Showing posts sorted by date for query arts and crafts. Sort by relevance Show all posts
Showing posts sorted by date for query arts and crafts. Sort by relevance Show all posts
Showing posts sorted by date for query arts and crafts. Sort by relevance Show all posts
Showing posts sorted by date for query arts and crafts. Sort by relevance Show all posts

5 Extracurricular Activities for a Holistic Education

5 Extracurricular Activities to Give Your Child a Holistic Education


Kids can only learn so much from traditional education, which is why it is vital that they also get involved in a host of extracurricular activities. These recreational pastimes for children aid their development and help them discover their passions. Extra curricular activities also can help kids to make friends and find positive role models. You want your child to become a well-rounded adult with much to contribute to society. You can help give kids a kickstart by sparking a passion for any one or more of these extracurricular activities that help give your child a holistic education.


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5 Extracurricular Activities to Give Your Child a Holistic Education



1) Music


Studying music has shown to improve test scores and help students do better in school. Music also can provide kids with a new way to express themselves. Additionally, the study of music helps kids to concentrate and can give them a sense of accomplishment as they learn to achieve their goals.


Get Videos on Folk Musicians and FREE Lesson Plans

 

There are many different instruments with which kids can start. One popular option is the drums. If you think this might be a good fit for your child, then you can learn more here.


 

2) Sports


Sports are an excellent outlet for getting exercise and building teamwork skills. Many kids even find themselves meeting some of their best friends through sports.

 

With so many different sports to choose from, your child will find something that works for them. If your kid has a hard time staying active, then participating in sports may provide the perfect fun way to get regular physical activity.



3) Art


Art is a fantastic way for children to express themselves and let their creative sides run wild. Many kids get a great sense of accomplishment when they create a beautiful piece of art.

 

There are many ways to get your child involved with art. While you can have your child take lessons, you could also involve them in crafts at home. The process of making things is essential to childhood development, no matter how you go about it.



4) Drama


Participating in performing arts can help kids to boost confidence. Drama also increases empathy because it requires your child to walk around in someone else’s shoes. Learning to play a character can help kids to see things from a different perspective and be more understanding.


Find our Plays & Skits at TeachersPayTeachers

 

Drama can help kids build trust and learn to rely on each other. When they are on stage, they need to trust that their scene partner will always have their back if they forget a line or something goes wrong. Even if your child never becomes a star, the performing arts can significantly change their life.



5) Writing


Writing is a pastime that has many professional advantages. One of the most sought-after skills in the professional world is strong writing. Starting young can help your child to succeed in their career.


Find Homeschool Lessons

 

Writing can help children to process their thoughts and express themselves. It also may assist kids in their overall communication skills. Encourage your child to write short stories, poems, or to keep a journal.



The Bottom Line


Childhood is the perfect time for people to explore a plethora of different activities to find the things that they enjoy. Hopefully, these suggestions will give you some ideas about what your children might like to do in their free time. It's great to open their minds to all sorts of possibilities. Something may spark a career choice.


However, it is essential not to force your child to do anything that does not interest them. While encouragement is helpful, pressure can be counterproductive and may cause resentment. You need to strike a careful balance. Remember that your kids are just kids, and they may not become the next Olympic athlete or musical prodigy, and that is okay, just let them enjoy their extra curricular activities. 



Recommended:


Field Trip Ideas from Adventures of Kids Creative Chaos


Journals for Kids


Things to do with Paint Adventures of Kids Creative Chaos



 


Fun Indoor Activities for Kids

Indoor Activities To Do With the Kids


When we leave summer behind and approach the colder months, kids want to stay inside. That means, it’s time to pull out the indoor activities to keep the kids entertained after school and on the weekends. Just because you’re stuck inside doesn’t mean the day has to be wasted! There are loads of great family-friendly activities to do indoors.


This post contains Amazon Affiliate Links.


IndoorActivitiesforKidsRainyDay


Be sure to click through the links to find all the fun indoor kids activities we've discovered.

If you're looking for great ways to keep kids entertained when the weather’s got you stuck indoors, look no further! Some or these activities, you might do regularly, others you may never have tried before, but they’re all great ways to keep the kids entertained while encouraging them to learn new skills. 

