It’s that time again…..spring cleaning! There are so many age appropriate chores you can give your kids to help out with cleaning.  To encourage your kids to clean, you can make it fun or turn it into a game.  Here is a list of chores according to your kid’s age group:

Toddler Chores

1. Put toys away
2. Dust with feather duster or rag
3. Pick up dirty clothes and put in hamper
4. Make bed (it might not be pretty and that’s okay)
5. Help put groceries away
6. Match socks (attempt to)
7. Help with switching laundry

Preschool Chores

1. Unload dishwasher
2. Put clothes away in drawers
3. Sweep floors
4. Clean counters
5. Wipe down windows
6. Take trash out
7. Help with the grocery shopping

While your kids are helping with spring cleaning, explain why you take time to clean and take care of your house.  You can talk about why you make grocery lists, why you sweep dirt and crumbs off the floor, why you do laundry, why you have to take the trash out, etc…  If your kids understand why they are helping you with cleaning and chores, they will be more eager to help out (hopefully).  Happy cleaning!

Spring is finally here! Along with warmer weather, spring can bring rain and storms. This is a great teaching opportunity for you to educate your kids about spring weather (rain, wind, clouds, and thunder storms). For days your kids can’t get outside, check out these weather inspired activities.

1. Match numbered clouds or sun to raindrops and flowers.
2. Create spring weather related sensory bottles (my kids love making these).
3. Make a weather mobile.
4. Decorate and create a rain stick (you can find several different ways to make these on Google or Youtube).
5. Mold Play-Doh into different shapes of clouds.
6. Paint a storm on paper.
7. Check out spring weather related books from your local library.  Some examples are Thunder Cake by Patricia Polacco, Thunder Boom by Shutta Crum, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs by Judi Barrett, and Little Cloud by Eric Carl.
8. Sing rain and wind inspired songs (you can find several on Youtube).
9. Rain Paint- Drop food coloring on a paper plate and set outside for a few minutes while it is raining.  Bring the plate in and let it dry.  Once it dries, you will be able to see the patterns of rain that fell on the plate.
10. Play a game called will the wind blow it? Ask your kids to gather items from around the house that they think will blow in the wind.  Once the items are collected, using a fan or hair dryer, blow “wind” at each item to see if it will blow away.  This is a great way to teach about the weight of each object.

These activities are not only fun for your kids to do but also foster weather inspired learning.  Yes the activities listed above take time to set up, but the things your kids will learn from them are priceless.  Have fun and have a great day making memories with your kids:)

Easter is a great time to encourage your kids to notice the changes happening around them.  Easter provides awesome learning experiences for your kids.  There are so many activities that incorporate chickens, eggs, rabbits, flowers, and spring weather.  Check out these Montessori activities listed below:)

1. Matching plastic Easter eggs – You can get plastic eggs at the Dollar Tree.  Pull apart the eggs and mix all of the colors together.  Ask your child to match the eggs according to their color.
2. Lace a giant Easter egg- Draw, color, and cut out a large egg.  Poke holes around the perimeter of the egg.  Get a shoe string or yarn and ask your kids to weave the yarn through the Easter egg.
3. Read a non fiction book about a chicken’s life cycle.  Talk about the chick starting out as an egg and then the egg hatching and so on.  Depending on age, ask your child to draw a picture of an egg hatching into a baby chick. You can do this with the life cycle of a rabbit as well.
4. Practice sorting colors and counting using jellybeans.
5. Go outside and practice bunny hopping around the yard.
6. Listen to the sounds of nature….ask your kids what they hear.

Easter is not just about bunnies and candy. Easter is a great time to spend quality time with your kids.  Take time to read and play together!  Your kids will treasure the time you spend with them.  Happy Easter!

I don’t know about you but we are officially ready for spring at our house!  With spring comes warmer weather, more outside play, and pretty colors.  Your kids might start noticing the budding trees, chirping birds, and on occasion…..a rainbow!  There are so many awesome ways to learn about colors using rainbow inspired activities.  Here is a list of activities your kids can do involving colors and rainbows:

1. Check out rainbow books at your local library
2. Talk about colors and show examples of each color
3. Make red, orange, yellow, green, blue, violet (purple) jello
4. Create a Lego rainbow
5. Go on a rainbow scavenger hunt around the house then have your kids build their own rainbow with the items they found (as shown in pictures)
6. Put together a rainbow paper chain and hang it up in your house
7. Finger paint the rainbow (great activity for little ones)
8. Make a rainbow necklace out of colored beads or pasta
9. Paint small rocks red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and violet and place them in your yard or garden area
10. Taste the rainbow by creating a rainbow using different colored fruit

These activities are simple and allow your kids to use their creative side.  Encourage your kids to start noticing colors outside, at the store, driving down the road, and anywhere else you might take them.  Have fun and be creative!

 

 

 

Attaching and bonding to your kids is vital for their survival and development.  Attachment starts as baby enters the world.  When baby cries or is hungry and is comforted, bonding and attachment are taking place.  Baby learns to trust that his primary caregiver will meet his needs.  A mutual bond begins to form between baby and caregiver and this will carry on as baby develops.  In some instances, like adoption, bonding and attachment might not form until the child has gone through several stages of development. With appropriate therapy and parenting techniques, kids who have been adopted later in life can still flourish and grow into successful adults.   It is never too late to attach and bond with your kids!  Here is a list of age appropriate ways to attach and bond with your kids birth to age five:

Birth – One

-Holding/rocking, singing/talking, smiling, giving baby a bath, feeding baby, use a front baby carrier, walking baby in a stroller

One-Two

-Read, give your toddler a massage, go swimming, attend story time at the library, give lots of hugs, say I love you

Three-Four

-Paint, bake cookies, go on a nature walk, listen, model positive behavior, do chores together, sort and match socks

Four-Five

– Go to the park, make dinner together, go on a picnic, start a family garden, play a game, plan a mommy/son or daddy/daughter date

Attaching and bonding with your kids allows them to feel loved, secure, and confident.  These feelings are so important as your kids grow into young adults. We hope these ideas encourage you to spend time bonding and attaching to your kids!