Sunday May 31st/ Let's Play Ball / Practice Golf Balls
15 small balls for under $2.00
Plastic Container (already in your cupboard)
Hours of fun -priceless!Toddler and Preschooler

Toddler's favorite activity
Put all the balls into one large container
Have the child yell, "Go!"
Pour bucket over childs head
Collect all the balls into the bucket
Repeat 100X
I did not believe the kids would love picking them up too, but they do
- - -
Put balls in container
Empty them out down a hallway with wood / linoleum floors
Watch them bounce and roll the like crazy
collect balls
count balls
repeat 100X
- - -
Fill tub for bath
Remove all other toys except for a container or two
Put children in tub
Pour all the balls into the tub
Watch them float
Try to sink them
Put them under watch and watch them "pop" up
Pour them
FUN
- - -
Try to toss these balls into a container
they bounce all over!



Monday June 1st /Sensory Table
watch video above
Toddler and Preschooler:

I have debated about adding this one, because it is not something everyone has at home. I decided to add it because it is hours and hours of fun and it is easy.

You need:
1 large plastic container
1 small plastic container (see pictures)
or a "real" sensory table
white rice
cornmeal/baby oatmeal
scoops, funnels, strainer

Watch Video
I started out with the plastic set up before my preschooler grew way to tall for it. Then a relative made the wooden one you see. They are also avaiable from Lakeshore Learning(no profit for me in this advertisement) or any teacher store.

Bins:
#1.The first bin has colored white rice. You can color rice by adding rubbing alcohol and food color in a plastic bag or large bowl. Stir it up and let it dry. It has a strong odor as you make it but that does not remain. You do not have to color the rice. This is not edible. I woud suggest bin #2 for small toddler who still puts everything in their mouths.

#2. The second bin has baby oatmeal and cornmeal. We started using cornmeal and oatmeal because our toddler would still put things in her mouth and I didn't want her eating uncooked rice. If she happened to put this in her mouth, icky but no real worries. It has a great texture to it except that it clings to hands and is a little messy.

#3. Shredded paper. I took bright colored paper and ran it through our paper shredder, crumpled it a little and put it in the bin. The I added fireman and knights (the size of army men) and mixed it all up. My sisters boy came over (5years old) and intently dug through until he found all the little men and lined them up on the outside. I was surprised this was still appealing to that age group.

#4. This is a mismatched bin of foam letters, foam colored cubes, and plastic unifix cubes. We buld and chat about colors and letters when we playin this one.

#5 & 6 This is an adapted game from Montessori. These are real glass bowls with rice, and beans and noodles. The kids use metal spoons of different sizes and scoop from a large bowl into the smaller bowls. It takes coordination to do and the sounds of metal on glass are interesting. They have to learn to be careful when dealing with breakable things.

I change the bins frequently. Myhusband was surprised after we got this because "They will play with ANYTHING you put in there!!" Yep, they will. I have other bins in the closet ready to come out and switch it up!



Tuesday June 2nd / Fine Motor and Money / Number Sense
Todddler and Preschooler

You need:
Piggy Bank
Coins
No piggy bank? Use a small box with a slit

Toddler:
You can not leave them unattended with small coins! Show your toddler how to hold the coin with a pincher grasp and put it into the piggy bank. It makes a wonderful sound! It is a great fine motor activity as well.

Have your own coins to drop in as well. Name the coins as you drop them.

Preschooler:
Show them how to drop them in. Help them examine each coin. Who is on it? How much is it? What is the name of this coin? They will love the noise too!

If / When they are tired of dropping the coins in, dazzle them by showing them how to SPIN them like tops!

Tip: Have a lot of coins ready, they will enjoy this longer than you think.

Wednesday June 3rd Poster Power/ Artsy Fartsy
You need:
Chart paper, Large paper
old magazines
crayons or markers
color sheet print outs?
glue
scissors


Toddler:
My friends daughter actually did this activity with (and for) the kids. She took all the old baby magazines we had in the house and cut out babies. They found tons and tons of babies! Then they glued the babies on a poster. We took it to Kinko's and laminated it. We hung it very low to the ground and they LOVE it! Other babies who come over are very attracted to this poster as well!

Preschooler:
Project #1
Is your preschool really "into" something?  What is their favorite animal? My son talked about whales non-stop after seeing them on a Reading Rainbow video. We got tons of books and other whale things. Then we found that the local library gets rid of their old magazine once a year. We got all the National Geographic Kids, what a score! We found numerous whale pictures to cut out and we typed up some fun facts about whales, and glued this all on our own poster. My son shows his poster to all guests! There are aslo coloring sheets for your childs favorite Tv shows or movie characters. Label your pictures with words and fun facts!