Baking 


How can you not love an indoor activity where you and the kids get to eat a tasty treat at the end? When the weather isn't very nice, baking is a great way to bring the family together, and you can learn some amazing new skills while you’re at it. 
Don’t worry if you’re not a great cook, the fun is in learning the new skill, and there are some great recipes for beginners out there. Even if you are a beginner, these recipes will have you baking up a storm!
Everyone wins when you get to do a fun family activity and eat some tasty baked goods at the end of the day.

Arts and Crafts


Keep everyone entertained for hours on end with a few well-planned arts and crafts projects. These might take a little bit of pre-planning on your part, but they’re sure to give your family an amazing day of creating things with their hands and bonding with each other. 

Any project with epoxy resin is bound to get the kids excited, and the results you can get with this product are awesome and perfect for a cold or rainy day.

Don’t worry if you’re not an arts and crafts pro, there are plenty of beginner projects to get you going like a pro. 

Kids CRAFTS from our blog.

Board Games


In the modern world of ultra-realistic video games, the old-fashioned board game still has its place. In fact, the classics are often the best, and there’s no better time to pull out the board game collection that when it’s raining outside. 
No matter how much technology moves on, the likes of Monopoly, Cluedo, Jenga, and Uno are always family favorites for a good reason. Once you get everyone together and involved in a game of Monopoly, you’ll find the time just flies by, and you won’t even remember that the weather is terrible outside. Make sure you’ve got a trustworthy banker, and you’ve got an afternoon of fun indoor activities for everyone. 




Rainy Day – Don't Worry


As we approach Fall, the weather might not allow for as many outdoor activities as usual, but that doesn’t mean the fun has to end. There are lots of fun indoor activities that you can enjoy with your family on a rainy day.  For more inspiration, check us out on Pinterest!

What looked like a boring weekend stuck inside, might just turn out to be a weekend full of joy and family fun. You can eat, drink, create, and play games with your family and friends while bringing everyone closer together. Just do a search in our blog for games, crafts, kids recipes, family field trip ideas, and fun indoor activities for kids. Stick with us, and you'll never run out of fun things to do!


Recommended:



Fun PE Activities for Outdoors

Stay in your Car Holiday Activities



Active Learning in Early Childhood Education

What is Active Learning?
If you're an early childhood education director, teacher, or a homeschooler of a preschooler, you will benefit ChildCare Education Institute's CCEI122: Active Learning in Early Childhood course. This course is a great way to get continuing ed course credit for any ECE program, but it is also a wonderful tool for parents of toddlers and preschoolers to educate themselves for homeschool learning. So, what is the definition of active learning in early childhood education?



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Active Learning in Early Childhood Education Classes

Wikipedia describes active learning as:
Active learning is a form of learning in which teaching strives to involve students in the learning process more directly than in other methods. Bonwell states that in active learning, "students participate in the process and students participate when they are doing something besides passively listening."

Sensory Play = Active Learning
As a childcare professional, I am well versed in sensory play and its connection to cognitive learning. Here on the blog, you'll find many sensory play activities and other movement games for early childhood educators. However, I wasn't aware of much of the proven science behind these preschool activities until I took CCEI's online professional development course CCEI122: Active Learning in Early Childhood.





Active Learning in Preschool Early Childhood Education

This course presents practical methods for integrating movement and active involvement across all curriculum areas, including art, language arts, mathematics, music, science, and social studies.
The course only takes about an hour of your time. Be sure to print out the handouts or save them as pdfs so that you'll have access to note taking and a record of some of the valuable ideas and knowledge base taught in the class. At course completion, you’re issued a certificate showing that you've successfully completed the 1 hr. course. Here's mine:

ECE Certificate online


Through the years, I've taken many continuing education courses. The courses offered by ChildCare Education Institute are by far the most convenient. The courses are also very informative. They not only include valuable information and recent studies in the childcare industry, but they also include sample activities that you can try with your own students.

