Since having children Salt Dough has become one of my favourite activities to do! It's super quick to make, dries hard and then can be decorated afterwards. It makes great keepsakes for memory boxes (Baby hand/footprints) or can be used to make figures to play with or even decorations for the Christmas Tree when the seasons right.
There's a great recipe to make Salt Dough here: https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/howto/guide/how-make-salt-dough-recipe We've often made the dough using cups as it's a little easier for my small children to do, even if you don't have proper measuring cups just make sure the ratios are correct and you won't go far wrong. When adding water make sure to just add a little at a time till you get the right consistency dough (if you accidentally add a little too much, just add in some flour to firm the dough up). For decoration, best thing we've found is acrylic paint. Now, this isn't really the best paint for little ones as if it gets onto clothes then it's difficult to wash out, so if using acrylics, make sure they're wearing a good apron or some play wear clothes you don't mind getting dirty. Another thing I've found which I thought might be worth mentioning is how much the dough will dry your hands out. Sounds silly to say but I suffer with very dry hands in the colder weather and, especially with the extra hand washing at the moment, I found when last making salt dough that my hands cracked and were very sore due to the salt drying them even more. So I recommend if you're the same, keep a bottle of hand moisturiser handy when you make this!
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The only things you need for this are Paper, Scissors and some colouring pencils/pens! However feel free, if you have the resources to hand, to add googly eyes, feathers, glitter or to even have a go at decoupage! What to do: 1. Take a sheet of A4 paper and fold it first one way about a 1/4 of the way, then turn over and fold another 1/4 on top of the first (concertina style). Fold once more so all the paper is folded together. 2. Draw a figure on top of one side, make sure that your figure has good points to attach to the next figure (hands are the classic way but some templates also connect the feet). If you're not confident at drawing your own, there are many printable templates online. 3. Cut carefully around the figure, holding all of the folds of paper firm so they don't slip as you cut. 4. Unfold the paper and (hopefully) you'll have a chain of people! 5. Get out all the decorating gear and get stuck in! This craft is a great 'half and half' activity where you can do the making of the chain together but if you'd like the children to have a bit of time to do something on their own then you can leave them to the decorating on their own (just make sure the scissors are away and you still keep an eye on them especially if there's glue or small pieces about). Once you've had a go at doing some people, how about trying to making a different chain: - Aliens - Fairies - Sweets - Trees - Flowers Image and idea kindly suggested by Michelle Now music is another large topic which we can only really scratch the surface on but hopefully I can give you a good place to start! We love a good sing-song in our house along with actions and instruments (check out about making instruments here) so I hope you can have lots of fun too. Children will love it if you get involved when singing/dancing so even if you're out of tune, get the words in the wrong order and point up instead of down, please don't give up, have a giggle and sing/dance some more! Nursery Rhymes Most people can sing you a nursery rhyme or two if you ask them however when I started to go along to playgroups after having my first son I hadn't realised how many I didn't know or I'd forgotten! So here's a little list to prompt you and get you started: - Twinkle Twinkle - Mary had a Little Lamb - Wind the Bobbin Up - Baa Baa Black Sheep - Row Row Row Your Boat - Itsy Bitsy Spider - Wheels on the Bus - Hickory Dickory Dock - Old MacDonald Had a Farm - The Grand Old Duke of York - 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 - The Little Green Frog - Three Little Men in a Flying Saucer - Five Little Speckled Frogs There are many more so feel free to add your other favourites! Other Sing-along-Songs I'm sure there are many good albums of songs to sing with children but our favourite songs come from 'Piccolo' (https://www.piccolomusic.co.uk/). They're based in the North East (England) and have lots of fun and interesting songs to sing along with. My cousin, Michelle, told me about this activity which looks like great fun! Make sure you clear a space in your living room (or other suitable space) and take the cushions off and arrange them with two corners touching each so that they create a square space in between the cushions. Pour in some plastic balls and away you go! Now, if you don't have any of these plastic coloured balls then a great alternative is scrunched up paper (newspaper or tissue paper work well) or balloons (small ones would work best). This activity can be great for small babies (who can sit up) as they will love to look at all the colours and bat the balls around. Bigger children will love having a good thrash about in them so they go everywhere! When it comes to tidy-up, get the kids involved too so it's not left to you. The key is to make it a game (e.g. Put some music on and say 'Can you tidy all the balls up by the time this song finishes?') Image by Michelle R Please use the links below to go to specific ideas pages:
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Another clear memory from childhood was being given a paintbrush and a bucket of water and going into the garden to begin the great art of wall painting.
It’s a super simple activity but can provide hours of fun. They can paint over the lines between the bricks (these change colour particularly well) or ‘colour in’ the bricks individually, as the sun shines it’ll dry up and they can paint something new! Obviously the water painting doesn’t have to be limited to the wall, if you have any concrete in a yard for instance it’s a brilliant large canvas for bigger drawings I realise that painting is such a classic activity and maybe everyone would think of it anyway but it didn’t feel right to talk about doing craft with children without mentioning it!
