Simple advent calendars.

The run up to christmas is such an exciting time and for most children does not go quick enough!

An advent calendar in your day home could be a great way of helping this time pass for the children. Here are some easy, simple ideas you could do with your children.

How about a jar full of good deeds? You could open the jar each morning and pick one to do! Or alternatively it could be filled with simple, fun activities such as read a christmas story, bake some cookies!

A paper chain advent calendar is also another easy, simple idea to set up. Simply cut out strips of paper and join the together to make the chain, you will need 25 links in total! Each day a child gets to cut a chain off and they get to see the chain get shorter! An effective way to demonstrate the movement of time to kids. For a bit of a surprise you could write an activity inside each link that you will do that day!

Finally, how about this simple envelope advent!
Simply pin up a piece of string or ribbon in your play room and use clothes pegs to attach envelopes labelled 1 - 24 (or 25). It's up to you what goues inside each envelope, a fun activity, a small treat, let your imagination take over!



More snowman craft ideas!

If it is still a little early to start thinking of those many great christmas crafts out there, think about keeping little hands busy with these simple snowman crafts! Guaranteed not to melt!

The cotton ball snowman is such a favourite with kids. Simply draw a snowman outline on paper and provide the kids with glue and cotton wool and prepare for sticky, fluffy hands! Googly eyes would be great to stick on as well as little pieces of construction paper for buttons and eyes!

A mini marshmallow snowman picture is also another great, simple craft. Again draw a snowman outline and then provide the kids with some glue and mini marshmallows to fill in the outline! Use markers to fill in  eyes, nose, mouth, buttons and arms! Just make sure the kids don't try to eat it afterwards!

And finally, who can resist these cute little tube snowmen. Toilet tissue rolls, wrapping paper tubes cut down or kitchen roll tubes can all be used. You can either paint them white or cover them with white paper and then add on on a strip of coloured paper for a hat and scarf. Finally, use markers to add on buttons and a face!

Snowman theme.

With the lull between Halloween and Christmas, or otherwise called November, it's sometimes difficult to think of craft ideas especially if you like to base them on a theme.

But for us in Alberta, winter has pretty much already arrived, albeit unofficially, so what better theme than snowmen!

And what better way to start than with this giant, group craft project, the snowman refridgerator!!!

This works especially well if you have a white one but if not it could also be adapted to a white door in your home!

Just cut out eyes, mouth and buttons, a carrot and a scarf from construction paper and tape it on!!

This would be a great way to start off a snowman theme on the run up to all those christmas crafts!

This idea was found on www.easypreschoolcraft.blogspot.ca.

Indoor construction site!

With the weather outside not being great for sand play how about this for a great indoor sand play idea!

These cutlery drawers can be cheaply purchased from dollar stores and with some imagination you could change up the materials you use. For example, play doh boulders, shredded paper to be scooped up or dried rice and pasta!

A great table top activity!

Super gloopy fun!

Gloop (cornflower mixed with water)

Mix an amount of cornflour gradually with water until it binds. Place in a tray or shallow container and try to pick it up! Vary the consistency occasionally and for more exploratory experiences, let the children make it themselves and feel the cornflour dry and mix it up themselves.
You also could try exploring:

• Dry or cooked spaghetti or pasta
• Cold custard
• Jelly
• Shaving foam
• Shredded paper
• Rice
• Scents such as cinnamon or lemon juice
• Food colouring
• Glitter

Messy Play in the home.

Messy play is important for young children, giving them endless ways to develop and learn. All types of play are crucial for children’s development and early learning. Play helps children to; improve physical skills and co-ordination, work co-operatively and collaboratively, use all their senses to discover and explore their environment, and develop their imagination, creative thinking and ability to problem solve.
Playing with toys alone can limit opportunities to develop imagination, creativity and critical thinking. Messy play is inexpensive and open ended. Children will discover enormous numbers of opportunities for learning and play, through timeless and accessible messy play activities.

