Pinata 08/16/2010
 
Make your own pinata!

You need:
newspaper cut in strips, water and flour mixture (mix until it feels like watery paste), a balloon, and a bucket.

One of my favorite things about this activity was that it took all week!

On Monday we blew up the balloon and put it in the bucket. I can't believe I forgot to take pictures of us making the pinata!! Oops.

We put our first layer of paper on and then set it outside in the gazebo to dry overnight.

Tuesday and Wend we did the same thing. It was hard and not going to be easy to break!
During nap on Wend I filled the pinata with small reptiles and dinosaurs. I didn't buy  anything new for this, I just raided the playroom. Then I added another layer of papermache over the opening and left it to dry.

On Thursday we painted the pinata. They had a great time doing this and were full of paint by the end. We mixed colors too and the final pinata ended up mostly brown from all the colors.
This was my favorite part. I gave the pinata to my son to try an open. He tried to hit it, bang it with a stick, step on it, and roll it. I told him to try to throw it on the sidewalk as hard as he could. It still took several throws!

He loved the animals and called it an egg.

It was amazing how long the same animals that sat in the playroom were now very special. He played with those all afternoon.
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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.

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Preschooler:
This is an activity that takes time and patience, good things to start to learn at this age.

Take your child outside with a small paper cup. Fill the cup with dirt and plant a few small
seeds. Explain that seeds need three things to grow; dirt, water, and sun. It is a good time of year to start your seed because you will be able to transfer it outdoors into a larger container or garden in a few weeks.

Then put the cup in a window sill. This will take some explanation, especially if they have seen a seed grow in a few seconds on TV. (like my son had) The concept of time and waiting is developing in your child and they will need help to understand why it didn't grow "right now".

We used sunflower seeds and had small buds in a few days. We also needed to discuss how much water a small seed needs. :-)

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