How are you celebrating Easter in your classroom?
Today I am highlighting 6 fun egg and Peep related science experiments.
Wednesday, March 27, 2013
Tuesday, March 26, 2013
Fine Motor Skills
Here is a simple idea. Take apart a flash light and ask your child to put it back together. Not only does it require fine motor skills, in also encourages problem solving.
For several other ideas to develop fine motor skills check out this post.
Monday, March 25, 2013
Help your kids love the outdoors with an outdoor play area
The temps here have been in the 70's! Hubby and I have been spending a lot of time outdoors trying to get some projects finished before it gets too hot. I have set up a few fun activities in our yard for the girls to entertain themselves while hubby and I work. I will be taking photos and sharing these activities with you later on. For now I would like to share some inspiration for you so that you can set up your own activities to get the kiddos outside and away from the TV.
This fun Pool Noodle Game would only cost a few dollars to make and would provide tons of fun for the whole family.
This photo was actually taken at a children's museum so there is no tutorial. However, with a little imagination and a lot of rope it would be easy to make your own.
Set up a twister game in your front yard! So much fun and would only take a few minutes to set up.
This "car wash" was made from PVC pipe and cost less than $30. What a perfect way to spend a hot summer day.
What about you? What kinds of outdoor activities do you have set up for your kids?
Thursday, March 21, 2013
Encouraging Kids to READ
Truth is, I don't really have to encourage my girls to read. They are both natural born readers. However, I have come up with a few ideas to make reading more fun for them.
What about you? Do you do anything special with your kids to encourage them to read?
- Talk about the pictures in the book. Don't just read the words, talk with your child about what is going on in the book. Point to pictures and ask your child to name an object or tell you what is happening in the illustration.I often ask my girls what they think will happen next before turning the page.
- Use your voice. Don't read in a monotone voice. If the character in the book is really excited, raise your voice and get excited too. If the character is sad, start sniffling and rub your eyes as though you are crying while you read. This will give kids a real sense of what is happening in the story and keep them more engaged.
- Reading Buddies. I tossed a couple stuffed animals into a basket and explained to the kids that these were reading buddies. They can grab one out whenever they want someone to read to
- Reading Goggles. Give your kids some pipe cleaners and let them make their own reading goggles.
- Do crafts related to the book. Once you are finished reading, think of something creative to make that will go along with the book. If you can't think of anything try doing a search online. There are TONS of ideas.
What about you? Do you do anything special with your kids to encourage them to read?
Wednesday, March 20, 2013
Shoe Tying Practice {Free Printable}
I have been meaning to teach my girls how to tie their shoes for some time now. Unfortunately they don't have any real shoes to practice with. It just always seemed easier to buy Velcro or slip-on shoes.
I remembered one of my local libraries having a cardboard shoe with laces for the kids to practice on. I decided to recreate my own so that my kids could practice at home.
Directions:
Tips:
I remembered one of my local libraries having a cardboard shoe with laces for the kids to practice on. I decided to recreate my own so that my kids could practice at home.
Directions:
- Cut out the shoe in the download provided below.
- Using a hole punch, punch out the holes in each of the flaps.
- Fold the flaps toward the center of the shoe.
- Lace with shoe laces or ribbon.
Tips:
- To make the shoe sturdier you can print on heavy card stock or laminate it
- Make it more personal by letting the kids decorate the their own shoe.
Tuesday, March 19, 2013
Fine Motor Skills - Spring Tracing Sheets
Help your little ones celebrate Spring while developing their fine motor skills with these fun tracing sheets.
Friday, March 15, 2013
Crystal Shamrocks
Just wanted to share a simple St. Patrick's Day craft that the girls and I did.
Materials:
Green Pipe Cleaners
String
Craft Stick or Pencil
Borax
Water
Jars or Glasses
Begin boiling your water. While you are waiting for your water to boil, bend your pipe cleaners into shamrock shapes. Tie a string to the top of the shamrock and tie a pencil to the other end of the string. Your sting will need to be long enough to hang the shamrock in the glass but not so long that it touches the bottom.
Pour boiling water into your jars and add 1/4 cup of borax to each jar. Stir until all of the borax has dissolved. Place your shamrocks into the solution resting the pencil on top of the jar. Your shamrocks should be completely submerged. If they are not then just add more water until they are.
Now is all you have to do is wait. I think it took about 3 hours before we started seeing any changes. After about 12 hours I took the shamrocks out and placed them on a paper towel and left them overnight to dry.
Materials:
Green Pipe Cleaners
String
Craft Stick or Pencil
Borax
Water
Jars or Glasses
Begin boiling your water. While you are waiting for your water to boil, bend your pipe cleaners into shamrock shapes. Tie a string to the top of the shamrock and tie a pencil to the other end of the string. Your sting will need to be long enough to hang the shamrock in the glass but not so long that it touches the bottom.
