Hole Punch Letters

There was initially no "invitation" for this, but if I had set one up (which I did AFTER the fact), it would look like this....

Using hole punchers to identify letters and letter sounds.

As my son and I were playing in the playroom, he started cutting "tickets" out of construction paper.  He asked me to write the word "ticket" on them, and then he used his hole puncher to punch my ticket to get on the train.  Then he said, "now I need to punch the letters" and he sat and followed the line of the letters in the word "ticket".  I asked him if he would like to punch out more letters and he said yes - so I made more.  It seemed quite tedious to me, but he was really enjoying it and he was very engaged.  The tickets led to a letter game where I would write letters on a "ticket" and he would find the letter either by its name or its sound and punch a hole in it.

Tracing letters with the hole puncher and identifying letters with the hole puncher.

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I later created a letter board for him and again I would say the name or the sound of the letter and he would punch it out.  He used his snowflake puncher for this....much more fun.

I used a paper cutter to cut out the "game board".

Finding a letter.

 This is such a great activity for strengthening the muscles in the hands and fingers, bilateral control, motor planning, visual motor skills, and coordination.

There are many other ways to create games similar to this....

number recognition

punch holes correlating to amounts

sight words

math facts

colors

shapes

etc...

- AK (MESE, MECD)

Mirrors, Sand, and Symmetry

Last year my mother bought a butterfly kit for my son from Insect Lore.  Unfortunately, the live caterpillars did not survive.  We recently purchased a new batch - perfect for a spring/summer project.  The entire experience was a huge hit!  We checked out books from the library, watched short videos about the life cycle of a butterfly, and took advantage of opportunities to play, create, and explore.  Once the butterflies emerged, we talked about symmetry.....which led to this fun activity.  I don't have a lot of pictures because it was pretty spontaneous - as the activity tray was already conveniently full of sand and held the mirrors as well.

Using the activity tray with mirrors, I showed him how to draw half of a butterfly in order to create reflected symmetry.  Then he tried.....

My son's butterfly....quite impressive considering he rarely to never draws....ever!

"Mommy, I need to draw the caterpillar in the chrysalis, too."

He drew a sun, too!

The fun continued and has been revisited since (sorry, no pics)....drawing shapes, clouds, rockets, and a flying ladybug.

**Colored sand can be purchased on amazon or in the craft section of Michaels craft store.**

PAHM AMAZON STORE

- AK (MESE, MECD)

Bouncy Ball Basics

I don't have too many pictures of this because my 18 Month old help me set it up.  

What is needed:

Paint Palette

Balls that will fit in the slots (we used bouncy balls)

However, you could use:  Ping Pong balls, golf balls, etc.

Dry erase markers

You can set this up many different ways depending on the interests of your child.

Matching...Counting...Color Recognition... Patterns

Here are a few we tried.  

Here is my 18 Month old just randomly placing the balls in the slots as I counted for her.

Color Recognition... Yellow

"Look, they are all yellow."  

"You made a yellow circle!"

Color Match

Make a colored circle with the dry erase marker on the paint palette and present the coordinating balls.  

Number Match/Counting

I used a permanent marker on the balls for the numbers so it didn't come off as they held them in their hands.  If you scrub hard enough it will eventually come all the way off... at least mine did.  

For a short video of my youngest enjoying this activity click on the link below...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KbZDeq_-mLA

RL

Duck River

"Embrace their childhood."

What does that mean?

Does it mean let them run wild with no boundaries?  

No.  

Does it mean take them to the beach to play while you read?  

Well, we all need some down time, but no.  

It probably means different things to different people and on different levels.  

For us here at Play at Home Mom, LLC it means following their lead, saying "yes", and rediscovering our own childhood with our children.  It means doing the best we can to take advantage of every playful opportunity - every day.  It means never having to look back and say "I wish I had played more with my children".

So today, when the thunderstorm cleared, we did just that.

All you need for this activity is a drainage ditch, a good heavy rain, and some rubber ducks.  

Okay, so there may be other ways to improvise and recreate this activity, but our hopes are that after a hard rain we all think outside the box a little and take advantage of mother natures gifts. 

RL brought out some rubber ducks to send down the "river".
FUN!!

