Christmas Themed Tray Activities for Preschoolers

Happy first day of December!!!  I’ve been away for awhile, busy with life and other extra curricular things… because you know, “it’s that time of the year”.  Anyway, despite of  all the happenings, I was able to assemble these simple Christmas-themed activities for my 4 years old.  My aim here is to simply introduce the meaning of Christmas, the symbols, learning Christmas songs and a little bit of  arts and crafts.  Hope you like these activities!

Days of the Creation for Preschoolers

In our home, we would read Bible stories and relived some beautiful stories during the Lenten season.  We are approaching it in a spiritual manner (for faith formation) rather than doing lots of egg activities.  Mavi and I have been talking about the Exodus the other day, while Vito and I did the Days of Creation.  This post shares our little project in learning about the great story of God’s creation of the world.   I’m also sharing our kid-friendly Bible which we are using at home.

Playdough Monster Faces

I managed to create a pitch black playdough and the boys had so much fun making “scary” monster faces with it! 

Bird Themed Activities for Toddlers

Vito is 28 months old.
Here’s a recap of our week!  You may copy any of these for your own home school journey!

Fish Themed Activities for Toddlers

Vito is 28 months old.
Here’s a recap of our week!  You may copy any of these for your own home school journey!

Fish Theme: Hooray for Fish Craft

Our first activity for this week for the Fish Theme!  We love this Hooray for Fish book so much! I say this is one of the best books I’ve read for toddlers.  The images are so colorful, bold and it contains some silly stuff like numbered fish, big and small fish, fish with different patterns etc.  This is the reason why it is perfect for our unit this week!

Continent Fact Cards Game and {Learn & Play Link Up}

Mavi can’t get enough of these facts cards from my Nutshell Geography series! He wants us to play this when in the car, or when we're walking home.  I would ask him a questions based on the facts and he’s going to tell me the continent or the country it’s connected to.  We developed a scheme of giving him 3 clues (mostly letters from the answers) and I am PROBIHIBITED to give the answer. It’s amazing how both Mavi and I enjoyed it.  So happy that we found a new way to use these cards!

These cards are from:

• Asia in a Nutshell
• Europe in a Nutshell
• Africa in a Nutshell
• South America in a Nutshell

Simple Rooster Craft and {Learn & Play Play Link Up}

Vito and I are doing lots of new things since September started and one of which is trying out some simple crafts for motor skills development and sensory play.  

Since we’re having farm animals this week… we made a colorful-feathered rooster.  We call this in the Phils “sarimanok”, a mythical legendary creature that symbolizes the closeness to the spiritual being of the native people.

Materials are pretty simple:

• colored craft feathers
• glue
• a coloring page of a rooster
• corn kernels (optional)

Let your little one apply glue to the picture.  I suggest this kind of glue, with bigger mouthpiece so it will be easy for them to squeeze out the glue.

Don’t restrict, just allow them apply the glue anywhere they want (as long as it is within the tray).    This large tray is from Ikea.  Did you know that by using the glue, they learn the concept of cause and effect? Squeezing it results to glue coming out. My son loves watching the glue drops from the mouthpiece!

And Vito loves opening and closing the the container.

                                               

Place the feather into the image.

Put corn kernels on it as well if its available.

My Vito often stops and observes his hand for stains, dirt or anything that sticks on it. 

And here it is.. my Vito’s first craft ever! We admired his work afterwards, and he even showed it to Mavi and the Dad.  Love that he is showing a sense of accomplishment at a young age.

Welcome to the Learn & Play Link Party!

Here are the featured activities for this week!

 

Pinocchio Books That Were Turned Into Movie from My Bright Firefly

Shelves for 18 Months from Everyday Begins New

Pumpkin Playdough Provocation from Mama’s Happy Hive

Fall Apple Tree Craft from A Little Pinch of Perfect

 

I’d love to try any of these activities for my youngest this season!

Now it’s time for this week’s link party! This is a BRAND new link up for all blog posts that include learn and play activities and hands-on education for kids. We are excited to read your blog posts and to see what you have to share! Please link up below and grab our button to display on your blog.