Project #2
We read Brown Bear Brown Bear all the time. Then I found a website (I will add the link if I can find it again) with print outs for all the animals. It took us a few days to color all the animals the right color. and then we made another poster about our favorite book! Look up your childs favorite book and see if you can find coloring sheets for it.

Have friends over? Match up by twos and everybody roll!


Thursday June 4th / Snail Mail

Toddler or Preschooler:

You need:
Paper
Envelopes
Stamps

Write letters today!
Fold a piece of paper in half.
Decorate the front with any crafty materials you have.
Inside show your child how a letter is written.
Have them add pictures, letters, and/or words.
Ask the person in your letter to please write back and/ or call you when they receive the letter!

Language:
Ask you child what they want to say and write it as they tell you. Read it back to them.

Put the letter in the mail box together or go to the post office.
Try to explain to your preschooler how long it will take to get there.
Send out several letters and see how long it takes to get one back.
You might want to call whoever you are writing to and ask them to respond as soon as they get the letter!!


Care Giver Info / Six Pre-Reading Skills

What you do helps your child get ready to Read!
Narrative Skills
-Being able to describe things and events and tell stories

Print Motivation
-Being intrested in books

Vocabulary
-Knowing the names of things

Print Awareness
-Notice print, knowing how to handle a book and knowing how to follow the words on a page.

Letter Knowledge
-Knowing letters are different from each other, knowing their names and sounds and recognizing letters everywhere.

Phological Awareness
-Being able to hear and play with the smaller sounds in words

Friday June 5th Let's Play Ball / BOWLING

Toddler and Preschooler

You need:
Something that rolls
Things that can be knocked down!


If you are looking for a super simple game. This is it!
Grab empty bottles from your recycling bin.
Line them up.
Grab a ball.
Roll it and knock down the bottles.
Repeat!

Get plastic cups and make them into a small pyramid
Roll a ball and knock them over
Repeat!

My son likes to line up the small baby dolls
Roll a large beach ball and kock them over
Repeat only if baby sister is not around!

The possibilities are endless.
Send us a picture of your version of bowling
and I will post it here!




Saturday June 6th Nature Watch / Ants

Preschoolers
 
You need: a sugar packet and an anthill
Magnifying glass

Teach your child to observe nature. Teach them to slow down and WATCH.
Take a walk or look around the backyard  or even the front sidewalk.
Find an anthill
Pour a little of your sugar packet around the opening
Find several anthills and pour sugar around a few of them

Go and play for a few minutes

Come back and sit quietly to watch as the ants come out, pick up the sugar, and carry it back into the anthill.
Explain that when ants find food they go and tell each other.
Soon there should be many ants coming in and out of the anthill.
Tell your child the ants are bringing it back into a tunnel for other ants and the ant babies.(eggs and larvae)
Watch the ants with your magnifying glass, don't start them on fire!!
Can you see that ants have six legs?

You can get books from the library and read about ants now that you have watched them work.



Saturday June 6th / Music

Toddler Action Song

Ring Around the Rosey

(join hands and walk / dance around in a circle)
Ring around the rosey
A pocket full of posies
ashes ashes
we all fall down (fall down)
You can sing the second verse when they are on the ground

the cows are in the meadow
huddled all together (hug your neighbor)
Thunder, Lightning (pound on floor, wave your arms)
We all stand up (stand up)

BONUS Activity!!

Another Free and FUN Field Trip Idea

Bring your toddler or older baby to the fabric store. Let them feel all the fabrics.

Rules
1. Wash your hands first.
2. No eating.
3. Bring hand  wipes.
4. Feel ALL the fabrics, be ready for tactile overload!

Talk to your child the whole time about textures, colors, designs, and what it feels like.
We have taken this field trips NUMEROUS times.






      Remember to READ 15 minutes a day to your child!



"Necessity may be the mother of invention, but play is certainly the father."-Roger von Oech

Sunday May 24th / Sponge Bomb Splat
Toddler and Preschooler

You need a bucket or buckets of water and sponges. We each had our own bucket. This is an outdoor activity!

Fill the buckets and soak the sponges until they are full of water.

Demonstrate to your children how to take the sponges out of the bucket (quicker is better but it doesn't matter) and throw them.

The sponges will SPLAT! After trying this numerous times, we found the higher in the air, the bigger the SPLAT. Water goes everywhere and leaves a great water mark.

Get sponge, soak up water in the bucket, repeat as many times as you want. My personal scale is if an activity is entertaining for 15-20 minutes it is a winner or if they ask for it later. This one hit on both scales.

