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Addie
The end of the school year is fast approaching and I have begun preparing some review games for my daughters to play during the summer. Memory match is one of my favorite games to use to review skills. My daughters don’t even realize they are learning, they think they are just finding matches. You can use this game to review so many skills. I decided to create a sight word memory match game.
Materials
Wood circles ( any shape)
Mod podge
X-ACTO knife
Scrapbook paper
How To
An adult should make this activity.
Cut your scrapbook paper into squares.
Paint a layer of mod podge to one side of the wood circle and place the scrapbook paper square on top. Gently press and smooth out the paper to prevent wrinkles. Set them to the side to dry.
While you are waiting for the paper to dry, type up and print out all the words you would like to include in your game. Cut them out and place them to the side for later.
Flip your circles over and carefully cut off the excess scrapbook paper using an X-ACTO knife.
Paint a layer of mod podge to the unfinished side of the circle and place one of the words you printed out on top. Paint another layer of mod podge over the word.
Once everything is dry, flip your circles back over to the side that shows the scrapbook paper and paint a layer of mod podge over it. This will give your game a finished look while protecting the paper.
If you give this game a try, comment down below and let me know which skill you reviewed.
*Adult supervision is required*
It’s that time of year again. The weather is getting nicer and the children are able to get outside and get their energy out. We’ve been outside most days enjoying the sunshine, but I knew at some point it would rain, as it often does in Spring, and I would need indoor activities to keep my girls entertained.
A sensory path is something I always have in my back pocket. It is quick and easy to make, and gives children hours of entertainment. This morning when I saw it was raining, I quickly searched the house for painters tape and construction paper and got to work. I wanted the sensory path down on the floor before my daughters could look outside, see it was raining, and say, “I’m bored.”
They were so excited when they woke up to find the sensory path. They didn’t even comment on the rain. They just started jumping around down the path. If you’d like to make one too, scroll down.
Materials
Painters tape (optional)
Construction paper
Scotch shipping packing tape
How To
Before putting anything down on your floor check to make sure it won’t damage it!
Make boxes on your floor using painters tape. (This step is optional, you can just tape down the handprints and footprints on the floor without making the boxes)
Cut out handprints and footprints out of construction paper and place them in the boxes. Using heavy duty packing tape, cover each print fully and tape them down to the floor.
Thats it! It is quick and easy to make and gives children something fun to do on a rainy day. It is also a great way for them to work on their motor skills and hand & eye coordination.
What are your favorite rainy day activities? Comment down below.
*Adult supervision is required*
My daughters and I have been seeing these chalk mosaics all over the place. Every time we take a walk around our neighborhood, a new one pops up on someone’s driveway.
Today, we decided to give it a try. Let me tell you what, it is not as easy as you would think. Maybe, unlike me, you never thought it was easy. I can not tell you how much painters tape I went through to create this little mosaic for my daughters to color in. I really hope my husband didn’t need that tape for another project … there’s none left!
While it didn’t come out exactly the way I envisioned, perfection was never the goal. Having fun was, and we really did have a great time creating this mosaic.
Have you tried creating one? If so, comment down below and let me know how it turned out.
*Adult supervision is required*
The weather is becoming nicer, (thank goodness guys, being quarantined with children when it is cold outside is not ok) and we have been enjoying all that Spring has to offer. We’ve been riding bikes, going for long walks, and searching for rainbows on rainy days.
I think seeing a rainbow is one of my daughters’ favorite things. It is always such big deal, even though they have seen over a dozen. There’s a magical quality to a rainbow that even adults enjoy.
We won’t be seeing any rainbows in the sky today, so we thought we would make some to put in the house. We searched on Pinterest this morning and found an adorable rainbow coffee filter craft and just had to try it out. We love a good coffee filter craft.
What I love about this craft is we had all the materials needed to complete it in the house already. We didn’t have to order a single thing! I love when that happens. Scroll down to see how we made them.
