On Tuesday, March 17, Austin Mayor Steve Adler and Travis County Judge Sarah Eckhardt declared that gatherings of 10 or more people in the Travis Country area would be banned until deemed safe. In accordance with this ordinance and other social distancing policies, students find themselves quarantined in their homes. 

“I’ve been doing nothing because my parents won’t let me go out of my house because of the Coronavirus,” sophomore Adina Khan said. “Although things are boring right now, I think it’s best because this way everyone is safe and healthy.”

Although quarantine forces individuals to limit their travel and social interaction, some students have found creative ways to stay productive and entertained. As suggested by Bowie students, here are five ways that an individual can make the most of social distancing. 

1) Find fun activities to do as a family:

Freshman Laura Latt expressed that her family has encouraged her to stay active and productive in the extended time off from school. 

“My family and I have been playing poker, working out, and eating,” Latt said. “One tip I have is to take breaks. When you feel like you’ve been on your phone for a while, stretch and go do something else.”

2) Monitor your screen time:

According to Oberlo.com, the average individual aged 16-24 spends 52 minutes on TikTok, a popular social media platform, a day. As people are forced to stay at home in the time of quarantine, Oberlo.com expects these statistics to increase dramatically. 

“Some tips I have on staying productive are to wake up every day at the same time to stay on a schedule,” sophomore Keira Rusinko said. “It’s important to get ahead or catch up on homework, and try to manage the amount of time spent on social media.”

3) Experience the beauty of the outdoors:

Although the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that individuals reduce their social interaction, no restrictions have been placed on individuals’ interaction with nature. 

“My host family and I are camping at Guadalupe River State Park to get away from everything going on,” junior Linea Lauth said. “It has been super relaxing.”

4) Expand on your hobbies and interests:

According to bls.gov, the average student in grades nine through 12 has four hours of leisure time daily, and without the need to attend school, students could have substantial more time to focus on their interests and passions. 

“I’ve been watching a bunch of movies and [going on] FaceTime [with] my friends,” sophomore Camilla Cooper said. “One activity that I’ve been doing a lot is coloring because it is so much fun.”

5) Pursue new ways to increase your knowledge and career-oriented skills:

If a student is interested in developing a deeper understanding of coding and computer science skills, junior Zachary Eilers recommends that they use Codecademy.com or FreeCodeCamp.org as free sources of training and education.

“Since middle school, I’ve been interested in computer science and especially app development,” Eilers said. “I used to have to squeeze in time for learning the tools necessary to build these apps, but now that I’m in quarantine, I basically have all day to learn and work on my projects.”

Additional reporting by Arushi Sharma and Sammie Thompson.