Extension: We added chalk circle to the driveway and tried to throw the sponges in the circles. Our toddler spent most of her time taking the sponges in and out and squeezing the water in the chalk circles then yelling, "Look it!" and laughing.

Tip: Remove shoes if they can't get wet. Learn from our mistakes. Also wear a swimsuit unless they can get their clothes wet.


Monday May 25th / Old Fashion Fun / Clothes Pins

Toddler and Preschooler:

You need: Clothes Pins and a jar. I suggest a large empty pickle jar.
I remember playing this game at one of my birthday parties as a child!

Turn a chair around and have your preschooler kneel on it with arms over the back. Try to drop the clothes pin into the jar. Pick them up and do it again! Toddler, I would not suggest kneeling on a chair. Have them stand next to it and try to drop them in.

I attach all the clothes pins to their shirts and pants and they pull them off to drop them. Sometimes I just attach them all over their clothes and they pull them off, end of game! We also add the pins to the side of the jar and build a tower until it falls over.

Opening and closing clothes pins is a really good fine motor activity.


Tuesday May 26th / Totally Terrific Tunnel Tube
Todddler and Preschooler and Dad

You will need a mailing tube or something like it.
We have an expanded collection of tubes: one long mailing tube, one short fat mailing tube, one clear plastic tube from the hardware store ( I have no idea what it is really for!), and the inside tube from home decorating fabric from the fabric store. We tried the inside tube from gift wrap but it was not sturdy enough.

Idea #1
Attach the tube to your railing on the steps. Show you child how to put small balls or match box cars in the "top side" and watch them come out the bottom. You will be pleasently surprised at how exciting this is to a child. Repeat, repeat, repeat!

Idea #2
Same mail tube. Just place this one in the middle of your couch. It will stay because you balance it on the back of the couch and secure it between the couch cushions. Now place a hat, bucket, bin, anything and catch all the objects that roll out. I let me preschooler climb on the couch and do this one. His favorite thing to put through the tube is small cars and he figured out that if they are "wheels side down", they go much faster!

Idea#3
My daughter is a toddler and too young to climb up on the couch, for her we got a shorter fat mailing tube. We put it at a shorter height for her as well. She can fit many different items through it!

This one deserves a video! If you video your little ones playing this send me your youtube link and I will insert it here!

Wednesday May 27th Toesies / Large Motor
You two people, toes, and the ground

Lay down in the grass feet to feet with barefeet.
Touch toes.
Try to roll and keep your toes touching.
Good Luck!!

Have friends over? Match up by twos and everybody roll!


Thursday May 28th Paint and Smell the Flowers -Really!

Toddler or Preschooler:
You need:
1 tablespoon unsweetened powered drink mix (or more)
1 tablespoon warm water
Muffin Tin or place for colors
Paintbrushes
Paper

Mix different flavors in different muffin tin compartments
Paint a Picture (like water color paints) on paper
Let it dry
Scratch and sniff your picture!

Send me an image of your picture and I will make a gallery on this idea!

Terrific Toddler / Artsy Fartsy / 10 Tips
Adapted from Karen Miller and "Things to Do With Your Toddler and Twos"

1. Toddler years are not the time to worry about final projects.

2. Let them enjoy the process and explore new materials to create with.

3. It is the time to focus on "What can this do?" and "How does this work?"

4. Consider all of your art projects a time to explore.

5.Introduce crayons, markers, paints, pencils, pens, highlighters, chalk.

6.Also introduce different ways of applying these materials like brushes, cotton swabs, feathers, sponges, tooth brush, paper towels, eye droppers, let your imagination go.

7.Watch and see how your child discovers pushing, pulling, dotting, the feel of things etc.

8.Can your child do it alone? Sit close but resist the need for perfection. Only assist when asked or intervene when necessary.
9. Allow them to do all of these art activities over and over again.

10. Make an area to display your childs art work!


Friday May 29th It Takes Time, Carnation Colors
Preschool:
You need: three white carnations, food coloring, two vases.

Put water in vases and add food coloring
Cut the flowers stems  half way up. See picture
Put flowers one flower in each vases and place one flower with a stem in each vase.
Leave the vases in an undisturbed area.

Wow! Ask your child "What happened?" or "What changed?"

Extensions:
Study the flowers with a magnifying glass.
YOu should be able to see the color in the veins of the flower petals.
Draw a before and after picture.




Saturday May 30th Nature Walk / Textures

Toddlers and Preschoolers
Try a walk outside some place where you have never walked before.

Today we are going to notice textures. Find shiny cars, smooth rocks, rough tree bark, prickly vines, glittery... You CAN touch things too or just say "That cat is furry."

