Jello

JELLO!!! Easiest, Best snack to make with kids! 

Ok so there is some sugar in it but it's fun to introduce science: steam, evaporation, dissolving, etc. 

Red food is a fav in our house, so raspberry was an easy choice. 

I showed them how to stir slowly and gently so they didn't splash and stain. I demonstrated how the red dye can stain and cause problems with clothes, towels, rugs, etc. One reason the don't have shirts on right now :) 

We discussed the idea of steam, what is it, where it comes from, etc. 

                       

They each got turns mixing, dissolving, and telling the difference between hot and cold water. 

Fun in the kitchen with kids!!!!!

I love giving my little ones more vocabulary everyday and letting them practice. Make sure you give your little ones the chance to practice the words they hear you use. Making time, having conversations builds such strong foundations for language and their use of it! 

Letter Races - Letter Practice

First, If you don't own letter mats, get some! I found mine at the consignment shop - super cheap! They are a blast. 

We have the out and about most of the time. My children work best when we rotate toys in and out of our playroom/family room. I got these back out when grandma came to visit - any extra back up activities are always appreciated. 

Kids LOVE jumping! I asked if he wanted to jump/stomp (as a dinosaur) on letter tiles - of course that was a YES! 

 

I started by throwing tiles on the floor and asking him to find the letter and jumping on it. It was a good refresher to call/drop them on the floor in order and let him jump on them right as they fell.

We called a few of his favorites several times so he could really stomp.

Send the kids on a hunt for certain letters and let them call letters out to you. He loved telling me to find various letters then saying, "Good Job, Mommy"!!!! Kids love to teach also, give them the chance! 

When people get the chance to teach, they learn 90% of what is presented to them!!!!!!

Let them teach you!!!

We created our letter race track. He and I would find the letters and connect them in order. We took turns so he wouldn't burn out.

Even, little lady and our pup started racing and having a blast!

I started calling letters as he ran. CP would run up and down until he found it and jumped/stomped/sat/squatted on that tile. He was ecstatic when he got it correct. He's normally very good with his letters, so this was hysterical!

 

 

Finally, he started jumping and moving his legs out from under him, landing on his bottom. Hysterical!

 

Have fun with letters, make things a game, and always talk to your child giving them the words to communicate with you!

Painting Pasta

This was an AWESOME and cheap activity to do with the kids. It was so easy to put together and little man loved creating painted noodles with me.

I found a box of noodles on sale.  I didn't think it mattered if the noodles were nasty as we were only going to be silly with them. I think I ended up paying $.78 for the box.

We talked about cold water and boiling water. "How do we know when the water is boiling?" It was a great intro to steam and evaporation. Now little man talks about my coffee being hot when he can see the steam.

Cook the noodles until al'dente. This way they suck of the color and don't fall apart in your little one's hands.

drain - use right away! pasta as you know can get sticky and not as easy to work with

The kids and I (really my 2 1/2 year old) decided with what colors he wanted to play. I split the pasta into four bowls.

Add some oil to keep the noodles from sticking together. '

I only added a splash to each bowl.

Use your favorite food coloring and get creative.

I wanted brightly colored noodles and have an abundance of food coloring so I opted to use quite a bit. Use what you have.

Use a fork to get you started mixing the colors, because the noodles are still hot. You can rinse them in cold water first to make mixing easier, HOWEVER, it stops the cooking process and then they don't suck up as much coloring.

Because we love noodles in our house, I found little man eating them several times. Nothing wrong with it - other than a blue and green mouth afterward :) Use a cookie sheet to keep your table a bit cleaner and the oily pasta in one spot.

Have fun playing with textures, picking out only certain colors, practicing dexterity - one noodle at a time, and just spreading them around and mashing them together. 

We made little birds' nests, then talked about the types of birds that we have in our yard that may use our colorful nests.

Squish!!!!!

If you have ever read "I love you Stinky Face", then you may recognize the "slimy swamp monster that CP turned himself into. If you haven't read the book, it is a must in our house! It's super adorable and just sweet to read at bedtime.

Get a few days of life out of the pasta by keeping it in an airtight container. Since it's only in oil, it's ok to keep on the counter but it will spoil after some time.

Band Practice

Kids LOVE to make music and don't care if you can't carry a tune to save your life. 

I can't at all!! But we have a blast. 

For Christmas we were given a Melissa and Doug music set to add to our collection.

 

One great set of instruments with a Latin flair :)

 

Most stores carry instruments of all kinds. Find something that works for you and just have fun! 

This great drum came in one of our Citrus Lane boxes. A great website that families, parents, grandparents can subscribe to. The recipent gets a box of goodies once a month. Sometimes the items are plates, silverware, stuffed animals, music related, books, CDs, food samples, food containers, etc. It's a great investment. I have only been receiving it for five months now but am not disappointed! 

 

When we are not using store bought instruments, we have a BLAST with an old coffee container, plastic food storage container, pin tin, mixing bowls (metal - not my glass ones :) ) and a wooden spoon. 

 

Put a CD or downloaded music on in the background and go for it! Have a blast.  

For a few great music ideas: Dr. Jean (a must - used in classrooms all over, wonderful catchy songs that I have personally witnessed helping all types of learners succeed!!!!), Wiggly Songs, Animal Playground, etc. Have fun, really these are ideas to get started!

 

Kids want to be involved! There is so much since behind how little ones (and adults) learn. Put anything to music and people grasp it faster. I have a friend who's 18 month old could spell her brother's name (Michael) because they sang it to her in a song. WOW, right! (Granted mom is a music teacher, but still....I can do that) 

 

Exposing kids to different styles of music and various instruments are so incredibly valuable. Our little man dances constantly and his sister follows along the best she can. 

Remember: Conversation is one of the best ways to learn! Your child's vocabulary will grow exponentially the more you listen, ask questions, and explain what you are doing. Give them the words you want them to learn. Here, the words revolve around music (fast tempo, slow tempo, high pitch, low pitch) or instruments ( xylophone, triangle, drum, drum stick, bells, etc). I am not a music teacher at all! Please don't take me as a music know all as I am only having fun with my kids. :)