Coming Soon: Holidays and Celebrations in September

If you're always looking for new ways to liven up the day or week, think about unofficial holidays and celebrations along with the major ones. Here you can engage your children in fun projects and creative learning activities, helping them learn about special days that tie ideas and concepts together. Who knew that almost every day of the year has some significant fact to it? Other than going back to school, September is not one of the most exciting months of the year, but I bet I can come up with some fun days for the kids to celebrate. Here are a few of my favorite days and activities to enhance them.

Labor Day falls on the first Monday in September. It originally was a time to honor those who work and to give them a day of rest. Yes, it still is, but also the last holiday of summer and many families plan picnics or other outdoor outings. This is also a great time to teach your children about the community helpers in your neighborhood that are important in many ways. At home, make a Labor Day collage together. Set out a variety of magazines. Let the children look through them and tear or cut pictures of people at work. Think about truck drivers, people who wash dishes, a singer on stage along with the occupations we normally think of such as doctors, police officers and school teachers. At the top of the paper, write "People Who Work" and let the kids glue on the pictures. Take time to discuss working and occupations during this official holiday.

National Grandparent's Day is celebrated on the first Sunday following Labor Day. This is a special day to express love and appreciation for grandparents by giving cards and presents (especially homemade ones) and holding family gatherings. Talk about the roles that grandparents play in your child's life and the special times they have spent together. Making decorated bookmarks is always a nice craft and gift the kids can make for this occasion. Bring out the art materials and invite the children to create one for each grandparent. Make sure to have them dip their thumbs into paint and print thumbprints on the front or back of the bookmark. Have the kids write "To Thumb-body Special" on this project.

Remember September 11, 2001, when the fatal terrorist attacks of the Twin Towers in New York City happened. Take time to reflect what happened and how this has made our nation stronger as we fight the war on terrorism. Do something patriotic on this day, like making American flags together. Younger children can make "stars and stripes" collages by cutting strips of red, white and blue construction paper and gluing them randomly onto a base paper. Provide sticker stars to adhere anywhere on the page. Hang these on the walls as decorations of our patriotic spirit as Americans.

How about a pickle celebration? Snack-a pickle time is the last ten days in September. So choose a day to pay tribute to the almighty pickle - the world's most humorous vegetable. This is a good time to recite the "Peter Piper" tongue twister rhyme and have fun seeing if your kids can repeat it after you. Younger kids may enjoy making green pickle puppets from construction paper glued onto craft sticks. Add whimsical facial features and name the puppets such as Polly Pickle, Pickle Man and so on. You can even make up stories about the adventures of the pickle people.

Let the last full week of September go to the dogs as you and the kids celebrate Dog Week. If you have a pet dog, pamper it! Let the kids make some homemade toys for your dog. Kids can even make paper dog tags for themselves. Let them choose a dog name and decorate a bone-shape tag from poster board. Punch holes and attach a yarn necklace for the kids to wear. Read dog books, sing some dog songs like "BINGO" and "How much is that doggie in the window?"

There are so many other fun and wacky days to celebrate this month, such as Teddy Bear Day, Chocolate Milk Shake Day, National Play Doh Day and many more. Find more fun celebrations here. 

Until we meet again -- Happy Parenting!
Tania :)

Photos courtesy of Bing Images and Wikimedia Commons

The Color Yellow

Am I too late? Well, we still have those last few days of summer. There's time to enjoy some of the symbols of summer with these "yellow" activities.

Enjoy and Happy Parenting,
Tania :)

Yellow is a color synonymous of summer. It reminds many of the big, bright sun shining above, giving warmth and sending children outside to play. Yellow is the color of sunflowers so vivid and lemonade so yummy. Explore the color yellow as your children participate in these (late) summer activities.

Mr. Sun

Cut sun shapes from yellow construction paper and hide them around a room or outdoors in the yard. Have the children go on a "sun search" to find as many sun shapes as they can. Continue to search until all the suns have been found.

After the search, set up a table with crayons, markers, sequins, faux jewels or anything that shines and dazzles. The children can decorate; gluing these materials to the sun shapes they found.