Words to consider:
flat                        soft                     rusty                  sandy
shiny                    feathery                 slimey              leathery
smooth                 furry                      wet                    crackled
rough                    bumpy                gooey         



Saturday May 30th / Lovin' Language
In Literacy it is called Phonological Awareness.
We just call them Nursery Rhymes and FUN.

Practice saying nursery rhymes to your toddler and preschoolers.
Emphasize the rhyme.
Add actions as you sing and recite. This helps the child break the language into parts.
Singing is a good way to hear different syllables.

Memorize a few for in the car and on walks.

Baa Baa Black Sheep
Baa baa black sheep, have you any wool?
Yes sir, yes sir, three bags full!
One for the master, one for the dame,
And one for the little boy who lives down the lane.

Hickory, dickory, dock
Hickory, dickory, dock,
The mouse ran up the clock.
The clock struck one,
The mouse ran down!
Hickory, dickory, dock.

Little Miss Muffet
Little Miss Muffet,
sat on a tuffet,
Eating her curds and whey;
Along came a spider,
Who sat down beside her
And frightened Miss Muffet away.

Little Boy Blue
Little Boy Blue,
come blow your horn,
The sheep's in the meadow,
the cow's in the corn.
Where is the boy who looks after the sheep?
He's under a haycock, fast asleep.
Will you wake him?
No, not I, For if I do, he's sure to cry.

I See the Moon
I see the moon and the moon sees me
The moon sees the somebody I'd like to see.
God bless the moon and God bless me
God bless the somebody I'd like to see!

Extension:
Make up your own silly Nursery Rhymes.
Also watch after you teach your child Nusery Rhymes how often you see "references" to them in books, toys, Tv, and everywhere!

BONUS Activity!!
Free and FUN Field Trip Idea

How often does your child look up and say "AIRPLANE!" I guess that depends where you live!

From our house we have more then one choice for airport landing and departures strips. We drive to the BIG airport, get off on the frontage road, and park the car. There actually is a place for this and most of the other cars there are doing the same thing. Bring snacks and entertainment for between depatures and arrivals. We sit on the hood of our car to watch and yell "landing" and "taking off".

It is quite loud, you might think about bringing something to cover your childs ears if they are sensitive to noises, or park so you can sit in the front seats and look out the window.




 Remember to READ 15 minutes a day to your child!



"The true object of all human life is play. Earth is a task garden; heaven is a playground."
-G. K. Chesterton

Sunday May 17th / Blow Soccer
You know you have a winner when your kids have asked to play this game everyday this week!
You need: Straws, bits of paper, goal markers

Preschooler:
You put a goal marker on one end of your kitchen table. Then set several small bits of crumbled paper on the other. Show your child how to blow them across the table and into the goal. You can make this competitive, but we had so much fun just blowing them across the table and between the goal markers, I thought it wasn't necessary. I also allowed him to crawl on the table if the "ball" was in the center of the table and he couldn't reach it from standing on the side. This may have been what made the game super exciting.

I also had a straw and so did my husband to help.  Then everyone had their own paper to move toward the goal. Lastly, we found if two people blow at the same piece of paper at the same time it will "jump" in the air. This produced squeals of delight!

This game could also be played outside with the field and goals drawn with chalk.


Sunday May 17th Terrific Toddlers / Homemade Toy
Toddler:
This is not actually super easy to put together, but it has been a favorite toy in my house for two years. I made it when my son was a toddler and it keeps coming back out of the closet and is always met with excitement.

You will need: an empty liquor box with the compartments, empty clear plastic bottles, numerous different objects (keep reading)

When you go to a liquor store, be sure the inside compartment piece is still inside your box. Collect empty clear plastic bottles that will fit into the compartments. I used water bottles. The box we have holds 12 bottles.

Ok, now fill each bottle with something different. Your toddler will take these out and put them back in repeatedly. They will also look, shake, tip, and explore each bottle. Try things that will make great sounds like beans, rice, small bells, tea, glitter, and buttons. Try putting half water and half oil in a few bottles with food coloring. These bottles will make waves or be kind of like a lava lamp. Put water in only half the bottle with a little dishsoap, so when they shake the bottle there will be bubbles. Put in water and small pieces of yarn, the yarn will seem to dance when you tip the bottle back and forth.

HOT GLUE ALL TOPS ONTO THE BOTTLES SO THEY CAN NOT BE OPENED!!

Tip: I did not like the look of a liquor box in the playroom :-), so I used mod podged pictures on the side of family, friends, and characters. The sides of this box have been equally fun to look at and talk about.


