Week Six - Dinosaurs - Craft Time

Three great options today; a faux relief drawing of a dinosaur skeleton, a dinosaur fossil made of pasta and a hatching baby dinosaur. I have added a few bonus options, because the web is a wealth of ideas for dinosaurs - obviously Little Man is not the only obsessed four-year-old.

I found the great idea for a faux relief dinosaur print on The Do It Yourself Mom. She took a easy fossil printable (here's one) and had her boys trace it with a white crayon on a different piece of paper (one on top of the other). Then they brushed over the white crayon tracing with water colors (use dirt colors for the biggest impact). The end result was a super cute final product. Get all of the details here.

Two options from Busy Bee Kids Crafts. First, dinosaur bones pasta style. You just need glue, paper, the printable provided on the site and some pasta - penne worked great! Little man loved crushing the pasta, so that got a little out of hand, but he was very proud of the final product.

Second, a hatching dinosaur egg. You need paper bowls, paint, other options for decorating (use your and your child's imagination), a paper fastener (if you don't worry about it sliding open you can use a staple or poke through with a twisty tie), and either a dinosaur toy or the free printable found on the site for inside the egg. This is too cute! This would make a great extended play day - hide and seek with the egg, what else fits inside, what other animals lay eggs, make nests outside - the options are endless.



Bonus - here are some fun dinosaur gems I found while searching for ideas for this week.

Here is a set of dino flash cards. My two cents - print two and play memory, print several and write easy word foundations (-ed, -at, -up, -ast, -all, etc) on the bodies with letters that would create words on other same bodies to work on sounding out words. Tons of options, and these are so cute!

This is a set of worksheets and educational files some of which may be a bit above the preschool age range, but sweet and useful now and in the future.

Week Six - Dinosaurs - Read!

Hope everyone enjoyed their holiday week. We are getting back into the swing of things slowly (I miss having family close by - but not more than my kids who do not understand why they only have my attention during the day). I decided to try to make everyone happy and break from the overarching theme of summer and throw in dinosaurs. My little man loves them, and I have fun when he has fun - so hopefully this will make the transition easier.

Items that can be covered this week; dinosaur names, differences between dinosaurs (meat eaters vs plant eaters, walk on four legs vs two legs, horns vs no horns, etc), size of dinosaurs (what do they compare to today), etc. The best thing to discuss with kids about dinosaurs is the unknown. There are still dinosaurs to be discovered and things that might never be known (what did they sound like, what color were they, etc) and that lets kids use there imagination without fear of being wrong. It also can spark an interest in science and the discovery of it all.

There are a ton of great books on this topic, but our family favorites include: Dinosaur Train by John Steven Gurney, Dinosaur! By Peter Sis, Ten Terribel Dinosaurs by Paul Strickland, The Magic School Bus and the Time of the Dinosaur by Joanna Cole and Bruce Degen, How Big Were the Dinosaurs? By Bernard Most. I am always looking for suggestions, because these are winners so if you have anything to add - post in comments!




The sight words this week are: funny, who, will, came, did, what, say, do


I hope that you are enjoying seeing your preschooler learn sight words and build a foundation for reading. This has been a great journey for Little Man - he is reading more and more every day as he becomes more confident about knowing the words. Remember to make this fun and supportive. This may not be your child's time to read the words on their own, but the more they hear them from you the more they will grow. Here is the free book of the week:
Dinosaurs

This week we will make a dinosaur egg, a relief painting, and I will introduce you to some great songs, movement and shows that are for young kids and have taught the adults in my house (I mean me) a few things. You don't need much that you won't find in your home, so relax and enjoy. I will leave you with a little laugh. 

Week Five - 4th of July - Movies and Shows

Getting ready to get into the car for our non-stop (who am I kidding) drive home from the beach. We had a great time and enjoyed the time together but are ready to sleep in our own beds.

I went for more a broad theme so I could provide you with a couple of options.

Movies & Shows:

This is America, Charlie Brown: Beloved characters explore US history. This may be a little old for preschool children - but it sounds like a great way to teach history. It is a series of eight episodes  that cover the Constitution, NASA, Wright Brothers, Inventors and Music and Heroes.

