Listening Walks

Tonight we went on a listening walk. We went out when the sun was about to go down and walked for about 20 minutes. We listened for any sounds. We heard locust, sirens, birds, dogs, and motorcycles. It helped us use a different sense than seeing- and there were less noises at this time of night.

And one benefit... the youngest fell asleep!

Learning in the Kitchen

I love to cook (but not dinner!). Cooking is one of the best things you can do for teaching: it is fun, it uses math, it uses reading, it uses science. You cannot go wrong if you let your preschooler help out in the kitchen- unless they (or you) catch something on fire!

I was cutting up veggies tonight and my son came over and asked what the yellow pepper was. I showed him the seeds and told him that is how more yellow peppers grow.

He actually moved on quickly, but it reminded me of how great the kitchen is... plus, maybe he will be the cook someday!

It Doesn't Hurt To Splurge Every Once in a While

Today was the first born's birthday, so we went to Sea World. It is a fun place to play and a fun place to learn. We saw the sharks, the dolphins, the sting rays, the penguins, and played in the water. You can learn a lot of things from theme parks, even the ones that are seem like just "fun".

So every once in a while, if it is in your budget, splurge a little!

Bugs, Bugs, Bugs

Actually it is just one bug.






Today we were walking out to the mail box and I walked through a spider web. Lovely! The spider (which really does not look like a spider, but did make a spider web) got caught on me and I quickly got it to the ground (and off my head!). My kids were so fascinated, they did not even go to the mail box. I remembered we got some bug containers at the dollar store a few weeks ago. We went and got it and then captured the spider. We named it Sydney (I think it is the spider on a Charlie & Lola episode) and gave it some plants and a stick. It climbed all over the cage. My son gave it some more flowers for his home and let it go within the hour.

It was so much fun watching the bug. A cheap, fun science activity for the day!

Finding Shapes

This one is straight off Barney!

Finding shapes is a great way to increase shape recognition. Start with a shape your child knows. If they do not know any shapes, start with a square or circle. Walk around the house and find things that are that shapes- for a circle, the pull on the cabinet, a plate, a the doorknob. For squares, a book, a tile on the floor, a window. Make sure you are not labeling rectangles as squares. And don't start with rectangles, they are too confusing for most children- stick to squares. Make sure if you use a sphere for circles (like a ball) you talk about it being "like" a circle- because it really isn't a circle.

Extend this activity to outside and find shapes all around you. You can also take about the "attributes" of the shapes: squares have four sides that are the same size and four corners; circles do not have any sides or any corners.

These real life math skills will help your child grasp what the different shapes are rather than looking at them on a piece of paper. This activity will also help them remember shapes better than a worksheet.

Baggie Books

This is a great idea I used as a school teacher. Take 4-5 zipper sandwich baggies and staple them together on the seam side, not the zipper side. Then use this as a book. You can make a cover with some paper or not. Go outside and find treasures to slip into each bag. Or go around the house and find treasures. Things to include can be leaves, bugs (preferably dead), small toys, pictures, or anything else you can find that will fit in the baggie. If you want, you can use small address labels to label each picture to encourage reading recognition. The sky is the limit with this activity. This is a great one to do once a week and make a new book each time. (But don't keep the bugs too long, they may smell!)

Looking At The Roots

Yesterday, my son and I were out in the backyard filling up the pool (a small inflatable). He wanted to play with the hose, but since we are on water restrictions, I told him he could not waste the water. So I told him he had one more minute, but he had to give the plant a drink. He said, "But where is its mouth?" We did a little science on the parts of a plant- truly only three parts- the roots, the stem, and the leaves.

I pulled up a section of grass (it was growing where grass should not- in the flower bed) and got the roots. We washed off the dirt and examined the roots. They were great with long spidery pieces and smaller shoots growing from those. We talked about the roots drinking the water. I showed him how to water the plant so the roots got the water from the sand.

We talked a little more about the stem and the leaves and we were done and the water was off. He never did play in the pool! He would much rather play in the hose.

It was a short little lesson that should stick. When you show them the real thing, the tend to remember more!