Water Play inside or out... it's fun!
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Have a wonderful Wednesday!
Jen
Showing posts with label play. Show all posts
Showing posts with label play. Show all posts
Wednesday, August 1, 2012
Thursday, February 16, 2012
Rr is for Robot ...
Make your own robot...
Materials: glue stick, construction paper, and scissors. Pre-cute shapes and the letter Rr.
Directions:
Talk to your child about the letter Rr. Show him or her the parts of the robot. Discuss the shapes and colors as your child glues the parts together.
Robot coloring page
We also pretended to be robots and walked around singing..
"I'm a little robot. I'm a little robot."
Robots Around the Web....
Books I want to explore...
Robot ideas or links? Please share!
Jen
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
The Baby Times! 16th Edition: Newspaper Play
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| Oh no! Mom caught me!! |
Newspaper play? You might be wondering why in the world I would let my child play with newspaper. Well,Little Man discovered it the other day and was having so much fun exploring. Not the best thing to be playing with, but a neat sensory activity for touch and sound. Just be sure that baby doesn't use his sense of taste and take a bite! My suggestion would be to crunch some newpaper at your baby's feet and let them kick away. Take a peek a Little Man in the video and see how much fun he is having with his new discovery!
Enjoy your day playing with baby!
Jen
Looking for past editions? The Baby Times!
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Hello!
Hello! I haven't been around lately due to my pregnancy symptoms- having a little bit of a rough time. I'm 12 and 1/2 weeks now, so I'm hoping that things will get better soon! I'm sure my family is hoping the same. We haven't been too busy with a lot of "planned" projects, but the kids still manage to be creative and curious even while Mom is resting or trying different cures for nausea. Here's what they've been up to!
Sunshine(age 7)-sewing clothes by hand for her baby doll.(the best that she can- fun for her, though)
-playing her keyboard- she taught herself how to play Happy Birthday, Twinkle, Twinkle, and a little bit of Beethoven she heard on tv (I think that she has some natural ability that Mom doesn't have- need to find an affordable piano teacher)
-made a Japanese Koi (she was peeking over my shoulder while I was reading The Crafty Classroom and saw the craft on there and just had to do it. Go to The Crafty Classroom for directions. Fun craft.)
-summer gymnastics- 3 hrs a week
-archery with Dad
Peanut(age 5)-using her imagination to send her Pet shop animals, polly pockets, Thumbelina dolls, and Tinker Bell on wild adventures!
-teaching herself beginning addition: writing down math problems using her fingers and then working on memorizing them(3+3=6, etc)
-drawing maps for her animals
-making up songs and performing them for me
-fashion shows throughout the house
-planting her cherry seeds outside after she eats her cherries
Also, swimming, fishing, biking, scootering, and church camp! So far a great summer start for the girls!
Take Care! Hoping to get back into the blogging groove soon!
Jen
Sunday, February 8, 2009
The Lost Art of Free Play- Part Two
If you missed Part One, click here!
In Part One, I emphasized the importance of play and shared a little research from Awakening Your Child's Natural Genius by Thomas Armstrong and Raising Curious Kids by Nancy Sokol Green.
So, we are aware of the important of play, but what do we do now to encourage this type of play?
First and foremost, we need to be playful ourselves and model our own imaginative thinking. We need to get on the floor with our children and create, build, and sculpt. Besides playing with our children, we need to observe them. Often, when I take a moment to actually stop running, I enjoy listening to my girls and hearing their imaginative play. It helps me to get to know them better and to connect with them. Armstrong states, "Unless you understand children's working vocabulary for play, you may be unable to establish a meaningful connection with them at these times."
Armstrong also suggests starting points to encourage play. A few that I would like to try are space shifting, creative dress-up, and adventure playground.
space-shifting- use string or masking tape to mark off a circular area. (10-15 ft. in diam.). Let this space become a new destination for their imaginations!
(and it only costs a few cents!)
dress-up- Of course, we are not in need of anymore Princess dresses, but I'd like to add a little bit more variety to my daughters dress-up to encourage different types of creative play.
adventure playground- (for older children 10 and up) This is an idea I'd like to keep in mind when my children are older,but a great suggestion for those who have older children. Provide an area for building creative structures that includes pieces of wood, nails, and other carpentry tools.
Steven Auerbach, author of Toy Chest: A Sourcebook of Toys for Children, suggests three different types of toys that children should be exposed to for play- active, creative, and educational.
active- jump ropes, skates, etc.
creative- modeling clay, instruments, puppets
educational- boardgames, puzzles, globes, magnets
Open-ended toys in my opinion are the best toys for children, because they encourages them to use their own brains to create new ideas. How many times as parents have we commented, "Why am I buying all of these toys, when all they want to play with is the box, or the packing peanuts, or the pots and pans in my kitchen?" Our kids show us what they truly need through their own exploration.
On today's store shelves, there are so many toys that do everything for the child, that they don't even have to think for themselves anymore. Am I saying that our kids shouldn't have any electronic toys? Of course not; I do see the value in exposing children to a variety of play things, especially different forms of technology. My goal is to expose them with limits and try to get back to the basics of play- back to simplicity.
Let me know what you think and what you do to encourage play in your homes?
Have a great Sunday!
Jen
Thursday, February 5, 2009
The Lost Art of Free Play
Often I've questioned the academic overload that seems to be present in some early childhood classrooms. In no way am I implying that math and reading aren't salient, but when these academic areas get in the way of play, this concerns me. Especially when many children aren't given the opportunity for "play" in their own homes. My definition of play consists of time for exploring, free-thinking, problem solving and imaginative thinking. Recently, I've been revisiting two different books that stress the importance of play- Awakening your Child's Natural Genius by Thomas Armstrong Ph.D. and Raising Curious Kids by Nancy Sokol Green. Armstrong discusses the lost art of free play. He states that "unstructured imaginative play may have a greater value to a child's overall development than these more formal types of recreation."
Formal types of recreation would include things as athletic-directed play, television or computer based games. When this is the primary type of home play, children are missing out on the nurturing of free play.
A similar philosophy is shared by Green. Based on her experiences with children, she is convinced that "all children have incredibly creative minds. Yet if these remarkable minds are not stimulated, we may never discover the wealth of creative thoughts and innovative ideas waiting to surface."
Our children are stuck in a generation of electronic toy overload, when all that they really need is simplicity. I am guilty of electronic toys, dozens and dozens of dolls and toys strewn about the house. But I inspire to do better and have always valued the opportunity for my children to explore and discover.
If you are interested in learning more about the importance of play, stay tuned for Part Two of The Lost Art of Play . I will share some creative suggestions on what we can do to encourage play in our own homes!
Take Care,
Jen
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