- I read an average sized paperback book in 3-4 hours. This sounds wonderful until you realize how quickly I can blow through a $40, 5-book series and how long I have to wait for the next installment to be published.
- I'm a cat person. Aside from two years in a college dorm, I've never lived without a cat. Currently, we have four. (I also adore ferrets. I owned one in graduate school and refuse to get rid of the cage just in case we have room for another at some point in the future.)
- When we were young, I once told a cousin that I was going to have eight children. I believe the assertion had something to do with why he should sit in the middle of the back seat and cede the preferred door seat to me. (Don't ask.) He likes to periodically ask me when I'm going to deliver the additional six children he had been promised.
- I'm fairly short - 5'1". My first job post graduate school was in a middle school and the children would often mistake me for another student in the halls.
- I have an inexplicable love of sharpies. I recently told my husband that a bouquet of sharpies would be much superior to a bouquet of flowers.
Sunday, August 19, 2012
Quick Trivia
I'm pressed for time, and so in lieu of a full post here's five quick fairly random trivia facts about me.
Saturday, August 18, 2012
What Came Out When I Let My Mouth Run on Autopilot
Forgive me while I take a few paragraphs to properly set the scene. I am blessed. My children still nap every afternoon. It takes some effort though. We go upstairs together at 2pm. If necessary we change into comfortable clothes, potty, and read books. Then I let Michael play independently in his room while I sing Ava to sleep. This can take anywhere from 10-20 minutes. Then she's out for the next hour and a half. If I don't stay with her until she falls asleep, she'll play and skip the nap altogether.
This works out well because Michael runs off some excess energy while playing in his room waiting for me to finish with Ava. Once I close Ava's door leaving her sleeping peacefully I slip into Michael's room where he's usually so busy in imaginary play that he doesn't even notice me come in. I tuck him under his covers and sing him to sleep too. That takes another 15-20 minutes, but then he's also out for the next hour and a half.
From the time I go upstairs with both children to the time I make it back downstairs it is usually a full hour. Then I usually have an hour to myself (hello blog post) and the children have a much calmer evening than they would have without the nap.
So, a few days ago, when I slipped into Michael's room he was kneeling on the floor facing the door to his room. I could tell something was up because he was wide-eyed with that "you caught me" look on his face. Also, he was completely silent. My brain hadn't quite caught up with my immediate sense of suspicion enough to voice a question when his mouth opened and a river of marbles spilled out. Seriously - it seemed like a neverending stream of marbles spilled out of his mouth onto the floor followed by one or two stragglers spit out for good measure at the end.
My heart sank down into the general vicinity of my stomach while the speech-path in the back of my mind gibbered about the diameter of the trachea and what could have happened if he had inhaled sharply when I opened the door, or coughed, or sneezed, or tried to talk to me before spitting out all those marbles. The calm part of me shut off. All rational thought was completely absent. I wasn't even mad. I didn't even come close to losing my temper. I am completely unaware of making any decisions about what I was going to do next. I was on some kind of autopilot.
Michael knew there was trouble. He was spewing about 80 kinds of "I'm sorry mama." at me, but I knew he was just telling me what I wanted to hear. I pulled the door shut quietly behind me and I sank down on my knees and asked him to come see me. I pulled him in my lap wrapping my arms around his still breathing body and tucking his head under my chin for a moment. Then I looked him right in his eyes and I picked up one of the 12 to 15 marbles scattered about us and showed it to him.
I told him that marbles were the exact same size as his windpipe. I told him that if he had coughed, or stumbled, or sneezed, or tried to talk, or put one too many in his mouth they would have slipped right into his windpipe and kept him from breathing and he would have died. I told him that I wouldn't have even been able to hear him because I was in Ava's room singing to her. I told him he wouldn't have even been able to call me for help because his windpipe would have been blocked off. I told him I would have come in to sing him his songs and he would have been dead. I told him to never, never, never put marbles in his mouth again - NEVER. I told him mommies only give big boys marbles because big boys know better than to put their toys in their mouths. And then I hugged him, wiped away a few of his tears, tucked him in, and sang him to sleep.
He'll be five in November. He's not a baby any more. He never puts toys in his mouth. He's had free access to marbles for months now. What on earth was he thinking?!?!?! I realize that telling a four year old that they could have died because of their actions was perhaps not my most well thought out parenting moment, but to be honest, I don't regret it. It was a serious moment. It could have had life-altering consequences. I needed to kick him out of the automatic "sorry" mode and into a more serious "think about what you've done and really see it with open eyes" mode. I think it worked. But I'll be seeing that river of marbles every time I close my eyes for the next month.
This works out well because Michael runs off some excess energy while playing in his room waiting for me to finish with Ava. Once I close Ava's door leaving her sleeping peacefully I slip into Michael's room where he's usually so busy in imaginary play that he doesn't even notice me come in. I tuck him under his covers and sing him to sleep too. That takes another 15-20 minutes, but then he's also out for the next hour and a half.
From the time I go upstairs with both children to the time I make it back downstairs it is usually a full hour. Then I usually have an hour to myself (hello blog post) and the children have a much calmer evening than they would have without the nap.
So, a few days ago, when I slipped into Michael's room he was kneeling on the floor facing the door to his room. I could tell something was up because he was wide-eyed with that "you caught me" look on his face. Also, he was completely silent. My brain hadn't quite caught up with my immediate sense of suspicion enough to voice a question when his mouth opened and a river of marbles spilled out. Seriously - it seemed like a neverending stream of marbles spilled out of his mouth onto the floor followed by one or two stragglers spit out for good measure at the end.
My heart sank down into the general vicinity of my stomach while the speech-path in the back of my mind gibbered about the diameter of the trachea and what could have happened if he had inhaled sharply when I opened the door, or coughed, or sneezed, or tried to talk to me before spitting out all those marbles. The calm part of me shut off. All rational thought was completely absent. I wasn't even mad. I didn't even come close to losing my temper. I am completely unaware of making any decisions about what I was going to do next. I was on some kind of autopilot.
Michael knew there was trouble. He was spewing about 80 kinds of "I'm sorry mama." at me, but I knew he was just telling me what I wanted to hear. I pulled the door shut quietly behind me and I sank down on my knees and asked him to come see me. I pulled him in my lap wrapping my arms around his still breathing body and tucking his head under my chin for a moment. Then I looked him right in his eyes and I picked up one of the 12 to 15 marbles scattered about us and showed it to him.
I told him that marbles were the exact same size as his windpipe. I told him that if he had coughed, or stumbled, or sneezed, or tried to talk, or put one too many in his mouth they would have slipped right into his windpipe and kept him from breathing and he would have died. I told him that I wouldn't have even been able to hear him because I was in Ava's room singing to her. I told him he wouldn't have even been able to call me for help because his windpipe would have been blocked off. I told him I would have come in to sing him his songs and he would have been dead. I told him to never, never, never put marbles in his mouth again - NEVER. I told him mommies only give big boys marbles because big boys know better than to put their toys in their mouths. And then I hugged him, wiped away a few of his tears, tucked him in, and sang him to sleep.
