In this post, discover more than 10 easy hands-on speech crafts and learn how to use them to make speech therapy motivating and fun.
I love seeing a child's self portrait, & the way in which they see themselves. Minnie has drawn & painted a self portrait before, but this was the first time she's created one using play dough! I set out this selection of materials that could be used to represent facial features, hair, etc, & added our homemade play dough. We looked in a mirror together & talked about our faces, & Minnie named her facial features as we chatted. We looked at the differences & similarities in each others faces, & briefly discussed the shapes, colours & sizes that we noticed. Minnie was keen to "make her own face", & we talked about what a self portrait was. She keenly grabbed handfuls of play dough & squashed it to make her face shape. At first every art material available was being added, so we took another look at our facial features again in the mirror. She was particularly fascinated by her eyes & spent a while studying these before creating her portrait. She added pasta shapes for her hair & decorated her locks with flowers. I love her beautiful flower eyes which were finished off later with conkers! As she made the mouth she pushed a thin lolly stick in saying; "Open wide! Don't worry I'm a dentist & I just want to check your teeth. Say aah!!" (It's always a joy to catch spontaneous imaginative play!) Here's Minnie's first self portrait! Here next self-portrait was accompanied by a story too. As she used handfuls of rosemary to represent her hair she said "I have very messy hair today, it's grown very long & keeps getting in my eyes!" When I asked if her play dough face was happy or sad ( I could clearly see it wasn't happy!) she said; "It's sad because I can't see! The hair covers up my eyes!" The play dough self-portrait then needed to look in the mirror to see their sad mouth! These play dough portraits soon had everyone busy & became an activity for all the family! Here's Daddy's self-portrait. (I have to say it doesn't really do him justice!) ;-) Minnie was keen to take Daddy's apart to explore the patterns in the dough made by pasta! Here's my self-portrait... stunning I know! Ha! Soon Minnie was creating play dough portraits for other people. Here's her portrait of Daddy! Love the shell features! We're going to print this image onto card to make a Father's Day card for him on Sunday! Minnie's Godmother had a baby this week, so guess who Minnie created next! We had a photo of the baby (just hours old) on my phone which Minnie examined carefully before producing this portrait. The small blob of play dough at the top is the baby's woolly hat! To explore play dough portraits in a slightly different way I printed off a few of these blank face templates (A5 size) & added a couple of googly eyes. These are great for recognising, naming, & positioning facial features, as well as exploring a variety of facial expressions & feelings/emotions. And here's another face template minus the googly eyes. A creative way to explore the part to whole relationship, colours, shapes, & size, number, pairs etc. Portraiture is a great way for young children to explore the concept of self, as well as different art forms. Using the play dough to create self portraits added an extra sensory dimension the the activity. The dough & the additional natural materials offered a variety of textures to discover, as did the patterns created in the dough. Maths, language, physical development (fine motor) PSE, problem solving, creative & imaginative development can all be explored in this simple play dough activity. Have you taken the Play Dough Pledge yet? Why not have a go at creating your own portraits & create a play dough family art gallery! Or share your mini masterpieces on our facebook page.
Printable Mad Libs for Adults offer a fun and entertaining activity for individuals looking to inject some lightheartedness into their day. With a mix of humorous fill-in-the-blank stories and creative wordplay, these Mad Libs provide a unique form of entertainment for grown-ups seeking a break from the everyday hustle and bustle. Whether youre a group of friends gathered for a game night or simply looking for a solo activity to unwind, Printable Mad Libs for Adults offer a delightful escape for individuals who appreciate a good laugh and a chance to exercise their imagination.
More than 100 playdough mats that will keep kids learning and engaged for HOURS. And the best part is that they are all FREE!
Borax Uses for Kids on Frugal Coupon Living. 15 of the most creative Borax Recipes and science experiments to create in the home.
Have you seen that commercial from Allstate? The one with the male (supposedly) French model she met on the Internet? My seven year old has been walking around the house saying “bonjour” thanks to this little marketing spot. To springboard off his new found interest in foreign languages, I made him a series of four heart-shaped puzzles. Each heart contains three pieces: the shape of a country, that country’s flag, and the way you say “I love you” in the language spoken there. Download a free 2-page PDF of these puzzles here. I printed the puzzles on cardstock, spray glued them to craft foam and cut them out. Then I jumbled them all together so my son had to really work to put them together. He referred to his Reader’s Digest Children’s Atlas (which has each country’s flag in the back) for help. While this wasn’t an extensive foreign language lesson, it was fun to exchange I love yous with my son in a language other than English!