Monday May 18th /Water Play / Carnival Duck Game

Toddler and Preschooler:
Gather all your rubber ducks and empty squirt bottles. This can be an indoor or outdoor game.

Option one-
Fill the bathtub with a few inches of water.
Load it with floating ducks, frogs, etc.
Show your child how if you squirt the animal it moves.
Our ducks wouldn't tip, but that did not stop us from trying.
I filled the bottles when they were empty and we added food coloring.
This was entertaining to them for 45 minutes (I consider that success!)

Option 2 -outside
Fill your kiddie pool.
Same game, except provide another bucket for children to fill their own squirt bottle.
It was not warm enough this week to try this outside, but I think I would let them try the house with the attachment on it, to see if they can squirt and flip the ducks.

Tips-
I never knew an empty Heinz ketchup bottle could be so fun! Try it!!
My toddler could not squeeze the ketchup bottle but she could squeeze an empty joy dishsoap bottle.



Tuesday May 19th Sorting and Classifying

It is a big part of mathematical thinking to be able to sort and classify. Help your preschooler with this concept by having them match socks. Extend their thinking and discuss pairs and after you have all you matches count them up by two's.

You can use your laundry socks or go through your drawer to find socks with different colors, shapes, and patterns. Take out your holiday socks! knee high socks! and booties! Make sure they are not hooked together and dump them in one big pile. Sit down on the floor with your child and show them how to make a match. Put matches in a special place and continue.

Discuss colors, size, and pictures. Use the words: sort, match, big, and small. DOn't forget to also use words like fun and I love you!

Wednesday May 20th Old Fashion Fun/ Build It and They Will Come!


Toddler and Preschooler:
You need a sheet.
Ok this is not new, but if you haven't done this in awhile, try it again. Kids have been buiding forts for years because it is FUN.

Put a sheet over a table and build a fort inside, put your sheet over two chairs, put the sheet over a small card table, or even arrange your couch cushions so you can crawl inside.

Here are ideas for inside your fort. Under the table set up a large train track system with train cars.
Under the card table put in books, pillows, and a flash light.

Tent
Go ahead and set your tent up in the middle of your living room. Put sleeping bags, pillows, back pack, flash lights, and play food inside. You might want to add your plastic bugs?!

Thursday May 21st Ordinary Item / Socks
Yep, socks again!

Toddler or Preschooler:
Take those socks and make them into puppets. Kids love puppets. They will talk to the puppet and do what ever the puppet wants. You really can just use the sock as is. If you really want to sew on eyes, go for it.

What can a puppet DO?
Help your child learn their letters. Do you have refrigerator magnets or the alphabet on cards? Put them out and have the puppet ask for a certain letter. When your child brings the letter to the puppet have the puppet "eat it" in a crazy fashion. Have the puppet thank your child but tell them it is still hungry and now needs another specific letter.

Have the puppet ask your child crazy questions. "Does a dog say mooo?" "Does an elephant fly?" "Does a bird say meow?" etc. Why do toddlers and preschoolers find this funny? I don't know!

Your child will be more than happy to get things for a puppet, even if they wouldn't get the same thing for you! :-)
Have the puppet ask for different objects around the room and watch as your child runs to find then for the puppet.

Puppet extension: You can buy beautiful and expensive puppets, brown bags with faces drawn on, a banana with bubble eyes glued on, sock puppets, stick puppets, and finger puppets and they all are great for learning vocabulary, and helping with your childs imagination!


Friday May 22nd Nature Walks / Scavenger Hunt
It is getting nice outside so take your kids for a walk.
Toddler or Prechooler

Take a piece of paper and draw 10 or so objects on it. Make sure some of the objects WILL be on your walk, and other objects MAY be on your walk. Ask your preschooler to help make the list by asking what you normally see on your walks.

Draw each object and label it with the written word.
Bring your paper and marker on the walk.
Make large X's over the pictures as you find them.

Our paper had: windmill, trees, eagles, Mississippi River, bear statue, cow statue with sun glasses, American Flag, Neighbors Truck, swingset, motorcycle, and train.



Saturday May 23rd Artsy Fartsy / Drama / Face Painting

Toddler or Preschooler
You need: Your make-up bag and a mirror

This is a sad but true story. I was getting ready to go out and brought out my make up bag. My son said, "Oh mommy, What are you going to be tonight??" This stems from the fact that my make-up is used more often for dress up / face painting time than me going out! (How sad )

You can make up their faces like clowns. Use eyeliner pencil to make triangles above and below their eyes, lipstick for a big clown smile, eyeshadow for circles on cheeks and nose.

