Science Activities on Tuesday Tots

Oct 30, 2012





Welcome to this weeks TUESDAY TOTS 
Tuesday Tots is a place where bloggers from all around the world are invited to share their child friendly (kids under 5!) posts with us. 

Each week, myself, Rainy Day MumGrowing a Jeweled Rose and In Lieu of Preschool will feature some of the amazing ideas that are shared with us. Ideas we know that YOU will love!

Feel free to browse the list and check out any of the posts that interest you.


FEATURED



I absolutely love the sense of awe and wonder instilled in children by Science

Last week on Tuesday Tots I found some super fun, yet super simple Science Activities for you to do with your tots. Check them out!


From Top-Bottom, Left-Right in the above pic.

Pumpkin Oobleck from Inspiration Laboratories


 Self Inflating Ghost Balloons from Mama Smiles


Slime Play from Mummy Musings and Mayhem


Congratulations if you were featured.  Feel free to grab a featured button from the sidebar.



We LOVE Science Activities Here!

Here's our 2 most popular ones


 
Water Bottle Fountain                                              Cloud Jars



Now, it's your turn to link up. 
Can't wait to see what you're up to this week!


~~~~~~~ Just a few guidelines! ~~~~~~~



~ Please link up any posts from the week featuring an activity, craft, story, outing, or favourite memory with your tot (under 5)

~  Feel free to link more than one post as we are all about the sharing of ideas.

~  Please don't link giveaways

~  You may also grab the Tuesday Tots badge from the sidebar and either add it to your blog or include it at the bottom of the submitted post.

~  If you are featured, please grab the "Featured at" badge from the side bar if you would like to display it

~  Also note, linking up to Tuesday Tots gives Learn with Play at homeGrowing A Jeweled RoseRainy Day Mum, and In Lieu of Preschool permission to feature and share your post through a variety of social medias.  In order to promote your post if featured, you are also giving us permission to use one photo from your post (with links back to you  of course )  

~  We will always clearly link back to you when sharing!  Our goal is to promote your great ideas, and in turn, YOUR site! 
~  Thank you in advance for sharing your great ideas with Tuesday Tots!




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Building & Playing with Books & Cars

Oct 29, 2012




Today I set out an Invitation to Play for my daughter. Using just 2 different materials that most people have at home, Books and Cars, she engaged herself in building and balancing, experimenting and exploring and a whole fantastic imaginative world full of language development.


Ages: 2-6+
(For ideas to simplify or extend this activity, see the Handy Tips at the bottom)
invitation to play, building activity, kids activity
Materials: Books (hard cover are easier) and Cars



invitation to play, building, kids activity
To create this Invitation to Play, I put out a pile of children's books, set a couple of them into small tunnels and provided a couple of wooden cars. Entering the room to find them, she was already excited.



Invitation to Play, building, kids activity
She quickly swept away what I'd set out and got to work building and balancing



invitation to play, building, kids activity
Creating Ramps at varying heights and angles produced different results



invitation to play, kids activity, building
The books became tunnels, ramps, roads, mountains, garages, houses and more. Yep, just books.



invitation to play, building, kids activity
The dialogue this activity produced was incredibly beneficial and my favourite outcome



Invitation to play, kids activity, building
The amount of time she spent on this activity even surprised me. I'll set it out again with extra/different materials next time.



For more fun Building Activities with stuff from around the house click on the Picture

activity for kids, building game 




Handy Tips:

- Simplify this activity by providing smaller, sturdier books. Board books would be perfect for this. Assist your child in creating simple structures like a garage for the cars or one long tunnel. Set up a few basic book ramps for your child to race their cars down.

Extend this activity by challenging your child with all different sized, shaped books. Try soft cover books and see if they make a different. Have your child experiment with varying heights and angles for ramps and include a measuring tape for added maths skills. Challenge your child to use every single book in one long continuous tunnel. 

Mix it up by providing other materials to build with to provide different challenges. Ask your child to look around the house and see what ideas they come up with. 


- Make your child aware of the problem solving they are doing. "How are you going to get that ramp to stay leaning up against that book without it falling over?" "Putting the 2 books back-to-back like that for extra sturdiness was a great sollution/idea. Well done!" etc