Materials
Coffee filter
Markers
Spray bottle filled with water
Scissors
Googly eyes
How To
First, you will need to flatten out your coffee filter. And FYI, coffee filters DO NO like to lay flat, so do the best you can. Now you can start coloring your coffee filters. Go around in a circle in rainbow order.
Now it is time to spray your coffee filter and watch as the colors blend together. My girls love this part! Make sure to protect the table underneath the coffee filter.
Set them aside to dry and start working on your cloud. We cut ours free hand and hoped for the best. We glued on some googly eyes, drew on a smiley face and they were good to go.
Check on your coffee filters and see if they are dry. If they are, cut them in half to form your rainbow. Glue the cloud to the coffee filter rainbow and you are all done!
Comment down below if you gave this a try. I’d love to hear how they turned out.
*Adult supervision is required*
My daughters love writing notes to each other. I find little notes all over the house. Today I thought, wouldn’t it be better if we had a designated place for them to leave each other notes?
We decided to make mailboxes for them to place by their bedroom doors to help keep all of their notes organized. We looked online at different options and chose one of the easier mailboxes so they could make them on their own. Well, almost on their own. I handled the hot glue gun and exacto knife.
Scroll down to see how we made their mailboxes.
Materials
Cereal box
Scrapbook paper
Hot glue gun
Exacto knife
Scissors
How To
Cut the cereal box in half. Use the bottom half of the cereal box for this project.
Trace the front, back, and sides of the cereal box onto scrapbook paper and cut them out. Use the hot glue gun to secure the scrapbook paper to the outside of the cereal box.
Cut a U shape into the front of the cereal box.
Trace the back and sides of the cereal box onto scrapbook paper and cut them out. Use the hot glue gun to secure the scrapbook paper to the inside of the cereal box.
That’s it! You’re all done. Now it’s time to get out a pen and paper and write a letter to your child. I love slipping letters into my daughters’ mailboxes at night so they get a letter first thing in the morning. Last night, I wrote them a note reminding them to make their beds! LOL.
*Adult supervision is required*
Today I didn’t feel like cleaning up a major mess, but I really wanted to do a Memorial Day craft with my daughters to go along with some of the lessons they are learning in school. Virtual school that is.
I decided on a no mess painting project. It didn’t end up being “no mess” the way we did it, but don’t worry, I eventually realized why paint splattered out onto my wood table. The table I said we could paint on without a table covering because it was a NO MESS project. Way to go mom!
To be honest, I wasn’t sure my daughters would like this project. We haven’t done a no mess painting project since they were five. They are eight now. Would they think it was babyish or would they love it? Turns out, they still love it!
Materials
Gallon Size Zip Lock Bag (This is where I went wrong. We used a plastic sleeve and I forgot to seal it!)
Paint
Tape
Poster Board
How To
Draw a picture on your poster board (cut to fit the zip lock bag) and add globs of paint within the lines. Carefully insert the poster board into the zip lock bag. SEAL the bag well.
You can place this on a table and let your little one get to work. All they need to do is squish the paint through the bag with their fingers. My daughters love when I tape these to our sliding door. For some reason it is even more fun if they get to stand while painting.
If you do not want to draw a picture, you can simply cut a poster board to fit into a zip lock bag, place globs of paint onto the poster board, carefully insert it into the ziplock bag, and let them squish the paint around. They can trace shapes into the paint or letters. Whatever they would like. Either way, it is a fun and easy project.
Comment down below if you give this a try. Can’t wait to read about what your little ones created.
*Adult supervision is required*
My daughters’ work area just got a bit more fun with our DIY cork board mouse pads. I can not imagine them not wanting to sit down to do their school work now. Well… I can image it, but let’s stay positive. These mouse pads took less than an hour to make and really add something special to their desk. I think I will need to make one for myself!