He'll be five in November. He's not a baby any more. He never puts toys in his mouth. He's had free access to marbles for months now. What on earth was he thinking?!?!?! I realize that telling a four year old that they could have died because of their actions was perhaps not my most well thought out parenting moment, but to be honest, I don't regret it. It was a serious moment. It could have had life-altering consequences. I needed to kick him out of the automatic "sorry" mode and into a more serious "think about what you've done and really see it with open eyes" mode. I think it worked. But I'll be seeing that river of marbles every time I close my eyes for the next month.
Friday, August 17, 2012
The Weekly Review: Week 73
SLP Resource of the Week
If you're looking for more picture prompts by phoneme, Caroline Bowen's website has a wide selection of worksheets with picture prompts. The page sorts phonemes by manner of production (stops, fricatives, etc.). Scroll down to the phoneme you're looking for and click on the link and it will bring up a multi-page .pdf with pictures and words for that phoneme. Many of the words are CVC in syllable shape. Some of the words include vocalic /r/ and final consonant blends. Still, this is a great resource if you're looking for a phoneme I don't have or to supplement your collection for a specific phoneme.Ava this Week
Ava started "big girl school" this week. She does beautifully when being dropped off. She seems to enjoy her day and will share something simple about what happened at school when asked. So far, she's melting down at pick up though. The teachers, understandably, want the children to line up when they get outside rather than scattering in every direction instantly running to find their parents. That would be a dangerous recipe sure to end up with a lost child. Ava hates seeing me and not being able to run over to me immediately. She bursts into tears every time. I need to remind her when I drop her off about the class rule for pickup time. Perhaps she just needs more mental preparation?Weekly Michael
It is like "boy" is bubbling out of every square inch of skin lately. All of a sudden, it's all about making rude noises and thinking it's funny, pretending things are weapons, crashing toys into each other or the floor, and talking at three times the speed and volume necessary for any given situation. How long does this stage last exactly? Where did it come from and how do I return it?Weekly Weight Loss
Things have been much more on schedule this week both in life and trundling along on the calorie tracking plan. This week I'm down. 1.2 pounds. I was looking back over the past 7 1/2 weeks. 7.5 weeks is how long I've been tracking my weight accurately. Over the past 7.5 weeks I've lost 6.5 pounds. Given that I'm eating about the minimum an adult should eat in calories a day, and I haven't yet managed to dig up the time, energy, motivation, or willpower to increase my activity levels that's about as high a rate of weight loss as I could reasonably expect. And so, success. At this reasonable rate of weight loss I only have to keep this up until the end of the year to reach my target. Then I get to tackle the issue of maintenance. It is humbling to realize that I've been consistent for over two months and it takes months and months of consistent work to take off weight that sneaks on so easily. I'm trying to keep a positive attitude that this is a learning and recalibration experience that will reap long-term benefits.Thursday, August 16, 2012
First Day of School Pictures - 2012
I've seen a ton of sweet first day of school pictures floating around the internet. I particularly liked this one and combined it with the idea of holding a sign. This year was the first year both children were heading off to preschool/pre-K at our local public school and so I decided that I would get it done this time. I printed off the "signs" using microsoft word the night before while the kids were in the bath. I dragged the children into the driveway, cajoled smiles from them with silly sentences, and took a few pics with my phone before loading them in the car. Then I used PicMonkey to edit the pictures and add the text.
Wednesday, August 15, 2012
Free Articulation and Phonological Process Screener Available Online
I was thinking about cobbling together a quick articulation screening tool to use with my kids. I don't have the extra cash to invest in a GFTA or Khan-Lewis although I would love to have them. Besides, all I need is an organized way to assess the kids' current production of the full range of consonants. I was doing a bit of research online and stumbled across a really nice free one already available online. I thought I'd post the link for anyone who doesn't already know about it.
You can find the Quick Screener: A Quick Test of Articulation and Phonology on Caroline Bowen's website. She's a Speech-Language Pathologist, PhD, and specialist in speech sound disorders. Look for the third section down on the page for the links to the screener and to the record forms. The screening consists of 44 (mostly) single syllable words prompted by pictures and verbal prompts. You can transcribe errors and use the record forms to look for patterns of phonological errors.
You should note that although all but one of the words are single syllable, many of the words contain consonant blends and vocalic /r/ sounds. Take that into consideration when deciding if this would be a useful tool with a particular student. Also, the record form does not have a summary section for clearly entering error sounds/positions, but that would be simple enough to add on your own.
It's a great tool freely available for download and use. You should definitely check it out.
You can find the Quick Screener: A Quick Test of Articulation and Phonology on Caroline Bowen's website. She's a Speech-Language Pathologist, PhD, and specialist in speech sound disorders. Look for the third section down on the page for the links to the screener and to the record forms. The screening consists of 44 (mostly) single syllable words prompted by pictures and verbal prompts. You can transcribe errors and use the record forms to look for patterns of phonological errors.
You should note that although all but one of the words are single syllable, many of the words contain consonant blends and vocalic /r/ sounds. Take that into consideration when deciding if this would be a useful tool with a particular student. Also, the record form does not have a summary section for clearly entering error sounds/positions, but that would be simple enough to add on your own.
It's a great tool freely available for download and use. You should definitely check it out.
Tuesday, August 14, 2012
Initial T Homework Sheet: Free Speech Therapy Articulation Worksheet
I was playing around with a possible homework sheet format and I came up with this. It has a section for the parents to give their child visual cues, a section for the parent to do auditory bombardment (with the target consonant paired with every vowel), and then a section with picture cues for the child to practice saying target words. Useful?
Permissions
I give permission to copy, print, or distribute this homework sheet provided that:- Each copy makes clear that I am the document's author.
- No copies are altered without my express consent.
- No one makes a profit from these copies.
- Electronic copies contain a live link back to my original and print copies not for merely personal use contain the URL of my original.
Monday, August 13, 2012
Medial F: Free Speech Therapy Articulation Picture Cards
Medial /f/ Card Set
To download click on the image to open it full size. Then right click on the image, choose "save as" and save the page to your computer.I recommend you print on cardstock and laminate for durability.
Description
This articulation picture card set is designed to be more comprehensive than the typical sets you might find elsewhere. The target audience for this set is young children or children with more severe speech delays that need intensive practice with medial /f/ at a simple two-syllable level. Syllable shapes are kept as simple as possible and include CVCV, VCV, VCVC, and CVCVC. If you choose to print the cards with the backs, they will be sorted by difficulty from least phonemically complex to most phonemically complex. Level 1 is CVCV and VCV syllable shapes paired with relatively easier consonants. Level 2 is CVCV and VCV syllable shapes paired with more difficult consonants. Level 3 is VCVC or CVCVC with easier consonants while Level 4 is VCVC or CVCVC with more difficult consonants. No blends or vocalic /r/ sounds are included in this set. The set pairs the medial /f/ with as many different vowel sounds as possible to maximize co-articulation variety.Key Features
- This set includes 15 therapy cards with the target word and picture on the front, and the difficulty level and a carrier phrase on the back.