Loads of Lemons

Printing-

Cut lemons in half. Place a few folded paper towels in a shallow pan to make a pad. Pour yellow tempera paint on top. Add a few drops of lemon extract (found in the spice section of your local grocery store). Have the children dip the lemon into the paint and press down onto a sheet of paper to make prints. A dark sheet of construction paper would be a great contrast to the bright yellow prints. Smell the lemon scent!!

Make Lemonade-

Exercise the hands as you and your children squeeze lemons together. The reward is a thirst quenching drink that's sure to please any child on a hot summer day!

You'll need:

1 part fresh lemon juice

1 part sugar

5 parts water

Serving pitcher

Ice

What to do:

Show children how to squeeze lemons. Encourage them to try on their own.

Take a taste of this juice; is it sweet or sour?

Invite children to mix all the ingredients in a pitcher and stir well.

Pour the drink into cups of ice.

Questions to ask about this experience: "What color is lemonade? What fruit gives us the juice? How does lemonade taste? Sweet? Sour? Are there other fruits we could squeeze to get their juice?"

Make Sunflowers

Have each child paint a small paper plate yellow (mix a small amount of white school glue in the paint). Lay pieces of yellow tissue paper in the wet paint (to give it a petal appearance). When this process is dried, give the children sunflower seeds to glue in the center of the plate. Staple two giant green construction paper leaves at the bottom. These flowers make great summer decorations!

Teaching colors does not have to be about worksheets and printed pages. Since play is a child's learning tool, use fun activities and projects to embed these skills into a child's mind for life.

Photo courtesy of morgue file 

Colors All Around Us

Dear Friends,

As we prepare our preschoolers for "Back to School" let's review colors this week. There are colors all around us and using these activities will teach our children to recognize and appreciate the beautiful hues we have close by. Check out these projects and if you enjoy them, please share this page with a friend.

Until next week,

Happy Parenting :)

Colors make our world beautiful in many ways, through nature, food, clothing, crayons—the list is endless. It’s important to emphasize colors in our daily lives as they stimulate a child’s imagination and delight their sense of sight.

There are plenty of activities designed to help children become aware of the many colors that surround them. Here are a few ways to teach colors to children:

• Use the seasons to help teach your child about colors—green in spring, white in winter, orange in fall, blue in summer and so on. Make drawings emphasizing the colors of each season.

• The use of toy blocks, cards, paints, and crayons can help your child develop color skills and learn to name them.

• Talk a walk outdoors (or even in the house) and look for a particular color. Say blue for example, and then ask if a toy is blue, or is the car parked out front blue?

• Choose a day of the week and make it “color day”. Make projects, wear clothing, cook foods and read books about that color.

• Hot glue crayons to a strip of tag board. Then provide a second set of crayons and invite the children to match the colors.  

                                                             

• Read a good book involving colors. Some favorites are:

          The Mixed-up Chameleon by Eric Carle

          Colors (Slide ‘n Seek) by Chuck Murphy

          Colors (Children’s Collection Board Books) by Anne Geddes

Color Match—

Pick up free paint chip cards from your local paint store. Choose cards in shades of red, yellow and blue. At home, cut each rectangular chip apart. Spread these across the table and have the children match each hue.

Paint and Sniff—

When painting a picture with poster paints, add a few drops of baking extracts to give these paints a flavor (scent). Painting with scents is a fun and sensory experience for children!

Strawberry Extract = Red

Lemon Extract = Yellow

Peppermint Extract = Green

Orange Extract = Orange

Chocolate Extract = Brown

Anise (Licorice) Extract = Black

Color Wands—

Dance to the beat of music waving colorful streamers in the air. Use toilet or paper towel tubes for the wands. The children can paint the cardboard tubes and then enhance them with crayons, markers or stickers. Next, attach crepe paper streamers to the wand with a stapler. For a variation, add ribbons and/or colorful strips of cloth.

Color Hokey-Pokey—

Have colored circle stickers in four colors. These are easily found in office or craft stores. Every child gets a sticker on each hand and each foot (having one of each color on each body part). Play Color Hokey-Pokey by singing, “Put your blue dot in, put your blue dot out, put your blue dot in and shake it all about. You do the Color Pokey and you turn yourself around. That’s what it’s all about. BLUE!” Continue playing with the other colors.