Salt Painting Window Art - make your own salt art window art as part of our #easyplayidea series - using simple resources found at home, re-create these easy play invitations for your children to make and play | you clever monkey
Instructions for crafting Croatian paper licitar hearts (licitarsko srce) in lockdown for pretty window displays and sending to loved ones.
Cheat codes for everyday life.
Fireworks in a Glass You only need 3 ingredients for this amazing Science Experiment that kids will love!
Circle time songs that you can use in your early learning environment: These songs are designed specifically to incorporate music in a meaningful way.
Did you know that you can make rainbows using CDs? Yup! It's true. Check out this rainbow that Chuck and I made right in his room. All we needed was a bright patch of sun, a CD, and a white surface. Keep reading to see how we made these lovely rainbows! Here's what you need to make your very own rainbows: Bright patch of sunshine (or, if it's cloudy, you could use a flashlight) CD White surface (We used the wall and a white canvas) Got everything? Great! Let's make some rainbows! (Note: If you're looking for the scientific explanation behind why this works, check out the Exploratorium. I found this idea there. The site also has lots of other fun science activities that you can do at home.) Place your CD in a bright patch of sunshine. Use the shiny side to reflect your rainbows. (If it's not that sunny, you could also shine a flashlight onto the CD to reflect rainbows.) At first, we reflected rainbows onto the wall. I was delighted to see the colors, but Chuck was not so impressed because the rainbow was rather pale. Then, I set up a white surface closer to our CD. Whoa! Now Chuck got excited because we saw vibrant colors. We made lots of different looking rainbows when we wiggled the CD around. Here's a circular rainbow! And of course, we had to give Chuck's buddy Mac a turn at making his own rainbows too. Happy rainbow making, friends! Hope this activity brightens your day! (Psst- If you're looking for more rainbow themed posts, check out Kids Chaos for a great list!)
3d book, anaglyph, 3d glasses
Can Cats See in the Dark? Explore Cats Eyes with this fun & easy Science Activity! Demonstrate why cats eyes appear to glow!
I've always loved this verse from the story where Samuel chooses and anoints David to be king. God says to Samuel: The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart. (1 Samuel 16:7) On outward appearances, David is not the obvious choice. But God sees what is inside him- something that others can't necessarily see! This is a great conversation starter for children because we are all living in a world where we make judgements on appearances. How many people do they choose not to be friends with based on what they see, rather than taking the time to get to know them on the inside? Here's a craft to help talk about God not worrying about what's on the outside of someone because he sees and loves what's on the inside! You will need: White card or paper, white wax crayon, watercolour paints and brush 1. Write a message on the card with a white wax crayon. It could be something like 'God knows me', 'I love you' or a picture of a heart- anything that communicates the idea of God knowing the real us! Talk to the children about the fact that no-one can see what they have written. Only they really know what is there. This is like judging people by appearances. We don't really know what they are like. 2. Now get your water colour paints and paint over the card. Encourage the children to use their favourite colours so their picture will show something about who they are. The wax writing will be revealed! 3. Talk to the children about how God sees the beautiful people we really are on the inside, even if other people can't. Who do we make judgements about? Who could we try to get to know better? Thank God for knowing and loving us!
Borax Uses for Kids on Frugal Coupon Living. 15 of the most creative Borax Recipes and science experiments to create in the home.
This free printable Tower of Babel Craft for Kids is a fun way for kids to learn about and remember this Old Testament Bible Story.