- The words are all VCV, CVCV, VCVC, or CVCVC in syllable shape.
- The words are easily understood by or easily taught to young children.
- Combines the target sound with all possible vowel sounds at least once.
- Words are sorted by difficulty level for an easy progression from less complex to more complex.
Permissions
I give permission to copy, print, or distribute this card set provided that:- Each copy makes clear that I am the document's author.
- No copies are altered without my express consent.
- No one makes a profit from these copies.
- Electronic copies contain a live link back to my original and print copies not for merely personal use contain the URL of my original.
Looking for Feedback
I would love to hear back from anyone who uses this card set. Let me know if you find errors or there is anything you would change. Comment on this page, or send me an email at testyyettrying(at)gmail(dot)com.Where can I find more?
More sets are on my Free Speech Therapy Articulation Cards page. Other card sets include /p, b, t, d, m, n, h, f, v, k, g, w, s, z, l, ch, sh, s-blends, and l-blends/ and more sets are being added regularly.What kinds of activities can I do with this cardset?
- 10 Card Set Game and Activity Ideas
- Simple Speech Card Puzzles
- Speech Card Stories
- Speech Card Caterpillar
- Speech Card Game: What's Hiding?
- Speech Card Game: Speech Switcheroo (An Uno-Style Game)
- Speech Card Set Activity: Magnetic Speech Cards
- Speech Card Game: Speech Fours
- Speech Card Game: Old Maid
- Speech Card Set Activity: Bang!
- Speech Card Set Activity: What's Hiding Behind Door Number...?
- Speech Card Set Activity: Customizing a Homework Sheet
- Speech Card Set Activity: Making a Simple Sentence Flipbook
- Speech Game: Find-It
Sunday, August 12, 2012
Ava Speech Update: Fall 2012
It's been a long time since I've talked about Ava's speech in more than a passing manner. Fall seems like as good a time as any to check in. It's been a long time and many of you started reading between my last update and this one so I'll begin with some background so you can understand how far she's come.
Ava was not talking at 22 months. She had a history of reduced babbling and an extremely limited phonemic repertoire (d, m, h and a couple of vowels). The only syllable shape she produced was CV. She used the word approximation "da" with an upward inflection for almost everything accompanied by pointing to the object she wanted. She could not imitate. She was beginning to give up on trying to talk at all turning to gestures instead.
At that point I abandoned the wait-and-hope-she-miraculously-catches-up approach and began to make phone calls. We briefly saw a local SLP who had put a flyer in the daycare who agreed that Ava's speech was significantly delayed and that she had many of the red flags for Childhood Apraxia of Speech. I called around and discovered that one of the national experts on CAS lives in our area and set up an appointment with her. We've been seeing her twice a month for well over a year and she's wonderful. We also had Ava assessed by early intervention, wrote an IFSP, and began receiving services. Finally I set up a program of home therapy with her.
At that point I knew Ava was delayed - really delayed. What I couldn't yet anticipate was prognosis. It would depend on how well she responded to therapy. Some children respond well to therapy and make progress quickly. In those cases, prognosis is pretty good. In other cases the children, parents, and therapists work hard, frequently and intensely and progress is still slow. In those cases, prognosis is poorer. You know you're going to have to work harder and longer. You know progress will be slower and that the child may not ever have typical speech. I didn't know which category Ava would fall into, but I feared, based upon how delayed she was that she would fall into the second category.
We were so lucky. Ava responded well to therapy. Really well. I was doing updates on the blog every 2-3 weeks and it was like I was describing a completely different child. First she was learning to produce new consonants and vowels. Then she added more complex syllable shapes. She went from one syllable to two and from one-word utterances to multi-word utterances. We went from almost no speech to lots of speech that was extremely difficult to understand because there were multiple errors in every utterance.
Slowly we worked on speech errors. Some sounds and categories of sounds she learned quickly and easily. /s/ and /l/ came relatively quickly even in blends. Now she uses them conversationally with no problem. Other sounds we've worked on for well over a year and they're still a struggle (/k/, /g/). As more sounds came in and fewer sounds are left that are in error she became easier to understand.
Right now she's intelligible most of the time. She struggles most with sounds produced in the back of the mouth. She fronts /k/ and /g/ producing /t/ and /d/ instead. She also fronts /ch/ and /J/. /th/ is produced as an /f/. There are plenty targets left to work on. The almost complete absence of back sounds certainly impacts her speech in a noticeable way. Her language helps her though. She's using long sentences in conversation. You usually have enough context from the conversation and from the rest of the words in the sentence to figure out the one or two words that would have been unintelligible in isolation. You can ask her to tell you a different way or give you a clue and she is able to rephrase her message to help you.
Ms. J (our local apraxia expert) has even suggested we take a hiatus from visiting her because Ava has made such great progress. We're stuck working on trying to break through on those back sounds and I can do that myself with her at home.
Ava is heading off to preschool next week and I am not worried about her speech significantly impacting her experience there. Yes, her speech is not typical, but she is understandable. I am so grateful that all her hard work has paid off. Prognosis is good. If we keep working, I expect that the remaining speech errors will be corrected in time. At some point, I truly think her speech will be typical. Until then, we'll keep working at it.
Ava was not talking at 22 months. She had a history of reduced babbling and an extremely limited phonemic repertoire (d, m, h and a couple of vowels). The only syllable shape she produced was CV. She used the word approximation "da" with an upward inflection for almost everything accompanied by pointing to the object she wanted. She could not imitate. She was beginning to give up on trying to talk at all turning to gestures instead.
At that point I abandoned the wait-and-hope-she-miraculously-catches-up approach and began to make phone calls. We briefly saw a local SLP who had put a flyer in the daycare who agreed that Ava's speech was significantly delayed and that she had many of the red flags for Childhood Apraxia of Speech. I called around and discovered that one of the national experts on CAS lives in our area and set up an appointment with her. We've been seeing her twice a month for well over a year and she's wonderful. We also had Ava assessed by early intervention, wrote an IFSP, and began receiving services. Finally I set up a program of home therapy with her.
At that point I knew Ava was delayed - really delayed. What I couldn't yet anticipate was prognosis. It would depend on how well she responded to therapy. Some children respond well to therapy and make progress quickly. In those cases, prognosis is pretty good. In other cases the children, parents, and therapists work hard, frequently and intensely and progress is still slow. In those cases, prognosis is poorer. You know you're going to have to work harder and longer. You know progress will be slower and that the child may not ever have typical speech. I didn't know which category Ava would fall into, but I feared, based upon how delayed she was that she would fall into the second category.
We were so lucky. Ava responded well to therapy. Really well. I was doing updates on the blog every 2-3 weeks and it was like I was describing a completely different child. First she was learning to produce new consonants and vowels. Then she added more complex syllable shapes. She went from one syllable to two and from one-word utterances to multi-word utterances. We went from almost no speech to lots of speech that was extremely difficult to understand because there were multiple errors in every utterance.
