How to make pancakes in fun shapes for kids

What a fun breakfast!!! Get the kids involved by giving them the shapes to make their own picture or animal. If you are working on spelling or letter recognition, make a variety of letters and let the children put the letters together to form words before eatting!

Creating a Secret Spy Scavenger Hunt!

Oh no... the kids are getting bored. Should we watch a movie? Color? Here is an idea both older and younger kids will love. Let your kids pretend to be spies. Create a scavenger hunt throughout the house or backyard. After they have solved the mystery, switch roles. Let them create the scavenger hunt.

Here is a video showing how to create invisible ink. Write secret clues in the invisible ink for the kids to solve. Your kids are now improving fine motor, reading and problem solving skills and they don't even realize!




Have fun!!!

Best Homemade Playdough Recipe

Here is another idea for a fun and creative activity to do with your children this summer. I babysat today. I always make sure that I bring play dough with me because the kids LOVE it. Make it even more fun by getting the kids involved in the play dough recipe.




I saw this video and love that the little girl is demonstrating the recipe!

*Make the project even more fun by letting your children pretend that they are on television. Film them while they make and explain the recipe!!! They will love to go back and watch themselves.

Creative Kids Cooking

Here are some more creative ideas to keep your children busy during summer vacation!!! So school is out. No homework, no tests, no learning... woohoo!!! The kids are thrilled. Parents and teachers are not always so thrilled. "How much knowledge will my kids lose in these 2 or 3 months?" we wonder.

Well, we don't want kids to stop learning over the summer. We also don't want them to feel like we are forcing them to do schoolwork during their vacation. Here is the answer.... cue music... HAVE FUN WITH YOUR KIDS!!! :)

I love the idea of cooking with kids. They love helping in the kitchen, and everyone has to eat anyway. Why not get them involve. They are practicing math skills such as measuring, counting and fractions. They must use reading skills and follow instructions. You can even take them to the store and get them involved with money and learning about a variety of foods.

Here are some links to yummy and fun recipes. I love the familyfun.go.com website. They always have creative, fun ideas.


http://familyfun.go.com/recipes/egg-heads-919508/

http://familyfun.go.com/recipes/cooking-with-kids/making-food-fun/fruit-flowers-699614/

http://familyfun.go.com/recipes/cooking-with-kids/making-food-fun/sandwich-art-689038/

How to make a Table cloth play house for creative kids play

Summer is almost here! The kids are going to be out of school, and it is important that they have time to be creative and play. When I was little my grandmother made a tablecloth playhouse for my sister and me. It was awesome. What kid doesn't love hiding under a table.

Creating Preschool Memories

It has been a long time since my last post. I got busy getting ready for my preschool class to start. I have a new class now and I am ready to start updating you on all of my fun preschool teaching ideas!

Kids LOVE seeing pictures of themselves. Parents love seeing what their kids do during the day. In my class I have taken these facts and used them to create the perfect end of the year gift. I know...I know...it is only September. Why am I already thinking about the end of the year gift? Well, my end of the year gift is a scrapbook so it is best to start right at the beginning.

I started doing the scrapbooks with the kids last year, and they got rave reviews! You can even get the kids involved creating the pages.

Materials:

*2-pocket poly report cover: It is only $0.99 at staples. I like it because it is durable plastic so the kids can handle the scrapbooks. They come a variety of colors. They are also transparent, so you can see the cover page through the book.

*clear sheet protectors

*card stock

*camera: Take a lot of pictures throughout the year!

This is the cover page. Also place a picture of the child on the cover. I will show page layouts without the children's pictures for their privacy. This year I am doing the year from A-Z. Each week I take pictures of the students doing something that begins with the letter of the week. For example the first week I did "All-star students arrive for the first day of school." Depending on how independent your students are, you can let them create the layout or you could just have them glue their picture on a layout that you have created. The students will enjoy looking through their own and their friends books!

Ideas for the new school year!

I can't believe that it is already August! That means time to get ready for a new school year. The project that I am currently working on is cubbies for my students' papers. I think that cubbies are the easiest way to store children's work. They are always in the same place. This gives the students and parents an easy routine to pick up work and notes. It also becomes very obvious who is not remembering to pick up work and notes.

In the past I have only had a folder for each child's papers. It wasn't a bad system until we had wet projects! Where can we keep the projects so they are out of the way, but spread out so they can dry? If each student has their own cubby, it is easy to simply place each students' project on top of their cubby.

So I am on a tight budget. If you look up cubbies online or in the stores, they can be very expensive!!! So I have chosen to make mine. I am using the medium postage boxes. I will update you on how the project goes!