tools parents can use to make life easier.
Virtual Field Trips
Many museums and virtual exhibitions have taken to the internet to connect with their visitors. These virtual tours bring you through entire exhibits and offer additional resources such as readings and videos to further your experience. While it may not be the complete, immersive experience you would receive in person, it can still be extremely educational and fun for learning little ones.
There are also many different live animal feeds where your children can watch animals in their natural or preservational habitats. A lot of zoos have cameras right in the main parts of their animal enclosures so online viewers across the world can revisit the animals they fell in love with while visiting.
Set up a virtual tour or live animal feed for your child on any internet-capable device and allow them to take it away while you run to your next meeting knowing that your child is enjoying a virtual field trip to almost anywhere.
Noise Canceling Headphones
While out of the office, unfamiliar noises and distractions can occur and might impact your productivity or concentration levels. One essential tool to consider is a pair of headphones that block outside noise and can help you keep focused on the tasks at hand and get more done in one sitting.
These headphones work so you don’t need to raise the volume of what you’re listening to in an effort to cover the volume of any outside sound. They are built so that no matter the volume in your headphones, it will cover the sound of the exterior noises. Because of this, they can also prevent hearing loss!
Anxiety-Management Applications
With the stress of everything going on in the world, it’s important to take time to check in on yourself. There are many different apps that have different approaches and methods but focusing on your needs will help you find the best solution. Look for apps that cover all of what it is you’re struggling with in one place.
Some popular applications provide free services with in-app purchases of membership opportunities. These are often guided meditations, movement exercises, and sleep-aid mindfulness guides to help create and reinforce a positive mental space for yourself and those around you.
While continuing to navigate this period of unknowns, it’s important to find things that work for you. Keep your mental health in mind while trying to operate as normally as possible during this unexpected period and be as open as possible when looking for new tech tools that can help.