Slowly we worked on speech errors. Some sounds and categories of sounds she learned quickly and easily. /s/ and /l/ came relatively quickly even in blends. Now she uses them conversationally with no problem. Other sounds we've worked on for well over a year and they're still a struggle (/k/, /g/). As more sounds came in and fewer sounds are left that are in error she became easier to understand.
Right now she's intelligible most of the time. She struggles most with sounds produced in the back of the mouth. She fronts /k/ and /g/ producing /t/ and /d/ instead. She also fronts /ch/ and /J/. /th/ is produced as an /f/. There are plenty targets left to work on. The almost complete absence of back sounds certainly impacts her speech in a noticeable way. Her language helps her though. She's using long sentences in conversation. You usually have enough context from the conversation and from the rest of the words in the sentence to figure out the one or two words that would have been unintelligible in isolation. You can ask her to tell you a different way or give you a clue and she is able to rephrase her message to help you.
Ms. J (our local apraxia expert) has even suggested we take a hiatus from visiting her because Ava has made such great progress. We're stuck working on trying to break through on those back sounds and I can do that myself with her at home.
Ava is heading off to preschool next week and I am not worried about her speech significantly impacting her experience there. Yes, her speech is not typical, but she is understandable. I am so grateful that all her hard work has paid off. Prognosis is good. If we keep working, I expect that the remaining speech errors will be corrected in time. At some point, I truly think her speech will be typical. Until then, we'll keep working at it.
Saturday, August 11, 2012
Fall Brings Change
I dropped the children off at daycare for the last time the other day. I've been driving to that daycare two days a week since the business opened in January of 2010. It is the end of an era for us. I was a little sad to say goodbye to all of the wonderful teachers that helped care for my little ones when they were little. In general I think that daycare teachers are under-appreciated and underpaid. Good daycare teachers are amazing.
We attended the preschool orientation at our local school district. Ava will have the same teacher Michael had last year and he's moving up to the pre-kindergarten room. It's only a half-day program. They're there for less than three hours. I want them to go mostly for the social connections with other children their same age. Also, it gives me some time to work on some projects that have been on the back burner for a while. I have mixed feelings about it though because I'm still strongly considering homeschooling beginning with Michael's kindergarten year.
Mostly I'm just resistant to change. I wonder what it will be like. Right now, several days a week are "home days" where the children and I have a relaxed rhythm to our day. Beginning next week I'll be dropping them off and picking them up from school on weekdays. Three days a week we'll have an additional after-school activity (speech twice for Ava and gymnastics once for both of them). The rhythm of the days will change. Some people love change. They find it stimulating and exciting and look forward to it. I like routines and familiarity. I'm sure that in a few weeks we will all settle in to the new routines and I'll look back at my current unease and think to myself that it was unnecessary. Somehow, knowing that still doesn't help my mental grumbling now.
I hope all of you weather your fall changes well and enjoy your new routines and adventures.
We attended the preschool orientation at our local school district. Ava will have the same teacher Michael had last year and he's moving up to the pre-kindergarten room. It's only a half-day program. They're there for less than three hours. I want them to go mostly for the social connections with other children their same age. Also, it gives me some time to work on some projects that have been on the back burner for a while. I have mixed feelings about it though because I'm still strongly considering homeschooling beginning with Michael's kindergarten year.
Mostly I'm just resistant to change. I wonder what it will be like. Right now, several days a week are "home days" where the children and I have a relaxed rhythm to our day. Beginning next week I'll be dropping them off and picking them up from school on weekdays. Three days a week we'll have an additional after-school activity (speech twice for Ava and gymnastics once for both of them). The rhythm of the days will change. Some people love change. They find it stimulating and exciting and look forward to it. I like routines and familiarity. I'm sure that in a few weeks we will all settle in to the new routines and I'll look back at my current unease and think to myself that it was unnecessary. Somehow, knowing that still doesn't help my mental grumbling now.
I hope all of you weather your fall changes well and enjoy your new routines and adventures.
Friday, August 10, 2012
The Weekly Review: Week 72
Weekly Monumental Road Trip
We did it. My mom and I took my three and four year old children on a road trip to visit relatives in the New Orleans area. It took us a little over 12 hours to drive there and a little less than 12 on the way back. The children were wonderful. Both drives went very well. We spent entire days in swimming pools. We visited extended family many of whom went out of their way to make sure they got to see us in the three short days we were there. The children loved everyone and can't wait to go back.As some of you may remember, I went a
At first I tried to micromanage. I would turn the tv off and give each child a bag. Let them play for 10-15 minutes and then instruct them to switch. Then have them clean up and return the bags to my mother before turning the tv back on until the next stop to stretch our legs. As it turns out, a much more relaxed approach worked better. We ran the tv most of the trip. Ava was more interested in the tv and less interested in the activities. Michael was very interested in the activities. We just let him play until he got bored on his own. Then he'd pack up the bag and ask for another one. Michael went through twice as many bags as his sister and that was fine. Letting him play while watching television worked better for Michael than forcing him to alternate between the two types of activities. Live and learn. His favorite activities were the make-a-wand kit, the geoboards, the duplo kits, and the notepad with stickers and pens.
Another focus on the drive was to keep things moving at all costs. We stopped only at rest stops and kept those stops to under 10 minutes. We stopped at every other rest stop instead of at each one. We timed gas stops to coincide with meals and my mom took the kids to the bathroom at the gas station while I filled the tank. Then we went through a nearby drive-through for food to eat in the car. For us, it was more important to keep the drive from stretching to 13 or 14 hours than it was to take a more leisurely approach to the stops and it worked well.
Ava this Week
Several people commented on our visit about how far Ava has come in the past six months both socially and in terms of her speech. She was much less shy and overwhelmed. She talked a lot and rarely had difficulty making herself understood. I was so proud of her and relieved to see her able to participate so well in the visit.Weekly Michael
Instead of saying, "When I grow up..." Michael has taken to saying, "When I'm an engineer..." He has a long list of things he'll do when he's an engineer from telling me all the things he'll build for me, to the foods he'll eat and the games he'll play. He added something new to that list on the trip.Michael saw his first roach on the trip. What can I say, it was a home in the deep south in a rural area. He also got to see his first roach get squished. Then we got to learn a great new vocabulary word in addition to the word "roach" - "guts". After that 60 second lesson in the wildlife of Louisiana we moved on and I didn't give it another thought until the next day when Michael came up to me and shared this nugget about his future: "When I'm an engineer I'm going to have an oach (roach) for a pet. I like them because they're so big." After a brief speechless moment I replied, "Sweetheart, when you're an engineer you can have whatever kind of pet you like, including a roach."
