Children Love Planting and Eating Chia

Fun With Chia!!

Little chia seeds pack a nutritional punch. These little plants are full of antioxidants, omega three fatty acids, fiber, calcium, and many nutrients. “Chia” means strength in the Mayan language and Aztec warriors and runners ate them often before battles. They are a super food. The seeds grow very fast, thicken liquids, and add nutrition to baked goods like muffins, breads, cookies, and pancakes. Young children and teens who will not touch lettuce or spinach salads will happily snack on chia or other sprouts like sunflowers.

Little Chia Garden

  Chia seeds in the grocery store can be planted. For planting, purchase a few new half inch synthetic sponges with little holes.  Soak the new sponges so they are damp but not dripping. Place the sponges on plates 

Plant Some Chis Seeds

and scatter chia seeds across the tops, gently poking them into the sponge holes. The seeds do not need to be washed first. In fact, when washed they will stick together in a glob.

  Keep the sponges moist by misting with several tablespoons of water often.  It is important not to let the chia seeds dry out. You may cover with clear plastic containers over the plates at night to keep the moisture in. Take off the covers during the day so the seeds do not rot. They will take 4-7 days to sprout about 1/4 inches.  Then it is time to move them to a sunny counter to grow 3-4 inches before harvesting with a washed scissors. They are great for children’s indoor gardens because they grow quickly.

  Strawberry Chia Pudding

  For this fresh tapioca- like pudding you will need: 16 ounces fresh hulled strawberries,

1 ½ cups coconut milk, 1/4 cup honey (maple syrup or to taste, 1 tsp vanilla, again to taste, 3/4 teaspoon finely grated lime zest, 1/2 cup chia seeds. Place everything BUT seeds in a blender until smooth. Check sweetness.

  Place chia seeds in a large bowl, pour the strawberry mixture on top, and whisk thoroughly. Let stand for 10 minutes and whisk again. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours and up to 3 days. Stir the pudding before serving. The longer it sits, the thicker the pudding will become; if you find that it is too thick, whisk in a little water.

Make a Pudding or Parfait With Chia!

    For a parfait, put 1 cup fresh or frozen pineapple cubes in a saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring and mashing with a spoon about 7 minutes.  Add 2 cups pitted fresh or frozen sweet cherries mashing and cooking until tender, removing any chunks. Remove from heat.  Add 2 tablespoons chia seeds.  Mix well, cover and refrigerate overnight to thicken. To serve, layer 2 tablespoons of mixture with alternate layers of Greek yogurt.  

For more information on all things Chia go to: https://dengarden.com/gardening/How-I-grow-and-harvest-organic-Chia and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salvia_hispanica 

For more of our blogs see grandparentsteachtoo.blogspot.com  or http://wnmufm.org/programs/learning-through-seasons#stream/0

Photos: Dick Culbert from Gibsons, B.C., Canada - Salvia hispanica and 

Fran Darling, fdarling fotos  

Discovering Fresh Snow Prints

Fresh Snow Tell's Its Story 

Every time there is fresh snow a new story appears in the backyard. Families can help foster curiosity and love of nature by showing children ways to observe wildlife. A young nature detective can learn signs of animal life around the neighborhood. Looking for tracks in mud or snow give clues about animal visitors any time of the year. It provides an excellent opportunity for storytelling, taking photographs, and writing little books.

Learning Animal Signs

  Very young children can build an early understanding about how prints are made. You can use mud, sand or play dough to introduce the idea of pressing a little hand or foot in the soft material to make a footprint.      

Hunt for Tracks While Hiking

Walk together outside in a muddy or snowy area and notice the big and little tracks you make. Do boots make different tracks than shoes?  Who makes the bigger print? Drag a stick along the ground to see the kind of mark it leaves. Are there any tire or snowmobile tracks? Look around trees in the snow or dirt for any animal tracks.

   Families can check out guidebooks like “Tracks, Scats, and Signs” by Leslie Dendy to see if any of the prints match. What kind of tracks does your dog or cat leave?  What direction was it going?  Are there any deer or squirrels around?  Can you see hoof marks or hand- like paw prints?  What marks to bird feet leave? Did they leave parts of their lunch behind?