Your kids will like to add pictures to their cheeks and hands such as: butterflies, hearts, truck, or ANYTHING

We also use eyeliner to make whiskers and freckles. Then they can really pretend to be a kitty or lion. The freckles started after they saw someone with freckles and wanted to know what they were.

Saturday May 16th / Lovin' Language Preschool Style JOKES

Has your preschool just started the art of jokes or have they been doing it forever? We have just started jokes as of a few weeks ago. This is so fun to watch. I love when he tells a joke and uses the wrong punch line. "Why does the chicken cross the road? -To get to the mooovies!" "knock Knock. Who's there? Banana. Banana who? What are you cryin about?" This cracks me up!

Here are some simple jokes you can do with your preschooler. Watch how they try to figure out how these work.  There are hundreds posted on other websites if you need more.

Knock Knock
Who's there?
Butter
Butter who?
I butter not let you in.

Knock knock
Who's there?
Boo
Boo who?
What are you crying about?

Knock Knock
who's there?
Interupting cow
Interupting c....(You have to interupt the person!)
mooo moo moo

Why did the chicken cross the road?
To get to the other side

Why did the turkey cross the road twice?
To prove he wasn't a chicken

Why did the cow cross the road?
To get to the moooovies


BONUS Activity!!
Waiting Room Activity

Use an old wallet and fill it with different things that your child can find as they search through it.
Keep the fake credit cards that come in the mail.
Write your child a small letter and stick it in a compartment.
Use old wallet size photos or cut photos to the size that will fit.
Find flat objects, medals, coin chips.
Put in fake money.
Cut out and laminate pictures of their favorite characters.



Keep this away from your regular toys so that it is new to them in the waiting room. Give them the wallet and let them open, close, and take out everything. You can talk about the things they find or just let them explore it. It will be a large challenge for toddler to put things back into the right places because it requires good fine motor skills. Be prepared to help with this.




      Remember to READ 15 minutes a day to your child!


“Play is the exultation of the possible.” -Martin Buber quotes (German Jewish biblical Translator, Philosopher and Interpreter. Master of German prose style. 1878-1965)

Sunday May 10th Young (Mad?) Scientist / Water Play
Today we will learn about Sink and Float

Toddler:
Give them a group of bath toys and drop (plop) them in the water one by one. Be very animated as you announce wither each items "sinks" or "floats".

Preschooler:
Ask your preschooler to help you fill a small basket with household objects that you don't mind getting wet. Ask them to guess if they will sink or float in water. Explain that floating means they stay at the top of the water and sinking means they will stay at the bottom of the tub (bucket, pool, container etc) After you have gathered objects bring them into the tub.

Experiment by dropping them one by one in the water. Ask them if it sinks or floats. Do they notice anything? Do you??

Advanced: After their bath, have your child  draw a line down the middle of the paper and make a list or pictures under the headings :SINK FLOAT


Monday May 11th Let's Play Ball! / Balloons Style
Toddler:
Blow up one balloon. Try to keep in in the air for as long as possible. It is good practice just for your toddler to try and hit it while it is in the air! Play catch! Our toddler could do this for awhile and then she ended up just running around holding it, yelling, "balloon"!

Preschooler:
You can count how many times you hit it before it touches the ground. You can play catch. You can set up a string and play balloon volleyball over the string.


Tuesday May 12th Artsy Fartsy
You need: Dishsoap, white paper, large bowl, food color is optional.

Add bubbles to bowl and water. Make sure bubbles reach the top or higher of the container sides. Lay your paper on top of the bubbles and then lift up. You are left with a bubble print. Let this dry. You can draw a picture on top or leave your  bubble print. Display.

If you use food coloring you will have different colors. You can also use more than one bowl and create multiple colors on one page.


Wednesday May 13th Music / What Made That Sound?
You need instruments and a way to "hide" them like a box or curtain.

Toddler and Preschooler:
Gather up musical instruments that you have for your child. If you do not own any instruments, anything that makes sound will do...but musical toys are "better". Show your child each one, name it, and show them what sound it makes.  For toddlers you can use only two at a time. Then put it inside a box, behind your back, or behind a curtain. Make the sound and have them guess which instrument it is. Work your way up with a preschooler. Move to three - ten instruments and have them guess what made that sound.

Preschoolers: Turn the tables and see if they can copy what you did and now you guess the instrument!

Thursday May 14th All is FAIR in Love and War? / Number Sense
Today divide up EVERYTHING!

Having a snack? Eat some goldfish, teddy grahams, marshmallows, raisins, etc. Start with a BIG pile and divide them between everyone. One for you and one for me! Any left over? Put them back in the bag, add enough to make it equal, or work it out another way...

Now count how many each person has.

