Week Two - Night Sky - Movies, Shows and Father's Day

Once again we have reached the end of the week. I hope your family enjoyed our trip to outer space as much as my family did. Below is a list of some movies for family time over the weekend that still bring in our space theme.

Also, as a reminder - if you were planning on grabbing the card for Father's Day I posted about on Tuesday don't forget to visit Kiki & Company's site today!

Here are the movies/shows:

Wall-E: This is a favorite at our house. Little man (who is slightly below the age suggested) is enchanted by the visuals and loves laughing at little misfit Wall-E. This is a good one for parents as well - it is a pleasure to watch. There is not much dialog in the film Wall-E mostly communicates through beeps and electronic noises - so make sure to talk about how great it is that we use words but other ways that we can communicate. Not much scary fare in this one, some loud spaceship landing and weather if your child is sensitive to that sort of thing.

Space Chimps: We have not seen this one at our house, but I can imagine great delight at the idea of monkeys doing...well...pretty much anything. Monkeys are a source of great humor to Little Man so I couldn't pass up including it, but watch at your own risk.

Muppets from Space: Who doesn't love the Muppets? This is classic Muppet fare with a focus on Gonzo, one of my personal favorites. This is still a little old for my family, but might be a perfect fit for yours - and I know the adults will get a kick out of it, sample quote "Midnight. The lone alien stands before a naked sky. The mood is tense. My hair looks *great.*" - Miss Piggy

Mickey Mouse Clubhouse: Space Adventure - This is for the younger set who love Mickey. This is great if you have a book you would like to read while watching, but not ideal if you will be actively watching with your child. The antics get a little grating after a while. It is a nice shorter movie/show option and Mickey is always a younger set crowd pleaser.

Disney's Little Einstein's: Race for Space - Ok, the characters on this show can be a little much (I am looking straight at you, Annie) (oh and you Quincy when you can "not believe it!", I mean how shocked are you really? You ride in a rocket made from mobile, and who lives under your friends house in a garage he built himself and you play every instrument known to mankind - you have to know something incredible is going on, just embrace it)...BUT the show is great for teaching musical basics and giving kids experience with classical music. Little man LOVED this show (if you can't tell by my ..ahem..slight animosity), and he learned a ton about musical vocabulary and music in general.

Have a great weekend, enjoy Father's Day with your family.  On Monday we start with weather. Talk to you soon.

Week Two - Night Sky - Craft Time

I have a bunch of crafts to choose from today. I will start with the ones for father's day and move to the space/night sky theme.

Father's Day:

I found some great free printables for a superhero themed gift for dad. This can easily be personalized, and if your house is anything like mine your kids will get a kick out of talking about superheroes. All you will need is card stock (thick paper - but it can be regular paper if you don't have any), a printer, and if you want to add a gift - some of Dad's favorite snacks.

First the card. From Kiki & Company and featured on Today's Creative Blog comes an adorable plaque for dad. It reads: "The most incredible, powerful, strong & daring superhero lives here. We know him as dad."Suggestions for making this personal: Have your child draw a picture of "Dad the Superhero" either on the back or a separate piece of paper. If you do a separate paper frame both together either with actual frames or paper ones. If you are doing it on the back, add a piece of yarn or ribbon to hang on Dad's door. If you have access to it, laminate it! Kiki & Company has a whole adorable set that you can get free for signing up for her newsletter.

You can also ask your child some great questions and help them write their answers. I have provided a sheet for Dads (below), Papas, and Grandpas. If you would like another version - leave a comment and I will post.
My Superhero Dad

For the gift: Alpha Mom has a great printable to place on all of dad's favorite snacks. You will need a printer, glue or tape, and nice bags (if you want them). Alpha Mom also suggests a wooden box to keep the treats, but I think they are cute enough to stand alone, or go in a gift bag. Combine this with the Superhero craft above and I think you have a sweet gift. You could also theme the snacks and add a movie (Sherlock Holmes 2 just came out and might be a dad fav) or a TV series. Have fun!

Crafts for the Night Sky:

I have two great options this week, all from Busy Bee Kids Crafts.

This is a great time to talk about traveling to space. Here are some great resources to explain the solar system and space travel from KidsAstronomy.com. The site is interactive, so have the kids nearby and ready to help navigate. I love the questions below to help me answer little man's questions.

First option, create a space shuttle. This is a super simple way to create an eye catching rocket to the stars. Kids will love launching these - and how often do you have a craft that they can play with?  Suggestions: set rules on how high it can fly - if it is a concern perhaps a toilet paper role would be better (and lighter). This would make a great indoor activity on a rainy day, especially with high ceilings. If you have several rolls - make a couple of rockets. "Race" them - see how far the go, launch them together, etc.

Second option, help them make a planetarium you can hang on their window. Construction paper, glitter glue, and wax paper are all that is needed to create a very cool discussion piece. I love how the sites planets look perfect ever though they are created from construction paper - but lets be real - not all of us are that artistically capable. Feel free to print out your planets after running a quick google search. If nothing else you can use them as guides (especially if you find your inner artistic paper goddess) or be like the rest of us and use the printed version - card stock for those will probably be best.

This is a ton to do, but I didn't want to wait until the last minute to give you Father's Day options. Hopefully this can help reduce stress instead of causing it. Enjoy the time with your little ones!