  Before you go outside or when you come back inside, read some books about common backyard animals.  Some suggestions include “The Snowy Day” by Ezra Jack Keats, “Tracks in the Wild” by Betsy Bowen or “What’s in the Woods?” by Zoe Burke.

Making Casts

Check All Tracks and Take Pictures

Children can take some photos or casts so when you are back inside, they can draw a picture showing some of the tracks you made or saw on your walk.  You can print a simple sentence on the bottom of the page to tell about the picture. Use the play dough to make animal tracks found in the guidebook. It’s great fun! In a few days, check out the yard again to see if there are new tracks.  If you visit a beach or pond area, look for different tracks.  What kind of animals might live here?

Families will be helping to build curiosity and observation skills which are important for an appreciation of nature and problem solving.  Talking together as you walk outside develops good vocabulary and conversation abilities. Families will be fostering a life-long habit of noticing animal clues and signs.  If you use a guide, children will learn the importance steps of searching in a reference book. For more see grandparentsteachtoo.blogspot.com, wnmufm.org/Learning Through the Seasons, and Pinterest.

Kids Enjoy Paper Core Projects

Many Ways to Recycle and Reuse 

Families are often looking for ways to recycle and reuse materials instead of throwing them in the trash. Think of how many paper towel and bathroom tissue cores we throw each month.  They can be used in a myriad of ways with children.

Poster Paint Stamps

  Paper cores make excellent stamps because they are easy for young children to hold. They can dip the end of the core in homemade or commercial poster paint and make all sorts of designs and figures on computer paper or card stock. The circles can be flowers, roly-poly Santas, chubby animals, snowmen, caterpillars, lady bugs, imaginary characters, and designs.  They are quite durable and can be thrown away when they get too mushy.

Make Stamps for Posters

  Fill containers with different colored paint or white paint for snow or night scenes on colored paper. The paper towel cores or tubes can be cut to the size needed for small hands, as long as they are sturdy. Children can cut the ends like fringe to make interesting designs, too.

  To make homemade poster paint measure ¼ cup of flour into a saucepan.  Slowly add 1 cup water while stirring to make a smooth paste. Heat on low temperature, stirring constantly until the paste begins to thicken.  Allow to cool.  Measure ¼ cup of the paste mixture into each small container.  Add 3 tablespoons of powdered tempera paint and 2 tablespoons water into each container. For a glossy finish add clear liquid detergent. The mixture will not store well. When the circles are dry children may add details with markers.

Core Creativity

  The cores make excellent bird feeders. Reinforce the core with duct tape. Coat a tube with peanut butter or shortening and roll in birdseed. Loop a long piece of string through the tube and tie it. Hang outside for the birds.

 Cores also make bracelets and pretend watches. Children can decorate them with markers first. Then adults can cut them to the desired thickness, usually about 2 inches and slit so the tube can open slightly to fit the wrist.

Combine Tubes and Create!

 The tubes can also be taped close together as a zig zag tunnel for small cars and secured to the refrigerator or a door with a small looped pieces of masking tape on the back. Show children that because of gravity a sharp angle decent (closer to a vertical line) will make the car go faster and a gentle slope will slow down the car.  Marbles can be used if everyone in the house is no longer in danger of swallowing them.

  These versatile cores can be made into flowers or snowflakes when squished and glued together. Decorated cores become gnomes, animals, racing cars, or plain little pots for growing seeds. For more see grandparentsteachtoo.blogspot.com and wnmufm.org/Learning Through the Seasons.

Photos: Fran Darling, fdarling fotos.

Children Love Making Pretzel Treats

Pretzels: Taste good, Low Sugar, Crunchy Treats

Let’s get some of the warnings and negatives out of the way. One large pretzel rod has about 40 calories from the flour, but pretzels are basically nutritionally empty and may be a choking hazard for very young children. Although very salty, pretzel treats are fun and easy to make. Bottom line: pretzel treats  really taste good, reduce some of the sugar of cookies, and add the crunch children like.

   Soft pretzels originated in Europe with the monks in the early Middle Ages and remain an emblem for bakers.  They were brought to Pennsylvania Dutch country by the Germans. The area still produces 80% of pretzels in the United States.  Hard pretzels have no real nutritional value but stay edible a long time and were introduced in 1850.

