Another Twist on Baking Soda and Vinegar

We've used baking soda and colored vinegar on the light box using squeeze bottles.



We've used baking soda and vinegar to make our volcano model erupt with a bit of unintended realism.



This time I wanted them to work their fine motor skills more. Using eyedroppers is excellent for strengthening and reinforcing the pincer grasp which is a great pre-writing activity. It also has the side benefit of making your vinegar and baking soda last a lot longer. I sprinkled a shallow layer of baking soda in a glass baking pan and gave them small containers of vinegar and and eyedropper each.

I gave Ava red and blue vinegar so she could mix purple. I gave Michael red and yellow vinegar so he could mix orange. They had a lot of fun with the activity and I had to rinse and refill the baking pans three times for each child.



Then I ran out of baking soda. They poured the rest of the vinegar into the pans to watch the colors blend and use up the last of the fizz. Then we noticed some undissolved baking soda at the bottom of the pans. The children began to draw in the baking soda. Michael wrote his name. Ava helped me spell hers. Then after some shaking and swirling, the names disappeared and they could begin again. Michael drew a snowflake and Ava drew a smiley face with arms and legs. They continued to draw and shake away several more creations before wandering away.





It was an accidental discovery, but drawing in the leftover baking soda and vinegar was a perfect additional activity for my pre-writing goals. Next time, I would have them use the eyedroppers rather than spoons for the drawing activity. This would also be a great way to have children practice writing their letters.

You should also be able to recreate this activity by stirring salt or sugar into colored water. You just have to be sure to keep adding sugar or salt until no more can dissolve and you have a layer left in the bottom of the pan. It would be even more fun on a light box (see how we made some out of storage bins).

Speech Card Game: Speech Stick Match

When I was making the T/K Minimal Pairs Card Set I also made a Minis version and used them to make a game I call Speech Stick Match.





Setup:
Print minis.
Cut them out. Trim very close around the pictures.
Glue or tape onto the ends of Jumbo Craft sticks.
Put stickers or marker in dots on the backs of about 5 of the sticks.

How to play:

1. (Optional) Begin by showing all the sticks to the children and sorting them into their rhymes/minimal pairs. Let the children take turns choosing their favorites until 10 pairs have been chosen. Put those 10 pairs picture side down into a cup.
2. Have the children take turns pulling out five sticks at a time. They say the word (or use it in a phrase or sentence). If they have any matches they get to keep the pair. Put any non-matches back in the cup. If they pull at least one stick with a sticker on it they get another turn. Then play moves to the next child.
3. When all the matches have been found and the cup is empty the child with the most pairs wins.

Other Card Set Activity and Game Suggestions

1. 10 Card Set Game and Activity Ideas
2. Simple Speech Card Puzzles
3. Speech Card Stories
4. Speech Card Caterpillar
5. Speech Card Game: What's Hiding?
6. Speech Card Game: Speech Switcheroo (An Uno-Style Game)
7. Speech Card Set Activity: Magnetic Speech Cards
8. Speech Card Game: Speech Fours
9. Speech Card Game: Old Maid
10. Speech Card Set Activity: Bang!
11. Speech Card Set Activity: What's Hiding Behind Door Number...?
12. Speech Card Set Activity: Customizing a Homework Sheet
13. Speech Card Set Activity: Making a Simple Sentence Flipbook

Two Days Left to Enter Learning Fundamentals Speech Therapy App Giveaway

You can enter a giveaway for a free speech therapy iPhone / iPad app through midnight tomorrow.

1. Read the review of the Artic Practice and Articulation IV apps.
2. Go to the list of Learning Fundamentals Speech Therapy Apps and choose your favorite (up to a $59.99 value).
   
3. Come back and leave a comment on the review post with the name of your favorite app and the setting in which you'll be using the app.

That's it. Then you're entered for a chance to receive a free copy of the app you chose. I'll be picking a winner with a random number generator and announcing the winner on Thursday. So far there are only 14 people entered. That's pretty good odds.