Weekly Weight Loss
So it's actually been two weeks since my last update in this area. Checking back I realize that I've lost all of 0.2 pounds in the past two weeks. To be honest, that's a little depressing. I'm reminding myself that this is a marathon, not a sprint. I'm reminding myself that I went on a trip during that time where I had less control over my food choices and I did a rather terrible job of staying hydrated and getting enough sleep. I'm reminding myself that this is about improving my health, learning new long-term habits, and reversing an upward trend rather than about a weight-focused "diet" and negative thoughts about my self-image. And so, it's ok. Next week is a new week.Thursday, August 2, 2012
We're off to see the family...
Well, we're off. As you read this imagine me in a minivan for 12+ hours with my mother and two preschool aged children and send good thoughts my way. I'll be taking a blogging hiatus for the next week or so, but I will be back late next week. Have a wonderful week and good luck to all of you that are preparing for the new school year that begins in a couple of weeks.
Wednesday, August 1, 2012
Car Ride Activities Set 7
I sure hope someone is planning a trip with young children in the next few months and finds all these travel activity posts (Set 1, Set 2, Set 3, Set 4, Set 5, Set 6) useful! For the rest of you, I would like to point out that many of these activities could easily be integrated into therapy sessions or simply used as craft projects or activities around the house.
Kids love to make noise and I was looking to add a little of variety to my busy bag stash. This activity is only appropriate in an environment where noise isn't going to bother anyone. I took some small plastic boxes from an organization tray and used them to make two sizes of drums by stretching balloons over the tops and holding them in place with rubber bands and tape. I provided a popsicle stick to use as a drumstick. One drum is higher in tone than the other. I took a third box and stretched rubber bands around it for plucking out notes (one high and one low). Then I made two shakers by putting taping beads between two bottle caps and beans between two other bottle caps (one sounds high and the other low) and decorating the caps with sharpies. Finally, I made a homemade kazoo from a tube of cardstock and wax paper (it doesn't work super well, but the kids will like it and it will do well enough). All the instruments are small and lightweight and pack away into a small bag.
Several years ago I found some Automoblox Minis on sale around the holidays and scooped them up. The children played with them for months before they got tired of them and I put them away for a while. Then I forgot about them. I pulled them back out and stuck them in a bag along with some black strips of felt to use as roads. These cars are great because they disassemble like 3D puzzles and can be put back together interchangeably. Any toy cars paired with some felt roads would work as a busy bag though. If I had more time I'd try to make a small garage of some kind to go along with the kit.
Find something in your house you can stick in a bag for the children to use as a memory game. I pulled some tiles from our Qwirkle Game. You could even make your own memory cards on cardstock by drawing matching shapes or letters on the cards.
Cut out small pieces of plastic needlepoint canvas. Include some tipped lacing yarn and beads and let the children experiment. I tied beads onto one end of the yarn to help get them started. Insipiration here.
I came across a free printable shapes version of the I Have Who Has game for preschoolers. I printed a subset of the cards and stuck it in a bag. The non-driving adult will deal the cards and play the game with the children.
I took popsicle sticks and put small pieces of adhesive magnet strips on each end of both sides of the sticks. I decorated three of the sticks with triangles on one side and four with squares on one side. I left the other side blank for free play. If I hadn't run out of steam I would have done a pentagon set. The children can build the shapes from the sticks, or simple engage in free play with them. Inspiration and variations here and here.
I bought some geoboards for the last car trip and the children love them. I was looking for a way to freshen them up for this trip and I found some patterns. I printed them in flashcard size to give the children some inspiration.
I found some beautiful free printable alphabet flashcards and printed two sets. I think the children will enjoy looking through them and can try to find the matches since I shuffled the sets before I put them in the bag.
This one is fairly self explanatory. I took a mini chalkboard from our Handwriting Without Tears homeschool program and put it in a bag with some chalk and a felt square to use as an eraser.
I took a small Melissa and Doug wooden travel puzzle and put it in a bag for the children.
If you like these activities, you may be interested in more.
Car Ride Activities Set 7
Busy Bag 31: High/Low Homemade Instruments
Kids love to make noise and I was looking to add a little of variety to my busy bag stash. This activity is only appropriate in an environment where noise isn't going to bother anyone. I took some small plastic boxes from an organization tray and used them to make two sizes of drums by stretching balloons over the tops and holding them in place with rubber bands and tape. I provided a popsicle stick to use as a drumstick. One drum is higher in tone than the other. I took a third box and stretched rubber bands around it for plucking out notes (one high and one low). Then I made two shakers by putting taping beads between two bottle caps and beans between two other bottle caps (one sounds high and the other low) and decorating the caps with sharpies. Finally, I made a homemade kazoo from a tube of cardstock and wax paper (it doesn't work super well, but the kids will like it and it will do well enough). All the instruments are small and lightweight and pack away into a small bag.
Busy Bag 32: Mini Automoblox and Felt Roads
Several years ago I found some Automoblox Minis on sale around the holidays and scooped them up. The children played with them for months before they got tired of them and I put them away for a while. Then I forgot about them. I pulled them back out and stuck them in a bag along with some black strips of felt to use as roads. These cars are great because they disassemble like 3D puzzles and can be put back together interchangeably. Any toy cars paired with some felt roads would work as a busy bag though. If I had more time I'd try to make a small garage of some kind to go along with the kit.
Busy Bag 33: Memory Game
Find something in your house you can stick in a bag for the children to use as a memory game. I pulled some tiles from our Qwirkle Game. You could even make your own memory cards on cardstock by drawing matching shapes or letters on the cards.
Busy Bag 34: Preschool Sewing
Cut out small pieces of plastic needlepoint canvas. Include some tipped lacing yarn and beads and let the children experiment. I tied beads onto one end of the yarn to help get them started. Insipiration here.
Busy Bag 35: I Have Who Has Game
I came across a free printable shapes version of the I Have Who Has game for preschoolers. I printed a subset of the cards and stuck it in a bag. The non-driving adult will deal the cards and play the game with the children.
Busy Bag 36: Magnetic Popsicle Stick Shapes
I took popsicle sticks and put small pieces of adhesive magnet strips on each end of both sides of the sticks. I decorated three of the sticks with triangles on one side and four with squares on one side. I left the other side blank for free play. If I hadn't run out of steam I would have done a pentagon set. The children can build the shapes from the sticks, or simple engage in free play with them. Inspiration and variations here and here.
Busy Bag 37: Geoboards with Pattern Ideas
I bought some geoboards for the last car trip and the children love them. I was looking for a way to freshen them up for this trip and I found some patterns. I printed them in flashcard size to give the children some inspiration.
Busy Bag 38: Alphabet Flashcards
I found some beautiful free printable alphabet flashcards and printed two sets. I think the children will enjoy looking through them and can try to find the matches since I shuffled the sets before I put them in the bag.
Busy Bag 39: Mini Chalkboard
This one is fairly self explanatory. I took a mini chalkboard from our Handwriting Without Tears homeschool program and put it in a bag with some chalk and a felt square to use as an eraser.
Busy Bag 40: Small Jigsaw Puzzle
I took a small Melissa and Doug wooden travel puzzle and put it in a bag for the children.
If you like these activities, you may be interested in more.