Pretzels Very Versatile

  Pretzels are good dipped in Greek yogurt, chocolate, mustard, melted cheese. They can be slathered with sun flower seed butter, a good substitute for peanut butter, Nutella, parmesan cheese, jelly, white or dark chocolate.  When crushed they are a good topping for ice cream or yogurt.

  To make dipped hard pretzel logs with children, you’ll need

Make Pretzel Logs

 one 12 ounce package of chocolate chips, dark chocolate or white chocolate; one teaspoon vegetable oil and 24 rods or package twists. Cover a cookie sheet with waxed paper. Mix the chocolate chips and oil in a bowl and place in a microwave for 30 seconds.  Children can carefully stir with a wooden spoon under supervision.  If chips are not melted, return to the microwave for 10-15 seconds.  Dip or spread chocolate with a spatula or table knife. Place on the cookie sheet to harden.

  You can place contrasting melted chocolate frosting in decorator bag and children can drizzle  more chocolate over the pretzels.  Refrigerate for about 15 minutes and place in a covered container or eat on the spot while reading a few books.

Quick Pretzel Cookies

  Another salty sweet snack and not nutritious is pretzel cookies.  You’ll need 1 bag of some kind of flat pretzel like the knot or lattice square and 1 bag of Hershey kisses or 

Very Versatile Snacking

Rollo candy. Spread pretzels on a cookie sheet and place a Hershey kiss or Rollo chocolate butterscotch candy on each pretzel.  Place in the oven at 275 degrees for three minutes. Remove immediately. The candy should be melted.  Come people place an M&M or pecan in the middle. With a Rollo and pecan the cookies taste like a chocolate turtle candy. Refrigerate until hardened and store in a covered container.

  Thin pretzel sticks can be used as skewers or substitute forks. You can place cubes of cheese, meat, tofu, cut grapes, apples, pears, strawberries, blueberries, mango, or raspberries to spear and add nutrition.  For more see grandparentsteachtoo.blogspot.com and wnmufm.org/Learning through the Seasons, live and podcasts.  

STE(A)M Activities Help Children Solve Problems

STEAM - Thinking 'How To"

  STE(A)M teaching is a way of helping children think like scientists, technologists, engineers, artists (architects), and mathematicians as they solve meaningful and interesting real world problems. When children use STE(A)M they are making hands- on projects and following the problem solving model real engineers use: Talk about and define the problem with a team, research it, talk about and draw possible solutions, talk about and choose a plan, talk and create, talk, test, and evaluate, talk and improve, talk and redesign until the problem is solved. 

  Families can help their children by using the STE(A)M model and vocabulary while doing everyday chores like cleaning, cooking, or doing a family STE(A)M activity.

Family STE(A)M Fun

  With family holidays coming

Define A Problem

 up here is a cheap STE(A)M activity for young cousins: making drinking straw structures. You’ll need box of drinking straws with the flexible bend cut off, a roll of masking tape, child scissors, and a piece of paper for a base.

  Define the problem and talk about it. You can choose a problem like building sturdy a bridge, playground structure like a swing set or climbing dome that will hold many action figures.

  Research and talk about it. What kind of structures do the children have at school? What kinds of shapes are they? Triangles, rectangles, circles? What makes them sturdy? Do they have reinforcing bars that make triangles? Triangles distribute the weight and stress.

  Draw pictures of ideas for structures based on the discussion. Choose a plan, and create it with straws and tape. Help young children cut the straws, tape and wrap it around the straws. Are there triangles?

  Test the structure and evaluate. You can use action figures to test for strength. Look for parts that bend under the weight.

  Talk and improve the design. Do you need more reinforcement straws to make more triangles? Is the structure able to hold more weight now?

  Redesign and talk until the design works and the children like it.

Start With Shapes

  Very young children can start with a square pyramid structure.  Cut a straw into four equal parts and tape them to a paper to make a flat square. Then cut four more straw pieces of equal size. Anchor them on each corner and the top with tape to make a pyramid.

   Smaller straw pieces can reinforce the pyramid until there are many triangles and trapezoids.  When they look through it can they count the shapes? Is the structure sturdy? How can you test it? If the top is made like a little basket or platform will it hold a small gourd or little animal without collapsing? What other sturdy structures can children design? For more see grandparentsteachtoo.blogspot.com and wnmufm.org/Learning Through the Seasons.

