A Thankful Birthday Girl

We had the BEST 4th Birthday Party for our little one last week!!!  It definitely didn't look like it came off of a birthday party blog or anything, but she LOVED it and that's what counts!  After all of our guests had left and after jumping on the rented princess castle bouncer for another 3 hours, she gave me  the biggest hug ever and told me how she loved her party.  THAT, made all of the planning and running around completely worth it!    

At the party, she was so excited to open all of her presents, and, of course, we encouraged her to say, "Thank You!" to each person for her gifts.  But, like most preschoolers, she was overwhelmed and excited and had so many other things to think about that I'm not for sure that the "thank you's" were completely sincere.  

The next day, she looked through each of her new gifts and made for sure that she knew who each one was from.  She admired all of them for quite some time and said how much she loved them all.  

I wanted to send thank you cards to everyone and first thought of those cute picture cards.  Ya know, the ones like everyone sends for Christmas?  I started to make some online and then realized that Macy had nothing to do with the process, so I deleted them and off we went to the craft room.  

We just used plain construction paper, and then she drew a picture on each one and also added a few stickers.  The pictures were relevant to each person and completely decided on by Macy.  For some she drew the gift that she was given by that person, but for some she chose to draw something meaningful for the person it was meant for.  Then, she told me what she wanted to say to each person, and I wrote it down for her.  Simple as that!  Thank you cards from the heart of a preschooler!  Precious!

James 1:17 ~ Every good and perfect gift is from above , coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.

Almost Wordless Wednesday ~ Cute Frustrations

Teachable Moment = Me to Macy:  "See how frustrating it is when others don't listen to you?  Let's always try to be good listeners!"

           Happy Wednesday!

10 for Tuesday ~ Fun with Rain Puddles

1. Guess if objects will float or sink and then try them out in the puddles.
2. Float paper boats.
3. Use watercolors or chalk paint to paint the driveway or sidewalk.  Use the puddles to rinse off the brushes before changing colors.
4. Practice the long jump as you jump over puddles.
5. Talk about depth and use a ruler to measure how deep each puddle is.
6. Puddles are great target practice for pebbles!
7. Play a magnetic fishing game.  Just tie some yarn with a magnet on the end to a stick.  Then, put some magnetic fish in the puddles...try the dollar store or just make your own.
8. Use the water to help make a mud pie.  I think this is a lost art!
9. Use a small cup to scoop up the water from a puddle.  Pour the water into a watering can and use it to water house or porch plants.
10. Put on your rubber boots and splash!!!

In Ontario, April 27th is National Puddle Day.  It is a day set aside to honor those children whose lives are cut short.  Everyone is encouraged to wear their rubber boots and jump in puddles.  What a great way to remember children!  

My neighbor looked at me crazy for allowing my daughter to splash in rain puddles the other day.  I really don't know why.  I'm sure we all can remember how much fun splashing in puddles was when we were kids!!! I hope you enjoy splashing in puddles this Spring and take the opportunity to make it a Teachable Moment!

Easter Egg Hunt with Letter Scramble

Do you need a fun, seasonal, hands-on way to practice spelling words or sight words?  

Try an Easter egg hunt!  

1. Just make a list of the words your child is working on.
2. Assign each word a color of Easter egg.
3. Write each word out in big letters.
4. Cut the words apart by letter.
5. Put one letter in each egg.  
6. Hide the eggs.

For example, for the word "THE" cut a T, H, and E out and put each letter in a separate yellow egg.  Then, for the word "AND" cut an A, N, and D out and put each letter in a separate pink egg.  Hide the 6 eggs, or as many eggs needed to cover the spelling or sight word list.

Now, have your child go on a hunt to find all of the eggs.  Let him/her sort the eggs by color, open them up, and try to make words out of the letters.  If this is too much of a challenge, there is nothing wrong with providing your child with a word list to help.  A word card could also be provided for each color set.  Then, your child will just have to match the letters to what they see on the word card.

     Happy Hunting!

Look Up, Look Down

I know that children's books without words have many benefits and definitely have a place in literacy education, however, I have never personally liked them very much...

until...

Macy and I went to the library the other day.  We have been really busy lately, so I was in a pretty big hurry and just let her pick whatever 10 books she wanted.  Normally, we meander around, take our time, and I look through the books first to make for sure they will serve some sort of purpose for us or at least be somewhat enjoyable.  Well, I didn't this time...pick 10 books and try to hurry, sweetie.  Mommy needs to get going.

Anyway, she picked this book called Look Up, Look Down with no words at all and photographs taken by Tana Hoban.  

We had the best time with this book!!!

I would have never thought of presenting an idea like this to my daughter.  Tana Hoban took pictures of random things such as a hot air balloon and a crate full of bottles.  The pictures were either taken with the camera looking up at the object or looking down at the object.  It is just one of those things that you typically wouldn't think of to teach your children unless maybe you are a photographer or an art teacher.

To my surprise, it was a tough concept for Macy, but she loved it!  I have to say that I enjoyed it just as much as she did.  As her mother, I have never witnessed her struggle in learning, so I had never gotten the opportunity to see her try so hard to understand something and then watch the little light bulb turn on in her head.  It was amazing and, oh, so much fun!  

We looked the book through 3 or 4 times, and then she was off to take her own 

look up and look down pictures.         

Beginning Sounds

The time is almost here!

I can't believe how quickly it came!

READING!!!

Macy is now interested in letters, their sounds, and how things are spelled...oh, exciting times are sure to follow!  When we are riding in the car, she asks what letter everything we pass starts with.  Then, we have to say the word accenting the first sound.  Then, she wants me to spell it for her.  

She has also really enjoyed Old MacDonald had a Farm lately, so we are spelling all of the animals in the song, too.  She can't get enough of spelling!

For an active activity at home, I took out the trusty alphabet blocks and some of her favorite items from around the house.  I give her an item, and she has to decide which sound/letter it starts with.  I only give her 3 or 4 letter/sound block choices at a time to make it a little easier but still challenging.  

Tomorrow, I plan on playing I spy with her using beginning sounds.  I spy with my little eyes something that starts with the b sound, etc.

Computer games are a favorite at our house, so here is a link to some letter/sound games that are pretty easy to navigate for a preschooler...who am I kidding, she can navigate this computer better than I can sometimes!      

      Happy Reading!