Tuesday, July 31, 2012
Car Ride Activities Set 6
As of this morning 30 car travel appropriate busy bags will have been posted and I've finished making a total of 44. I need to fill 4 more to meet my goal. I'll admit, my imagination, resources, and enthusiasm are beginning to run low but I will persevere. Here's the next set of 10 though. Enjoy!
(You can find more ideas in the Car Ride Activities Set 3, Car Ride Activities Set 4, and Car Ride Activities Set 5.)
Wrap pipe cleaners around a wooden dowel to form the base of the wand. Then attach some more at the top. Twist some of the top pipe cleaners into spirals and leave the others straight for the children to decorate with beads. Toss some pony beads into the bag with the magic wands. The children can decorate their wand tips with the beads of their choice and then play with the wand. Insipiration here.
I found some great free downloadable nursery rhyme and preschool song printables. I saved the files and printed them 9 to a page to make flashcards out of them. I'll put them in a bag and let the children look at the pictures and try to figure out which song it is. Then we'll sing the songs as a family in the car. (This site is great! They have the files in color versions for circle times or posting in a classroom and in black in white to use as coloring sheets. They also have supplementary printables to go along with most of the rhymes.)
Find a small shallow box. I used the bottom from a small pizza box. Glue some straws into the box. Draw in a path and a starting and ending point. Of course, no one will examine the picture closely enough to notice that I stuck my stop sign in the wrong spot before having to draw in a second one. Find a marble and let the kids practice getting the marble from start to finish by tilting the box. If I had had several small gift size boxes around I would have made several small marble runs instead of one large one. Check the inspiration link to see several other small examples of this type of activity. Insipiration here.
Cut out an oval "face" and lots of accessories. I tried to make a girl (although she didn't really turn out well), a crazy jester like character and an alien/monster. See the inspirations for much more well done examples of this activity. My only defense is that I cut mine out in about 10 minutes and just used sharpies for details. It was quick which was important to me this time. Insipiration here, here, here, here, and here.
Download and print a pie divided into as many sections as you'd like. I chose one with six sections. Cut out the circle and glue that circle onto a cardboard circle of the same size for added thickness and durability. Then use some stickers to make each section of the pie represent a different number. Write those same numbers on the clothespins and you're ready. The children count the stickers and pin the corresponding clothespin onto that section. Insipiration here.
I'm hoping that sorting bead like items and stringing them onto a variety of stringing options never gets old. This time it is foam beads paired with a lace and some pipe cleaners. These foam beads can be sorted by color or shape and then laced onto either the pipe cleaners or the lace. Inspiration was my own craft supply shelf.
This may be too hard for my three and four year old children but it would be great for older kids and I thought I'd try it. I taped a variety of yarns to a variety of popsicle stick configurations for a yarn wrapping activity. At the simple end is just wrapping the yarn around a single stick. More complex is wrapping yarn around a narrow X shape for a slightly different look. Most complex is weaving the yarn to make a god's eye project. I was inspired by my own eyes wandering over my craft shelf.
Take some sponges and cut them into strips to make great travel "blocks" for log cabin style building. If I had thought about it before I had cut all the sponges into strips I would have made some squares too for variety. These make great travel blocks because they are quiet, light, compact and have some texture to them to reduce sliding around in cars and other moving vehicles. Inspiration found here.
Just toss a couple of small memo books, some cool pens (or pencils or crayons) and some stickers in a bag. I wrote a sweet message to each child in each book to personalize the book for them. They may not be able to read the whole message, but they'll recognize their names and "Mama". Inspired by browsing the back to school aisle.
I had some colored wooden craft sticks in my crafting stash as well. I put a handful of the matchsticks and a piece of felt into a bag. The children can create simple pictures from the sticks or even try to build a tower log cabin style. They could also try to make letters or shapes using the craft sticks.
(Happy 41st Wedding Anniversary to my parents. I love you both!)
If you like these activities, you may be interested in more.
(You can find more ideas in the Car Ride Activities Set 3, Car Ride Activities Set 4, and Car Ride Activities Set 5.)
Car Ride Activities Set 6
Busy Bag 21: Make a Magic Wand Kit
Wrap pipe cleaners around a wooden dowel to form the base of the wand. Then attach some more at the top. Twist some of the top pipe cleaners into spirals and leave the others straight for the children to decorate with beads. Toss some pony beads into the bag with the magic wands. The children can decorate their wand tips with the beads of their choice and then play with the wand. Insipiration here.
Busy Bag 22: Nursery Rhyme and Preschool Song Flashcards
I found some great free downloadable nursery rhyme and preschool song printables. I saved the files and printed them 9 to a page to make flashcards out of them. I'll put them in a bag and let the children look at the pictures and try to figure out which song it is. Then we'll sing the songs as a family in the car. (This site is great! They have the files in color versions for circle times or posting in a classroom and in black in white to use as coloring sheets. They also have supplementary printables to go along with most of the rhymes.)
Busy Bag 23: Simple Marble Run
Find a small shallow box. I used the bottom from a small pizza box. Glue some straws into the box. Draw in a path and a starting and ending point. Of course, no one will examine the picture closely enough to notice that I stuck my stop sign in the wrong spot before having to draw in a second one. Find a marble and let the kids practice getting the marble from start to finish by tilting the box. If I had had several small gift size boxes around I would have made several small marble runs instead of one large one. Check the inspiration link to see several other small examples of this type of activity. Insipiration here.
Busy Bag 24: Felt Faces
Cut out an oval "face" and lots of accessories. I tried to make a girl (although she didn't really turn out well), a crazy jester like character and an alien/monster. See the inspirations for much more well done examples of this activity. My only defense is that I cut mine out in about 10 minutes and just used sharpies for details. It was quick which was important to me this time. Insipiration here, here, here, here, and here.
Busy Bag 25: Number Wheel Clothespin Match
Download and print a pie divided into as many sections as you'd like. I chose one with six sections. Cut out the circle and glue that circle onto a cardboard circle of the same size for added thickness and durability. Then use some stickers to make each section of the pie represent a different number. Write those same numbers on the clothespins and you're ready. The children count the stickers and pin the corresponding clothespin onto that section. Insipiration here.
Busy Bag 26: Foam Beads Sorting and Stringing
I'm hoping that sorting bead like items and stringing them onto a variety of stringing options never gets old. This time it is foam beads paired with a lace and some pipe cleaners. These foam beads can be sorted by color or shape and then laced onto either the pipe cleaners or the lace. Inspiration was my own craft supply shelf.
Busy Bag 27: Yarn Wrapping
This may be too hard for my three and four year old children but it would be great for older kids and I thought I'd try it. I taped a variety of yarns to a variety of popsicle stick configurations for a yarn wrapping activity. At the simple end is just wrapping the yarn around a single stick. More complex is wrapping yarn around a narrow X shape for a slightly different look. Most complex is weaving the yarn to make a god's eye project. I was inspired by my own eyes wandering over my craft shelf.