Materials
Corkbord
Paint
Paint brush
X-ACTO knife (depending on what you are making and only to be handled by an adult)
Smiley Face Mouse Pad
My daughter painted the entire round cork board yellow, including the edges, waited for the paint to dry, and then painted on eyes and a mouth. It was so simple to make and came out looking incredibly adorable. I think it will keep her smiling as she completes her assignemnts.
Rainbow Mouse Pad
To make the rainbow mouse pad, an adult needs to cut the cork board into a rainbow shape using an X-ACTO knife. Once done, put the X-ACTO knife away. Once we completed that step, it was time to measure each section so that each color of the rainbow would be the same size. Well, that was my plan, but my daughter was so excited to begin painting that we skipped that step and she just got to work.
To avoid the colors from blending into each other, my daughter waited for each section to dry fully before moving on to the next. She also made sure to paint the edges as they would be visible. I must say, each color looks about the same size even though we didn’t measure. I think her creation came out great and will definitely keep her in a good mood as she completes her assignments.
Comment down below if you give this a try. Can’t wait to see what you made!
*Adult supervision is required*
It’s that time of year when my husband and daughters begin planting our vegetable garden in the backyard. While I enjoy having a garden, I do not participate in planting the vegetables. I do not have a “green thumb,” and so I stay a safe distance away while they get their hands dirty and work their magic.
That said, I am not totally useless. Every year my daughters and I work together to make garden art. It may not be gardening, but it goes in the garden, so I guess I am helping after all, right? I like to think so.
This year we decided to make ladybug rocks. It was such a beautiful day out today so we decided to set up outside and paint our rocks while enjoying the beautiful weather.
We can not wait for the garden to be planted so we can find the perfect spot for our ladybugs. Do you put garden art in your garden? Comment down below.
*Adult supervision is required*
One of my daughters absolutely loves butterflies. She can sit in our back yard and stare at them all day long. A few years back, she let a few loose in our house! She told me they were her friends and she wanted them to come in and play. That’s when I found this adorable little butterfly coffee filter craft for her to do. This way she could alway have butterflies in the house… the kind you want to have in your house. Today, we decided to make a few to hang up in her room. Scroll down if you’d like to see our creations.
MATERIALS
Coffe filter
Markers
Pipette
Water
HOW TO
Flatten out your coffee filter and draw any design you would like with your markers.
Using your pipette, drip water all over your coffee filter.
Once your coffee filter is fully dry, scrunch it up in the middle and wrap a pipe cleaner around the center. Shape the ends of the pipe cleaner so it resembles and antenna.
My daughter choose to hang hers on her bunkbed so she can stare at them as she falls asleep. Where will your children put theirs? Comment down below.
*Adult supervision is required*
Since my daughters couldn’t have a birthday party this year, all of of their friends drove by and waved to help them celebrate. It was so wonderful to see everyone, even if it was from a distance. My daughters wanted to get dressed up for the occasion and decided to make fairy crowns. Scroll down to see how they made their crowns.
MATERIALS
Paper flower blossoms
Artificial ivy garland
Ribbon
HOW TO
Start by cutting the artificial ivy garland. 22” worked well for my daughter. Overlap the ends around 3 inches to form a circle.
Choose the ribbon you would like to use and tie a knot with it around the crown. How much you need will vary based on the size of your child’s head.
Begin wrapping the ribbon around the crown leaving gaps so you can see the ivy peeking through. When you have wrapped the entire crown, tie a second knot right by the first and cut off the extra ribbon.
Now it is time to tie long ribbons to the back part of your crown. We tied the long ribbons around the knotted section so they are well hidden. You can make your ribbons as long or as short as you would like.
Here is where you can get even more creative. Add whatever you would like to your crown. One of my daughters choose to add little flowers to her crown while the other just wanted ribbon. We used hot glue to secure the flowers and it came out beautifully.
It is as simple as that! I hope you have fun making these crowns with your your children. Let me know down below what you used to make your crowns. Add pictures if you can.
*Adult supervision is required*