NOTE: This article has been published in several regional parenting magazines across the country, including Parent Guide News and Metro Parent (SE Michigan).

Photo courtesy of Flickr Creative Commons   
Crayon photo by Tania Cowling, all rights reserved

Plan a Trip to the Zoo: Little Trips Educate

Nice weather, family outings and the zoo go hand-in-hand for a day of fun. Millions of people visit zoos annually, making it one of the most popular attractions to view and usually more economical than theme parks these days. What better way to spend a special time together than at the zoo? Here are a few ideas to get the kids pumped up with enhancement activities before, during and after the trip. You will be teaching the kids many valuable concepts that will enrich their visit.

Before the zoo, choose a date but don't tell the kids until a week before the outing. Young children have a hard time anticipating an excursion for a long time. Put a picture of a zoo animal on your calendar and let the children mark off the days as they pass. Or, make a loop chain from construction paper and allow the kids to remove one link each day until the chain is gone; this is your special event day!

During this waiting time, take your children to the library and look up zoo animal books to check out and read. As you look through these books, learn the names of the animals and brainstorm to raise questions about them to discuss and answer on the trip. Write down a list of these questions, so the kids won't forget them on the big day. If you have some old magazines, let young children cut out pictures of zoo animals and glue these onto index cards. Take these homemade flashcards along with you and try to find the real animals.

On the way to the zoo, try changing the words and make sounds to this traditional song. As you sing, "Old McDonald Had a Zoo", this will get the children ready for the menagerie of animals they will see. As you stroll around the premises, talk about the names of the animals, how they live, the sounds they make, how they smell, what they eat and what they look like (sizes, colors, fur and faces). Take out your list of questions from home and see if together you can answer them. Let your children ask the zookeepers any questions you can't answer. And of course, take loads of pictures of your children's favorite animals and of your excursion together.

At the zoo, make sure to visit the zoo's petting area and let the kids pet and feed the animals. By afternoon, animals pretty much have a full belly and shouldn't be too aggressive. However, it's best to check with the zoo staff before allowing your children to enter this area.

If your zoo has a train, monorail or bus, take a ride around the premises to relax before you drive home. This experience is fun and the kids can rediscover the experiences of the day.

After the zoo, use some fun zoo play extenders at home to remind the little ones of their recent visit. Bring out the stuffed animals and boxes and invite the kids to play zookeeper. Pretend to feed, clean and care for the animals in your play zoo. Put the animals into groups of various sizes; this teaches pre-math concepts. Let the children rename their animals using alphabet letters that go with the animal's type. For example, you may have Ellie Elephant or Kristin Kangaroo at your home.

When your photos have been downloaded, make copies for the children to create zoo booklets. They can glue pictures on sheets of construction paper and dictate or write a little story about each animal.

Do You Have a Picky Eater At Home?

Having a picky eater at home is a challenge for many parents. Trying to get nutritious fruits and vegetables into their child’s tummy seems impossible – but have no fear, these ideas will make mealtime an interesting and creative experience. Nutrition is in and fussing out!

The key to this process is getting truly creative with foods. Young children eat with their eyes and cute edible constructions will stimulate interest in most toddlers and preschool age children. Here are a few ideas to try:

Sailboat regatta eggs

Peel hard-boiled eggs and cut them in half lengthwise.

Remove the yolks and mash them in a bowl with some mayonnaise and mustard.

Spoon the mixture back inside the egg white boats. You can decorate the tops with chopped carrots, chopped green pepper and sliced olives.

Cut construction paper into boat sails and invite the kids to decorate them with crayons.

Attach a toothpick to each sail with tape and insert it into the egg boat.

Serve these yummy boats on a lettuce leaf.

After letting the kiddos do a ‘wave run’ with the boats first, see how fast they can gobble them up!

Butterfly salad

Gather lettuce leaves, using both green and red lettuce varieties.

Place the lettuce on a plate to resemble butterfly wings.