Playing with cars? Little people? Barbies? Divide them up! Same game and you can play it all day with everything!

Create your own little counting wizard!

Friday May 15th Nature Walks / Colors
It is getting nice outside so take your kids for a walk.

Tell them today we are going on a colors walk. They need to find all the colors.

For your toddler just point out colors that you see. It can be very casual. There are green leaves, a red house, blue sky etc.  You can try to use the colors of the rainbow a few times through out your walk. Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Purple (Yes, I know it is indigo and violet...)

Preschooler: For your preschooler make it a hunt. Start with a color like red and see who can find something red. Then move on to the next color.

You can take your camera along and take pictures to make into a "color book". Just print or develop your pictures and put them into a 99cent photo album.

EXTEND: Did they love it? GREAT! Tomorrow do the same thing but use numbers or letters.


Saturday May 16th Terrific Toddlers / Stacking
Toddler:
Toddlers love to stack, unstack, stack, unstack. You may own the toy that has multiple cups that fit inside one another? Here is the same concept but with everyday items. This idea came from both my children (at various ages) doing this over and over again.

Give your toddler a stack of plastic cups. The kind you would use at a birthday party for drinks. They will spend a long time taking them apart (and hopefully putting them together). They may need help and direction on the putting it back together! If they like it change it up and hand them a stack of paper bowls, plastic bowls and cups, anything in your cupboard that fits inside each other and is not breakable.

Saturday May 16th / Preschool DRAMA

Imagination? Preschoolers are filled with it! The same cups that the toddlers like to stack your preschooler can use to pretend to cook dinner. Even if you have a miniature kitchen with all the accessories..they will be delighted with you handing them REAL kitchen plastic bowls, spoons, spatulas, pots etc to pretend to cook dinner while you are. Tell them to add water when you do it, or stir the food, take it off the stove etc. They will get a kick out of playing along. Let's Get Messy?Ok, I read this one. I haven't done it yet...Do you ever throw out leftovers? Try giving your preschooler all the leftovers to "cook" in your sink. They can mix them, stir them, smash them, and do all sorts of lovely creations! (Let me know how it goes for you!!)

BONUS Activity!!
CHORES
Yep chores! You and I may hate chores but your kids haven't had the time to build up that kind of feeling. It is all new to them. Sit down and think of all the chores your children can help out with. I tell my kids they are their jobs and they love it! These are just a start to the endless ways to have your child help out!

Toddler:
Pet:
Feeds the cat three scoops of food.
Eating:
Helps to set the table by bringing the plates, bowls, spoons, cups to the table (not normally in the right place but closer than the cupboard!)
Helps clean under the table after we eat with the dust buster.
Sidenote: The dust buster is one of the best inventions EVER!!
After we eat she brings plastic empty plates, bowls and puts them in the sink.
She can throw wrappers in trash, cans or bottles into the recycling.
She will forever try to put spoons into the right place in the dishwasher, I put in the forks and knives right before I close the dishwasher and lock it.
Diapers:
She can get a new diaper and bring it to me, then throw the other one away after I wrap

Preschooler:
He can do all the same chores as my toddler but we add some more...
He can open and close the refrigerator, so he is in charge of bringing condiments to the table.
He can scrap food into the garbage before he puts the plate or bowl into the sink.
He loves to fold the wash cloths while I fold laundry.
He likes to match up socks in the laundry as well.

The possibilities are endless...



  Remember to READ 15 minutes a day to your child!



“If animals play, this is because play is useful in the struggle for survival; because play practices and so perfects the skills needed in adult life”
-Susanna Miller quotes

Sunday May 3rd/ Fine Motor With Food
Warning! Totally unhealthy snack ahead, oh yeah and to top it off, we are encouraging them to play with their food! Yikes!

You need: Licorice string and fruit loop type cereal.

Show your child how to string the cereal onto the licorice. If you have long enough licorice string tie one end so the cereal does not fall off as they try to string it. The food can be a bracelet, necklace, or just eat it. You can work "hand over hand" with your toddler.


May 4th Monday Water Play

Toddler and Preschooler:
Today start to collect your empty ketchup, mustard, shampoo, dishsoap, and other items for the bath tub that can squirt water. Show your child how to put it under the water and get water into the bottle and then lift it out of the water and squeeze! They can also go into the kiddkie pool, or lake this summer too. If you want to make this even more exciting then keep clear plastic containers so your children can watch the water go in and out of the container! If you do not want your bathroom soaked, be sure to show your child (BEFORE YOU START) where they can squirt, and where they can not. If you are outside, be prepared to get wet!


