Lacing Cards Fun and Helpful

Materials

Sometimes families need quiet time and easy activities to help provide that peacefulness.  Lacing string through holes of colorful cardboard pictures is a cheap quiet activity for many developmental stages.
Materials: 
  Cardboard or paper plates, hole puncher, yarn or string, scotch tape, colored picture or paper, markers, and glue.
What to do:
  Gather sturdy paper plates, or eight- inch square pieces of cardboard or cereal boxes.
  To prepare the lacing backgrounds, decorate one side. Children may cut out colorful magazine picture of one large object and glue the picture on one side of the cardboard. They may also color a large simple picture from a coloring book like a pumpkin, butterfly, train or person. Once colored and cut out, glue it on.

Color, cut glue...

Another possibility is to draw a circle, star, square or other geometric figure with a fat marker. In all cases, reinforce the back of the cardboard background with tape where the holes will be so the cardboard will not tear.
   Use a hole puncher to make holes one to three inches apart along the outline of the picture.  Young children will probably not be strong enough to do this part.
  If desired, frame the picture with holes around the edge and about two inches indented for older children. They can experiment making yarn or string designs as frames.

Prepare Lacing Backgrounds

One can also add a bit of math, pre-reading, and organization aid by numbering or placing the ABC’s next to the holes. This step will help children create a beautiful lined picture when complete.
  Gather one or two foot pieces of colorful strong yarn or string that will easily fit through the holes. Shorter is better than longer to avoid entanglement of string and children. It is easy to start a new short piece, but frustrating to untangle a long one. Encircle each end of the yarn with tape similar to shoelace ends.
 For storage, place each lacing card in a plastic bag and tie the required strings in a big loose knot to keep them from being a knotted mess.
Learn to Tie
  Show young children how to sew in and out to avoid wrapping the string around the card.  They may need help following the numbered and lettered holes Sometimes they may want to make their own path.
  Older children may like sewing on a large button between two punched holes. They may enjoy using a large blunt tipped plastic needle to sew from hole to hole.  
  Older children may enjoy using two longish pieces of yarn hanging from the squares to practice making knots or making bows for their shoes.  For tying shoes use the easier bunny ears method. 

Photos: Fran Darling, fdarling fotos

More Ideas and Activities....See the authors’ book “Learning Through the Seasons” at area bookstores and grandparentsteachtoo.org. For more help to prepare young children for success in school see the authors’ web site: www.grandparentsteachtoo.org. Also check our audio Podcasts WNMU Radio, 90; Youtube video activities; and join us on Pinterest

Come Indoors and Make Play dough: Video Version

Just in time for all the holiday fun! Make play dough for fun, learning, and great conversation. Watch our Youtube video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qL1WpveL8jY for all the ways simple play dough making and playing benefits your children.....

Here are more: Handy Recipes 

 Keep these around the house so you are always prepared for unexpected weather or visitors. 

  

    No Cook Play dough

Mix together: 1 cup flour, 1/3 cup salt in a separate bowl. Mix together ½ cup water, 3 drops food coloring, and 5 drops liquid detergent. Add liquid to dry mixture slowly and knead until desired consistency. Do not ingest. Keep refrigerated in a tight plastic container. It lasts for about a month.

    Clay Dough

This dough can be used to make small sculptures, garden stones, vases for dry flowers, and paperweights. Mix 2 cups salt and 2/3 cup water in a pan. Heat mixture until the salt is completely dissolved. Remove from heat. Mix 1 cup cornstarch and ½ cup cold water in a separate bowl. Stir quickly into the salt water and mix well. The dough will be stiff. Allow to dry 3-4 days.  Add food coloring to the water mixture, if desired. Dried sculpture can be painted. Look for animal, people, and car pictures to help children use their imagination. This mixture must be used immediately.

  Coat any container or pie plate with Vaseline or cooking spray for use as a mold. Press the dough into the mold. Add old jewelry or fake gemstones into the mold first.  Then add the dough. After thorough drying gently remove from the mold.

    Bumpy Texture Clay

  Use this dough for doorstops, summertime garden stepping-stones, and flower pots. They will crack if left over the winter. Mix 1 ½ cup flour and ½ cup salt. Add 6 tablespoons water. Knead to create the clay. This clay must be used immediately. The dried clay may be painted and spayed with polyurethane (adults only).

    Cotton Puff Dough

This is so simple. Mix 1 cup flour with 1 cup water to make a paste. Add 1 bag cotton balls and mix thoroughly. Scoop up a handful and let excess fall away. Form into desired animal or other shapes on a baking sheet. Bake for 1 hour at 325 degrees. Paint when cooled.