Take a carrot stick and insert it in the center of the wings as the insect’s body.

An olive makes the perfect head and sliced olives can decorate the wings, just like the black marks of a Monarch butterfly.

Cut two tiny strips of red pepper for the antennae.

Present this salad to your youngsters with their favorite dressing.

Create a fruit tree

Place a pineapple ring on top of a lettuce leaf on the plate.

Take a banana half and stand it on its end in the center of the pineapple ring.

Invite the kiddos to spear a piece of fruit (grapes, strawberry, blueberry, raspberry, etc.) onto a toothpick and stick the other end into their banana tree.

Fill the tree with as many limbs of fruit that it can stand.

What a fun way to get a variety of fruit into your child’s meal without a fuss!

NOTE: Toothpicks are sharp and parental supervision is needed while making the meal and eating it. A variation to toothpicks would be thin coffee stirrer straws.

Sources:

Snacktivities by Mary Ann F. Kohl, Robins Lane Press, 2001

Butterfly salad adapted from my post on Education.com

Teach Your Children to Wash Their Hands With Fun Soaps

Whether it’s flu season or your kiddos just need to wash dirty hands from being outdoors, using a fun soap product makes the task enjoyable. And, do your children know the proper way to wash their hands? Here is a recipe for clean hands.

• First, wet hands completely under running water.
• Put one squirt of liquid soap in your hands.
• Rub hands together briskly. Spread the soap over the fronts and backs of the hands, between the fingers, and over the lengths of the fingers, and across and under the fingernails.
• Rub briskly, making “soap suds gloves” all over the hands and wrists. Keep rubbing encouraging your children to sing their favorite song. Some children love to sing “Happy Birthday” a couple times. This keeps your child scrubbing a little longer. The experts recommend a minimum of 15 seconds.
• Hold hands under the running water with the fingers pointing toward the drain. Rinse away all the soap.
• Dry hands with a clean personal towel at home, and with a lot of kids around, paper towels are the best. Then, especially in public restrooms, use the towel to turn off the spigot. Help your youngsters understand that their hands were full of germs when they turned on the water. Some of those germs are still on the fixture and will come back onto their clean hands if they touch the spigot again. The towel serves as a barrier.
• Hang your personal towel up on a rack or throw away the paper towel in the trash can.
• Now for the fun part – the soap:

There are new additions to the Softsoap brand of liquid soap. How would your kids feel if they had liquid soap in either a Star Wars or Frozen character container? With the new movie, “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” Softsoap has three of the most iconic characters on their bottles: Yoda, Darth Vader, and R2D2. And what young child wouldn’t love to take a squirt of soap from a bottle with the Frozen characters on it? Look for bottles featuring Elsa, Olaf, and one with both Elsa and Anna on it. These special Softsoap liquid soap bottles retail for $2.99 (8.5 fl oz) and sold at many drug, grocery, and mass retail stores. Why not try one soon and see if this kids collection helps making the task of hand washing easy and stress-free!

NOTE: The Softsoap Collection has been sent to me by Colgate-Palmolive for review purposes. I was not paid to write this post for this company.

July 4th Family Fun

What's the Fourth of July without a parade? Conduct your own family parade full of music, noisemakers and riding toy floats. Invite the neighborhood children to join you. Parading down the street with decorated riding toys is a good way to put spirit into a holiday celebration. Young children can gather their riding toys; a tricycle, wagon, little cars and such and prepare them by taping crepe paper streamers and ribbons to the body of the vehicle, as well as to the handlebars. Older kids may even weave these streamers into the spokes of their bicycles.

Independence Day is a noisy holiday. To make noisemakers, collect empty aluminum soda cans. After they are washed and dry, have the children put dried beans, small pebbles, or pennies inside. Tape the opening shut with duct tape. Proceed to cover the can with construction paper or aluminum foil. Let the kids decorate these noisemakers as they wish with crayons, markers, ribbons and stickers. "Shake, shake, shake" as they parade.