If you are a blogger, share your family friendly posts here. We are looking for things which include:

• Montessori Education
• Homeschool
• Sensory Play
• Tot and Preschool Trays
• Fine and Gross Motor Activities
• Kids in the Kitchen
• Healthy Recipes for Kids
• Arts and Crafts
• Natural Living
• Free Educational Printables
• Family-Oriented Activities
• Healthy Living

Your post will be featured on each of our blogs where we will pick our favourite posts every other week. That means there is more of a chance that you will be featured!

Everyone, please meet our link party hosts:

Christian Montessori Blog ~ Please visit our CMN FB group ~ Pinterest

Vanessa from Mama’s Happy Hive~FB~Pinterest~Instagram~Twitter

Jennifer from Study at Home Mama~FB~Pinterest~Instagram~Twitter

Marie from Child Led Life~FB~Pinterest~Instagram~Twitter

Jae from Pinay Homeschooler~FB~Pinterest~Instagram~Twitter

Heather from Golden Reflections Blog~FB~Pinterest~Instagram~Twitter

Renae from Every Star is Different~FB~Pinterest

GUIDELINES FOR LINKING

• Please link up 1-3 posts
• Follow each of the hosts on social media
• When you link up, please add our button and place it at the bottom of your shared posts or link back with text link.
• By entering a link, you’re giving us permission to feature an image on our blogs. Proper credit & links will ALWAYS be given.
• Please visit a couple of shared posts and leave a comment for them
• Remember that you must link back in order to be featured

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An InLinkz Link-up

Simple Crafts for Toddlers and {Learn & Play Link Up #4}

I’m starting to introduce Vito to art works by doing craft works once a week. Of course he cannot do complicated things yet. So at times, with the help of big brother, we’re able to accomplish beautiful things!

But that I’d like to feature a few wonderful post from our link up last week.  These are simple and easy to do activities (just like what we do) with little kids. I hope you check them out!

Felt Ladybug Craft and Counting Activity  and Flower Felt Craft from Living Life and Learning

Hands-on Learning:  Patterns with Candy Land! from 3 Dinosaurs

Thumbprint Keepsake Keychain from Living Montessori

Monoprinted Mother’s Day Card from Sparkling Buds

 

This week on The Pinay Homeschooler, Vito had a lot of fun doing crafts! Yes, even if he is only 18 months, I exposed him to glues, papers, pens, paints, crayons and more.  Here is Vito being artistic for letter b crafts

This is the letter b for butterfly. Even if we don’t see butterflies that much, Vito is fascinated with them.  The wings are made up of Vito’s hands by the way, the one who assisted in creating this is no other than the big brother.

Mavi cutting and decorating the wings while Vito watches.

Welcome to the Learn & Play Link Party!

Now it’s time for this week’s link party! This is a BRAND new link up for all blog posts that include learn and play activities and hands-on education for kids. We are excited to read your blog posts and to see what you have to share! Please link up below and grab our button to display on your blog.

If you are a blogger, share your family friendly posts here. We are looking for things which include:

• Montessori Education
• Homeschool
• Sensory Play
• Tot and Preschool Trays
• Fine and Gross Motor Activities
• Kids in the Kitchen
• Healthy Recipes for Kids
• Arts and Crafts
• Natural Living
• Free Educational Printables
• Family-Oriented Activities
• Healthy Living

Your post will be featured on each of our blogs where we will pick our favourite posts every other week. That means there is more of a chance that you will be featured!

Everyone, please meet our link party hosts:

Christian Montessori Blog ~ Please visit our CMN FB group ~ Pinterest

Vanessa from Mama’s Happy Hive~FB~Pinterest~Instagram~Twitter

Jennifer from Study at Home Mama~FB~Pinterest~Instagram~Twitter

Marie from Child Led Life~FB~Pinterest~Instagram~Twitter

Jae from Pinay Homeschooler~FB~Pinterest~Instagram~Twitter

Heather from Golden Reflections Blog~FB~Pinterest~Instagram~Twitter

Renae from Every Star is Different~FB~Pinterest

GUIDELINES FOR LINKING
Please link up 1-3 posts
Follow each of the hosts on social media
When you link up, please add our button and place it at the bottom of your shared posts or link back with text link.
By entering a link, you’re giving us permission to feature an image on our blogs. Proper credit & links will ALWAYS be given.
Please visit a couple of shared posts and leave a comment for them
Remember that you must link back in order to be featured