Catching the rubber ducks and enjoying splashing in the water.

I caught two rubber ducks!

Running down the "river" was just as fun as sending the ducks down.

Woo-hoo!!

Crawling through the tunnel after the ducks.

So the next time life feels like a thunderstorm...
think outside the box...
find your inner child...
and play!

- AK & RL

A Prototype

One of the girls favorite things to do is to watch the dogs at Petsmart.  They are very big dog lovers... especially my youngest!  Inside our store they have a little dog play house type thing.  It has a cubby hole and slide, etc.  My oldest asked my husband if we could build one for our dog.  My husband suggested that she go draw a picture so he could see what it looked like.  Off she ran up to the playroom to get her pencil and paper.  I thought it would be fun to expand off her drawing.  Amazing where one little question can take you!  I asked her if she wanted to make a prototype.  We talked a little bit about what that is, and searched for materials she thought we could use.  She decided to use some play blocks. 

Original Drawing

She decided to make the slide first.  

"I need to put a door right here." 

"I think my slide needs to be a little bit bigger."

Proud Girl

"I made a door!"

Testing the stairs out with a playmobil dog.  

Stairs leading up to the slide. 

Adjusting her original drawing.  Adding a chimney and steps.  I love how she went back to the drawing first to expand!  

Testing the slide.  

"It works!!!!!"  

Finished Drawing

Finished Prototype.

RL  

Toddler Play Dough Play

I posted a while back on Infant Play Dough Play.  You can see that post here...

http://www.playathomemomllc.com/2012/06/infant-play-dough-play.html

I thought I would update to show Y'all where we are at now.  :-)  

Play-doh is probably the number one used medium in our house.  All three of my girls really enjoy it and play with it on a daily basis.  

To make your own Play Dough please see this recipe here...

http://www.playathomemomllc.com/2011/07/homemade-playdough.html

Here are some ideas for play.  My youngest is now 17 months.  

Homemade Dough

 We first talk about the texture, smell, temperature, etc.

We often use kool-aid or some other sort of extract to give the dough a yummy smell! 

The dough right after cooking is warm to the touch.  You can also throw it in the refrigerator for cool dough.  

Some of the tools that are in my youngest's play dough bucket. 

Toothpicks, beads, clay hammer, "pizza cutter", rolling pin, a few shapes, animals, etc. 

Using her cutters to make circles.

Play Dough Invitation

 The container on the left is pony beads and the container on the right is recycled bottle caps.  

To see a video on how this invitation plays out click here...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kyPhpqsVE-E

Pushing the beads in the dough

Counting

Increasing Vocabulary

We have a red turtle and a red penguin!  

My youngest loves nursery rhymes, singing etc.  

We often sing along to our dough creations.

"Twinkle Twinkle Litte Star"

"5 Little Ducks Went Swimming One Day"

Smooshing the play dough balls

 If you had a chance to check out the infant play... this has been a favorite of hers since she was 7 months old!  

Big, Bigger, Biggest

 RL 

Glass Gem Compilation

Glass gems have been a staple in our playrooms since our children were 6 months old.  We love how one "toy" can become so many different things.  Below, you can see some ways that we have explored them.  

Glass gems can be purchased at any craft store, Dollar Tree, Walmart, Target, etc.
**They present a choking hazard and should only be used with young children under close supervision.**

Most of these pictures have a blog post with more detailed information.  To see the entire post, click on the links below the pictures.  

Creative Play

Use gems with our letter/number templates.
LETTER/NUMBER TEMPLATES

Enlightening Math
ENLIGHTENING MATH

Sorting

Sensory Bin
SENSORY BINS

Illuminated Ornaments
ILLUMINATED ORNAMENTS

Color Recognition

Creative Play on the Light Panel

Great Big Giant Tree of Light
TREE OF LIGHT

Glass gems on a mirror.


Framed mirrors can be purchased at Dollar Tree.  

Glass Sculptures
GLASS SCULPTURES

Window Art
WINDOW ART

Glass Gems on clear plates. 

Clear plates can be purchased at Dollar Tree in a pack of 8.
Great for classrooms!  

Glass Pumpkin
GLASS PUMPKIN

Exploring Spacial Patterns
EXPLORING SPATIAL PATTERNS