Setting Summer Goals with Your Kids

I've been inspired by Saren over at Power of Moms to help my kids set some summer goals. Since mine are still very young, I wanted to find a way to keep it simple. Here's what came to mind:

 Paper chains! 

They are easy to make and I think they help teach goal-setting very effectively.

(Aren't Charlotte's poses impressive? Don't worry, there's more coming.)

 I recently read the book The Power of Habit, where it talks about how habits are formed. It mentions two factors in forming a habit: 1) a prompt and 2) a reward. I've been thinking of this as I look over my own goals for the year and I've tried to incorporate a prompt, or reminder, for my goal as well as a reward for myself when I take action toward reaching that goal (always involves food).

 I think this same formula is effective with kids and that's why I'm testing out these paper chain goals to see if it actually works.

1) The prompt (or reminder): a bright and colorful paper chain hanging where they see it every day.

2) Reward: The satisfaction of tearing off a link in the chain as they work toward their goal. We are also rewarding them with ice cream when they reach their goal.

I think that's our reward for everything. 'Cause mom needs a reward just as much as they do.

 So tonight for our Family Home Evening, we talked about the importance of goals, using this awesome lesson plan as a guide. Then we gathered some markers, paper, scissors, and glue and went to work on our paper chains. (We also had our cute neighbor next door join us for the evening:)

 I had them write their end goal down on the first strip of paper. (We wrote on them before we made them into chain links). This one was Charlotte's goal: to learn to swim by herself, without floaties.

 On each subsequent link, I helped them think of specific steps they would take to reach their goal. That's another reason why I like these paper chains because it helps them to think of a goal as a sequence of smaller steps that lead them to their final desired outcome.

Some of Charlotte's specific steps to reach her goal to swim without help are:

1. Go to swim lessons! We added a link for the last four days of her lessons this week so she can tear one off when she gets home.

2. Practice with Dad in the pool.

3. Practice going under water in the bathtub (supervised by mom).

4. Practice "bobbing" underwater in the pool.

5. Practice jumping into the pool and swimming to mom or dad.

She thought of most of these herself, with a little encouragement from mom, and she wrote them all down herself, with LOTS of help from mom. I wanted her to have as much ownership as possible in this goal.

 And then we ate popsicles.

Hazel's goal is to get better at telling time and understanding the calendar. She thought of that one on her own, but needed a lot of help thinking of her specific steps to reach that goal.

And then Hazel was grumpy. But I took a picture anyway.

I'm excited to see how these work! Happy summer. So glad it's finally here.

Summer Activities for Toddlers and Preschoolers

Since we're trying to get our daily dose of vitamin D around here...we found this idea for a homemade ring toss here. It didn't require many supplies and was pretty easy to make.

Materials:
paper plates
paper towel holder
scissors
paint
paint brushes
masking tape

Step One:
Cut out the centers of your paper plates, making the rings.


Step Two:
Paint the rings and paper towel holder to your toddler's heart's content.




Step Three:
Cut the bottom of the paper towel holder so that it fits flatly onto the paper plate. Tape into place with masking tape.



Take it outside and enjoy!

Summer Activities for Toddlers and Preschooler: Grassapillars

Remember around Earth Day we planted these Grassapillars? Well lo and behold, I can grow something. Every plant I try to nurture usually ends up...well in the trash. It's so sad, but just not my forte. So after we planted these grassapillars in our egg cartons, I started to feel discouraged when nothing was growing. Then my husband stepped in and helped us remember to water the seeds twice a day and voila! They grew. It was a good chance for my girls to see a plant from start to finish and have part in the growth.

We're so proud.

Stay tuned for a lesson on the moon and a post about an amazing program called The Power of Moms. I have so much to tell you! And I've received a lot of questions lately about activities for 12-18 month old toddlers, so remember to type in "For the Wee Ones" in my search box. There's a few ideas there and I'm going to update that series with some new ideas soon.

Send in your activities; I love to see what you're doing out there.
Have a great Memorial Day weekend. We're off to Colorado tomorrow...

Outdoor Actvities for Toddlers and Preschoolers: Egg Carton Nature Catchers

Oh the things you can do with egg cartons! I loved this idea when I saw it and it worked out really well with my three year old.

Materials:egg carton
paint
string
the great outdoors
We painted the bottom of the carton with different colors and tied a string on either side, so she could hang it around her neck. Then we headed outside and looked for treasures that matched our colors.

We found some flower petals, a roly-poly bug (I just looked up how to spell that), rocks, leaves, etc. that fit nicely into our "nature catcher." You can take a closer look at your treasures with a magnifying glass and talk about your favorite colors.

*This idea came from an activity called Trail Totes from Familyfun.com
(Um, I know I pull a lot of ideas from them. I'm kind of addicted.)

More Summer Activities and Snacks

Well, let's just say that I've worked out a few kinks and I have internet during the day again...so you'll be hearing from me a bit more often. Stay tuned.

Fall is pretty much here (isn't it lovely?), but here's a few more "summer" activity ideas while it's still warm outside (well, semi-warm here in Utah).

So many possibilities with a star-shaped cookie cutter.
(The watermelon popsicles came from familyfun.go.com)








Freeze these for an hour or so and there you go! Don't let them sit in your freezer for too long though--they get a bit yucky.
AND
We spent about a week at my mother-in-law's house with the cousins and she gave me so many great ideas! Here's a few...
Nature Catchers:
I believe my mother-in-law found these white cans at a craft store, drilled holes in the sides, and made handles with wire. She printed labels that say "Nature Catchers" and taped them on with clear tape. The kids LOVED having these buckets to collect their treasures as we went for walks outside.








(I love my daughter's face in this picture)

Rock Bugs:

My mother-in-law told me that she used clear cellophane for the wings and hot glued them onto the rock. She made her eyes out of paper or you can use googly eyes you get at the craft store. Your toddler will have fun finding different sizes and shapes for these bugs. They can also decorate the bugs with markers, paint, or stickers. Once my daughter found a big flat rock and spent a while gluing beads onto it with Elmer's glue. Be creative!
(Feel free to send me pics. I love 'em)

And finally,

Dessert Kabobs:
We used marshmellows, strawberries, brownie bits, pineapple, and grapes. The kids put them onto the skewers and then we served them with chocolate syrup.

Happy end of summer!