Busy Bag 28: Sponge Blocks
Take some sponges and cut them into strips to make great travel "blocks" for log cabin style building. If I had thought about it before I had cut all the sponges into strips I would have made some squares too for variety. These make great travel blocks because they are quiet, light, compact and have some texture to them to reduce sliding around in cars and other moving vehicles. Inspiration found here.
Busy Bag 29: Individual Note Pads
Just toss a couple of small memo books, some cool pens (or pencils or crayons) and some stickers in a bag. I wrote a sweet message to each child in each book to personalize the book for them. They may not be able to read the whole message, but they'll recognize their names and "Mama". Inspired by browsing the back to school aisle.
Busy Bag 30: Matchstick Construction
I had some colored wooden craft sticks in my crafting stash as well. I put a handful of the matchsticks and a piece of felt into a bag. The children can create simple pictures from the sticks or even try to build a tower log cabin style. They could also try to make letters or shapes using the craft sticks.
(Happy 41st Wedding Anniversary to my parents. I love you both!)
If you like these activities, you may be interested in more.
Monday, July 30, 2012
Car Ride Activities Set 5
Yes, I'm perfectly aware that this is the third post in a row of busy bags appropriate for car rides. This blog reflects my life and right now prepping for my upcoming trip is my life. I am constitutionally incapable of doing anything in half measures. I am somewhat completely obsessively determined to have two activities per hour of the car ride (one for each child and then they switch). I'm anticipating 24 hours in the car. 24x2=...48. Sometimes being slightly OCD comes in handy. Sometimes not so much. Tune in after the trip to see which category this obsession falls into. If you're interested, see the Car Ride Activities Set 3 and Car Ride Activities Set 4. In order to avoid having to do about 10 consecutive posts like this I'm going to start covering 10 busy bag ideas per post instead of just five.
I cut and circle and then cut notches around the circumference of the circle. Then I painted the circle black and taped one end of a long string to the center back of the circle. I also made a spider out of pipe cleaners. The kids will wrap the string around the circle to make a spider web for the spider. You could also make a white circle and use light blue yarn to make a snowflake for a different theme. Or you could do any color combination and it would still be a beautiful non-thematic project. Older children can focus on weaving patterns to make a variety of interesting results. Younger children will weave randomly resulting in a more spiderweb like creation. Insipiration here.
I enlisted my husband's help with a single polite request (or perhaps a little begging and pleading) for this one. He cut some pieces of wood and drilled holes in them for me. We did two different shapes for variety, but I wanted one as a 3x3 grid so that in future years the children can play tic-tac-toe with them. Then just stick the drilled wood pieces in a bag with some golf tees and marbles. The idea is for the children to insert the golf tees in the holes (great fine motor activity with color identification and pattern making potential) and then try to balance marbles on top of the golf tees. Insipiration here and here. For a slightly different version using a foam block instead of wood blocks here.
Grab a few paint samples like these. Trim a strip down the edge of the samples the width of your clothespins. Then tape or glue those small colored strips onto the edge of the clothespins. That's it. You're done. Stick them in a bag (unattached) and the children have to match and attach the clothespins to the appropriate spots on the paint sample strips. This task works on a more complex version of color identification and strengthens fine motor skills. Insipiration here.
I found adhesive backed magnetic strips at our local big box store for less than a dollar. I stuck one strip to each of four jumbo sized popsicle sticks and then colored around the magnet strips with sharpies to match the four colors of paper clips I happened to have. Done. The children will sort the paper clips by color and attach them to the color coordinated stick via the magnetic strip. Insipiration here. For a slightly different version without magnets here.
I just sat down with my felt stash and cut the basic component shapes out along with a black square background. The pieces will be separate in the bag and the children will have to assemble the picture almost like a puzzle. Insipiration here.
To continue the theme of puzzle like activities with felt, next I made some simple fraction circles from felt. I just cut them out and used a sharpie to write on the fractions. The activity is really just about assembling the four circles. They might do some role playing pretending it is pie, but we'll have to wait and see. Insipiration here.
I took a small case that Ava's hair bands came in and dumped all the hair bands out. Then I found some jewels from our craft stash and sorted out six colors of all five shapes. I could wish the craft jewels had come in six shapes, but not everything can be perfect. That's it. I'm tossing the jewels and the box in the bag and the task is to sort the treasure into the individual sections of the treasure chest by either color or shape. If I had an endless supply of time and energy, I would decorate the case to make it look more like a treasure chest, but they can just use their imagination. This activity is great for fine motor skills, color and shape identification, sorting, and possibly even patterning. I was inspired by my own eyes wandering over my craft shelf.
A while back, while making a craft/art supply order I saw this bag of buttons and wanted them. I had the vague idea they might make a nice collage material. I haven't touched them since. The bag was still unopened. I opened up the bag and sorted out a bunch with holes large enough for some plastic lacing string I bought when I was making busy book pages. Then I tossed the buttons and the laces into a bag for a button sorting and lacing activity. I was inspired by my own eyes wandering over my craft shelf.
This one is pretty simple and yet the kids seem to love it. Just stick a few long bolts and matching nuts and washers in a bag. They screw them on and take them back off. They try to see how many nuts will fit on one bolt. They can make a pattern (one washer, one nut, one washe, one nut). Insipiration here.
I found some great free printable animal flashcards. I printed them, cut them out, and laid them out on some cardstock and traces squares around them. Then I cut them in half and glued half of the picture onto the cardstock squares. The other half of the flashcards are the puzzle pieces. Insipiration here.
If you like these activities, you may be interested in more.
Car Ride Activities Set 5
Busy Bag 11: Home for a Spider
I cut and circle and then cut notches around the circumference of the circle. Then I painted the circle black and taped one end of a long string to the center back of the circle. I also made a spider out of pipe cleaners. The kids will wrap the string around the circle to make a spider web for the spider. You could also make a white circle and use light blue yarn to make a snowflake for a different theme. Or you could do any color combination and it would still be a beautiful non-thematic project. Older children can focus on weaving patterns to make a variety of interesting results. Younger children will weave randomly resulting in a more spiderweb like creation. Insipiration here.
Busy Bag 12: Golf Tee Marble Balancing
I enlisted my husband's help with a single polite request (or perhaps a little begging and pleading) for this one. He cut some pieces of wood and drilled holes in them for me. We did two different shapes for variety, but I wanted one as a 3x3 grid so that in future years the children can play tic-tac-toe with them. Then just stick the drilled wood pieces in a bag with some golf tees and marbles. The idea is for the children to insert the golf tees in the holes (great fine motor activity with color identification and pattern making potential) and then try to balance marbles on top of the golf tees. Insipiration here and here. For a slightly different version using a foam block instead of wood blocks here.
Busy Bag 13: Color Tint Clothespin Match
Grab a few paint samples like these. Trim a strip down the edge of the samples the width of your clothespins. Then tape or glue those small colored strips onto the edge of the clothespins. That's it. You're done. Stick them in a bag (unattached) and the children have to match and attach the clothespins to the appropriate spots on the paint sample strips. This task works on a more complex version of color identification and strengthens fine motor skills. Insipiration here.