How about a "Revolutionary Hat" to wear? Cut a piece of construction paper into three 9" x 4" strips. Staple the short ends of the strips together to complete this three-cornered hat. Wear these hats in your parade like revolutionary soldiers. It would be quite patriotic to use one strip of each color (red, white and blue). Maybe add a feather if you're singing "Yankee Doodle".

This holiday is happening soon -- get your gear ready!

Happy Independence Day,
Tania

Are You Protecting Your Child's Eyes This Summer?

Do you wear sunglasses? The sunshine is so bright no matter the season. Are you aware of the damage it can do to your eyes? And, what about your child’s eyes? Yes, they need to wear protection eyewear too.

According to the Vision Council’s UV Protection Reports these facts about sun safety is imperative:

• UV damage is cumulative and irreversible
• Kids receive 3X more annual UV exposure than adults yet less than 30% of parents are currently protecting their children’s eyes with sunglasses.
• Children’s eyes are more susceptible to sun damage because they have larger pupils and clearer lenses, allowing more UV to penetrate and reach the back of the eyes

When choosing sunglasses for your kids, always look for:

• 100% UVA/UVB protection
• High-quality, durable frames
• A comfortable fit and a great style your kids will love

Parents, make sure you provide your kids with sunglasses that correspond with the information above. There are many options for sunglasses but Babiators, the leading children’s sunglasses brand, is on a mission to protect kids’ eyes from the sun. Babiators are safe, durable, awesome and guaranteed sunglasses for babies and kids.

Products include original and polarized Babiators Aviator Sunglasses for ages 0-7 years and Aces Aviator and Navigator Shades for kids ages 7-14 years. Each pair features 100% UVA and UVB protection, flexible frames and shatter-resistant lenses, stylish colors and patterns, and are backed by the Lost & Found Guarantee™ - if you lose or break your shades within one year of purchase, Babiators will replace them for free. Not a bad deal for parents! Check out their website here.

Note: I'm not affiliated with this sunglasses company, nor do they pay me for writing this blog. The data is factual and the choice of sunglasses comes from my personal opinion.

• 
  

Dear Readers,

After a crazy year of moving to a new city and getting settled in a new home, I'm back on Creative Preschool Time and geared to bring you oodles of information for your early childhood experience with your children.

From new products, to lesson plans, to crafts and so much more. Please check out my site in the next few days and visit often.

See you on the web!

Tania

New Products Featuring Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

Hi Friends,

Have your kiddos been nagging about seeing the new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles film? It will be hitting the theaters around August 8th, and there are action figures, vehicles and role play gear, that reflect the personalities and distinctive look of the Turtles in the movie.

Below is a press release from Playmates Toys that will give you all the information, keeping you abreast of everything you need to know to converse with your children about these 'green' heroes.

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES EMERGE FROM THE SHADOWS ONTO THE BIG SCREEN AND INTO FANS’ HANDS

Playmates Toys to Introduce New Toy Line Based on Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Film

El Segundo, CA – June 18, 2014 – Playmates Toys, the creative force behind the successful Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles toy line over the last three decades, is set to introduce a new product line inspired by Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon Movies’ summer blockbuster film, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, directed by Jonathan Liebesman,written by Josh Appelbaum & André Nemec and Evan Daugherty and produced by Michael Bay, hitting theaters August 8. The movie line of toys will include an assortment of products for Turtles fans, including action figures, vehicles and role play gear.

“We are proud to introduce an all-new line of toys that reflect the personalities and distinctive look of the Turtles in the movie,” said Karl Aaronian, Senior Vice President of Marketing, Playmates Toys. “The range of toys will provide kids and fans of all ages with a one-of-a-kind ninja play experience that brings their favorite characters from the film to life.”

“Playmates has outdone themselves yet again, with an incredible product offering for the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie,” said Manuel Torres, SVP Global Toys and Publishing, Nickelodeon Consumer Products. “These products – from action figures to role play toys – will provide hours of play, collectability and deepen our fans’ connection to the beloved brand.”

