Fun Activities for Kids

Here are some poems, songs, and home-made gifts to present to Dad this Father’s Day!

FATHER’S DAY POEMS:
(Great on hand made cards!)

Daddy Handprint Poem

Here are my handprints
So tiny and small
The ones that clasped your hands Daddy
The ones on the wall.

Press them in your memories Daddy,
Press them in your heart
Never let go of me Daddy,
Never let us part.

Right now they’re good for touching
And crawling on the floors
Hold them tightly in your hands Daddy
They fit so perfectly in yours.

Soon I’ll be big like you,
Our hands will be the same
But you will always be my Daddy,
And I will always proudly carry your name.
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Hi everyone! My mother’s club friend Karen Baker sent the following to the group and I thought I’d share. Karen got this from a friend, who got it from a friend, so we do not know the original author to give credit - if you know, let me know! Any more ideas? Add them in the Comments! This is great. Thanks Karen!
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50 At Home Preschool Activities ˆ
When you run out of ideas, try some of these!

1. Button Sorting ˆ Buy a bag of buttons at your local craft store and
have your child sort them however s/he wants to, by color, size,
number of threading holes, etc.  An older child can count the sorted
piles.  I use little plastic cups from the party store that I think
are for condiments or something. But they are shallow and non breakable.

2. Placemat per Night ˆ Buy a stack of blank paper placemats from the
party supply store. Have your preschooler color a new placemat to eat
off of for the evening.  S/he can make a new one each night as make on
for other family members. Great during dinner prep.

3. Wash Day ˆ This sounds silly, but kids adore it. Fill a large
bucket with some mild soap, like Ivory. Allow your child to wash
washcloths or dish towels. Provide another bucket (or rinse the first
out) to rinse, and then hang them with clothes pins and a string in
the bathroom. This helps the child learn that clothes get clean via a
process, not just “magic”.

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I posted these in the March 2008 edition of the Felt Connection newsletter for my Story Time Felts business but thought I’d post here as well in case you missed it!
Karen
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EASTER CRAFTS

Fuzzy Lambs:
Take an egg and poke holes in either end with a needle so you can blow out the white and yolk. Clean and dry the egg. Then take lots of cotton swabs and cut off the fuzzy tips, throwing away the sticks. Glue the fuzzy swab ends all over the egg. Take some black construction paper rolled into short cylinder shapes to make legs, and some more to make ears and eyes. These are so cute!

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Want some ideas for using all those old Christmas cards?? Here are some! Put the kids to work before they go back to school!

What to Do with Old Christmas Cards

Do you have any other ideas??? Share in the Comments!

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A fellow Mompacker, Valerie from Little Blots just had this great craft video featured on You Tube’s homepage today! Check it out, it is a fantastic craft to make with the kids! Thanks for letting me share it, Valerie!
Karen

http://www.youtube.com/v/-642aijaZE0&rel=1

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Hi everyone! A fellow Story Time Felts consultant, Awnya Boam, sent me this great idea! If you haven’t already carved your jack-o-lanterns, try this fun and easy way to do it!
Karen
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I just wanted to share this idea with you I got from my sister. Their kids don’t like to get dirty and are still fairly young but they still wanted to carve pumpkins. They have come up with something that is still a whole lot of fun, but a lot less mess and hassle! They got some Mr. Potato Head pieces (these are the extra piece kits…I found some for like $3.00 each right around the place in the toy isle where the potato heads are.) and then they poke holes with a screwdriver into the pumpkin like you would have in a Potato Head. The kids then “decorate” their pumpkin. They loved it and switch it every time they think about it. And then when Halloween is over, they can use them again next year or even on their Mr. Potato Head toys.

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Here are some ideas for using leaves the children can collect around
the neighborhood:

Leaf People
Glue a leaf to a sheet of paper and draw features to make them into leaf people, such as arms and legs, necks and heads, tails, etc. Then draw a scene around your leaf person!

Leafy Trees
With paints or markers using Fall colors, draw a tree trunk with branches. Then glue leaves in clusters on the branches.

Leaf Prints
Trace several leaves on fine-grained sandpaper to form a design. Color over your design with heavy pressure using crayons in autumn colors. Place a sheet of thin white paper over the design, then press with a medium-heat iron.

Leafy Crown
Be a Fall Princess! Make a 2 inch-wide headband large enough to fit the child’s head and staple. Glue leaves all around the crown.

Leaf Shapes
Draw basic leaf shapes on separate cards and place into a basket. Collect numerous leaves and then play this game. The child draws a card from the basket and then finds a leaf that matches the shape on the card. Have the child explain why they chose that leaf as a match by describing the 2 leaves.

Leaf Rubbing
Most people have done basic leaf rubbings where you place paper over the leaves, and rub over the paper with the side of a crayon. Try outlining the edge and veins of the leaves with a thin line of glue which is allowed to dry. Then do the rubbing and see the distinct patterns!