    Never Fail Play dough

This is the recipe used in the video. Mix 1 cup flour, ½ cup salt, and 1 tablespoon cream of tartar. Add 1 tablespoon cooking oil with 1 cup water colored with food coloring. Cook in a 3 qt. saucepan over medium heat until mixture sticks together. Remove from heat. Cool slightly. Knead. Store in plastic bags.

How Does This Help Children?

  Children who are read to twice a day and played with often, enter school with 20,000 words instead of a 3,000 word vocabulary.

For more easy fun activities see the our book “Learning Through the Seasons” at museums, bookstores, and http://grandparentsteachtoo.org  and listen to podcasts on WNMU Radio 90 at: http://wnmufm.org/learningthroughtheseasons.  

Help Children Become Writers

When children begin to understand that they can put their words and ideas down on paper, they are  on their way to becoming writers.Young preschoolers use drawing and scribble writing to begin.  Later, as they develop more muscle control and a little awareness of the importance of letters, they may print strings of letters across the page.  When they start elementary school, they will learn that the sounds they need can be shown by printing certain combinations of letters to make a word.  As a grandparent, you have a wonderful opportunity to model writing and to develop your preschooler’s interest in self-expression. 

Materials You Will Need:  Sheets of white paper, crayons, pencil or pens.

What To Do: Make a picture poster

   This is an activity that can be done anytime during the year.  Be sure your preschooler has many opportunities to scribble and draw with pencils, crayons, washable markers, etc.  Sometimes children will want an older child or adult to draw with them.  First, talk together about what to draw. Maybe they will want to draw other members of the family or their pets or friends or a fun activity. Pictures will vary based on age level and muscle development.

   When the picture is finished to the satisfaction of your child, ask him/her to tell something about it.  Make up a simple sentence together.  PRINT your child’s words at the top or bottom of the paper using lower case letters(not caps)  except for beginning of names.  When you are done, point to the words and read it back out loud several times.  Put the picture up on the refrigerator, or let your preschooler take it around to show and “read” to others.

How Will This Help My Child?

  You can help your preschooler get ready for school by showing that ideas can be written down with letters and words.   When you talk together and make up sentences, you are helping to build a strong vocabulary. Children who have many opportunities to draw, scribble and write develop the necessary small muscle control which is expected in elementary school.

What else can I do?

Sometimes, when you are talking about a picture, it is fun just to print the names of things or label parts of the drawing.  As your child names the different parts, print the word next to it.  For example, print “tree” or “Daddy” or “car”.  Later, point to each word and read it back.  When finished, print your child’s name clearly on the picture. 

Look for more activities like these online at Grandparents Teach, Too and at WNMU Public Radio Learning through the Seasons Podcasts 

Illustrations: Mark Nowicki  

Mixing Colors for Rainy Day Projects

 Rainy days can be fun too! Mixing two primary colors to make a secondary color helps young artists build vocabulary and skill creating designs. 

Materials:

  Plastic cloth, coffee filters, red, yellow, and blue food coloring, a small watercolor brush, clothespins (not the pinch kind) or thin wire, and a container of water, pipe cleaners (optional)

What to do:

  Cover the work area with the plastic cloth. Pick a color and paint on a coffee filter. Pick a second color and continue to paint on the coffee filter. Discuss what happens to the colors. Continue to experiment with a third color and discuss what happens. Take the opportunity to talk about “primary colors”(red, blue, yellow) and “secondary” (mixed colors). After painting on several coffee filters, let them air dry before proceeding.

  Once the filters are dry, choose one and scrunch the middle together and place it inside a clothespin or wire. Fan out the sides of the filter to make the wings of a butterfly.  Cut the pipe cleaner in half and wrap that around the knob of the clothespin for antennae. Use the other filters to make more butterflies.

Books to share:

 “Mouse Paint” by Ellen Stohl Walsh, “The Very Hungry Caterpillar” by Eric Carle, “Charlie the Caterpillar” by Dom Deluise, and “Where Butterflies Grow” by Joanne Ryder.

Find more activities:

For more projects see the authors’ book “Learning Through the Seasons” online information at 

http://www.grandparentsteachtoo.org/. Hear audio podcasts or our activities also online at WNMU Radio 90. 