 The new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie toy line from Playmates Toys will feature the following action figures, group vehicle and role-play gear:

Action Figures
The action figure collection will include basic action figures, 11-inch figures and deluxe feature figures. The action figures are highly detailed, fully articulated and uniquely sculpted to reflect the Turtles’ appearance in the movie. In addition, each figure comes equipped with unique accessories. The basic action figures vary in heights from 4.0 inches to 5.5 inches. The collection includes Leonardo, Donatello, Michelangelo and Raphael, as well as Splinter, The Shredder, Foot Soldier, April O'Neil and Raphael in Disguise. The 11-inch figure collection includes the four Ninja Turtles.

The Combat Warrior Deluxe Figures are highly detailed, fully articulated and uniquely sculpted, with heights ranging from 5.25 inches to 6 inches. The Turtles’ legs can be squeezed to trigger battle actions. The collection includes Leonardo with quick cut katana action, Donatello with smack-down spinning staff action, Michelangelo with triple terror twist nunchuck action and Raphael with serious slashing sai action.

Vehicles
The Turtle Assault Van is packed with ninja action features, allowing kids to drive the Turtles into their next battle and recreate their favorite scenes from the movie. Features include a spring-powered Turtle torpedo, launching luge assault vehicle, pop top hatch and side attack ramp. The control cabin holds the basic Ninja Turtles action figures.

Role Play Gear
With the Ninja Combat Gear, kids can transform themselves into one of their favorite heroes in a half shell from the film. Each set includes the Turtles’ signature weapon and bandana, allowing kids to see if they have what it takes to become a Ninja Turtle. The collection includes Leonardo with katana sword, bandana and two hand guards, Michelangelo with Nunchuck, bandana and two hand guards, Raphael with two Sais and bandana and Donatello with Bo Staff and bandana.

About the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Movie
In this modern-day iteration of the popular franchise that has captivated audiences of all ages for decades, the Turtles must work with fearless reporter April O’Neil (Megan Fox) and her wise-cracking cameraman Vern Fenwick (Will Arnett) to save New York City and unravel Shredder’s diabolical plan.  Based on the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles characters created by Peter Laird and Kevin Eastman, written by Josh Appelbaum & André Nemec and Evan Daugherty, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is produced by Michael Bay (director and executive producer of the blockbuster Transformers franchise),Andrew Form, Brad Fuller, Galen Walker, Scott Mednick and Ian Bryce, and directed by Jonathan Liebesman (Wrath of the Titans).

About Playmates Toys
With a history of over 40 years, Playmates Toys is today among the most well-respected and innovative marketing and distribution companies in the global toy industry with a proven history in the creation of imaginative products as well as the development and management of profitable, long-term brand franchises. Key brands include TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES, HEARTS FOR HEARTS GIRLS and WATERBABIES. From its offices in Hong Kong and California, Playmates designs, develops, markets and distributes its products in over 60 countries worldwide. For more information, visit http://www.playmatestoys.com or http://facebook.com/playmatestoys

About Nickelodeon
Nickelodeon, now in its 35th year, is the number-one entertainment brand for kids. It has built a diverse, global business by putting kids first in everything it does. The company includes television programming and production in the United States and around the world, plus consumer products, online, recreation, books and feature films. Nickelodeon’s U.S. television network is seen in almost 100 million households and has been the number-one-rated basic cable network for 19 consecutive years. For more information or artwork, visit http://www.nickpress.com.  Nickelodeon and all related titles, characters and logos are trademarks of Viacom Inc. (NASDAQ: VIA, VIA.B).

About Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation (PPC), a global producer and distributor of filmed entertainment, is a unit of Viacom (NASDAQ: VIAB, VIA), a leading content company with prominent and respected film, television and digital entertainment brands. Paramount controls a collection of some of the most powerful brands in filmed entertainment, including Paramount Pictures, Paramount Animation, Paramount Vantage, Paramount Classics, Insurge Pictures, MTV Films, and Nickelodeon Movies. PPC operations also include Paramount Home Media Distribution, Paramount Pictures International, Paramount Licensing Inc., and Paramount Studio Group.

# # #

© 2014 Paramount Pictures. All Rights Reserved. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and all related titles, logos and characters are trademarks of Viacom International Inc.

Information and photo courtesy of Playmates Toys