Instead of always giving your child directions as to how they are expected to play, I like to mix it up and create "invitations" to play where children can explore and figure out for themselves what they can do. This type of open-ended activity allows the child to take the activity to a level they are comfortable with while giving them the freedom to explore different angles. Your child may come up with other fabulous games/activities with just these 2 materials.


- Use new language and descriptive words when talking to your child about what they are doing, like, "balancing" and "gravity" This will help with their language development and conceptual understanding.




Happy playing,
Debs :)



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The Mom Connection. To Ration Candy or Not?

Oct 27, 2012



Once again, my friend Julie over at The Naptime Review and I have teamed up to bring you...

The Mom Connection
 
Join us every Saturday for this NEW series!

We're always wondering how other moms handle certain issues or dilemmas,
so each week we are going to tackle the questions of motherhood.

Next week we will discuss
How do you get your kids to clean up and pick up their toys?


If you have some thoughts or advice on next week's topic please email

Cassie at twoindiapers@gmail.com

We would love for you to be part of The Mom Connection!

Now on to this week's topic!

Do you ration your kids' Halloween/holiday candy?
If so, how?

Here is what a few of us had to say:

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Welcome! I'm Julie over at Naptime Review. I am a mom of 2 wild, crazy and beautiful girls. My oldest is almost 4 and my baby just turned 1. This is how I handle Halloween candy:

So far, I have been lucky when it comes to sugar overload around Halloween. The baby doesn't know better and the 3 year old is more of a "collector" than an eater. I think she still has some Easter candy in a purse somewhere. I definitely believe in rationing the amount of candy a young child should have. I can see my daughter go from normal to crazy in seconds when we are out to a restaurant and she orders chocolate milk made with chocolate syrup. I can see major meltdowns after spending the weekend with Grandma where she was spoiled with chocolate and S'mores all night long. 

This year, I will put some regulations on the amount of sugar consumed. I believe in fun but with moderation. My friend gave me this awesome idea years ago. I think I might use it one day. It's called the "Switch Witch". She comes around on Halloween. After the children are done trick-o-treating they put their collection by their bedroom door before they go to bed. While they are sleeping the "Switch Witch" comes and exchanges ALL that candy and sugar for a desired toy. Then Daddy and the "Switch Witch" sit on the couch and indulge in Reece Pieces and Snicker bars all night long. Ha!

 So, I am going to try to monitor the amount of junk that goes into my children's mouths this holiday. I want my children to have fun but also learn choices that will benefit them in the future. I have just started to pay more attention to labels and I think it is only right to be cautious this Halloween as well. I am also purchasing healthier choices for our neighborhood guests to enjoy. I just got some Utz cheeseballs and Pretzels and Annie's Homegrown Hallowen Snacks at Target. My husband asked if we were getting a "Tofu Turkey" for Thanksgiving. He is so funny!

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Hi! I'm Cassie from Two In Diapers, and I'm a mommy to three sweet babies, ages 4, 3, and 18 months.

 Hooooboy... Halloween candy. Everyone knows that it's really for the moms, right?? ;)

 Well, I was hoping not to have to be the only one to admit that I don't ration Halloween/holiday candy as much as I should, but here's the thing.

 We really don't usually keep sweets at our house, period. Besides the fact that I don't want my kids eating junk all the time, I have the worst sweet tooth in the whole world, and my husband doesn't eat any sweets whatsoever. This means that any sweets in our house usually end up being eaten by moi. So, while I have complete control over the situation, I just don't buy dessert or candy.

 As a result, when holiday candy makes its way into our home, it's a big exciting ordeal! I do keep it up on top of the fridge and out of reach, but I will admit to handing it out a piece at a time randomly throughout the day. Luckily for me, my littles usually forget that it exists within a couple of days, which gives me the chance to... um... throw it away. Yeah... that's what I do. ;)

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Hey Y’all! My name is Roni from The Home Payge.  I am a Mommy of two kiddos. Teagan (my girl) is 5 years old, and my baby Parker is going on 3! They both drive me absolutely crazy and I love every minute of it, even if I’m hiding in the closet with a glass of wine!