Illustrations: Mark Nowicki

Change Activities Without a Fuss

Setting time limits with a timer helps them go from one activity to the next. They learn a sequence of activity, stop, and change to a new activity without a fuss. Even more importantly, giving children undivided time is very important. Choose an activity like playing with play dough which builds fine motor skills and imagination. All the while you are preparing young children for preschool and still getting some work done around the house. 
Listen to this activity online at the WNMU Podcasts 

Materials:

kitchen timer,  play dough,  kitchen drawer items

What to do: 
1. Choose a timer.
2. Choose an activity like making play dough. Set the timer for one hour and give your children 100% of your attention. Explain what you are going to do and play together until the timer rings.
3. Make the recipe to the right. With help, children can measure the ingredients, stir, and choose food coloring. Let the dough cool and knead it well.
4. While the dough cools in the refrigerator, collect a container of play dough toys: cookie cutters, measuring cups, spoons, plastic silverware, a cookie sheet to work on, muffin tin, and plates for serving pretend food. Find trucks to cart away play dough food and other materials to the grocery store in a play dough city you construct. Leave time to play.
5. Five minutes before the timer rings, remind children the timer will ring shortly and that means your playtime together is finished. When the timer rings, remind them they may continue playing while you do some work around the house.
6. Set the timer for the amount of time you need. Children may want to play with puzzles or art supplies instead of play dough. When the timer rings, it’s time to change the activity. They have been playing quietly so it’s time to run around and be active. (See large motor activities.)

How will this help my children?
Setting time limits with a timer helps them go from one activity to the next. They learn a sequence of activity, stop, and change to a new activity without a fuss. Playing with play dough builds fine motor skills and imagination.
NEVER FAIL PLAY DOUGH RECIPE

1cup flour
1⁄2 cup salt
1 tablespoon cream of tartar
1 tablespoon cooking oil
1 cup water food coloring
Mix all ingredients together in a 3 qt. saucepan. Cook and stir over medium heat until mixture begins to stick together. Remove from heat. Cool slightly. Begin kneading. Store in plastic bags.

Illustration: Mark Nowicki
For more fall activities to help your children succeed in school and have a life time of learning see the authors’ book Learning Through the Seasons in museums, bookstores, and in E-book form atSmashwords.com

Fun and Learning for Quiet Times

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 Vigorous physical activity is a big part of each day to keep young children healthy, but adults need to plan for quiet activities too.   While some limited TV time is OK, what are some other quiet easily managed activities you can set up?

 Listen to this activity online at the WNMU Podcasts

Materials Needed:  magazines, paper, crayons, markers, scissors, paint set, Q’tips, yarn, water, small rocks, white glue, 

What To Do:

Painting with Water

   Take a science walk and collect rocks of various colors, sizes, and shapes. At home, set your children up with a waterproof area and provide a small paintbrush or Q’tip and a bowl of water to help build up the small muscles of their hands. These muscles must be strong to print letters.  Show how to “paint” the rocks with water and notice how the color shows up like magic.  

 Pet Rocks 

   Help children use permanent markers to draw a face on the surface of favorite large rocks. Help them glue on a little yarn to make hair. Teach a dot of glue does a lot. Teachers will love you. Can you think of a good name for each? Place the rock on your table, desk, bookcase, or garden.

Crayon Resist

  Use a crayon on paper to carefully print your young children’s names in big letters.   Use a capital for the first letter and lower case for the following letters.  Then use water with a little paint color to make a wash over the whole sheet.  The name will stand out and be a perfect door decoration or book cover for a whole series of pictures. You can se dots or dashes to outline names. Show children how to start at the top of each letter to correctly follow the dots to print their names. Praise what they can do. They’ll try their best.

 Favorite Pictures  

  Using old grocery fliers and magazines, help children choose and cut out pictures of favorite flowers, fruits, animals, vegetables, and toys.  Print each blank paper with a picture title, for example:” My Favorite Fruits.”  Let the kids cut, sort and paste the pictures.  Talk with children about choices and use a marker to print the name of each item. This is a good activity to practice letters and beginning sounds of each word.  Very young children should work on only one category at a time. All these activities encourage creativity, build vocabulary and make the connection between reading and writing.

Reading

 The number one priority is reading, reading, and reading!  Read to children several times every day and visit the library to check out books and attend free library programs.

Photo: Norman, Steve. nat143.jpg. . Pics4Learning. 22 Dec 2012

 For more fall activities to help your children succeed in school and have a life time of learning see the authors’ book Learning Through the Seasons in museums, bookstores, and in E-book form atSmashwords.com.