Quilt Patterns

During our Letter of the Week for Q, we had a Q is for Quilts day, and one of the activities we did was to create some little quilts for our dolls and animals. It was really great, and was a good learning activity.

We are lucky enough to have real, hand made quilts on all our beds, thanks to some very talented grandmothers and great grandmothers. And before we started making our quilts, we looked at them all and saw how they all had patterns. Some had patterns of shapes, some of colours, some of stitches, some had all three.

Then I brought out some felt shapes I had cut out from all different colours and then talked about how to make patterns of our own.
The kids set out their own patterns on their fabric and really came up with some creative ways to arrange their quilts.

They did patterns of alternating colours, or of shapes, or even of the way they had the same shape oriented.

Then, once they had gotten all their rows finished the way they wanted, I brought out the glue and they assembled their quilts.

After the glue had dried, they wrapped up their toys and tucked them in for a nap. Loved it.

Jelly Bean Math

A bag of jelly beans holds wonderful potential.

We started by looking at our bag and naming off the colours we could see. Then we tried to predict which colour there would be the most of. Our guess was purple.

I made a quick chart on the computer with columns that were labeled in each colour, and printed it off, then we dumped out our bag and started dividing them up. Look what tidy lines he is making!

When we were finished, we could compare the amounts. My guy was really good at interpreting his graph, and as you can see, while our guess of purple was a close second, we had so many orange jelly beans they ran right off the page! We talked about which had the most, the least, and then put them in order from the least to the greatest.

The last activity I did with him was a few simple math questions that I wrote on the back of 3x5" index cards. I would write out the first part of the equation, (in this case 3+5=) and then he would put the appropriate number of jelly beans under each number, then count them all up to find the answer, which I would then write down. This was a great visual way to review some math concepts.

But I have to say, he enjoyed doing the subtraction questions more! And I bet you can think of why!

Put The Animals In The Barn

Time for another hand-me-down game. (I love hand-me-downs!)

This one is to strengthen both reading and numeracy skills.

It has a very simple game board with some spaces blank, some have a picture of an animal, and some have written instructions like, "go to the cow space" or "lose a turn." Also included in the game are small cut out pictures of farm animals. The players take turns rolling the dice, counting the spaces, and move forwards, (or backwards if they choose) to try to land on all the animals.

When you land on a space with a picture of an animal, you get to pick up one of the cut outs, and put it on your barn card, reading to find the appropriate 'stall.'

The first player to fill their barn wins.

I was a little surprised by how big of a hit this one was. He loved it. Just plain old loved it. We played it several times, one right after the other, and we only stopped because it was time to get the bigger kids from school. And even then I had to reassure him we'd play it again another day.

If you wanted to make your own version of this, it wouldn't be too hard. You could even change it up a bit and instead of a barnyard, maybe you'd have to collect different kinds of flowers, or butterflies, or dinosaur bones, and then assemble a bouquet, or a collection frame, or a fossil exhibit.

Catch The Frogs Game

Lots of people know I like games and learning activities to do with my kids, and so I often get thoughtful hand-me-downs from friends and family once their own children have outgrown them. And I love it every time.

This is a game I got from my sister. It is called Catch The Frogs. There are cute little froggies with numbers 1-12 on their bellies.

You lay the frogs out on the table, (in order or not, it doesn't really matter) and roll the dice. Then you have to find the frog (or frogs) that help you get that number.

For example, if you rolled a 4 and a 1, you could take frog #4 and frog #1, or you could add 4+1 and take frog #5. Or, if your children really know their stuff, they could come up with a different equation that would equal 5 (ie 3+2) and take those frogs.

This game was good for me to do with my boy, since he is very comfortable with number recognition on one die, but to add the numbers on the first die with the second die was a new and more challenging task. When he couldn't do it in his head, it was no big deal, we just counted the dots on the dice and found the answer that way.

If you wanted to have a winner for the game, you could add up the numbers on the frogs you 'catch' and whoever has the highest total could be the champ, but we didn't keep score.