Photos: Fran Darling, fdarling fofos

Families have new Photographers: Children

Who Is Your Family Photographer?

This time of the year families get together and create memories.  Often at the end of the visit,  someone will say, “Oh, we forgot to take pictures while we were all together!”  Children can be trained to be official photographers. They can be encouraged to take a few really good and interesting photos and decide which ones to keep.

  Children as young as 4 can take pictures responsibly with guidance. First teach them the basics.  If you want new digital camera, the Canon Power Shot ELPH 180 is highly recommended for youngsters first learning to use a camera. It costs a little over $100 and takes photos almost as good as an expensive Smart Phone.

Where to Start

   If you do let kids use your Smart Phone, there are many editing Apps like Enlight Photofox where a team of teens and youngsters can have surprisingly professional results.  You can search Apps for kids’ photography, Pixlplay adapted Smart Phones for kids, Kidizoom camera, and places to save kids’ photos on line.

   Now back to the traditional digital camera. Professionals 

Decide What You Want to Capture

have suggestions. Show children how to hold the camera with the strap always around their wrist with the camera tight against their body perfectly still. Show them how to use the buttons: power, snap shot, replay, and trash. Then explain how to decide what they want to take by just looking through the screen. They can practice taking close ups and extreme close ups safely inside the house without using the zoom.  Young children are often too unsteady for the zoom.

Photography Patience

   The first time photographer will probably use up the battery clicking away so don’t expect a great deal of keepers. Point out that a photographer needs light or flash but does not point into the light unless there is a reason. Show them what 

Look For the Creative Angle

happens if you do.  What interests them might be very different from what you want or what interests you for a while. At least everything is digital and can be erased.

  Children can practice for portraits by lining up their toys and taking close ups of human faces. They can take photos of hands or shoes so the family can play “Guess Who?” A patient family pet is also a good subject. Try to stay away from selfies, experts suggest. Teach close up, medium, and full body shots.  When they are good at those show them the zoom. However, teach them to choose their shot carefully and hold really still or put the camera on a flat surface for zooming.

 You can encourage them to try creative angles, like being on their back looking up through a tree, or looking down from the top of the stairs. For more ideas see grandparentsteachtoo.blogspot.com and Facebook, wnmufm.org/Learning Through the Seasons, and Pinterest.

Photos: Fran Darling, fdarling fotos

Pumpkin Recipes Add Nutrition, Math, Fun

Pumpkin Season Lasts All Year! 

Halloween may be over but the pumpkin season lasts all year. Pumpkin is an all-around nutritious food.  It is low in saturated fat and very low in cholesterol and sodium.  Then it is loaded with an array of vitamins and minerals and a good source of dietary fiber. Since November is one of the top baking months you might try these child friendly recipes.

Kiddie Pumpkin Cookies

  These cookies are quick and easy to make. You will need 2 cups flour, 1 1/3 cup quick or old fashioned oats, 1 teaspoon baking soda, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, ½ teaspoon salt, 1 cup ( 2 sticks) butter or margarine softened, 1 cup packed brown sugar, 1 cup granulated sugar. You can experiment with lowering the sugar to ¾ cup of the sugars.  You’ll need 1 cup canned pumpkin, 1 large egg, and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract. If desired, you can add ¾ cup chocolate chips to the batter or poke them in while the cookies are just out of the oven.  Children can drop them one at a time and push them into the hot cookie with a spoon.

Make Kiddie Pumpkin Cookies

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Combine flour, oats, baking soda, cinnamon and salt in a medium bowl. Beat in butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar until fluffy.  Add pumpkin, egg, and vanilla extract. Mix well. Add flour mixture.  Drop a ¼ cup of dough onto a baking sheet sprayed with cooking oil.  Bake for 14-16 minutes.  Cool before moving.

