The Mom I Want to Be

 

 

This craft is not only cute, it is yummy too. You can eat on the extra popcorn while you craft. This really is a cute and easy craft to do.

 

You will need: Popcorn (popped), a paper grocery bag, scissors, glue, Ziplock baggies and paint red, yellow and orange (acrylic or tempera).

 

Pour a small amount of paint into a baggie. Add some popcorn and shake until popcorn is colored. Repeat with the other 2 colors.  Allow time for popcorn to dry.  Cut out the shape of corn from paper bag. Glue popcorn on to the corn shaped paper bag.

 

Imagination goes into overdrive this year.

 

Remember: Every child develops at her own pace. These guidelines are general. There is a broad range of what is considered “normal.” It’s not unusual for a child to be advanced in one area, lag slightly in another. Check with your doctor if you have any concerns.

 

Four-year-olds are full of energy, enthusiasm, and curiosity. Their imaginations are working on overdrive. They are full of “whys” and can conduct a sophisticated conversation in which they incorporate the knowledge they seem to absorb. They play more cooperatively with other children; enjoy fantasy and often engage in dramatic play; and are better at following rules and exercising self-control. Still, they are only four years old, and may often act impulsively. They may begin to plan ahead — “I’m going to build a parking garage with the blocks” — as opposed to building something without a plan and then finding a purpose for it. They enjoy a variety of hands-on experiences and love to learn about the workers in their community (firefighters, police officers, postal workers), and field trips enrich the preschool experience.

 

Language
They are learning about:
• different kinds of books — fiction, nonfiction, poetry
• wordplay and silly songs, language
• telling a story
• using puppets to dramatize a story
• drawing pictures specifically to illustrate a story, rather than just painting or coloring
• noticing details in stories and adding details to their own stories
• predicting what will happen in a storybook using the illustrations as a guide
• singing songs and making up their own verses
• identifying letters, printing some letters, perhaps their own name, maybe others

 

Physical
They are developing:
• large-motor skills. They can pump a swing, climb a rope ladder, slide down a pole, skip, hop.
• fine-motor skills. They can use scissors, smaller brushes/crayons/markers, string small beads, build with smaller Legos, buttons.

 

Intellectual
They are learning about:
• sorting and classifying not only by color and size, but also by category (for example all dolls go in the bin, all the accessories go in another box)
• sequencing — can organize a series of events in order of before and after
• counting from 1 to 20 (or higher)
• cause and effect: “If I add too much juice to the cup, it will overflow,” but there is still “magical thinking” (which can be as simple as believing in Santa Claus, but also can be “if I think a bad thought, it will make it happen”)
• comparison — more/less

 

Social/Emotional
They are learning about:
• collaborating with others on projects, cooperating, taking turns, helping others, empathy
• family roles and responsibilities
• managing fears and controlling impulses (but still have many fears and are not always in control)
• similarities and differences related to gender, race, other physical characteristics
• making choices: “I want to build with blocks, so I can’t paint during free play today”
• themselves, such as their likes and preferences
• being goal directed in activities: “I want to climb to the top of the jungle gym and slide down the pole”

dried cranberries, marshmallows, sticks, hay, leaves, raisins, popcorn, leaves

Using materials from Take It To Your Seat Math Centers (K-1) from Evan-Moor Educational Publishers (just this activity is available for download for just a few dollars as well),  some extra bugs that I’m sure I downloaded on 4share.com, but can’t find now, contact paper to “laminate” and improve durability, and markers to decorate, I set up this file folder game. 

I made way more bugs than we would need for Kidlet’s purpose (early addition), because I figure someday baby L can use them for sorting and creating patterns (things that kidlet is well beyond needing practice at doing)

Kidlet takes a handful of bugs and puts them in the jar, counts how many of each type there are, and writes that in the box, then repeats it in the number sentance at the bottom, and totals it up.

 

 

Can your 2 year old handle helping out around the house? You bet! See our age-by-age guide.

 

Chores are an integral part of your child’s development. They help him learn to take care of himself and gain a sense of duty. As he grows, household tasks help him practice responsibility and are essential for handling future school assignments. They underscore his presence and importance as a contributing member of your family (which is why most experts don’t recommend tying an allowance to chores; they are simply a responsibility that everyone shares).

So don’t hesitate to get him busy! Think of his jobs in three ways: personal chores are tasks he should do so he can learn to take care of himself, household chores are duties he should take on as a functioning member of the family, and chores to do together are activities that help him learn a skill while keeping you company.

 

Start with one or two personal tasks and one household duty per day. Always show your child exactly how a job should be done, and take the time to practice with her. Post a reminder list (use pictures for pre-readers.) Soon these duties will be routine, and then you can begin to gauge how much your child can do to help; subsequently, you can give her more responsibility.

 

Ages 2 to 3

Personal chores:

• Choose clothes

• Get dressed

• Put toys away

• Stack or shelve books

Household chores:

• Feed the family pet

• Be a “gofer”: Fetch (safe, lightweight) items from another room

Chores to do together:

• Dust

• Wipe countertops and tables

• Set the table

• Cook (For example, she can dump ingredients into a bowl.)

 

Ages 4 to 5

Personal chores:
Everything a younger child can do, plus:

• Put worn clothing in the laundry hamper

• Put clean clothes away in drawers

• Make the bed

Household chores:

• Bring in the mail/newspaper

• Fix a bowl of cereal

• Clear the table

• Unload utensils (except knives) from the dishwasher

• Sweep the floor with a child-sized broom

• Empty small garbage cans

Chores to do together:

• Gardening

• Water plants

• Separate recyclables

• Sort laundry (clean or dirty!)

