If you are short on simple, ideas and activities to occupy the kids this Easter holiday, here are a few tips.  Sometimes when life gets a little frantic all that brain energy is suppressed by the noise and chaos going on around you.

The result is your mind goes blank when those cries of "I'm bored" surface from the children. So here are a few activities that can turn doing nothing into doing something - if that makes sense.

Kids Like Helping - So let them help

Kids really like helping, well small children do.  The bigger variety of kids think they can do it better and in their own way, without any interference.  Both present challenges.  If you have chores to do, try to get the children involved. This is an opportunity for you to show them how to do stuff.  Yes it will take longer for you to vacuum, dust, wash up, but they and you will both benefit from the interaction. The trick here is to keep the activities simple, not too time consuming and make them fun.

Big kids, can be more of a challenge. If joining in with the chores just isn't an option giving them a schedule of chores that you would like to be done daily or weekly over the school holidays with a prize or some pocket money at the end of it, can work well.  The trick here is to make sure that you put good ground rules in place, and don't succumb to doing the chores yourself, because you want it done right now and they say they are planning to do it in manyana time.

Kids Like Parties - Hold a Tea Party/Supper Party

Giving children, or even teenagers for that matter, a focus for the day is a really good idea if everyone is feeling a bit bored.  So for example hold a tea party, an Easter bunny picnic, inside or outside.  The preparation for the party, is the key here. The party can involve preparing the food, baking, making invites, themes putting on a show etc.

It does not have to be a grand affair, it can just be you and the kids attending, along with a few dolls or teddys. You could even play some simple party games like musical bumps, dead lions or pass the cushion. (This requires no preparation unlike pass the parcel). 

Teenagers organising their own little supper party, for you or their friends, can keep them entertained for hours.  It also may encourage them to make dinner a little more often.

Go for a Walk and Make it Fun

Family walks can be perceived as boring for kids, but taking a bike along, a simple picnic and playing a game along the way can make all the difference. Here are some simple ideas.

• Play hiding seek 
• Look for different colour stones, or leaves
• Play I spy or scavenge for items which start with a particular letter
• Make a fairy house with sticks and stones in the hole of a tree
• Look for wildlife, and watch insects.  Children are fascinated by these small creatures.
• Build a camp
• And if you can not go for a walk, you can do all these things in the garden or at the local park.

Have an East Egg Hunt

Buy some small Easter Eggs and hide them round the garden or house, for the kids to find.  Alternatively have a treasure hunt and use Easter Eggs as the "treasure" at the end.

Have a daily egg hunt over the holidays, a good activity to keep the kids busy and limit the amount of chocolate they eat each day. And actually this works for all ages even Mums and Dads.

Here are some more ideas to occupy the kids over Easter if you are feeling at a loss.

• More Ideas for Scavenger Hunts
•  More Ideas for Cooking Games