All Aboard America: I don't know anything about this except what I read on the IMDB page. Apparently, a giant bald eagle takes you around the country to meet other patriotic friends including a steam engine, stars (dog) and stripes (cat). This is a musical adventure that includes landmarks, historical figures and American standards.

School House Rock - Election Collection: "I'm just a bill here, yes I'm only a bill sitting here on Capitol Hill..." These are classics are over the head of our kids, but the animation is cute and the songs are catchy. Maybe they could pick u the concepts for later :)

Little Einsteins: Mission Celebration: This is themed around birthdays, but it is celebrations so stick with me. Another great option from the Little Einstein gang (as always watch for Annie's voice and Quincy "not believing it" [Journey would be pissed]). 

Week Five - 4th of July - Science Time

Here are a couple of activities you can enjoy with your child now that the 4th has passed. This is a great time to talk about what you saw, what was their favorite part, and what was their favorite tradition. Let them talk and see what parts they want to relive.

How about some firecracker cookies? These sugar cookies from CakeSpy.com with food dye and pop rocks look amazing, if a little intense. I like the option at the bottom with the sugar cookies and frosting on the top - but hey it is a holiday week - knock yourself out :) P.S. If you are trying to lose weight DO NOT go to CakeSpy! It is (forgive the language) food porn at its best!

Make your own fireworks. No, not the ones that will blow up and possibly cause you our your precious little ones to lose fingers, firecrackers in a jar. A clear glass, food coloring, oil and and water are all you need for this interesting and quick way to be part of the explosive parts of the 4th.

It is all about density. Use different densities of liquid to create a red, white and blue layered final product. Kids will get a kick out of the liquids not mixing and you can play with this all you want - any colors will do. Make are you talk about weight and what weighs more - and stretch it to the density concept if you feel so inclined.

Have fun!

Week Five - 4th of July - Songs

Happy Independence Day!

Just fun music for today - have fun with your family celebrating!

Lyrics 

Lyrics

Lyrics 

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Lyrics

God Bless the USA. 

Week Five - July 4th - Crafts

Hello from the beach! I hope you are enjoying your holiday week.

Here are some simple crafts to celebrate Independence Day.

First, make a noise maker for the parade. You will need a drinking straw, 2 craft sticks (popsicle sticks will work), and a wide rubber band.
1. Cut two 1 1/4 inch pieces from the straw
2. Stretch a rubber band over one of the craft sticks length wise.
3. Put one of the straw pieces under the rubber band at one end and the other straw piece over the rubber band at the opposite end.
4. Put the other craft stick on top of the craft stick you were working on sandwiching the straw pieces in the middle
5. Put the sticks together using rubber bands around each side
5. Decorate and enjoy

Tip: Give this to your child out of doors for sanity!

Second, create a shirt for the 4th activities. The involved version and the not-so-invovled version. Both come up with adorable final products that the kids can be a part of helping you make. These would be perfect if you have a bunch of friends and family getting together as gifts for the kids.

Last, firework art! Paint, water, paper and another straw make a craft that your kids will love creating.

Also, tons of patriotic printables from Disney Family Fun. Enjoy!

Week Five - July 4th - Read!

Can you believe we are at week five of summer already? The time has really moved. This week we are at the beach celebrating Independence Day and I thought it would be a perfect time to talk about holidays. We will talk about holidays throughout the year and talk about why we celebrate and traditions for our families - with the main focus on the 4th. These will be shorter than normal so I have a chance to spend time with my family.

Prepare yourself for July 4th crafts that include noise makers for the parade (break out the left over popsicle sticks from week one), screen printed tee (white tee and paint for a cute 4th themed outfit), and a firework painting (paint, straw, water).

Books this week: Fourth of July Mice by Bethany Roberts, Happy 4th of July, Jenny Sweeney by Leslie Kimmelman, Hats off for the Fourth of July by Harriet Ziefert, A is for America by Devin Scillian

Sight Words: come, pretty, please, must, new, want, get

Here is the book this week: 

The 4th of July

Enjoy!