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I’m not sure if Erin had Halloween on her mind when she was making this one – it’s pretty evil looking..
Pasta faces are a simple and cheap activity requiring little effort and a lot of fun, I didn’t do this one with her, Daddy did, perhaps that’s how it’s taken on such a sinister look!
Update: I just showed Erin the picture of her plate on the ‘puter’, apparently the face is Daddy!
When choosing activities for a two and a half year old I find simplicity the key. Any more than 3 steps and I’m afraid you’re asking for trouble, lucky this activity only has three steps then eh! Seriously though, this activity was soooo age appropriate and Erin was thrilled with the result, definitely worth a blog…
You will need (for two caterpillars):
One egg carton
4 Straws
Green Paint and Brush
One Marker pen
Scissors
1. Cut the egg carton until you’re left with two pieces, each with 3 ‘cups’, see picture(!)
2. Paint green and leave to dry.
3. Make two small holes, cut bendy part of straw and feed through. If you keep the hole small enough the straws should fit snugly. Finally, draw on some eyes and a nose.
Disclaimer: These caterpillars may not be anatomically correct, cuteness was the main aim!
1. Penny Toss
Provide pennies and bowls, mark a shooting spot on the grass, every penny in the pot wins a prize. [from Having Fun with Kids by Marilee LeBon]
2. Penny a Weed
We did something similar with snails when I was younger! Two pence for a snail though, it’s a dirty job.
3. Peanut Hunt
Buy a pack of monkey nuts, mark some ‘winning’ nuts, and then hide all the nuts. Give prizes to any kids who find winning nuts. [from Having Fun with Kids by Marilee LeBon]
5. Face Painting
6. Bingo
7. Happy Sun Craft Project (Easy)
8. Short Tennis
You can buy children’s sets relatively cheaply. Get set up with some strawberries and cream and pretend you’re at Wimbledon.
9. Ripped Newspaper Art Project
10. Bike Rides
Pack a picnic and make it an all day outing.
11. Build Sandcastles
In a sandpit or on a beach, make flags from paper and straws for the top.
12. Make Homemade Birthday Cards
Most superstores have pre-packed sets for a few pounds/dollars, which usually include card, glue, stickers and glitter.
13. Make Chocolate Fondue
14. Day Camp
Set up a tent and provide picnic food, and have a day camp in the back garden
15. Karaoke Competition
Hold a karaoke competition, or go one further and host a ‘stars in their eyes’ final with all the kids imitating pop stars.
16. Blind Taste Test
Blindfold each child in turn and provide a few different foodstuffs, mark down which ones they get right. Provide a small prize for the winner.
17. Play Hide and Seek
18. Ice Cream Picture Activity
19. Egg and Spoon Races
Use the plastic eggs from the toy kitchen, if you have one.
20. Visit a Science Museum
21. Put on a Play
Provide a good story book and get the children to choose parts and act it out.
22. Read-athon
Hold a read-a-thon, see how many books they can read in an alotted time.
24. Backyard Cookery Class
Hold a cookery class in your own back garden. Tailor recipes to the appropriate age, but perhaps homemade pizzas, fruit kebabs and fairy cakes would be a good place to start.
25. Visit a Farmers Market
Pick ingredients and make a homemade soup or ratatouille.
26. Sponge Painting
Provide a length of plain wallpaper, some sponges and some paint. Hey presto!
27. Sand Art
28. Colour-in Printouts
There are various sites to get print-outs, just search in google.
29. Stencilling with Doilies
30. Visit the Library
Try and arrange to go during story-telling time.
31. Model with Play-dough
32. Go Swimming
33. Make Chocolate Krispie Cakes
34. Build an Obstacle Course
Build an obstacle course in the back garden and time each other. Use and play equipment you have, ie tubes, climbing frame, bikes, hula hoops, skipping ropes with household items like sheets as scramble nets.
35. Chalk Drawing
Use white chalk on black paper, or the patio as a canvas!
36. Go Bark Rubbing
38. Jigsaw Puzzles
Do jigsaw puzzles and then try and make your own from card.
39. Water Play
Fill water balloons and pistols for older kids.
40. Make Homemade Musical Instruments
41. Sticker Picture
Provide stickers and plain card, it’s that easy!
42. Make Sock Puppets
43. Fondant Icing Characters
Provide a few different colours of fondant icing (colour with food colouring) and let your children make animals and characters from cartoons.
45. Listen to a Story CD
You can usually borrow these from the library.
46. Make Painted Pasta Jewellery
47. Make an Alphabet Scrapbook
Use a page for each letter and find magazine cut outs of the letter to stick in, great activity for preschoolers.
48. Play Card Games
Uno, snap and pairs can provide a couple of hours of fun.
49. Photography
Buy them a disposable camera to practice taking photos of wildlife and scenery.
50. Summer Scrapbook
Make a scrapbook with photos, pictures and comments on everything you’ve done over the holidays.
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This activity in ‘Have Fun with Your Kids’ by Marilee LeBon reminded me of the several times we made these, except we pretended they were guitars.
