Homemade Tambourines

For the letter T, we talked about music and different types of instruments. I really like this book, "Ah, Music!" because it explains rhythm, dynamics, and how your own body is an instrument. And since we're studying "T,", we decided to make tambourines!

Materials:
two paper plates
small bells
string
stapler
hole punch
crayons & stickers

Step One:
Staple your paper plates together all the way around the edges.

Step Two:
Punch holes along the edges, about every five or six inches. Tie your bells through the holes (tightly!).

We assigned my two year old to the task of cutting string because she loves scissors.

This activity is great practice for tying. My four year old was determined to do every one of her bells on her own.


After this picture, they colored their tambourines with crayons, but I never took a picture.
Then we danced to some Disney songs on Pandora and shook our tambourines.
So fun.

Any homemade instruments you want to share?

Toddler Activities for the Letter T

We had a lot of fun with the letter T. There were endless books at the library about touch, taste, tigers, teeny tiny things, and turtles. Plus, I had been holding onto this Tornado Tube for weeks and finally got to try it out.

First we talked about what makes a tornado and how dangerous it is for people that are close to one. We found some crazy youtube videos that showed real tornados and the damage they can do. Then we made our own...
Materials:
two water bottles
one Tornado Tube
(you can also use a washer with duct tape to seal the two bottles together)
water



We filled one bottle about 3/4 full and connected it to the other bottle with the Tornado Tube.


Then I showed the girls how to move the bottle in a circular motion to create the tornado inside. It took them a few tries since they mostly just shook the bottles, but eventually it worked and they were so excited to see their own tornado.

I've been working on my four year old with the concept of "time" so I need something to give my two year old while we discuss the clock. She's good at finding letters in books or on flashcards, so this might be an idea to try if you have a younger toddler around during a more difficult activity or lesson. She gets so excited if she can find one and in this case, once she found all the T's, I gave her a gumball. (I'm all about bribing with that girl!)


Here's some fun books we found on the letter T.

More T's to come!

How to Help your Preschooler Understand Time

With winter dragging on a bit, here's a fun activity to help your kids understand the length of TIME. Whenever one of us has to run an errand, my three year old asks how long we'll be gone. Whatever the answer is--one hour or twenty minutes--her response is, "That's too long!" Time is such a difficult thing for little ones to wrap their heads around. So this activity is a good one. It's an hourglass you can make at home. (Original idea from Family Fun.)
Materials: two plastic bottles sand clear tape button (with same diameter as bottles) timer
1: Remove any plastic cover from the bottles so you can see through them easily. Make sure they're clean and dry (forgot the "dry" part with one of mine...)
2: Pour the sand into one of the bottles. *The amount of sand you use, of course, determines how long your hourglass will last. 1/2 cup lasts about ten minutes.

3: Place the button in between the two bottles and secure with several layers of clear tape.

4: Flip it over and measure the time with your timer.


This might help with taking turns with a special toy, waiting for dinner time, or actually getting your kids to help you clean up the front room for ten minutes! Make it a game. (I might use it in the restroom with my oldest. Thirty minute time limit...)
p.s. Disclaimer: My sand wasn't fine enough...our hourglass turned out to be more like 2 hours! Make sure you buy the right kind. I believe Walmart has "fine" colored sand that would work. I found mine at Joann's and it would work, but only with larger button holes.

Thanksgiving Activities for Toddlers and Preschoolers: Racing Turkeys

If you have some a group of kids together this Thanksgiving, here's a fun activity to keep them entertained for a while. Remember the little spiders we blew across the floor with straws? Well, now you can race with mini turkeys.

Materials:
brown fuzzy balls
orange construction paper
small feathers
hot glue

Cut your feathers small enough so that they're not too heavy to blow across the floor. Glue them on the back of the fuzzy ball. Then cut your beak out of the orange construction paper and glue in on the front.





Aren't they cute?

Now time to race!

Preschooler Activity for the Letter T: Turtle Lunches

One of the greatest things about summer is having fun with your food. Here's an idea my mother-in-law found that we tried out.
(Warning: these pictures may gross you out. Being pregnant, I felt nauseous the entire time I made these, but the end product was great.)

Materials:
ground beef
bacon
hot dogs
cloves
toothpicks
kitchen scissors

Step One: Make your patty as big as you'd like. The hot dogs stay in better if you have a thicker patty. Cut three hot dogs in half and insert them into the patty with toothpicks.

Step 2: Weave the bacon (lattice style) around the patty, making the shell. We used kitchen scissors to cut the bacon strips in half lengthwise so they were easier to weave.

Step Three: We used cloves for eyes and cut the ends of the hot dogs for toes.



Step Four: We covered the hot dog legs with foil since they tend to burn first on the grill. Cook to your liking and enjoy!