Grab This Button:

<div align="center"><a href="http://christianmontessorinetwork.com/category/learn-and-play" title="Christian Montessori Network"><img src="http://www.christianmontessorinetwork.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/learn-and-play-link-up-150-150.png" alt="Christian Montessori Network" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

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An InLinkz Link-up

12 Practical Life Activities: On the 3rd day…

Create window decors just like these snowman window banners! They looked so cute hanging in the kitchen window :)

Bahay Kubo (Nipa Hut)

Bahay Kubo is square shaped house with no divisions, just a door and windows.  It is made up of local materials such as wood or bamboo or  nipa grass.  It is a Philippine icon and represents the Filipino culture.  Note that these houses are raised, for proper ventilation I guess since the flooring is made up of bamboo.  Another reason is to avoid the flood.

Yes I have seen Bahay Kubo and have friends and relatives who used to live on this type of house.  Until now, they still exist and I can’t wait to show them to Mavi.  He has always been fascinated with Bahay Kubo. Maybe he can’t imagine how people can live on just a square house. 

Thus, I decided to create a model using cardboard boxes from Book Depository. 

There are still people who lives in this stilt houses and I can’t wait to show it to Mavi when we visit the folks this year :)

I cut out the cardboard boxes into strips then stick them on a wooden BBQ skewers.

And here’s how the skeleton  looks like when all four sides are attached.

Adding the roof which is made up of cardstock and a wooden ladder here’s the end product.

Linking to:

Montessori Monday
TGIF Linky Party
Teach Beside Me
Preschool Corner
Teaching Mama
I Can Teach My Child
Home + School = Afterschool!

Springtime is Flower-time!

Hi everyone!  There are lots of daffodils growing in the yard and Mavi has been constantly picking them up for his "collection".  So to make use of the flowers I pulled out our flower nomenclature cards and told him that he will need to dissect the daffodils to learn about its part.

Since we did this activity a few years ago, he was so excited to do it again.  Kids love to do this!  I know how dreadful it is to learn about the parts of a flower (with all those weird names).  But if you get to this activity with your kids, with a tactile activity, they will definitely learn faster and the retention is much better.

             

As we dissect the daffodil, I would ask him questions like "how does the petals feel like?", "why do you think that some flowers are yellow some are red?".  As we go along, I also discuss the functions of each parts.  He mentioned that his favorite parts are the petals and the stamens because according to him, these makes the flower look beautiful.

           

If you are interested, you can this Parts of the Flower and Definition booklet by clicking the image below:

Afterwhich we read our book How Flowers Grow and look at the pictures of the different kinds of flowers around the world.

I was also inspired to make flowers in popsicle sticks.  I love how these flowers turned out!   You can place them in a vase and stick them using a playdough or clay :)

            

In our case, we found a purpose for these flowers in our math activity which I will talk about in my next post, so stay tuned!

For more FREEbies and learning aids, please check The Pinay Homeschooler Shop and Downloads.

Follow Pinay Homeschooler's board Botany Unit on Pinterest.

Linking to:

Montessori Monday
TGIF Linky Party
Teach Beside Me
Preschool Corner
Teaching Mama
I Can Teach My Child
Home + School = Afterschool!
Natural Homeschool's Montessori Linky

The Solar System and The Planets II

My son completed his mini project of our Solar System unit and he finally got to display it in his room.  It was a simple project for my 5 years old, something that I made him work during the midterm break.

I mentioned this previously in my post that we're going to plot the planets in a black craft paper.  First thing, he placed all the INNER PLANETS.  My son memorizes the order so I made he did all the work here.  I decided that it would be best to label the planets so he can memorize the spelling.

As you can see, we added "asteroids"  after Mars.

 

Then he continued with the OUTER PLANETS.

 

When everything is in place, he added stars (stickers).

And we both stick it on the wall using blutacks. And look how pretty it is! He was so happy how it turned out.  He felt proud of what he has accomplished! And I have to say that the use of foil in planets made such a huge difference!!  Now this is art and learning combined :)

Linking to:

Montessori Monday
TGIF Linky Party
Teach Beside Me
Preschool Corner
Teaching Mama
I Can Teach My Child
Home + School = Afterschool!
Natural Homeschool's Montessori Linky