Kiddie Pumpkin Cupcakes

  This recipe is for moist pumpkin chocolate chip cupcakes.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line a muffin tin with 

Make Kiddie Pumpkin Muffins

cupcake liners. Whisk together 1/3 cup oil, 1 cup sugar, ¼ cup milk, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract.  Sift in 1 ¼ cup flour, ½ teaspoon baking powder, ½ teaspoon baking soda, ¼ teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon. Fold in 1 cup canned pumpkin and then ½ cup chocolate chips. Be careful not to over stir because the batter will become gummy and change the texture of the cupcakes. Fill lined cups 2/3 full and bake for 24-26 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.  For more cooking time ideas see grandparentsteachtoo.blogspot.com, wnmufm.org/Learning Through the Seasons, Facebook, and Pinterest   

Photos: Fran Darling, fdarling fotos

Helping with Impromptu Child Care

  

What's In Your Cupboards and Drawers?

Preschool children are coming in half an hour for child care. No problem. You’re always well stocked. There are many educational toys found in your kitchen. Open up your low kitchen cupboards and drawers. They are full of mostly safe playthings for children and hide anything that is not safe.

   The first go-to toys are cans. Children may make low towers on the floor or higher ones if they have heavy shoes. Cans may be arranged to make houses and castles, or they may add folded heavy paper to make bridges.

  If they have brought figures, cars, or a few stuffed animals they can play raceway, house, or action figure adventures.  The activity will give you time

Empty the Cupboards

 to wash the can cabinet you have been putting off and get down on the floor to play, too.

Random Containers

  Your other drawers may hold plastic containers and lids.  They make excellent puzzlers.   Are there tops and bottoms that fit? If you have some that do not make a pair, they can be used for sandbox, beach play, or recycling later. They can turn the containers upside down and make a few drums using a wooden spoon to pound for a few minutes.

Empty the Cupboards

   Children can gather all of the containers and help set chairs and guard chairs next to the sink. Fill the sink or dish pan half way and add a few drops of soap and a cloth. It’s time for washing, rinsing, and drying dishes for about 15 minutes.

   While supervising the washing you can empty another drawer of wooden spoons, spatulas, other utensils. and gadgets. Double check for sharp edges on items like potato peelers and set those aside. You can explain the purpose for some of the odd looking gadgets as you add them to the washing water.

   While adding the items ask yourself, “Do I really need this?”  If not, out it goes into the donation bag.

Children Have Fun Filling Containers

 By now you should have cleaned, put away and culled at least four drawers, double dried these dishes, and have wet children.

   You can scoop up the little wet people, throw their clothes in the dryer, and head for the bathroom. There should just enough time for a warm bath with a few of the containers you are not going to use.

  Children have fun filling different sizes of containers. It’s similar to filling cups to equal a gallon.  Which containers will float? How many action figures will it take to sink a container boat? Teach children to check for hand and toe wrinkles. Then they will help decide it’s time to get out of the tub. put on warm dry clothes, and have a snack. For more see grandparentsteachtoo.blogspot.com and 

wnmufm.org/Learning Through the Seasons.

Photos: Fran Darling, fdarling fotos

Storms Teach Science and Acts of Kindness

Storms Grab Children's Attention

Storms like hurricanes, tornadoes, and blizzards grab children’s attention and are excellent times for families to teach weather, geography, and how people help each other. Emergencies can bring out the best in people. One never knows how children can be inspired to become a scientist, meteorologist, first responder, builder, and medical person based on childhood teaching.

  Getting the facts

  Technology can be a useful tool that always needs to be monitored to protect children and to ensure the content is not too scary. However, if something is happening near an extended family member’s home, they will hear conversations and it is a good time to teach.

  There are many opportunities to use maps to teach the geography of the situation.  

Getting the Facts

The library has atlases for children. There are also placemats of maps of the world and the United States in local children’s stores and online at the Rainbow Resource Center for under $3.00 so children can see geography every day and you have an opportunity to grab a children’s map quickly.

Teaching Weather Facts

  Besides local news, the weather channel has many interesting maps and videos. You can select age appropriate ones, turn off the sound, and use your own commentary, if needed. There will be many examples of courageous rescues and acts of kindness and few minutes may be enough.  Your children may have many questions so this is a good time to discuss.

Very young children will be hearing about events and may draw their own scary false conclusions, unless you help them learn the facts. National Weather Service is an excellent source of information, videos, and pictures. You can Click 

Check Up-To-The-Minute Events

around the site to find exactly what you want.