Busy Bag 14: Magnetic Paper Clip Sort
I found adhesive backed magnetic strips at our local big box store for less than a dollar. I stuck one strip to each of four jumbo sized popsicle sticks and then colored around the magnet strips with sharpies to match the four colors of paper clips I happened to have. Done. The children will sort the paper clips by color and attach them to the color coordinated stick via the magnetic strip. Insipiration here. For a slightly different version without magnets here.
Busy Bag 15: Felt Picture - Rainbow
I just sat down with my felt stash and cut the basic component shapes out along with a black square background. The pieces will be separate in the bag and the children will have to assemble the picture almost like a puzzle. Insipiration here.
Busy Bag 16: Felt Fraction Circles
To continue the theme of puzzle like activities with felt, next I made some simple fraction circles from felt. I just cut them out and used a sharpie to write on the fractions. The activity is really just about assembling the four circles. They might do some role playing pretending it is pie, but we'll have to wait and see. Insipiration here.
Busy Bag 17: Treasure Chest Jewel Sort
I took a small case that Ava's hair bands came in and dumped all the hair bands out. Then I found some jewels from our craft stash and sorted out six colors of all five shapes. I could wish the craft jewels had come in six shapes, but not everything can be perfect. That's it. I'm tossing the jewels and the box in the bag and the task is to sort the treasure into the individual sections of the treasure chest by either color or shape. If I had an endless supply of time and energy, I would decorate the case to make it look more like a treasure chest, but they can just use their imagination. This activity is great for fine motor skills, color and shape identification, sorting, and possibly even patterning. I was inspired by my own eyes wandering over my craft shelf.
Busy Bag 18: Button Sorting and Lacing
A while back, while making a craft/art supply order I saw this bag of buttons and wanted them. I had the vague idea they might make a nice collage material. I haven't touched them since. The bag was still unopened. I opened up the bag and sorted out a bunch with holes large enough for some plastic lacing string I bought when I was making busy book pages. Then I tossed the buttons and the laces into a bag for a button sorting and lacing activity. I was inspired by my own eyes wandering over my craft shelf.
Busy Bag 19: Nuts and Bolts Play
This one is pretty simple and yet the kids seem to love it. Just stick a few long bolts and matching nuts and washers in a bag. They screw them on and take them back off. They try to see how many nuts will fit on one bolt. They can make a pattern (one washer, one nut, one washe, one nut). Insipiration here.
Busy Bag 20: Simple Front-Back Puzzles
I found some great free printable animal flashcards. I printed them, cut them out, and laid them out on some cardstock and traces squares around them. Then I cut them in half and glued half of the picture onto the cardstock squares. The other half of the flashcards are the puzzle pieces. Insipiration here.
If you like these activities, you may be interested in more.
Sunday, July 29, 2012
Car Ride Activities Set 4
And here are the next five activities I've prepared for the car ride. See the Car Ride Activities Set 3.
Cut matching felt ice cream bars in several colors and sew around three sides leaving the bottoms open. Write the colors on the bottom of jumbo popsicle sticks. I also cut green rectangles for money. I imagine the children playing the game together. One child plays the customer and holds the money while the other plays the Ice Cream Man and holds the ice cream. The customer requests a specific flavor (color) of ice cream. The Ice Cream Man assembles the ice cream by matching the ice cream bar with the corresponding stick and handing it to the customer in exchange for some money. Then they can switch roles.
Cut two rectangles of fleece and sew them together leaving a small hole to flip inside out and then insert the marble. Then sew in lines through both layers to make maze. I found the tutorial for making a simple marble maze here. For more complex marble mazes look here. To make a marble maze with a slightly streamlined production look here.
I printed a simple color wheel I found online and cut it out and glued it onto a cardboard circle of the same size to make it more sturdy. Then I took sharpies to wooden clothespins and made matching labeled colored clothespins. The task is to match and attach the clothespins to the appropriate sections of the color wheel. This activity addresses color identification, matching, and fine motor skills.
I actually made this square tile pattern activity a while back. I just pulled it off the shelf and stuck a few patterns and a third of the tiles into one of the travel busy bags. You can get the square tiles on Amazon or at most teacher supply stores. My kids also use these in free play to build towers and roads and to create block like pictures.
Print a few shapes with dotted lines (or just freehand draw some, or trace some simple stencils) onto regular weight paper. Put those and a few toothpicks into a bag. Our travel trays are felt lined, so that's all we need, but if your child will be working on a hard surface, include a piece of felt or small washcloth. They put the paper shape over the cloth and punch holes along the outline. Then they can hold the completed punched pattern up to the car window or towards a light fixture to see their pattern light up. This is a great fine motor activity.
(Inspiration found: here, here, and here.)
If you like these activities, you may be interested in more.
Car Ride Activities Set 4
Busy Bag 6: I'm the Ice Cream Man
Cut matching felt ice cream bars in several colors and sew around three sides leaving the bottoms open. Write the colors on the bottom of jumbo popsicle sticks. I also cut green rectangles for money. I imagine the children playing the game together. One child plays the customer and holds the money while the other plays the Ice Cream Man and holds the ice cream. The customer requests a specific flavor (color) of ice cream. The Ice Cream Man assembles the ice cream by matching the ice cream bar with the corresponding stick and handing it to the customer in exchange for some money. Then they can switch roles.
Busy Bag 7: Simple Fleece Marble Mazes
Cut two rectangles of fleece and sew them together leaving a small hole to flip inside out and then insert the marble. Then sew in lines through both layers to make maze. I found the tutorial for making a simple marble maze here. For more complex marble mazes look here. To make a marble maze with a slightly streamlined production look here.
Busy Bag 8: Color Wheel Clothespin Match
I printed a simple color wheel I found online and cut it out and glued it onto a cardboard circle of the same size to make it more sturdy. Then I took sharpies to wooden clothespins and made matching labeled colored clothespins. The task is to match and attach the clothespins to the appropriate sections of the color wheel. This activity addresses color identification, matching, and fine motor skills.
Busy Bag 9: Square Tile Patterns and Play
I actually made this square tile pattern activity a while back. I just pulled it off the shelf and stuck a few patterns and a third of the tiles into one of the travel busy bags. You can get the square tiles on Amazon or at most teacher supply stores. My kids also use these in free play to build towers and roads and to create block like pictures.
Busy Bag 10: Toothpick Pattern Punch
Print a few shapes with dotted lines (or just freehand draw some, or trace some simple stencils) onto regular weight paper. Put those and a few toothpicks into a bag. Our travel trays are felt lined, so that's all we need, but if your child will be working on a hard surface, include a piece of felt or small washcloth. They put the paper shape over the cloth and punch holes along the outline. Then they can hold the completed punched pattern up to the car window or towards a light fixture to see their pattern light up. This is a great fine motor activity.
(Inspiration found: here, here, and here.)
If you like these activities, you may be interested in more.
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