With the COVID-19 pandemic, many are suddenly finding themselves with extra free time due to school closure until May 1st. There’s still plenty of entertaining and productive activities you can do while practicing social distancing.  Here are 10 ideas to try:

Bake/cook

Try new recipes and become a beginner chef. “I enjoy cooking because I like taking the ingredients I have in my house and making actual good meals while also taking care of some of the boredom. So far I’ve made chicken fettuccine alfredo, tomato spinach pasta, and chocolate lava cake,” Alexis Caretti said.  

Dance

Keep your body active in a fun way by listening to your favorite music or following along to another dance. Check out TikTok for simple dances. 

Work out or go out for a hike

Focus on your personal health. “I like working out in my free time because it keeps me in shape for baseball. Plus, it gives me something to do now that I can’t go anywhere and it keeps me feeling good,” Christopher Wagner said. 

Make art

Painting and drawing tutorials are free online or students can create on their own. “During my free time I love to draw because I feel like drawing and creating art is the best way that I can express myself, and drawing increases my creativity which I feel like is very important. It’s also been a way for me to get my mind off of everything going on and just helps me relax,” Allie Dunkhase said.

Clean and reorganize

Organizing your room, washing dirty clothes, taking out trash: you’ll feel better in a clean space.

Binge TV

From Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime and other streaming devices, there are plenty of shows and movies to choose from. Click here to read what other students are watching. 

Listen to new music

With two new albums from Lil Uzi Vert to the Weeknd’s recent album drop, enjoy some good tunes and explore some different genres. “I like Lil Uzi Vert’s music because I like how his voice sounds and I like the hidden meaning of his lyrics. I listen to him because I like his music and because he has nice beats with good flows,” Tyler Keeley said. 

Play with your pets/take them for walks

Have fun with your dog and get some fresh air. 

Relax/Spa day: face masks, bubble bath

Relax, rewind and revive. Here are homemade face mask ideas. 

Find a new hobby

Whether it be learning a second language or learning an instrument, now is the perfect time to learn something new. “I like playing the ukulele because for me personally it’s one of the easier instruments to learn. I’ve had ukulele for a while but with school and extracurriculars I never really had the time to learn the chords or how to play some songs, but now that we’ve been on this break I’ve been using this time to finally learn how to play,” Brianna Muldong said.