  Books about weather and storms include: “Weather or Not” by Maryann Dobeck; “Fly Guy presents:Weather” by Tedd Arnold; “The Magic School Bus presents Wild Weather” by Sean Callery. Families can show some of the pictures and add their own simplified narration for young children. Older children will enjoy the creative presentation.  Some good online family teaching sites include weatherwizkids.com and weatherforkids.org. The Google maps site is an excellent example for older children to experience how technologists work with first responders to spread information and keep people safe.

Kindness

   There are many opportunities for families to teach how people pull together to help each other. Children will have opportunities to help give money and donate through schools, faith organizations, the Red Cross, Salvation Army, Scouts, Rotary and many other civic groups. Children can help gather and pack donated supplies.  These often can include children’s drawings of courage, strength, and love that may be just what people need for the challenge of recovery during the months and years ahead. For more see grandparentsteachtoo.blogspot.com and wnmufm.org/Learning Through the Seasons .

Photos: Fran Darling, fdarling fotos and http://www.weather.gov 

Sorting Helps Science and Math Skills

Walks With Young Children Are FUN!!

Walks with young children are especially fun in fall when the leaves turn brilliant colors and many flowers have interesting seed heads. They can observe birds flying south in giant V’s and other animals frantically burying food for the winter. It’s a great time for children to collect objects, too.

 You can prepare by gathering some small bags, paper plates, glue, newspaper, a marker, and magnifying glass.

Collecting Fun 
   Learning goes better on a full stomach. Right?  You can pack a picnic snack and explain you are taking a walk to look for signs of fall and collect colorful leaves, seeds, and pebbles which stay the same in any season but are fun to collect. Take along an extra bag for paper garbage to clean up the area, too.

  Fields, bike paths, shorelines, cemeteries, and college campuses have a variety of trees and beautiful surroundings. Encourage children to collect and count many different types, sizes, colors, shapes, and textures. You can include a library book of tree identification to help answer questions about why leaves change colors and fall.

Collect and Count

Sorting Skill

  After collecting and snacking return home to sort out materials on newspapers based on characteristics. Print a title on each paper plate like leaves, seeds, or pebbles.

   Next label more plates with characteristics (attributes). For leaves, you may use five plates labeled red, orange, green, brown, and mixed colors.  Plates for seeds may be acorn, maple, and flower and weed seeds, large, and small. Pebble labels may be large, small, shiny, dull, smooth, rough, sharp, soft (sandstone) hard black, brown, white, speckled.

   Casually help your children decide where the objects belong. Before you take a break, spread leaves in paper toweling and insert them in a large book. (Back to back cookie sheets will also work.) Then place some heavy weights on top to flatten the leaves as they dry.

 When you’re ready for another 

Discuss What You Collect - Similar & Different??

project, take out paper plates, marker, and glue. Children can glue the sorted objects to make designs, a number, category, or their name. Children like to glue leaves, seeds and rocks on plates as a collage, take a photo, and send it to extended family or show during the next FaceTime.

 Discuss different attributes of objects as children glue them on the plates. Young children will develop small hand muscles and learn to use small dabs of glue.  It is very tempting to take a glue bottle and squeeze it neatly for children or place an object just so.  Instead give tips on how to hold the bottle and leave the rock where it is. The end product is not really important. It’s the process. For more family fun see grandparentsteachtoo.blogspot.com and wnmufm.org/Learning Through the Seasons podcasts and live.
Photos: Fran Darling, fdarling fotos

Helping Kids Learn to Read Their Name

Help Younger Children Learn To Spell Their Names

As big brothers and sisters return from school and talk about what they are learning, autumn is a perfect time for younger children to learn to spell their name and share what they are learning, too.  There are some fun activities to help remember the letters of their name and the sequence of those letters.

  You will need some heavy stock paper cut in 4”by 16” strips, white glue, marker, elbow macaroni or penne pasta, sandpaper, felt, child’s scissors, poster paint, colored glue, and confetti. Texture Helps Learning

  Print your children’s names with marker on one of the tag board strips. Precut heavy stock paper can be purchased at most craft or school supply stores and is great to have on hand for projects.  The letters need to be 

Texture Helps Learning to Print Names

large enough and spaced far enough apart so children can glue pieces of macaroni to the strip to form the letters over your printing.  Make sure the only capital letter is at the beginning of the name. It’s a good idea to start with only the first name.     

