On a warm day, take the kids outside to 'paint' the sidewalk using water instead of paint. They love that they are painting, but you don't have any clean-up! They can also do handprints and footprints by getting their hands and feet wet.
Ages : 1-6 year olds
Materials Needed : Paintbrushes, water, bucket or bowl for water
Take a jar or bottle of any size and pour a small amount of vegetable oil in it and then pour a small amount of water into the same bottle. Add a few drops of food coloring if you want to color the liquid. Then add sparkles, confetti and glitter if desired and close the lid. You have made a lava lamp. Have the kids shake the jar and tilt it up and down to see that water and oil don't mix.. ... Read more >
Ages : 3-6 year olds
Materials Needed : Jar or bottle; vegetable oil or baby oil; water; glitter, sparkles or confetti; and food coloring to color liquid
We all know the old "Wheels on the Bus." Next time you go for a walk, try singing "Wheels on the Stroller." Some sample lyrics: The visor on the stroller goes up and down. The girls in the stroller go whee, whee, whee (or wah wah wah, depending on the day. The doggie by the stroller goes bark, bark, bark. The mommy pushing the stroller goes huff and puff. The people on the street say.. ... Read more >
Ages : 0-4 year olds
Materials Needed : Stroller, kids, enough air in your lungs to sing.
Take 2 paper plates and decorate the bottoms of them with markers, crayons, tissue paper pieces, ribbons -- anything you have handy. Then put the two paper plates together so that the decorated bottoms are facing out. Begin to fasten the paper plates together by stapling around the outer edge. Once you have stapled three-quarters of the way around, pour some rice or beans into the middle. .. ... Read more >
Ages : 3-6 year olds
Materials Needed : Two paper plates; stapler; markers,crayons, ribbons, tissue paper pieces, construction paper or other crafty things you have laying around; rice or beans
Teach your kids about wind and the weather with this fun activity. Decorate a large piece of construction paper with markers, paints or other art supplies. Then roll it into a long tube (about the size of a paper towel tube) and staple or tape the paper along the edge, fastening it together like a cylinder. Once the paper is securely fastened, tape pieces of crepe paper or ribbons around one.. ... Read more >
Ages : 3-6 year olds
Materials Needed : Large piece of construction paper Markers, paints or other art supplies to decorate Tape or stapler Crepe Paper Ribbons Small dowel if desired
Take a box of tooth picks and a bag of mini marshmallows and put them out on a table. Then show the kids how to create three-dimensional structures by placing the marshmallows onto the tooth picks. They have a great time creating big structures, houses, tunnels, etc. Some nibbling involved!
Ages : 4-6 year olds
Materials Needed : Bag of mini marshmallows, box of toothpicks
Go to an educational store or other store that sells alphabet stencils. Then place the alphabet stencils on a tile floor in your home. Place them randomly so that the child will learn the letters individually. Then cover the stencils with clear contact paper. Watch as your baby discovers the fun of crawling over the letters. As they approach or crawl over a letter you tell them what it is. .. ... Read more >
Ages : 0-3 year olds
Materials Needed : Alphabet stencils, clear contact paper, scissors
Tell the kids to hide in one room of the house. Then take some toy cars, action figures, or other non-breakable toys and objects and hide them in a different room. Once you are done hiding, give each kid a brown paper bag and then have them come into the room and try to find all the hidden objects. A way to make this game fun and educational is to hide things that all fit into a theme (things.. ... Read more >
Ages : 3-6 year olds
Materials Needed : Brown paper bags, non-breakable toys or household objects
Take an old shoe box or shirt box and put a piece of construction paper in it. Then take some poster paint and dab it on the paper in the box. Next place a golf ball in the box and have your child tilt the box all around so the ball smears the paint to create a picture. It's lots of fun! Black paper with white paint makes cool images as well as color.
Ages : 3-6 year olds
Materials Needed : Box, old golf ball, construction paper or other kinds of paper good for painting, poster or tempera paint
Turn on the radio or CD Player and start to dance with the kiddies. Then turn the music off randomly and surprise the kids by saying 'Freeze.' If they don't freeze, they can be out or you can just continue to play without doing the elimination. With more kids the elimination works well and they have fun with it. Loads of laughs for a rainy day!
Ages : 3-6 year olds
Materials Needed : CD player or radio, fun music
We've enjoyed our month down by the shore so much. We hope you did too. ... Read more >
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