 

 

 

Making Chores Less of a Chore

 

Hiring a little helper is the first step. Try these ideas for making household chores fun for both of you:

 

• Turn on the music. When you clean, play upbeat music — loudly! Hand your child a feather duster while you clean the windows. Say, “Let’s see if you can finish dusting the coffee table by the end of this song.” Take dancing breaks every now and then.

 

• Make it a contest. Every morning, see who can get the newspaper first. After a few mornings, let your child “win” and tell him, “You’re so quick, I want you to be in charge of getting the newspaper every day.” Knowing that he is the best at a particular task will give him a sense of importance.

 

• Play the part. Before the first time you teach your child how to clear the table, take him to a restaurant and point out the waiters. Then at your next meal at home, show him how he can be his own waiter by clearing his plate and taking it to the sink. Tell him that since you were the waiter who brought the food to the table, he gets to be the waiter that cleans up.

 

• Reward him once in awhile. When your child does a good job with a new chore, don’t be afraid to make it known that his help is appreciated. If he has neatly organized his toys after playing with them every day for an entire week, treat him to a new small toy. If he has unloaded the utensils from the dishwasher without you asking, let him pick his favorite dessert after dinner.

You’ll be amazed at what your child is learning and how he’s growing during this busy year.

 

Remember: Every child develops at her own pace. These guidelines are general. There is a broad range of what is considered “normal.” It’s not unusual for a child to be advanced in one area, and lag slightly in another. Check with your doctor if you have any concerns.

 

As they make the transition from baby to toddler to independent two-year-old, the going can sometimes be rough, but the results are exciting. It’s understandable why this period is called the “terrible twos,” when tantrums and “NO!” are frequent occurrences. They have intense feelings and mood swings. Two-year-olds are frequently frustrated as they seek to assert their independence, but can’t do more because their language and physical skills can’t meet their needs and desires. For example, they want to be able to dress themselves completely, but they don’t have the fine-motor control to button, zip, or buckle. They have boundless energy, but fight naps. They want to be independent, but often have difficulty separating from parents or caregiver. They have increased fearfulness of the dark, monsters, etc. Add to the mix the emotional demands of toilet training and it all adds up to a sometimes turbulent period.

But it’s also the “terrific twos” because they are more independent, more interested in peers, and more able to concentrate on a project. They thrive on exploration and enjoy fantasy play (a piece of cloth can become a blanket for a doll or a stuffed dog may be imagined to be alive). Twos are developing a sense of humor and are increasingly able to use words to express their needs and emotions.

 

Language
They are leaning about:

• simple books, puzzles, pictures

• how to enjoy music and rhythm, simple fingerplay

• new words and forming complete and increasingly complex sentences (vocabulary may be around 200 words); using adjectives and adverbs (“a big red ball”; “he ran fast”)

• listening to stories (may have short attention span)

• identifying objects in pictures

 

Physical
They are developing:

• large-motor skills. They can kick a ball, walk up and down stairs, and can put on a cap or slippers.

• fine-motor skills. They can scribble with fat markers; may be able to thread large beads; feed self with spoon; begin to pour juice from small container to small cup.

 

Intellectual
They are learning about:

• classification, in broad categories, such as hard/soft; large/small

• body parts; can name nose, eyes, mouth, etc.

• short time concepts such as yesterday and tomorrow (but still have no concrete understanding of longer periods of time — months, weeks)

• how to recount the events of the morning/day

• how to enjoy the process of art projects, rather than being interested in product

 

Social/Emotional
They are learning about:

• interactive play, but still tend to parallel play alongside a peer

• taking turns, but often with difficulty

• taking pride in creations and accomplishments (“I can do it!”)

• feelings and frequently display aggressive behaviors and increased fearfulness

We got to open ended art a little late this week. 

He made balls with the clay, shaped them with the tools, stuck them full of feathers and stuck on googly eyes.

He kept working on them until he ran out of clay.  I guess it’s a good thing that I only pulled out a handful or so instead of letting him use all the clay in the bucket!

Getting Started

“Funny Bird”

Prepping clay bits

“For Daddy”

The fleet of critters, drying on parchment paper.

Hats On!

Show off your style — make a unique hat.

• tissue paper (various colors)
• masking tape
• Miss Hunnicutt’s Hat, by Jeff Brumbeau
• grocery sacks (optional)
• markers (optional)

Miss Hunnicutt’s Hat describes one woman’s determination to wear her unusual but favorite hat in honor of the Queen’s visit to her town. As you progress through the book, encourage your child to predict what will happen next — when Miss Hunnicutt leaves her house, as the baker’s truck comes down the street, when the Queen arrives.  After you finish reading, discuss the reactions of Miss Hunnicutt’s neighbors to her hat. Why don’t they want her to wear it? This discussion could also serve as a springboard for a conversation about people who are different from others — in the way they dress, how they look, where they are from, and so forth.

To extend the reading:

Make a hat of your own! Invite your child to select two or three pieces of tissue paper (larger sizes work best). Layer the sheets so that the centers line up, but fan out the sheets so the edges are at angles to each other.  Next, place the tissue paper over your child’s head (it will drape down over his eyes at first). Wrap masking tape around the circumference of his head at forehead level to secure the tissue paper. Then roll up the edges towards the top of his head.  Show off the hat! For even more style, cut open a grocery sack so it lays flat. Use markers to decorate the paper. Then, place the paper over your child’s head, secure with masking tape, and roll up the edges in the way described above.

Learning benefits:
• supports prediction skills
• encourages creativity
• encourages discussions about diversity