Pour boiling water into your jars and add 1/4 cup of borax to each jar. Stir until all of the borax has dissolved. Place your shamrocks into the solution resting the pencil on top of the jar. Your shamrocks should be completely submerged. If they are not then just add more water until they are.
Now is all you have to do is wait. I think it took about 3 hours before we started seeing any changes. After about 12 hours I took the shamrocks out and placed them on a paper towel and left them overnight to dry.
Thursday, March 14, 2013
St. Patrick's Day Rainbow Craft
Check out these fun rainbows that the girls and I made for St. Patrick's Day
I cut a paper plate in half and gave on half to each kid for them to paint rainbows on.
I then cut some construction paper into into strips. Since my youngest still needs help with her colors, I thought this would be a good opportunity for her. I had her sort all of the strips into piles and then we talked about each color.
She also wanted to count the strips which gave me another idea.
I wrote a number (1 through 6) at the top of each strip.
The girls started gluing the rings onto the plate. Starting with the ring that had a number 1, then they linked the number 2 ring onto that and so on.
I cut a paper plate in half and gave on half to each kid for them to paint rainbows on.
I then cut some construction paper into into strips. Since my youngest still needs help with her colors, I thought this would be a good opportunity for her. I had her sort all of the strips into piles and then we talked about each color.
She also wanted to count the strips which gave me another idea.
I wrote a number (1 through 6) at the top of each strip.
The girls started gluing the rings onto the plate. Starting with the ring that had a number 1, then they linked the number 2 ring onto that and so on.
Be sure to grab this free Clover Tracing Printable for your kids as well.
Wednesday, March 13, 2013
Tracing Clovers - Free Printable
Need something to keep your little ones entertained this Weekend?
Why not help them develop their fine motor skills with this St. Patrick's Day clover tracing sheet.
Why not help them develop their fine motor skills with this St. Patrick's Day clover tracing sheet.
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
St. Patrick's Day Word Building
Celebrate St. Patrick's Day with this fun word building activity.
Print out both worksheets and cut out all of the gold coins. Have kids build words on the pot of gold with the coins. Print out more that one sheet of coins to build words with double letters (i.e. DOG, MOM, etc...)
Friday, October 12, 2012
Calendar Time Freebie!!
Just wanted to share a couple printables that I made for the girls to use during our calendar time.
Jocelyn uses this calendar worksheet to go along with our large wall calendar. We also sing the days of the week song
Days of the week.
I also plan on introducing this song after the girls have the days of the week song down.
The weather graph was made for my two year old (although it would also work great for older kids). She really wanted to do the calendar activity with her big sister but it was a little advanced for her. I may add more to it later but for now she is enjoying it.
What kind of calendar activities do you use for your younger kids? Please share your ideas in the comments!!
Jocelyn uses this calendar worksheet to go along with our large wall calendar. We also sing the days of the week song
(To the tune of the Adam's Family theme song.)
There's Sunday, and there's Monday.
There's Tuesday, and there's Wednesday.
There's Thursday day, and there's Friday.
And then there's Saturday.
Days of the week.
{clap, clap}
Days of the week.
{clap, clap}
Days of the week.
Days of the week.
Days of the week.
{clap, clap}
I also plan on introducing this song after the girls have the days of the week song down.
The Months
January brings the snow;
Makes our feet and fingers glow.
Makes our feet and fingers glow.
February brings the rain;
Thaws the frozen pond again.
Thaws the frozen pond again.
March brings the wind so cold and chill;
Drives the cattle from the hill.
Drives the cattle from the hill.
April brings us sun and showers,
And the pretty wildwood flowers.
And the pretty wildwood flowers.
May brings grass and leafy trees,
Waving in each gentle breeze.
June brings roses, fresh and fair,
And the cherries ripe and rare.
And the cherries ripe and rare.
July brings the greatest heat,
Cloudless skies and dusty street.
Cloudless skies and dusty street.
August brings the golden grain;
Harvest time is here again.
Harvest time is here again.
Mild September brings us more
Fruit and grain, for winter store.
Fruit and grain, for winter store.
Brown October brings the last
Of ripening gifts, from summer past.
Of ripening gifts, from summer past.
Dull November brings the blast:
Down from the trees the leaves fall fast.
Down from the trees the leaves fall fast.
Cold December ends the rhyme
With blazing fires and Christmas time.
With blazing fires and Christmas time.
What kind of calendar activities do you use for your younger kids? Please share your ideas in the comments!!
Wednesday, August 15, 2012
5 Ways Entertain Younger Siblings.
One of the biggest challenges I have when homeschooling is trying to keep both of the girls entertained at the same time. I try to find activities that will be of interest to both girls, however, that doesn't always happen. In this case there are a few things that I do in order to keep my youngest entertained and limit distractions while working with my oldest.