May 5th / Number Sense / Your a BIG Kid Now!
Parent Info: Math includes being able to compare objects by size. Today let's talk about BIGGER and SMALLER.

Toddler:
Today go on a bigger and smaller hunt. Find tings in your house bigger than YOU (your toddler). You could find things inside such as; BIGGER refrigerator, furniture, bathroom sink, or bookcase. SMALLER a book, crayons, potty chair, or kleenex box. You could find things outside such as; BIGGER trees, street signs, swing sets, or fences. SMALLER ants, shovel, grass, leaves, or chalk. It is never ending really.

Preschooler:
Game:I Spy except today you can say "I spy with my little eye something bigger than_____________" or "I spy with my little eye something smaller than_________________"

Game: Pick up an object. "Let's find something BIGGER than this car." or "Let;s find something smaller than this drum." Then join your preschooler and go on a hunt looking for objects.

May 6th Wednesday Young (Mad?) Scientist /  Magnetism
You will need several magnets, any type will do.

Toddler:
Be sure to watch carefully or only use very large magnets with your toddler. You do NOT want them to swallow these! Toddlers can try to stick them on different objects or just repeatedly take them on and off your refrigerator.  Most likely they will lke to pull them off, have YOU put them back on and do this over and over...

Preschooler:
Give your preschooler a few magnets and kep a few for your self. Jump righ tin and start going around your kitchen and checking EVERYTHING to see if the magnet sticks to it. Announce loudly "It is magnetic" when it sticks or "OOPS, it is NOT magnetic" when it falls on the floor and does not stick. Soon your preschooler should be joining in and sticking them to different objects, if they just watch encourage them to try it too. Try your refrigerator, dishwasher, pots and pans, cookie sheets, silverware, table legs, try wood and plastic objects as well. This game had two highlights at our house. 1st when the magnets did not stick and fell on the floor (very funny stuff!) and 2nd when the magnets stuck to a butter knife it was super exciting!!

Advanced:
Get your science notebook or piece of paper out. Draw your "observations" or pictures of part of the experiment.

May 7th Thursday Music / Your Body as a Musical Instrument! / Baked Potato
You need: Your Body

Show your children all the ways you can think of to make music with differrent parts of your body.

Clap with open hands
Clap with cupped hands
Snap your fingers
Pat your cheeks, head
Open your mouth and pat your cheeks
Tap Slap Clap Rap your knees, thighs, tummy
"Pop" your mouth
Rub your hands back and forth

Give directions like: Soft, Loud, Fast and Slow

Everybody do their own sounds and you have a Human Band! :-)

Baked Potato Song

We haven't sang this one in a long time, but when we started this wee,k they wanted it over and over again. I made a video to show all of you and it is quite a risk for me because I can not sing a note, but the kids could care less...

We use scarves at music class and washclothes at home. Anything will work.
First have them squish it up in their hands.

Come and get your baked potato ,baked potato, baked potato
Come and get your baked potato
Careful it might be HOT

They shake or bounce the scarf while you sing and throw it at the word hot.

May 8th Friday / Old Fashion Fun / Pony Rides
Toddler and Preschooler:
Do you remember Pony Rides?

It is a simple and fun game. The grown up gets down on the floor on all fours. The child climbs up. If they have the balance skills to handle it, they can sit up like they are riding a horse, if they are younger they will lay down and hold on around the neck. The adult goes fast and slow around the room on all floors. It's a great workout too!

I think this naturally leads to piggy back rides. :-)

May 9th Saturday / ZipLock Bag /Ordinary Items, Extrodinary Fun
Toddler and Preschooler:

You need a ziplock and large tape.
What can you do with a Ziplock? The possibilities are endless...

We are going to fill the bag and give it to your child to squish. You will need to reinforce the seal with large packing tape to avoid a large mess.
* Fill with one, some, all
hair gel                ketchup and mustard        shaving cream        toothpaste
hand lotion          thick fingerpaint                pudding                  yogurt

You can put the bag in the freezer and make it cold or heat it up for an added sensory experience. Or make two bags and make one warm and one cold.

BONUS Activity!!
Build It and They Will Come!
This is a cute idea.

After your kids go to bed for the night, or while they are taking a nap, build a structure with blocks.When they wake up tell them you built them a special structure (house, building, thing) and they have to find it. Repeat as often as you like, but vary where you build and what you build. They will be excited to find what you have built for them! After they find it let them play with it, or knock it down.


Remember to READ 15 minutes a day to your child!


“It is paradoxical that many educators and parents still differentiate between a time for learning and a time for play without seeing the vital connection between them.”
-Leo F. Buscaglia quotes (American guru, tireless advocate of the power of love, 1924-1998)