At the end of the year, once testing is over and kids have lost their minds are ready for summer, it's the perfect time to pull out the messy science experiments to review all the fun skills you've learned this year! One of my favorite activities to do with kiddos of ALL ages is to make OOBLECK! If you've never made oobleck, you are in for a treat. It can get a little messy, but it is the BEST sensory experience! Oobleck has properties of a solid and a liquid (great review of matter!) and it's easy to make (measuring skills review!) and actually easy to clean up- if it gets on the carpet, let it dry completely and then it can be vacuumed up easily, as it turns into a dry powder. To start the lesson, read the great book by Dr. Seuss, Bartholomew and the Oobleck. *affiliate link to the book on Amazon* Then, allow students to make the oobleck! (If you want to make it ahead of time yourself as one big batch, that is okay, too! Remember, it is two parts cornstarch to one part water. One year I accidentally flipped that conversion and OOPS- we did not have oobleck that day.) You can download this free directions page to help your students make oobleck on their own: As I mentioned above, oobleck has properties of a solid and a liquid: it will take the shape of its container like a liquid, but with force (like a hit, poke, or squeeze) it acts like a solid! It can be rolled into a ball, but it can also flow and drip like a liquid. Oobleck is a non-Newtonian fluid. And make sure to show them this awesome video of people walking, and even DANCING, on a pool of oobleck!! (HERE IS THE SAFESHARE LINK) Your kids will LOVE all the oobleck excitement! It's a great way to finish the year with a bang- and a splat! :) Have fun!
Montessori-inspired rsources for helping preschoolers through early elementary kids participate in the excitement of elections!
Dancing rice experiment for kids. Make rice dance like magic in this super simple kitchen science experiment from Green Kid Crafts...
As usual, I have been inspired by things on Pinterest. Here are a few things I've been working on this summer: I decided it was time to prettify my binders. Here's my first one: I saw this 3-Star Coloring Rubric on Pinterest: Pinterest via laura-armstrong-martinez.blogspot.com What a great visual for those who need reminders :) Here's my version: Lots of bloggers are getting organized with fantastic lesson overviews, so I had to get on that bandwagon too: Have you noticed all of the Welcome Bunting too? I just had to make my own: I used turquoise, pink, and brown pennant pieces, mounted on black, and tied it together with white ribbon.
Use this easy but fascinating technique to make stationery, bookmarks, journals and greeting cards for yourself or to give!
With the start of the school year, my son and I've been talking a lot friendships- what it takes to make and be a friend. I guess all that talk about friendships must have seeped into my crafting too, because I found myself with the great urge to cut out some paper people chains. Inspired by this wikiHow post I cut out and doodled some kid paper chains. Yup. Today's post is going old-school with 2 fun paper people chain designs. This post contains affiliate links. Thank you for the grocery money! For my full disclosure policy, click here. Ok, before we start, I have to make two points- 1) This paper people chain activity would be really neat to do after reading Say Hello! (It's one of our favorite books and shows a girl saying hello to different kids in her neighborhood.) 2) As I look at these photos I realize that my people lack diversity. Ack! Sorry about that. I really should have added different skin colors to the kids to make them more representative. Ok! Now, onto the craft- Paper People Snowflake Chain Yup. I love this one because it's another neat snowflake design that I can add to the blog. To cut out a snowflake like this one, simply grab a piece of computer paper, and cut and fold it like so to get it ready for some snowflake cutting. Then, cut out a design like this to create your paper people snowflakes! Alternating Paper People Chain A neat take on traditional paper people chains, this one alternates boys and girls. Cut a sheet of computer paper in half lengthwise. Then, fold the paper in half once and then once again. Then, unfold your paper a fold it accordion style along your previously folded lines. Then, cut out a design like this to create an alternating paper people chain. Ok, that's all for today friends. Hope your beginning of the school year is going great. Happy making!
We love coming up with fun ways to play in the snow , and when we don't have the real thing we are quite versed on making our own . ...
Set up a baking soda and vinegar balloon science experiment for kids. Blow up balloons with a fun chemical reaction.
Have You Filled A Bucket Today? A few years ago I was introduced to the wonderful book " Have You Filled A Bucket Today ?: A Guide to D...
I'm having the greatest time getting inspired & looking through my collection (& some borrowed from the library) of vintage kiddie crafty b...
This science experiment Cartesian Bottle Diver will tell you why. Kids are always having fun with this toy.
Nesting dolls are a wonderful addition to a child's toy collection. My oldest daughter has used this nesting doll for a long time now and she still has interest in it. She delights in opening the last doll to find the "baby" inside. Recently, I added the two largest dolls to my youngest daughter's (19 months) activity shelf. She is able to open and put the dolls back together and is working on the "nesting" part of it.
Discover a variety of simple bird feeders for preschoolers to make and hang in the trees. They'll love watching the birds flock to the yard.
Fluffy Slime Recipe
This easy at-home experiment is a great way to