Halloween brings a whole other level of crazy in our home. Not just Halloween, but all major Holidays in general. It’s as if the kids KNOW that something special and fun is about to happen and they literally turn into Thing 1 and Thing 2 and bounce off the walls like little Dr. Seuss characters.

During Halloween, I try to minimize the “bouncing” as much as possible. I do not really “ration” candy, but I do pick through it and give them what I choose for them to have. I keep them away from the tacky, gummy, sticky stuff. It’s just NOT good for their teeth and no matter how much you brush, it never comes off entirely. So anything that isn't tacky and sticky, they can enjoy! And Mommy and Daddy get the rest! I KNOW I am not the ONLY one that invades the kids candy, right?

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Hi! My name is Debs from Learn with Play at home. I am a mum of 2 kids aged 12 months and almost 4 years. I don't actually have any Halloween celebrations where I live in Australia, but if we did, I would definitely ration my kids' Halloween and this is why. 

I am a firm believer in everything in moderation and that includes celebrations and at holiday time. With my 3 year old we have always talked about foods as either an "Anytime food" (most vegetables), "Everyday foods" (like bread, fruit etc) and "Sometimes food" (cookies, cakes, candy etc).

She is very understanding and responsive to this. Like most kids, she loves "treats" and sweet foods but she also loves and is more than happy to snack on cucumber, lettuce leaves and frozen peas. Whenever we get a "treat bag" to take home from a party, I'm happy for her to choose one of the treats to eat now (they've usually eaten tons at parties and celebrations anyway) and then we put the bag away. If she remembers about the candy in the bag the next day, she usually asks for one and so long as she's been well behaved and it's a reasonable time of the day, it's generally fine if she has it. Often, she forgets about it. Out of sight, out of mind and I feel no concern, as her parent, in not reminding her.

I believe that as a parent of young children that it's my responsibility to teach my children a healthy and balanced attitude towards food, eating and their bodies.

We also talk a lot about "energy in and energy out." All foods contain energy. Some more than others. Our bodies require a certain amount of energy depending on our age, weight and energy levels. My daughter knows that on days she is going to/has burnt a lot more energy, I am happier about her eating some higher energy foods. Hopefully, if we continue with this approach as a whole family then both my children will grow up with, (at the very least) a good understanding on how food and our bodies are related and hopefully a healthy attitude to carry on with in the years where I'm not in control of what goes into their bodies.

(You can see some of the ways that I make healthy food a bit more fun for my kids here)

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My name is Lena from Lena B, Actually {formerly Mom2MemphisAndRuby}. I am a mom of 2 awesome kids, Memphis & Ruby!

 I do ration my kids' Halloween, and this is how/why: Okay, so Halloween only comes once a year and it's a FUN holiday... luckily, Memphis isn't much of a junk food lover and isn't overly anxious to get through his haul once a night of trick or treating is over. Ruby, however, has a HUGE sweet tooth and would probably make herself sick if we didn't ration her Halloween candy! Basically, my kids are still young and we only go around 1 block... so it's not like they have 5 bags of candy to go through... phew! We come home, take off our costumes and sit through to sort & inspect their goodies. There is some trading involved, of course... and usually it is sorted by chocolate, hard candy, chips, etc. They are allowed a few pieces a night until all the candy is gone... (no hard candy for either! I'm super paranoid about someone choking!!) I've noticed after the first 2 nights, there aren't as many requests for sweets... I think they get over the hype of it pretty quickly!

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Your Turn:


 Do YOU ration your children's Halloween candy
or let them have more freedom?
Do you have any tips or advice?
 Love to hear from you!


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Treasure Rocks

Oct 25, 2012

painted rocks

Today I've shared a fun and creative activity on the Memetales blog.

Something to entice the senses and capture the imagination.

Click HERE to see how we made the Treasure Rocks and what they could be used for.

................................


Here are some other fun crafts we've made to use with Imaginative Play.
Click the picture to go to the activity.

 




Happy playing,
Debs :)



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DIY Party Favours