Children often love painting, the bright colours and especially the way they can run their hands through it (or rub it all over their faces!). As the way of using paints can vary massively I thought it would be helpful to give a few ideas of activities to do: On a sheet of paper/cardboard box/etc:
Other Painting:
Whatever you do, don’t be held back by thoughts of it being ‘too messy’ or ‘I’m no good at it’, if your children see you getting stuck in they’ll want to as well. One thing I have invested in the past is super washable paint, however if you don’t have any I recommend you make sure the kids are wearing aprons (any paint on clothes make sure to rinse as soon as possible in cold water to reduce staining). Non-Messy Painting It's worth mentioning that there's another way of playing with paint...without the mess! Pop it into zip-lock bags! They can run their toys over it (little bike and car figures work well for this) or 'draw' with their finger (either just squiggles or pictures, or maybe try letters or numbers) If you’d like to try making your own paint, here’s some recipes I found: https://theorganisedhousewife.com.au/craft/non-toxic-diy-paint-recipe-for-kids/ https://extremecouponingmom.ca/homemade-toddler-finger-paint/ One fond memory at birthday parties was my one of my favourite games, the taste test challenge! My mum would fill up a cupcake baking tray with different things (e.g. salt, sugar, basil) and number them, then we would each be given a piece of paper and a pen and we would have to guess what was in each cupcake-space (by looking, smelling and tasting. The most correct guesses would win! Often I would be looking very carefully at the salt and sugar and doing my best to sneak as much sugar as I could because I needed more time to “work out” what it was! A very simple game but can be a lot of fun and a great way for children to try new tastes and textures! My eldest was pretty fussy about food when he was smaller but when playing this, although cautious at first, was pretty happy to have a try of a few once he realised the fun in the game. In the interests of not sharing germs, I would recommend either making up several trays so each child has their own or each child having their own plate and you give a bit on their plate and you could write down all their guesses before moving onto the next one. You can give them a spoon to taste and try them with but I would also encourage them to rub between their fingers (How does it feel? Grainy? Soft?), it becomes a very hands on experience and excites that fascination that children have with the world around them. God made a wonderful, varied and colourful world for us, so enjoy exploring all those tastes and textures together! Ideas for things to guess:
Remember, when doing that taste test they’re only doing a taste not eating spoonful’s of it so don’t give them too much in the first place (keep in mind all NHS recommendations for daily allowances, especially salt and sugar) *You can sterilise flour in the microwave beforehand if you like. Cook on high in a microwave for 1min15secs in total, pausing and stirring every 15secs Image by monicore from Pixabay Playdough is a fantastic activity to do with your children and super easy and quick to make too! Making it can be half the fun (especially if you make several batches in different colours or shades) and it can be great for very young children who maybe can’t make anything out of it but will love feeling it squish in their fingers (just watch out for the ones who want to eat it too!). Here’s some ideas of things to make to get you started:
Playdough recipe can be found here: https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/howto/guide/playdough-recipe First things first, breathe, you’ve got this! I know it’s daunting looking at the next few weeks without your usual routine but it’ll be ok.
The major thing I would say to have a natural rhythm at home is to work out a daily routine. Children love routine as they then know what to expect and get the most out of their day and it is helpful to you as it gives you breathing space to get on with chores, relaxing or doing some hobbies of your own without the need to ‘entertain’ the kids all day. You may already have a routine in place but if you don’t, here’s a suggestion*: 7am: Wake-up time. Make drinks for the kids and a cuppa for you 7:30/45am: Have Breakfast After Breakfast, clear away the table together (clean under highchair and wipe down table) 8:15/30am: Family Activity (Toys, Colouring, etc.) Chores (e.g. Clothes Washing, Dish Washer) [Morning nap] 9:30am: Self-Directed Play (set them up with an activity to do on their own) 10:30am: Family Activity 11:30/45am: Lunchtime [Midday Nap or] Chill Out Time** After Chill Out Time, if other children sleeping, take this chance to have 1-to-1 time with the other child (e.g. reading or if they're older having small toys/puzzles out on the floor whilst younger siblings can't come over and chew on them!) 2:30pm: Family Activity [Afternoon Nap] 4pm: Self-Directed Play (whilst you make the Tea)/Make the tea together 4:45pm: If Tea needs to be left to cook for a while unattended (e.g. in the Oven), Family Activity while you wait (e.g. Music) 5/5:30pm: Tea-time (try to sit down together even if adults are eating later). Chat together as you eat (maybe see if they can remember what they’ve been doing today!) After Tea, Family Worship Time***. Then clear away the table together (clean under the highchair and wipe down table) 6:30pm: Bath-time/ Quiet Play in their room (this can be on their own or with you) 6:45/7pm: Bedtime Routine I realise that as I write this, I fail horribly with this routine already. However the main thing is that I’m learning to parent better every day and that includes learning how to structure my day better (before children my job meant I worked later in the evenings, so naturally I didn’t get up early in the mornings and some long relaxing days were spent on the X-Box with ice cream for dinner! Also, anyone who knows me, knows I have always struggled with the housework [mostly because I often dislike/can’t be bothered to do it] but now in being a housewife and Mama I’m learning to love and care for my family in new ways. I know I’m not always going to get it right but each day is a new day and that I believe is a wonderful gift from God (I’m glad that bad times have to end just the same as the good ones!) So, even when being at home all day might be tough know that I’m praying for us all and like all cheesy movies say, let’s start this adventure together. *I know this won't suit everyone as I know for instance wake-up times can vary massively but as I've said, I give this just as a suggestion. **Chill Out Time: [Link for blog post] ***Family Worship Time [Link for blog post] |
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