Of course, you don't have to do this game with frogs. If you wanted to create a version that more closely fit your child's interests, it would be easy enough. You could play, "Pick the flowers" and make paper daisies with numbers in their centers, or "Catch the Fish" etc.

Counting With Clothespins

I made these number cards a while ago, and we found a new way to play with them this week.

I had a package of clothespins left over from a craft we did ages ago, and I pulled them out.

Then we clipped the corresponding number of them onto the cards.

Quick, and a fun way to change up the cards a bit.

Family Literacy Day

January 27th is Family Literacy Day in Canada. It is a day for parents and children to enjoy books together. And since that is one of my favourite things to do, I was totally on board!

The night before, I chose a few books from my kids' shelves, and came up with some activities to do with them that related back to the story. I wanted to vary my activities too, and not just have everything be a craft or everything be a game. I thought it would be great to have a craft for one, a learning activity for one, a just-for-fun one, and a cooking one. I got all my preparations ready and supplies gathered, and then I was set.

This was my first book. And no, actually, this wasn't the book that I planned a cooking activity. Ha! No, in the book the moose makes sock puppets, and I had found a sock puppet kit at a book store for $2 and snatched it up, so this was the perfect chance to break it open.

It came with quite a few supplies, but I added in a few of my own materials to round it out.

So first I gathered my middle two kids (I had the baby down for a nap, and my oldest was still at school) and we read the book. Then I brought them up to the table where I had all the supplies out and waiting.

They were so enthusiastic about this idea! My boy snatched up a green sock and instantly declared he was going to make a snake.

And my daughter quickly set about turning a pink sock into, what else, a piggy.

After some felt, buttons, googly eyes, pompoms, and pipe cleaners were added on, these were their creations. I love what they came up with! I had to help them cut out their felt pieces, but the design and the rest of the construction was all their own.

When the glue was finally dry, they slid their arms into their puppets and gave me a show!

This was a library book we happened to have checked out earlier in the week. We own the first book, "Click, Clack, Moo: Cows That Type" and when I saw another of Doreen Cronin's books I thought we'd give it a try. I really liked Click, Clack, Moo. I thought this one fell short, but my kids enjoyed it, which was good.

For this activity, I did a little number worksheet. Down one side of the paper I wrote the numbers from 1-5, and then made swirly lines all over the center of the page and had them come out at the other side. The kids had to use their markers to trace my lines and find where each number comes out, then write the number at the end of the path.

Our third book was The Balloon Tree by Phoebe Gilman. We have all her Jillian Jiggs stories, and I bought this book at a used book sale because I loved the author's other works. Again, not my favourite, but it was a fun, cute story, and had Phoebe Gilman's sweet illustrations.

After we finished the story, we of course, played with BALLOONS! We did three games: The first one was just a simple 'see who can keep their balloon in the air the longest' game.

For the second, we sandwiched a balloon in between the kids and then they had to squeeze and hug as tight as they could until it popped. It was sure a shock when it finally did!

Our last game was a race around the living room with a balloon held tightly between our legs so we kind of had to waddle. So funny to watch them try!

Our final book was this lesser-known Seuss.

Then we made scrambled eggs together. Basic I know, but this guy here loves scrambled eggs.

It was such a fun afternoon. And at bedtime they asked me if it would be Family Literacy Day again soon. So great.

Pass The Parcel

I do an activity advent calender with my kids each Christmas. I love it. In November, I think of all the things I want to do in the next month, write them down, assign them a date on the calender, and get the materials I need. I think I'm being very organized and the next month will proceed smoothly. But, inevitably, something comes up during December where what I had planned for that day just can't happen. Maybe the activity I had slated for the day was too time consuming and I had a busy day, or company unexpectedly shows up for a visit and I don't have the supplies for all the extra kids, who knows. The point is, there needs to be some flexibility in the advent plan.

This year, I discovered a great way to fill an activity for the day that doesn't take a lot of time, and can accommodate any number of people, so you can keep it in reserve for when you have to adjust your original plans.