1. Always make copies of worksheets. Giving your toddler the same worksheet that the older kids are working on will make her feel important. Even if the worksheet is too advanced for her. Hand her a few crayons and let her scribble to her hearts desire.
2. Hand over extra pieces. We have a few board games that I changed the rules to make more educational. When I play these games with my oldest I always give any spare pieces to the youngest. Again, this makes her feel like she is part of the game even if she is not playing by the same rules.
3. Let them destroy some paper. What kid can resist tearing up paper. Give your toddler a few pieces of paper, (I always save printer mess ups, and junk mail for this purpose) a pair of child safe scissors, and a golf tee. Let her poke holes in the paper with the golf tee (works best when you set the paper on carpet), try cutting the paper, or just rip it to shreds.
4. Give her an important task. When I play scrabble with my oldest, the youngest is always in charge of the extra pieces. When even someone needs more letters they have to tell the youngest how many they need and the youngest will count them out. Another task that is perfect for young kids is being the photographer. Show your toddler how to work the camera and let her go crazy. Although you will have to delete most of the photos she takes, it will definitely keep her entertained.
5. A bucket full of _____. In our class room we keep 4 buckets. Currently one contains legos, another cars, the third dinosaurs, and the forth beads. It is amazing how long a toddler can keep themselves entertained by dumping out the bucket, filling them back up, and all of the other random things they come up with. I change out the contents of the buckets every so often (when the kids start loosing interest in the) A few other items that I have had in these buckets are: Soda bottle lids, pom poms, ribbon, twist ties, marbles, empty spice containers, and empty sewing bobbins. (be sure that you keep a close eye on your child if they are playing with small objects.)
What do you do to keep your younger kids entertained? I would love to here your ideas.
1. Always make copies of worksheets. Giving your toddler the same worksheet that the older kids are working on will make her feel important. Even if the worksheet is too advanced for her. Hand her a few crayons and let her scribble to her hearts desire.
2. Hand over extra pieces. We have a few board games that I changed the rules to make more educational. When I play these games with my oldest I always give any spare pieces to the youngest. Again, this makes her feel like she is part of the game even if she is not playing by the same rules.
3. Let them destroy some paper. What kid can resist tearing up paper. Give your toddler a few pieces of paper, (I always save printer mess ups, and junk mail for this purpose) a pair of child safe scissors, and a golf tee. Let her poke holes in the paper with the golf tee (works best when you set the paper on carpet), try cutting the paper, or just rip it to shreds.
4. Give her an important task. When I play scrabble with my oldest, the youngest is always in charge of the extra pieces. When even someone needs more letters they have to tell the youngest how many they need and the youngest will count them out. Another task that is perfect for young kids is being the photographer. Show your toddler how to work the camera and let her go crazy. Although you will have to delete most of the photos she takes, it will definitely keep her entertained.
5. A bucket full of _____. In our class room we keep 4 buckets. Currently one contains legos, another cars, the third dinosaurs, and the forth beads. It is amazing how long a toddler can keep themselves entertained by dumping out the bucket, filling them back up, and all of the other random things they come up with. I change out the contents of the buckets every so often (when the kids start loosing interest in the) A few other items that I have had in these buckets are: Soda bottle lids, pom poms, ribbon, twist ties, marbles, empty spice containers, and empty sewing bobbins. (be sure that you keep a close eye on your child if they are playing with small objects.)
What do you do to keep your younger kids entertained? I would love to here your ideas.
Monday, July 23, 2012
Fine Motor Skills
Developing fine motor skills should be an essential in every child's life. Fine motor skills involve the small muscles of the body that enable such functions as writing, grasping small objects, cutting with scissors and fastening clothing. However working on fine motor skills has been sitting on the back burner in our home until recently. Since I am now homeschooling my toddler and preschooler I decided to give the girls plenty of opportunity to develop these skills. Here are a few of the activities that we use in our classroom.
Sorting pipe cleaners into empty spice containers.
Sorting toothpicks into empty spice containers.
Punching holes with a hole punch. (This requires a lot of strength. If your child can't do it encourage her to keep trying.)
Taping paper dots to paper. This may sounds silly but for a child it takes a lot of concentration to get the tape lined up over the dot. (Tip: For the dots, punch a bunch of holes with a hole punch. Use a variety of color to make it fun. )
Cutting paper strips with scissors. (Keep the squares for various color sorting and matching activities)
Sorting paper with clothespins.
Stacking paper squares and pinning them together with paperclips.
Squeezing balloons filled with play dough. (Great for strengthening hand muscles)
Hammer golf tees into Styrofoam.
Place washers over golf tees with tweezers.
Place beads or marbles on top of golf tees with tweezers.
String beads onto pipe cleaners.
Sort beads by color using tweezers.
Stretch rubber bands on a geoboard.
Tracing letters.
Gluing paper.
Tracing chalk shapes with paintbrush and water.
There are so many ways to
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