Here's a quick, fun craft to try for the 4th of July! These salt and glue fireworks are easy and so fun for kids. You can make salt fireworks with just black paper, water, food coloring, dropper, glue, and salt. To begin, draw some fireworks with glue on black paper. Before the glue dries, pour salt on top. You could even have your little one do this. Then brush off the remaining salt. Next, fill some jars with water and add food coloring. Have your child fill a dropper with colored … [Read more...]
Free Summer Reading Charts
Summer is almost here! We can't wait for a more relaxed schedule and for all the adventures we'll have. During the summer, it's so important for kids to keep reading! We're planning to read at least 30 minutes a day. This will help my kids stay on track with learning. Sometimes kids need a little bit of motivation to read in the summer. I've found that having a fun reading chart helps with this! Today I'm sharing two free summer reading charts. One is for younger kids and the other is for … [Read more...]
Activities to Play and Learn at Home
Disclosure: I am a blog ambassador for Lakeshore Learning and am compensated for my work. I received products free of charge. As always, my thoughts and opinions are 100% mine. This spring and summer have been unlike any time we've experienced before! With schools closed and other activities canceled, I've been looking for ways to keep kids busy and still learning at home. Even during the summertime, I incorporate learning into our day. It's not through flashcards and math worksheets, but … [Read more...]
Summer Bingo Printable
Summer is around the corner and we can't wait! I've put together a summer bingo printable for your students or kiddos at home! This is a fun way to keep track of summer activities you do and challenge you to try some new ones. I have two versions of the bingo printable. The first one is just pictures and the second one is words. Here are the activities for the picture version: play with chalk go on an adventure or use binoculars read a book eat ice cream fly a kite … [Read more...]
Summer Scavenger Hunts
Summer is the best time of year, in my opinion! We love being outside and soaking up the sunshine. A fun activity you can do during the summer is a scavenger hunt! I put together several summer-themed scavenger hunts you can do with your kiddos! All you have to do for this activity is just print out the printable, add it to a clipboard, and use a pencil to mark off the items you see, hear, feel, taste, or smell. You could go on a nature walk and to look for items on the scavenger hunt. … [Read more...]
Patriotic Tin Can Windsock
Today I'm sharing how to make an adorable tin can windsock! It would be a cute decoration for the 4th of July! First, rinse out a tin can. Then spray paint it blue. At first, I added start stickers before painting it but found it didn't work out as well. So I recommend waiting to add stickers until the paint has dried. After the paint has dried, add some star stickers! Next, cut 15-20 pieces of ribbon. Attach them to the can using a hot glue gun. (Don't have your child do this unless … [Read more...]
Summer Schedule Cards for Kids
Our last day of school is today! Woohoo! We are so excited for our summer schedule, but I also know that means a big switch in our normal routine. Just like many kids, we thrive on routines. I find it to be important for us to create a good routine to follow in the summer to help our days flow well. Yes, we have a lot more free time, but I still like to have a plan for the day. When you’ve got all the kids home for the summer and it’s so hot out, it’s so temping to resort to more screen … [Read more...]
Homemade Dig It Bars – Fun Excavation Activity
Whenever we pass by the toy section at Target, my kids beg me to buy the dig it kits. They've even saved their money to buy the kits. They love excavating and finding treasures inside! In my opinion, they are quite overpriced! It got me thinking about how I could create homemade dig it bars. We couldn't come up with a recipe that's exact, but we came up with something similar that is a fun alternative. Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. See my disclosure for details. Here's … [Read more...]
Pool Noodle Activities for Kids
I love it when the stores start to bring out pool noodles! I don't know the last time I used one just to swim with...I'm always thinking of fun new ways to use them! Today I'm sharing my favorite pool noodle activities for kids. There are so many ways to use them! This summer we made a sprinkler using a pool noodle. We started with poking holes in the noodle using a knife. (I did this part!) Then I cut off a small part of the end and used that piece to plug one end of the noodle. I stuck … [Read more...]
Recycled Art for Kids
Lincoln asked me the other day what our activity for the day will be. I had not planned one, but he just LOVES doing activities so I quickly looked in my craft cabinet for an idea. I had been saving some cardboard recyclables and so I thought of an art activity for him. It turned out to be so fun! If you're looking for something to do, you'll have to try this recycled art for kids. Here's what you need for recycled art: cardboard recyclables (I also used some scraps of sandpaper) … [Read more...]