Oct 24, 2012


We recently had a Very Hungry Caterpillar birthday party for my son's 1st birthday. 

Here's how we made the take-home bags and goodies to go in them.

You can use these ideas for any theme of party by simply changing a few little details.


DIY PLAYDOUGH BAGS


 "Make-your-own" play dough bags make a great party favour as you can easily control the costs by making the playdough yourself. Here's our favourite quick and easy playdough recipe. They are also really simple to make and as a bonus, they look great and kids love them.

You can make them in any theme to suit your child's party.
Here's how we made them for our Very Hungry Caterpillar Party


Materials: Playdough, embellishments (googly eyes and pipecleaners), zip lock bag, cardboard tags.



After making up the playdough I made my own version of what the children could make with it.
I then photographed it and made a simple label on the computer.

Print out the labels onto thick white paper, assemble each zip lock bag with playdough and embellishments and then staple a folded over label over the top of the ziplock bag. All done! Too easy :)


Click here for a copy of the Very Hungry Caterpillar playdough bag labels.
Be sure to download onto your computer and then print for best quality.


RECYCLE BABY FOOD JARS


Recycled Baby food jars make such cute little lolly holders for take-home bags.

We used ours to hold our "Caterpillar Food"

Materials: Empty baby food jars, paint, stickers/paper/glue

After ensuring that all the jars were thoroughly cleaned I painted all the lids with green paint.
I then made up a simple label on the computer (Caterpillar Food) and stuck those on top of the lids.


Fill your little lolly jars with whatever you like


Voila! Easy and pretty and can be made to suit any theme.



Party Bags

To put their treats in I purchased some plain paper bags and stuck on a thankyou that I made on the computer.


For a cheaper alternative, try brown paper lunch bags with a mini peg keeping them folded over.



You can see the rest of our Very Hungry Caterpillar Party here.



What great DIY Party Favour Ideas do you use?



Happy playing,
Debs :)



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Very Hungry Caterpillar Party Activity

Oct 23, 2012




When we first saw this super fun activity from our friends at Teach Preschool, straight away I knew that if I ever did a Very Hungry Caterpillar Birthday Party, this would be a perfect, mess free activity for kids.

I did, of course, opt to do a Very Hungry Caterpillar Party and was delighted to set this activity up for the kids.


 Very Hungry Caterpillar Sticky Table
Materials: Bottle Tops, Bottle tops with googly eyes, contact paper, sticky tape and Bento divider grass (you can buy this very cheaply on ebay)


Cover your table with contact paper (sticky side UP!) and tape down to your table.


Provide the children with a little bit of inspiration and your activity is good to go.


 Party Day!


Even when everyone had gone home, the little birthday boy still wanted to play with it.



Very Hungry Caterpillar Colouring
At children's parties I like to have somewhere that kids can go for some quieter time if they like. 
Having some colouring sheets and crayons out is easy and will be welcomed by some children.



You can get your own copy of this VHC Colouring Sheet here

And, if you have sheets left over, they're great to add to the take home bags when the kids go home.




You can see the rest of our Very Hungry Caterpillar Party here.




Debs :)



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Nature Play on Tuesday Tots





Welcome to this weeks TUESDAY TOTS 
Tuesday Tots is a place where bloggers from all around the world are invited to share their child friendly (kids under 5!) posts with us. 

Each week, myself, Rainy Day MumGrowing a Jeweled Rose and In Lieu of Preschool will feature some of the amazing ideas that are shared with us. Ideas we know that YOU will love!

Feel free to browse the list and check out any of the posts that interest you.


FEATURED



There are so many fantastic things you can do, using nature and natural materials as your inspiration.

Last week on Tuesday Tots I found a whole bunch of FABULOUS ideas for playing, learning and creating with Natural Materials


5 Things to do with Acorns and kids from Making Boys Men


 Fall Leaf Printing from Mommyhood from the Heart


Conker Rolling Art from Playful Learners


Fall Nature Table from Buggy and Buddy


9 Things to do with Sticks and Leaves from Mummy, Mummy, Mum


7 Acorn Activities from Hey Mommy, Chocolate Milk


Outside Play: Leaves and Pumpkins from Home Learning Journey

Congratulations if you were featured.  Feel free to grab a featured button from the sidebar.


A fun way that we've played and learnt with Nature before


 Click here for this fun activity



Now, it's your turn to link up. 
Can't wait to see what you're up to this week!