Messy play in the home
It may take a bit more time and thought when planning messy play activities but it is well worth the effort. Here are some helpful suggestions when planning messy play at home:

1. Giving children craft aprons to wear will prevent getting their clothes messy. Or use big old t-shirts pulled together at the back with hair/bulldog clips for total cover.
2. Take as much outdoors as possible (weather permitting!)
3. Use dust sheets over furniture to protect them. Use plastic tablecloths or shower curtains on the floor depending on the activity.
4. If you are playing outside, make tidying up a fun activity by letting the children wash away the chalk/paint etc on the patio using soapy water and brushes.
5. If you are very anxious about the mess…think small. Messy play could just be a simple activity. E.g. a bowl of water and different containers, scented play doh or finger painting, and have a bowl of water, soap and towels ready for washing afterwards.
6. The key thing to remember is to allow your child to become fully engaged with their activity and let them lead it. You can support their learning with vocabulary, posing questions and showing that you are interested and value what they are doing.

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Magnet fun.

A simple, easy and fun science experiment was observed at a providers home this week involving magnets!

Collect a sample of objects from around the home (both magnetic and non magnetic), older children could be asked to do this, and place in a tub.

Give each child a magnet (you can get some large, child friendly ones cheaply from various stores) and as them to test the objects to see which ones stick to the magnet and which ones do not.

The children can then sort the objects into two tubs!

A simple way to encourage intellectual development, thinking skills, reasoning, exploration and sorting.

Afterwards the children go go around the home testing which surfaces the magnet will stick to!

Oh the weather outside is frightful.......

Stuck indoors with the kids whilst the snow is falling outside? We may not want to admit it but it does look more like winter than fall right now and so this simple craft idea may be a great way of keeping them busy.

This Winter tree silhouette is really beautiful and easy to make. Use masking tape to make the tree and paint with watercolors and remove the tape. This is great for a winter or Christmas craft.

Find more great craft ideas like this on; www.easypreschoolcraft.blogspot.ca

Are you sitting comfortably?

Then we shall begin!

Once upon a time.....................

How familiar are these words to all of us involved with children?

Story telling is an ancient tradition, revered still today in many cultures, that has stood the test of modern times and is something all of us still continue today!

With all the modern, visual electronics present in our homes today that bombard us with images, story telling is the perfect way to escape! No educationalist, child development expert or Mom would dispute the benefits of reading to and with children.

It develops their imaginations, enhances their ability to think creatively, increases their vocabulary, can encourage problem solving and questioning skills, teaches comprehension and understanding of the written and spoken word (such an important life skill), encourages the recognition of pattern through rhyming and prediction and above all is a fun, warm, caring and relaxing activity.

Dependent on your day, age of children etc, story telling may be short or long and may vary.

Do not be scared, however, of doing something different to just reading from a book! Change up story time by changing location in your day home, using puppets, incorporating actions, involving the children in making sounds, if appropriate, acting stories out or even just making one up from your head!

If you are looking for inspiration with story telling then check out the 'story station' section on www.preschoolexpress.com, it has some great tips, new stories and ideas for making story time a great experience for the kids in your day home!

Below are some of the tips mentioned on the website;

GENERAL STORY TELLING TIPS

•  If the story you want to read to preschoolers is a little too involved, don’t hesitate to skip over parts of the story and make up your own transitions from one part of the story to another.

• Preschoolers love rhyme stories because they can anticipate what the words at the end of the sentences will be.  Children especially love to have you leave off the last word of a four line stanza, in a rhyme story for them to shout out.

• Preschoolers like stories that are repetitive in nature.  Stories like the “Three Little Pigs” or the “Three Billy Goats Gruff,” enable children to learn the repeated phrases and repeat them with you as they come up in the story.

• Preschoolers love hearing the same story over and over.  They like to be able to know what will happen ahead of time.

• Complex stories are not good for young children.  Some people say that you should have no more characters in a story than the age of the child (or children).

• You can also help children remember the different characters in the story by introducing them to the characters before you start reading.  You can have cutouts of the characters placed on a felt board, dolls or puppets to represent them.

•  Short stories are best for young children.  Most story books are written for first and second grade students and may be too complex for the average Preschooler.  This is why short fables, folktales and picture books are the best for this age.