Due to the unexpected coronavirus outbreak, students may be subject to at least two weeks doing virtual school in quarantine, which could lead to catching a whole other disease that has nothing to do with the rapidly spreading virus: extreme boredom. 

From 7:45 am to 2:30 pm, students will be working on their assignments, as they would on a normal school day. For the rest of the day, students would have to be home in quarantine. 

They wouldn’t be able to participate in their daily after school activities, such as sports practice, dance, drama rehearsals, clubs, and more. 

Students will have limited contact with each other in order to avoid getting sick. Because of this, students may begin to show symptoms such as loneliness, fatigue, inability to sit still, or incessant pantry searching. These are all effects of the dangerous disease of boredom. 

To control this, here are some activities to do at home that will ease these symptoms and keep everyone entertained: 

1. Board Games- Sit down with your family and play Heads Up, Uno, or Monopoly. 

2. Netflix, Disney +, or Hulu- Binge watch all your favorite shows, such as Vampire Diaries, The Office, The 100, and more on Netflix. Catch up on all of your Disney Channel favorites, including Lizzie McGuire, Camp Rock, and Suite Life of Zack and Cody. Cry your eyes out watching One Tree Hill or Big Little Lies on Hulu! 

3. Go into the pool with your siblings and play Marco Polo, pretend to be a mermaid like the girls from the infamous show, H2O Just Add Water, or play any of your other favorite water games!  

4. FaceTime- If you’re missing your squad, you can FaceTime up to 31 of your closest friends at once! 

5. Read- Immerse yourself in the world of your imagination. If you’re feeling adventurous, read the Divergent series or The Huger Games. If you’re in the mood for some romance, read Eleanor and Park or any John Green or Nicholas Sparks book. 

6. YouTube- Catch up on the lives of your favorite YouTubers, like Emma Chamberlain or David Dobrik. Maybe even watch some of Shane Dawson’s conspiracy theories. 

7. Online shopping- Since you can’t visit your favorite stores in person, shop through their websites! 

8. Organize and clean your room- Take this opportunity to fix your drawers and closets, do laundry, and make sure everything is as sanitary as possible.

9. Make Tik Toks- Master all of the dance trends, have a laugh doing funny videos, and share them with your friends! 

10. Bake and cook- Make brownies, a cake, cupcakes, or some chicken nuggets to enjoy while doing any of these other activities. 

The boredom disease is real and can put a damper on the time that might need to be spent in quarantine. These activities can relieve you of any of these debilitating symptoms. 

If virtual school becomes a reality for ILS because of the coronavirus, stay safe and try not to catch the boredom disease. Spice up your time at home and use these tips!