Asian-Pacific American Heritage Blog Hop: Asian Crafts
Harry Potter Birthday Party
Farms and Zoos
Broad Tailed Hawk at Drumlin Farm |
Happy Family Times--Family Game Time
Family Game Time was the motto of our weekend. Hazel has been a bit sick so we needed to take it easy. She wanted to play everyone of her games this weekend (both days). We played seven games many times this weekend!
Candy Land |
We also bought her Chutes & Ladders around the same time, but I put it away since I knew she wasn't ready for this one. This one involves counting. You could also easily do some addition and subtraction problems while playing since the board is numbered 1-100 for each square.
This next game I first learned about from I Can Teach My Child. After reading this lovely post, I put several of these games on my wish list and finally bought Hi-Ho-Cherry-O for Hazel. She loves it! We have modified it a bit and play the version where we work together. The goal, in our modified version, is to pick all the fruit before time runs out. The time is based on how you spin. If you get the bird on the spinner you have to pick a piece of puzzle. If the puzzle gets completed before all the fruit is picked you do not win. We work together and do not keep track of which fruit is whose. She loves to play it. The highest you have to count up to is five in this game. (NOTE: I recently saw this game at Ocean State Job Lot so if you want it and have one near you check it out before buying it elsewhere!!)
The same day Hi-Ho-Cherry-O arrived from Amazon, we had bought Count Your Chickens! at Drumlin Farm. This is another cooperative game. There is only one playing piece--Mother Hen. Your job is to get all the chicks back to the chicken coop before Mother Hen gets there. You get a chick for each square you move and there are some special ones where you get plus one to the number you moved. However on the spinner is a fox. If you get the fox you have to take one chick out of the chicken coop. Again Hazel loves this game! In it you work on counting. The most we have had to count up to I think is twelve. She is definitely better at counting out things. Before she would just say the numbers all together and not count each individual item.
This game we bought at a discount store. (I think it was Christmas Tree Shops.) It is put out by Cranium and is called Duck, Duck, 1-2-3. The object of this game is for each player to move around the board picking up their matching ducklings which fit (somewhat) into the parent duck's back and then get to the center for the duck party. There is no winner. The game is over when all the ducks are at the party. We got it of course for Hazel's love of ducks! Needless to say she loves it because of the ducks. She is always deciding which color is the mother duck and which is the father duck.
At one of the discount stores (Ocean State Job Lot, I think), we picked up a set of Disney Princess dominoes. They did not have any without characters or I would have gotten them, but these also do not have dots or numbers on them so I think it is a bit easier for the first domino game. She loves it. We have not made a domino train to knock down yet, but will.
We got this one with the dominoes. It is called the Birthday Party Game. Since we celebrate someone's birthday just about every day in my house (often my third but sometimes it is Ducky's), I thought this might be good. You spin a spinner and have to get the invitation first. Then you spin to get all the party supplies: dessert, hat, gift, drink, favor, and noisemaker. The first person to get all of his/her wins. We of course usually play until everyone has all of their supplies since Hazel doesn't like there to be a winner.
The final game to share is another one I learned about at I Can Teach My Child! I happened to see Zingo at Michaels and was able to use my 40% off coupon to buy it. Hazel loves it. It is a matching game. We play a modified version since she is not quick enough yet to beat us. We help her notice if her board has one. She loves moving the zing piece as well as matching and picking out the card, etc. We all seem to enjoy this one very much.
~ please link up (family time oriented giveaways are ok, but please no Etsy shops)
~just crafts will be deleted since this is to share family times ~ use our button so others can join the fun
~ check out our Happy Family Times Pinterest board where we will be pinning some of our favorite ideas
Gifts for Jesus -- a Sunday School Craft & More -- Crafty Weekends Link Party
Yesterday was Epiphany. In Hispanic countries it is known as el Dia de los Reyes (Three King's Day). This is the day when the three kings visit and bring presents to the children in these countries. In Sunday School this morning we told the Godly Play story of the Mystery of Christmas which goes through the story from Gabriel coming to Mary to the escape to Egypt and beyond. This year I have been finding crafts that tie into the story to give the kids' work time a bit more focus. I came up with a fun craft for the older students and wanted to share it with you. I also thought I would give some background.
