Tips for keeping your kids busy at home, BBNaija and New Football Season on DStv!

Intermittent lockdowns have become somewhat of a regular occurrence, bringing with them some challenging home dynamics. For some of us, that means parents working from home and children learning from home, which can be difficult to juggle. Throw in school holidays, and parents everywhere may feel like running away from it all.

It’s only natural for children to want to spend time with their parents, after all, especially if they’re at home. Unfortunately, this situation can be tricky when working from home is a concept not well understood by the little ones. As a result, tempers may flare up and conflicts may arise. A great way to help children understand the reality of what their parents are doing is to check out The Dream Job on Saturday, 7 Augustat 3:30pm on Da Vinci Kids, DStv Channel 318. In this show, company bosses allow children to join their companies for a week in the hopes of igniting a future passion and career.

To keep the peace, and your sanity, here are some other ways to keep kids busy, active and entertained while you work hard to bring home the bacon.

Embrace the great outdoors

If you have a garden, we have some suggestions to get the kids out of your hair. First on the agenda? Camping. Challenge the kids to build a tent, or fort, outside and spend the day ‘camping’. They can spend time looking for creepy crawlies, play some games and eat their favourite snacks – without making a mess inside. To inspire their outdoor adventures, The Bureau of Magical Things will have them looking for fairies, elves and a whole load of magic to save the world. You can catch it on Monday, 2 August at 4:30pm on Nickelodeon, DStv Channel 305.

Another great idea is having a picnic outside. Lay a blanket outside, prepare their favourite snacks and let them enjoy the ultimate parent-free feast. And if you don’t have an outdoor space, they’ll have just as much fun camping and picnicking in the lounge!

Clean things up

Let’s face it, toys get dirty. So why not let the kids have fun playing with soapy water as they clean up their toys – and kill germs in the process. Give them everything they will need to make their prized possessions squeaky clean and set it up in the bathroom or kitchen where cleaning up spills is easier. It’ll keep them busy and helps with the chores – win-win.

Movie day

Snacks, blankets and a line-up of kid-friendly shows ready to be played – that’s all you will need for this one. Let the kids choose the movies and contribute to the snack making process. If your children would rather leave the line-up to someone else, Nicktoons has a great schedule of shows lined up for International Friendship Day. Make movie day on Friday, 30 July from 79:45am and tune in to Nicktoons, DStv Channel 308, to join in the fun.

Another way to keep kids busy is to watch Just Roll with It. This show features audience participation that determines the outcome of various situations. When the air horn goes off during the show, the cast leave the stage and get the audience to decide what happens next. What will happen next? Find out weekdaysat 2:35pm on Disney Channel, DStv Channel 303.

DIY crafts

There are so many easy-to-make crafts out there, why not find a few age-appropriate options for your children to try? Not only will this buy you an hour or two of quiet, but it could also turn into a hobby that they actually enjoy. This will require some prep, so research some ideas on the weekend, make sure you have the supplies they need and then leave them to unleash their creativity!

To manage your DStv account and parental controls, download the MyDStv app. You can also stream your kids’ favourite shows on the go with the DStv app.

The BBNaija Shine Ya Eye housemates had their first Head of House challenge Monday night with Peace emerging the winner. The Head of House (HoH) challenge is the first task of every week and is considered one of the most important tasks in the BBNaija show as it grants the winner immunity from the week’s evictions.

Like last year, the housemates got to play the game of dice. Biggie announced that the board game would remain constant throughout the season, but the challenges will change each week. The theme for this week’s challenge was ‘childhood memories’ and the tasks in tonight’s game had the housemates reminiscing about younger times by playing “my heads, shoulders, knees and toes”, blowing up balloons and playing hopscotch on the spot.

The resident polymath, Yerins started off the game and made it only to the first step leaving the housemates in shock at how much more difficult the game is than it looks. Nini went next and made it to step six, but the balloons did not agree to be blown up with air. For Saga and Princess, the dice simply said, “You shall not pass”. Cross took his turn quickly but couldn’t beat the 70 second time to complete the course. On the other hand, Maria managed to roll all the correct numbers, skipping tasks to finish strong at step 15.

Peace taking a leaf from Maria powers through the course, overtaking her to finish at step 16. Yousef, Beatrice, Saskay all tried their hardest, but the dice only let them go as far as 4. For Liquorose and Angel, they never made it past the start position. Tega played strong to finish on step 8, and Pere, the first housemate to roll a six almost immediately, finished on step 11.

After Biggies had the base of the dice rolling machine removed, Jay Paul, Arin and Whitemoney took their turns quickly, finishing at 10, 9, 10, respectively. Emmanuel worked hard, but the six he needed eluded him. Jackie B encountered dice problems but ended on step 8.

It was a close tie between Maria and Peace, with Maria getting 15 steps and Peace getting 16. After all the obstacles, Peace emerged as the first head of house of the season. And as instructed by biggie, had to pick a deputy of the opposite sex in less than a minute. She picked Yousef.

It’s all joy for the both of them as they have now been exempted from nominations for this week. They also get to enjoy the luxurious Head of House lounge, which is fit for royalty. Let’s hope their reign is a fruitful one.

Big Brother Naija season 6 airs 24/7 on DStv channel 198.

SuperSport is gearing up to deliver some of the most action-packed football from the best players in the world, when the top leagues in the world return to our screens in August.

What’s more, football lovers on DStv and GOtv can look forward to the return of the UEFA Europa – the second most important trophy in Europe , after the UEFA Champions League – on their Channel of Champions. The Europa League and FA Cup will be exclusive to SuperSport adding to the best football viewing experience across all the continent.

As the Tokyo Olympics take centre stage this weekend, interest in the upcoming European football season is ramping up. With the best leagues, a variety of viewing options and expert commentary and analysis DStv is the true home of football in Africa, offering a range and depth of action that no other rival can match – it’s literally Unbeatable Football.

Ghanaian football fans will be able to follow comprehensive coverage of the most loved football leagues with hundreds of games from the Premier League, La Liga and Serie A matches on DStv.

Alex Okyere, General Manager of MultiChoice Ghana, says of the upcoming season: “Building on the euphoria of and exciting 20/21 season and the Olympics tournament, we are excited to deliver world-class football to fans wherever they watch, whether on television or on digital platforms. This season we are delivering even more value to our DStv customers. We listened and have secured the Europa League as a Pay TV exclusive offering. In so doing we further entrench our promise as the best football watching experience in Africa”

That includes the Premier League, where Manchester City and Pep Guardiola will look to continue their dominance but are likely to face a renewed challenge from Liverpool, Chelsea and Manchester United, while England’s famed and beloved FA Cup remains an exclusive for SuperSport.

In La Liga, Atletico Madrid will start as favourites to hold off the challenge offered by Real Madrid and Barcelona, but an exciting Sevilla side could be even more prominent in the title challenge, while the high turnover of coaches in Serie A makes their new season entirely unpredictable! Internazionale are the reigning champions, but Juventus, Milan, Napoli, Lazio and a Roma side now managed by Jose Mourinho will all be gunning for the Scudetto in 2021-22.

Football is about connection: sharing it with friends and family makes ‘The Beautiful Game’ even more meaningful. And in no competition is this more applicable than the UEFA Champions League and the UEFA Europa League, the ultimate expression of the club game in Europe that has become the true measure of the greatest players and teams.

Keep an eye out for fixtures and more exciting football news in the coming weeks.

Don’t miss the 2021/2022 football season on DStv.  Visit www.dstv.com to subscribe or upgrade and join in on the excitement.