Window Blocks - Window Clings

I loved finding this idea!!! I wish I could remember which blog I saw it on first! - Totally snagged this one and it's a KEEPER!

I found foam sheets in rectangles and circles at the dollar store. I picked up one pack of each totaling $2. 

I know an expensive activity ;) 

This is going to be my next busy bag contribution at our next exchange (not scheduled - but too easy to pass up!!!)

When foam is wet it sticks easily to windows and walls, like window clings. We have two little ones that LOVE their water table and playing in the kiddie pool. Dipping and splashing in water is always a plus. I set them up outside, let them dip and splash all they wanted and it didn't matter if they were getting the windows or themselves wet. 

We call this Window Blocks. 

Cut into various easy shapes. I did this during nap time one day in about 4 minutes. I didn't worry about making cuts perfect or look beautiful. Didn't think it matter very much.

Use a small container to dip the foam pieces in to get wet and make the stick to the window.

Have fun! Build towers, castles, houses, trees, etc....

Sort by shapes

Sort by colors

Just stick them on and build. It doesn't matter, have fun!

Practice giving your little ones words to add to their vocabulary. Talking with your kiddos and explaining what they are doing and with what they are working will always help your child grow.

Store them how you wish, zlip-loc, a sak, a plastic container. They dry VERY fast in the sun. I leave them out for a minute and then gather them up for the day.

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.

Inside Garden from Tomato Containers

Indoor Easy Garden

As my little man and I created these little indoor gardens, I become more excited about summer coming and having him learning about gardening, plants, and growing. 

We were invited to the neighbors for a dinner party and there was no way I was showing up empty handed. I created an easy and DELICIOUS tomato and olive salad that was a HUGE hit. 

I rinsed the cherry tomatoes and realizes I NEEDED to keep these containers for something and it me later to use them as a little terrarium or mini green house.

 

I purchased little violets and used some extra dirt from the backyard. I had little man join me in the backyard to gather the dirt. It had just rained and he wasn't too thrilled with the 'mud' aspect. 

   

Conversation during this activity was all about how plants grow. We got to see the roots of the violets and spent time feeling how small and thin they are. It was cool to talk about how the roots soak up water and nutrients (I related it do plant food) to help the plant grow strong and beautiful. I showed him that trees are plants, too. We discussed plants are large and small but they all have roots. 

 

We have these in the kitchen window. I would love to put them in the play room on their art table however, the dog would love to help redecorate our home with these. :)

 

I love reusing containers. Anything works. Get Creative on your own terms. 

Remember: Every activity is an opportunity to help build your child's vocabulary. Don't worry about talking 'above' there head as long as you connect it to something they already know and can give them a visual. 

Letter Stickers

Calling all moms who are looking for another idea to practice letters. 

 

I purchased poster letter stickers on a whim one afternoon. 

What a great purchase!!!! I originally was thinking fun cheap stickers, however, it has turned into so much more! 

 

I gave little man the stickers for his name and he pulled the paper back off and put them on the paper. 

He decided that it wasn't enough just to have the stickers. He needed to make a border for each letter. Which was AWESOME, since he was outlining each letter! 

(Practicing letters all on his own) 

We spell his name to him all the time and he was writing C and L over and over.

 

 I encourage him to use various mediums to enhance his art. We had painted earlier in the day and spent time practicing using colored pencils while his sister was sleeping (she likes to try to eat them, good ideas from a 11 month old). It was time to bust out the crayons.

  

The letters were inspiring. He found his favorite letter H. Not sure where that came from but he points how "big H" anytime he sees one. Today we used the letter sticker to demonstrate how to make his letter H. 

 

We used the pattern 'line, line, cross' to practice making about four dozen H's today. It was exciting to see him start writing. 

 

Special Paint

We spent time painting our new8 dining room and of course he wanted to help paint the room. 

I gave him a cup of water and a paint brush and he painted parts of the wall that were "out of the way". 

 

This led me to an amazing idea!!! I taped construction paper to the dishwasher while I made dinner and TaDa!! An awesome canvas with  "special paint". It kept him busy for a good 20 minutes!

Painting with Toys

 

Cut sponges into pieces and allow kids to feel the different textures as well as what happens when they get to use different sides and textures to paint with. 

 

Try using scrubbing sponges as a paint brush. Kids will love seeing what happens to paint as it is dotted and smeared. 

 

We are using a small textured basketball to roll in paint and roll around the paper. It was great to talk about the bumps on the paper and then had fun washing the basketball off to use to slam dunk in our mini hoop. 

 

Try dipping cookie cutters in paint and making different sharps and stories. 

 

One of our favorite! Use a car or truck that you can run or race through paint and then "race" across the pages. Have fun with it!! 

Try This: 

Use animals to paint tracks across the page

Borrow some craft stamps and practice stamping

Cut an apple or potato in have and use as a homemade stamp

Singing our ABC's

 

A few years ago, having the privilege to teach kindergarten for a year, I created felt letters cards. I used a bulletin board stencil to draw on scraps of felt and then glued the felt on to foam boards.

We pull the cards out frequently. We lay them out to find different letters, colors, sounds. We sing the ABC song over and over. It's an awesome activity to share with those who want to play with the kids but don't want to get messy.

Lacing

Fine motor skills are crucial as kiddos grow into writers and crafters. 

Here is an easy (and SUPER cheap) homemade lacing activity!

Cut out any shape you want from construction paper, we have an apply. Use a hole punch to put a few holes around the edge of the shape. Use yarn to lace through the holes. (Extra shoe laces work well, although, I not sure who have a ton of those around:) )

** one trick to help with lacing: wrap the end of the yarn with tape to make it more similar to a shoe lace***

Color Collages

CP is one smart little man but needs so practice with his colors. We have a ton of books, coloring books, crayons, markers, and toys that we use to teach color. (Basically, everything we see) 

Today, we had a wonderful day where mom and son could send a few quiet hours just playing and being crafty together.

 

We chose a few pieces of construction paper together and decided which colors we would focus on today. I used an old house decor magazine that we could rip apart, or destroy without hesitation :) We turned the pages together to find yellow, blue, or green. 

*** Be sure to stick with one color at a time in the beginning to secure each color.***

We would rip then glue and repeat. 

 

Ripping pictures and letters out to match was a blast. We used a nontoxic glue stick that I use for scrap booking so really who cares how messy we got! So much FUN! 

-For me this craft was TOTALLY free!!!-

Pops of Color

Moving into a new house has been WONDERFUL, however, new spaces sometimes call for new colors. The family that lived in our home prior us, left an entire cabinet of vases. I decided to take left over paint from various projects and give them new life.

 

I pour a bit of paint into the inside and swirled it around. I allowed the paint to drip out for a bit. It is OK to have a bit extra in the bottom. I did find an issue that if I didn't allow excess to drain out the paint didn't really dry out. Even after two weeks on the shelf. I now have them scattered around the fire place mantle and bookshelves. 

The cost to me......absolutely NOTHING!