How To Make a Homemade Banjo
You will need;
A Paper-Towel Tube
A Tissue Box (one of the rectangular ones)
Three Rubber Bands
Paint or other materials for decoration
1. Staple the paper towel tube to the back of the tissue box lengthways.
2. Cut three notches on each end of the tube. Stretch the rubber bands from one end of the tube to the other and let them rest in the notches.
3. Paint/decorate your banjo.
Activities
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activity, banjo, craft
Party games as kids get older get a little more difficult. Here are three ideas for a pirate-themed party, although they can be easily adjusted for other themes. The first idea is probably better for younger children, perhaps aged 3-5, the second is most suitable for ages 5-8, and the third for kids 8 and upwards.
Cut out prize discs from cardboard, paint and number them. Have each winning token correspond to a prize. Bury the ‘treasure’ in a large sandpit and send your mini pirates to work.
Hide chocolate gold coins around the house or garden. Have some gold coins marked out for a prize, the rest can be eaten. Let your medium sized pirates scavenge for treasure.
Write clues to lead your pirates to each destination where they will find a penny. Pennies can be cashed in at the end for prizes. This style works well for teams.
More Pirate Stuff
Pirate Party Goods via Design Mom
Pirate Party Favor Kit via Amazon
Pirate Party Cookie Cutters via Amazon
Photo by flickr user Muffet
Heads ‘n’ Volleys is a football game, or soccer to my American readers.
Heads ‘n’ Volleys requires 3 people or more. One goal, which can be mocked up with jackets or trees as goal posts. One football.
One person is elected as goalkeeper, and the rest of the players play with each other. The aim of the game is to score a goal by heading it into the goal or volleying it. A volley is when a player passes the ball through the air to another player, and that player makes contact with the ball before it touches the ground. To make the game a little easier we would include half-volleys whereby the ball may bounce once before contact is made.
This game is more for fun, you can keep goal score but the real aim is to help other players (and for them to help you) make amazing pele-esque goals. Running around, celebrating the goal in star footballer fashion is mandatory!
Photo by flickr user fabbio
This quick activity idea comes from ‘Have Fun with Your Kids’ by Marilee LeBon.
You will need;
Marbles
Shoe Box
Markers (I heart sharpies)
1. Take your shoe box, and, on one of the longer sides cut out five doors of differing sizes.
2. Above each door give a points value, the smaller the door the higher the points value should be.
Playing the Game
1. Youngest player goes first (because that’s always what happens, right, pfff I was the eldest, not bitter….much)
2. Players take turns to roll a marble through the door, if a marble goes through the points value for that door is awarded.
3. Highest score wins (because it’s ok to have a winner !)
Photo by flickr user van Ort
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You will need;
Pencil/Pen
Paper
1. Draw a scribble onto paper. Get your partner to make a drawing out of that scribble, it could be an animal, a mode of transport, an object. Take turns of being the scribbler and then the drawer. Alternatively the parent makes the scribbles, and the kids spend hours doing the drawings (hours is perhaps wishful thinking!)
Photo by flickr user prettywar-stl
I spent about two years when I was younger living with my Nan, one activity I really enjoyed at that age (11/12) was cooking. We would make bolognese, curry, onion bhaji’s, sausage roll, vol-a-vents, cakes etc….
When I moved back to my mum’s my brother and I would play ‘ready, steady, cook’, this game was based on a popular cookery programme (UK readers will know what I’m talking about). We would find a range of ingredients and have a cook-off to see who would come up with the best recipe.
This summer why not buy some fresh produce, or better still, take your children to a farmers market with a budget, let them choose the ingredients and provide the family meal. You could even have a vote to see who’s dish was the best – because competition is ok!
The winner could receive a special prize, perhaps a super-indulgent desert??
Photo by flickr user avlxyz
The best way to ‘teach’ toddlers is to provide stimulating activities. When I worked at the nursery, we would focus on one topic each week and provide various activities that the children would enjoy and learn from.
I would stick to the basics, circle, square and triangle.
A Shape Collage – Pre-cut shapes from coloured paper, let your toddler stick them down onto a piece of card.
A Shape Mobile – Cut large shapes from thick card, punch a hole and thread with string.
Traffic Light Picture – A traffic light picture (black card, three circles painted in red, yellow and green) combines shape and colour.
Balls – Play catch or make your own ball pool.
Building Blocks – Build towers and interesting shapes.
Shape Sorter Toys – Shape sorter toys include the light and sound variety as well as the wooden block style. We have both and they are equally good.
Make your own cards, cut 12 cards, make 4 for each shape and play snap.
My First Jumbo Book of Shapes looks like a good pick, I haven’t read it but it does have a good write up and it is age appropriate, it also says that it is ‘wonderfully interactive’ and young children *love* to get involved.
I'm a 27 year old mum to 4 year old Erin. We live just outside Edinburgh in a small rural village.
I've been blogging for four years and write about anything and everything that takes my fancy.
Above is me with my beloved Ernie in Port Aventura and left with our love child in Florida.
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