   Carefully, go over each letter, explaining to children that these letters in this order spell their name. Show them how to glue the macaroni onto each letter, saying the name of the letter as they are gluing. When the glue has dried, have them trace each letter with their finger and spell as they trace. They can paint the name with their favorite color when it is very dry.

  The letters of their name can also be cut from sandpaper or felt and glued to another tag board strip in the correct order. Cut the letters yourself, but your children can glue them onto the tag board.

   Using colored glue to outline the letters is fun, too. Glue can be tinted with food coloring. Children can add sand, glitter, or confetti outdoors to make a colorful art project from the name.

  Touching clues can be very helpful when children are learning letters and words.  Tracing over the noodles, sandpaper, or felt with a finger can help your children remember how to spell and print their names.

Great ABC Books

  Families may wish to check out some alphabet books at the library to practice remembering letters.  Some favorites are 

Many ABC Books Help 

“Chicka Chicka Boom Boom” by Bill Martin, Jr., “Thomas’ABC Book” by Rev. W. Awdry and “Dr. Seuss’ ABC’s.”  Another book that will add some motor activities is “Movement ABC’s for Little Ones” by Rae Pica.  This book gives ideas on how to make letters with your body.  Make letter cards together and play games like “Memory” and “Go Fish” to review letters. Also check out the many puzzles and games that feature the ABC’s. For more ideas see grandparentsteachtoo.blogspot.com and wnmufm.org/ Learning through the Seasons.

Taking a Second Look in Kids’ Lunch Boxes

Whole Apple Slices - NOT Processed Apple Sauce

Let’s see, pack the school lunch box, check: peanut butter and jelly sandwich on whole wheat, check, one cup apple sauce, check, fruit punch, healthy lunch, check. 0pps, not so fast. Nutritionists and physicians would like families to take a closer look.

  That lunch we just sent off with our little darlings may have a whopping 75 grams of sugar. The American Heart Association suggests children have about 17 grams of sugar a day.  One rounded teaspoon of sugar or a sugar cube has about 5 grams of sugar. If we look at our lunch again, we just packed 15 sugar cubes in our children's noon meal and sent them merrily on their way. What??

  Dr. Jim Surrell colorectal surgeon whose special interest and expertise in nutrition and weight loss programs led him to write his book” SOS Diet Stop Only Sugar” helped provide information for this column.

Sugar Detectives

  With one of every three children over weight and on their way to type 2 diabetes, what can we feed children that they will eat and still be low in sugar?  Both Dr. Surrell and experts with the American Heart Association have excellent suggestions. First, start early not giving babies and toddlers food with sugar added. Read the labels. 

There are many names for sugar. If fructose, corn syrup, sweetener, dextrose, fructose, honey, or molasses, just to name a few are near the top of the ingredient 

Be A Sugar Detective

list look for alternative foods.

   The more processed the food, the more sugar content.  One packet of flavored oatmeal has 13 grams of sugar. One cup of regular oatmeal with unsweetened almond milk warmed in the microwave with a few berries 

or natural applesauce with no sugar added has much less sugar.  Older children can be trained to be sugar detectives by reading ingredient labels and adding up the sugar grams.

ABC Guide

  Dr. Surrell has a simple ABC guide in his SOS” book:” A- Avoid excess sugar!; B- Become a label reading detective!; C-Choose low sugar and high fiber!

  Let’s go back to that school  lunch. What can we do? Learn to substitute. Pack peanut butter with no added sugar as a dip for a sliced and cored medium apple (14 grams of sugar) tied with a rubber band around it.

Follow the ABC Guide

  Dr. Surrell’s other high protein, low sugar suggestions include: hardboiled egg, cottage cheese, Swiss, cheddar, Colby or string cheese, handful of dry roasted peanuts, cocoa or  plain roasted almonds, cashews, raspberries, blackberries, strawberries, whole grain crackers, red or green vegetables like crunchy snap pea pods, and water. For safety include an ice box to keep food cold. If teachers ask for snacks, some of these might be sent to school.

  For more healthy suggestions see Dr. Surrell’s “SOS” book, grandparentsteachtoo.blogspot.com,wnmufm.org /Learning Through the Seasons live and pod casts.

Photos: Fran Darling, fdarling fotos

Sketch: Mark Nowicki