It is a game called Pass the Parcel. All you need is a prize, (preferably something everyone can enjoy together so there is no winner and loser at the end, thus avoiding hurt feelings) wrapping supplies, and a dice. You can even call this a 'learning game' if you wanted, since it involves number recognition. Ideas for group prizes: a new Christmas video for the family, a box of treats, a new book to read together, a package of finger puppets, a puzzle to build, supplies for a craft, etc.

Step 1: Wrap your prize in layer upon layer upon layer of paper. I think I used ten this year. (You can do this in advance and tuck the prize under your bed until that busy day creeps up on you. Then you are prepared!)

Step 2: Get all the participants into a circle.

Step 3: Roll the dice. If the player rolls a predetermined number (we used 3, but it is just whatever you pick) they get to start unwrap the gift.

Step 4: The players keep taking turns quickly rolling the dice, trying to get the set number.

Step 5: When someone else gets the lucky number, they get the gift and start unwrapping as fast as they can.

Step 6: Keep rolling the dice, and passing the parcel accordingly, until all the wrappings are gone.

Step 7: When the gift is all the way unwrapped, enjoy the prize together.

Christmas Candy Counting

I can't take credit for coming up with this one. I saw it months ago on some one's blog. I thought it was a fun idea, but when December came and I went to look for it, I couldn't remember where I had seen it and I had to make up my own.

I found a good picture of Santa with lots of open white space, and put it into Microsoft Word. Then I used the auto-shapes tool to add 20 circles all over his beard and hat brim. Then I printed out a copy for each of my kids. I liked it, but I think next year I'll find a blank Christmas tree image, and then when I add the circles it will look like Christmas balls. Just a cute change.

The first thing I had them work on was coloring it. The blog I got the idea from had a really cute Santa that was in color, but since I couldn't find it, I decided on doing a black and white one and save myself the printer ink.

When they were done coloring, I showed them the bowl of Christmas-colored treats and the dice, and explained the rules for the game.

When it is your turn, roll the dice. If, for example, you roll a three, you get to put three jelly-beans (or m&ms or whatever you want) onto the circles. The first player to have filled all 20 circles is the winner. After your circles are filled, you get to eat up the treats as your prize.

Here is the moment when my three-year-old won the game and filled all his circles before his big brother and big sister. He was so proud!

Enjoying his victory!

Hole-Punched Number Cards

I suppose this is really just another variation of a dots and digits activity. The object here too was to recognize the number of dots, or holes this time, and match it to the digit.

I cut some of my brightly coloured 12x12 card stock into squares, and wrote a number from 1-20 on each one. Then I used my basic single-hole-punch and punched the corresponding number of holes around the edges, maxing out at 5 holes per side. These took me about 10 minutes to make, start to finish.

Then I turned them all face down, and I would call out a number, like "Find the five!" and my son would look at the dots and try to guess which card would have a number 5 on the back. For the first few times we played this, I only used the 1-10 cards, but once he got really good at those I added the next five, and finally worked our way up to twenty.

It is fun, and he is actually getting pretty good at finding the right cards without having to count each individual hole in the card before he flips it over. Look how excited he is when he gets it right!

Another activity option...

We have also pulled out some shoelaces (dollar store has packs of 10 for a buck) and turned these into lacing cards.

For an older child, any card over #5 could be used to learn simple addition equations. Have them face down, and show the child the dots on the sides. If there are five dots on this side, and four dots on this side, how many all together? Then they can check their answer by flipping over the card.

Have fun!

Dots and Digits

One of the things that children eventually learn how to do is to look at a number of things and know how many there are without counting them out one by one. I wanted to do something that helped that skill develop, (and this is also good for learning the what the numbers look like in digit form).

I used the scrap poster paper in my closet-of-clutter to make this game board. The number squares are glued on the sides and bottom, but not the top, to create a pocket. Then on the white strips on the floor, I drew on the dots for all the numbers from 10-12. (like dominoes)

We would take turns turning over a white card.

And then see if we could tell how many dots there were. If we needed to count them out, that was fine too.

Then we looked up at the number pockets and slid the dots into their matching digit pocket.

Seriously, I thought this would be a 'good' activity, and it turned out to be something he just loved. We played it three times straight, until I had to go get the baby from his nap.

Dots and Digits. Good fun.