~~~~~~~ Just a few guidelines! ~~~~~~~



~ Please link up any posts from the week featuring an activity, craft, story, outing, or favourite memory with your tot (under 5)

~  Feel free to link more than one post as we are all about the sharing of ideas.

~  Please don't link giveaways

~  You may also grab the Tuesday Tots badge from the sidebar and either add it to your blog or include it at the bottom of the submitted post.
~  If you are featured, please grab the "Featured at" badge from the side bar if you would like to display it
~  Also note, linking up to Tuesday Tots gives Learn with Play at homeGrowing A Jeweled RoseRainy Day Mum, and In Lieu of Preschool permission to feature and share your post through a variety of social medias.  In order to promote your post if featured, you are also giving us permission to use one photo from your post (with links back to you  of course )  
~  We will always clearly link back to you when sharing!  Our goal is to promote your great ideas, and in turn, YOUR site! 
~  Thank you in advance for sharing your great ideas with Tuesday Tots!

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Very Hungry Caterpillar Party

Oct 21, 2012

very hungry caterpillar birthday, first birthday

The Very Hungry Caterpillar, by Eric Carle is one of our favourite books... and a well loved children's classic across the world.
It's no wonder that when I first saw the Very Hungry Caterpillar as a theme for birthday parties I knew straight away that I just *had* to do one.. and with my son turning one I thought it was the perfect theme.

The catering was so easy as we just used the book for inspiration. We ate what the caterpillar ate!

It was a really fun day and with a few small details, all came together nicely and easily :)

For details on how to put together your own VHC Party, see below the pictures.






























Happy 1st Birthday to my darling little man.
Mummy loves you so much!




Details on how to put together your own 
Very Hungry Caterpillar Birthday Party


Cake- for more details on how I made the cake see here.


Food Labels- For more details on how I made the food labels as well as a FREE COPY for yourself to download, see here.


Decorations- for more details on how I made the decorations, (Including the "Pop" HolderBackdrop and Caterpillars), see here


Activities- for more details on the simple party activities I did, (including the Sticky Table and downloadable colouring sheet) see here.


Take-home bags- for more details on how I made the take home bags and goodies, (including DIY Playdough Bags (happy to send you a free copy) and Caterpillar Food Jars) see here.


Vendor Credits 


Invitation, Cupcake Circles and Water bottle Labels from Print Sparkle (you must check out their range. Extensive and very affordable! I was going to make my own but after seeing their's I just couldn't go past buying them!)

Very Hungry Caterpillar Material, (used as a table cloth and now to be made into a cushion!) from Jean Maries Fabrics

(These Vendor links are affiliate links which means I get a small commission if you purchase through them. The price for you is the same regardless. Thanks! PS: Etsy Rocks!)



We've also done a Rainbow Party a Butterfly Party, an Alphabet Party, an Art Party and a Dinosaur Party



If you liked this, don't forget to share :)

Debs :)



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