Lent Ideas for Kids
Today is Ash Wednesday. Yesterday and today Hazel and I put together a Lenten table to help us think about the meaning of Lent and prepare for Easter. We pulled out many of our projects from past years. Some of these projects Hazel does not remember, so we are working on redoing some of them. We missed going to our church's pancake supper for Shrove Tuesday. I knew one of the activities they were doing with the kids was to decorate an "Alleluia" to put away in the box. Since "alleluia" is not used during Lent. I had Hazel do one at home.
Chapter Book Extravaganza! Beginning Reader Through Young Adult Part 2
Yesterday we started our chapter book extravaganza. We shared the first group of books for ages 5 to 12. Today we are going to get through the rest of them. As I mentioned yesterday, most of these books I have not finished (some Hazel did) so we will be providing limited reviews. Hope you enjoy them and find some new books to read!!
Fun Facts about Snowflakes -- Walking in a Winter Wonderland
Halloween Round Up
Products to Discover the World
How do you discover the world? How do you teach your children about the world and its places without leaving home? Today I am going to share some great resources to do just that. These books and kits help learn about the globe, countries, cities as well as discover parts of the world like the ocean and more. They are for mixed levels of kids and will add some fun to your home or class. The first is Discovery Globe: Build Your Own Globe Kit by Leon Gray and illustrated by Sarah Edmunds.
Pythagorean Theorem Fun -- DIY Mathematical Art
As I continue to think about my new job in September and plan for what I want to hang in my classroom, I am exploring the Pythagorean Theorem. The Pythagorean Theorem is probably one of the most well-known or well-remembered theorem in math. It is often taught in both algebra and geometry. In algebra it lends to working with exponents and roots and in geometry with triangles. I have seen memes saying how people did not use the Pythagorean theorem today, but I have also been told by many people that they have used it in their lives from building a new deck and woodwork to programming and more. Although math has real life applications and was mostly discovered to explain the world, much of math is taught to help develop the brain of our children. In high school the brain is just beginning to truly develop its logic skills and math is huge in helping with this. The Pythagorean theorem also is mentioned (incorrectly) in the Wizard of Oz. Yes, it is this famous!
Although it is named for the Greek mathematician, Pythagoras, it was known throughout the world before his time. It is referenced in Ancient Egypt and Babylon (around 1900 BC). Apparently, it did not become as well known until Pythagoras stated it. There are many proofs of this theorem and some of them like the one below is a visual proof.
Kid Friendly Look at the Stories of The Arabian Nights
Katie Chin's Everyday Chinese Cookbook -- Asian Pacific Heritage Month Series
It is May and that brings several things. In the United States it means Mother's Day, the end of school is near and Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month. This post is the first of mine in the Multicultural Kid Blogs Asian Pacific American Heritage Month Blog Series and Giveaway. (Scroll down for the giveaway!) Today I am sharing with you a new cookbook from Katie Chin. This book is Katie Chin's Everyday Chinese Cookbook: 101 Delicious Recipes from My Mother's Kitchen with photographs by Masano Kawana. Katie Chin is sharing some of her mother's everyday recipes just in time for Mother's Day!!
Math from the Middle East: Middle Eastern & Northern Africa Blog Series and Giveaway
This post is part of the Multicultural Kid Blogs' Middle Eastern and Northern African Heritage Month Blog Series and Giveaway. To enter the giveaway scroll to the bottom. I thought I would continue my look at multicultural mathematics by looking at some of the Middle Eastern mathematicians and mathematics from the Middle East. Unfortunately I was not able to find books that shared this information that Hazel could understand. I am sharing a bit about a few mathematicians and lessons to go with their discoveries as well as a bit on Islamic art and lessons as well.