Leaf Mosaic
Draw a picture on construction paper, leaving spaces to fill in (do not make it to detailed!). Collect many different types of leaves from the neighborhood and tear them into small pieces. Use the leaf pieces to glue into your design as a mosaic, using the different shades of green, yellows, and reds for variety.

Preserving Leaves
Collect samples of colorful leaves and place the leaves between sheets of wax paper. Set the iron to a hot setting. Cover the layers of wax paper with a couple sheets of newspaper and iron them. Attach yarn to the corners and you have a nice window hanging.

Changing Colors
Observe the effects of light on the color of leaves. When leaves on a tree are still green, cover part of a leaf with aluminum foil. (Choose a tree that you know will turn bright colors.) Use masking tape to tape the foil to the leaf. Sign your name on the masking tape. Wait until the leaves on the tree change color. Then remove the foil and see the colors that were in the leaf all summer!

Graphing Leaves
Take a census of the trees in your school yard, an area of a nearby park, or another defined area. Draw the types of leaves found and how many of those trees are found. Use the survey data to create bar graphs that show the numbers of trees of different species.

Identifying Leaves
Collect a variety of leaves and use a tree guide from the library to identify the kind of tree from which each leaf comes. To protect the leaves, you might laminate them.

Leaf Exchange
Ask parents or teachers in other regions (email friends are great for this!) to join in a leaf exchange. Compare and contrast the leaves found in other areas.

Independent Story Time Felts Consultant

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This week we have another crafty idea from my felt friend, Awnya! THANKS Awnya!
Karen

Animal Note Holders 

First you will want to choose an animal for your inspiration.  I like cows, sheep and dogs the best.  I will give you the instructions for a sheep.

First, cut a 3″ round circle out of cardstock.  This will be the body.

Then you are going to cut a pear shaped piece out of black paper that will serve as the face, so you will want it to be maybe 1 to 3/4 at the fattest part.  It’s up to you.  Also, you will need to oval little ears out of the black.
Glue 2 goggle eyes to the face and you are done with it for a minute.

For the body, you are going to want to add fur, so what I recommend doing is clearing out your paper shredder and putting some blank white paper or construction paper through.  If it is a cross cut shredder, the pieces should be about perfect; if not, take the strips and cut them into 1″ pieces. Another way to do it if you don’t have a shredder is 1/8-inch strips and then when you have a bunch of those, cut them into 1″ long.

Now you want smear the body with a nice amount of Elmer’s glue.  Heap the fur parts onto the body and press down a little bit to make stick.  When this is dry, you want a grown up to hot glue 2 clothes pins to the back of the big circle.  You want the pinchy part at the top to hold notes or reminders.  The bottoms you want to hang out below the circle to serve as the legs of your critter. Hot glue the face on the front and you are done!!

For a fun twist, glue magnets on the back and you have a fun fridge pal.
Cows, use white and black mixed together.  For a puppy, we used a light brown background, face and ears, and then darker brown fur.  We also drew a nose and happy face on the puppy and cow.

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My friend and fellow Story Time Felts Consultant, Awnya Boam, shared a few craft ideas with me and I thought I’d pass them along.
“What you do is you take pages of a magazine and tear them out.  I like to choose the really colorful ones.  (Flower mag’s work REALLY well). On the BACK of the page that you like, you will draw a triangle that will go the length of the page.  You want the fat part of the triangle to be how fat you want the bead.  You also want the 2 sides of the triangle to be equal or the bead will turn out crooked.  I like beads that measure somewhere between 3 and 5 cm.

So lets say I’m doing a 3cm bead.  I will mark the spot where the bead will start (remember this is on the back that you are marking, or it will ruin the colors of the bead) and then where it will end.  I draw these lines all the way across the page.  Then I will measure 1/2 way between the 2, so 1 1/2 cm and mark a spot there.  This is the top of the triangle and then I will draw the sides.

Cut the triangles out and then you will need to have something to roll them around.  I use a piece of wire coat hanger but a toothpick works well too.  Wrap the triangle around the wire starting with the fat part first.  try to keep it as tight as you can, although you can take it off and tighten it up later if you need to.  To keep the bead in place, I put a little bit of Elmer’s glue on the smaller end.  When the bead is all wrapped up, I will put elmers glue over the whole thing and wipe it with my fingers.  This seals the bead in a clear finish and will help to hold it together.

Try all different colors.  I like to make up like 20 beads and then choose which ones match the best to put them on a bracelet or necklace.  To accent the beads, use clear beads in between.

You will be amazed at how great these beads look and what colors you come up with!”

Thanks, Awnya!

Executive National Director
Story Time Felts

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Hi everyone!  I was so excited to get the newsletter of my friend, Karen Pavone, who is a Once Upon a Family consultant. It has great ideas for things to make and do with your kids for Independence Day. I just wanted to share them with you - maybe you can start a new family tradition of making your own decorations and treats for this fun holiday! I especially like the rocket-shaped frozen yogurt pop made using a sugar cone as the mold! Brilliant! Thanks, Karen, for sharing such great ideas! Visit Karen’s Once Upon a Family website to read all about it!

Independent Story Time Felts Consultant

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