ChildCare Education Institute® provides high-quality, online training courses and programs, applicable to those who work in an array of child care settings, including center-based care, Head Start, family child care, prekindergarten classrooms, after school environments and more. Over 150 English and Spanish training courses are available to meet licensing, recognition program, and Head Start Requirements. CCEI also has online certification programs that provide the coursework requirement for national credentials including the CDA, Director and Early Childhood Credentials. CCEI, a Council for Professional Recognition CDA Gold Standard Comprehensive training provider, is nationally accredited by the Distance Education Accrediting Commission (DEAC) and is accredited as an Authorized Provider by the International Association for Continuing Education and Training (IACET).


● 99 percent of students say they would recommend CCEI to others
● Over 4.4 million online course hours completed  
● Graduated over 12,000 early childhood professionals from CDA and other certificate programs
● Web-based coursework, available 24/7/365
● 30 hours of new content added each year
● IACET CEUs awarded for completed coursework at no additional cost
During the CCEI122: Active Learning in Early Childhood course, I had many aha moments. There were so many things that I've done in my early childhood programs where I missed valuable opportunities to incorporate movement and music in daily lesson plans for language arts, science, social studies, math, and art. The course lists out many different ideas and further explains how these activities aid in cognitive development and increase brain synapses.

ECE Certificate online

After taking the course, you’ll want to add more movement activities to your daily active learning activities. Here's a list of our most popular posts on early childhood games and sensory play ideas for preschoolers.
Circle Time Games for Active Learning in Early Childhood
Physical Activity Movement Games for Early Childhood
Marshmallow Movement Game
Sensory Tactile Alphabet Activity
Group Cooperation Games for Preschool and Early Childhood
If you're in need of continuing education for your career in early childhood, start here with our review of ChildCare Education Institute. CCEI offers many amazing continuing education courses for professional development in early childhood education. The extensive course list is sure to please even the most hard to please daycare providers and program directors. I encourage everyone involved with childcare and early childhood education to sign up for a course or two. It’s such a convenient way to expand your knowledge in early childhood education. Be sure to check it out!
Recommended:



Active Learning Tools







Earth's Water Supply Lesson Plans for Elementary

Elementary Lesson Plan on Earth's Water Supply for World Water Day

Where do we get water? How does it get to our faucet or in our water bottles? This lesson and curriculum on the water supply and water cycle will answer these questions. Scroll down for quizzes, science experiments, companion art projects, and more Earth's Water Supply Lesson Plans for Elementary students. When is World Water Day? When is Earth Day? Keep reading!

This post contains Amazon affiliate links, if you click and make a purchase, I get a small commission. Thanks so much for helping us keep the lights on!


Earth's Water Supply Lesson Plans for Elementary Homeschooling



Earth's Water Supply Lesson Plans for Elementary
Where do you get your water?

World Water Day is March 22. Earth Day is April 22. 
Arbor Day is often also April 22 or the last Friday in April, depending on the state. 

First things first,  watch this short video on clean water. We recommend "Flow" and "Tapped." Here is a very good, free excerpt from Tapped. "The Story of Bottled Water" is also good and free to watch. Netflix has a similar film about the Nestle Corporation Water

the story of bottled water
The Story of Bottled Water.

Now, watch this video on how water is cleaned and used via the sewage treatment plant. This excerpt from, "Big River" teaches how water is filtered for nitrates. 


The Nitrogen Cycle from PBS is an interactive learning chart. Also, print and read this downloadable Nitrogen Cycle brochure from Stem Sims. It has quizzes and articles to help you learn more indepth about the cycle of Nitrogen!

If you want to learn more about big business watch GMO vs. NON-GMO. This is a full length documentary.

We have a Brainpop subscription, if you go in as an individual you can pay monthly, but you have to commit to a full year. You can also get a Brainpop Jr. subscription for children in K-3. No affiliate here, we just love Brainpop.

video on the water cycle
There are free lesson plans and activities on Brainpop.

If you subscribe to Brainpop, you can watch a video on the Water Cycle and this video on Water Supply. Brainpop has a daily free video, so click over either way and learn something new. While you are there, read the info about the Water Cycle in the left sidebar. For younger kids (K-3), watch this version of the water cycle.

Lesson Plans for Earth's Water Supply


Water Cycle infographic
The Water Cycle infographic.
Review the Water Cycle infographic above. Grab some paper and markers and draw your own version of the Water Cycle. When completed, share it with classmates or family and hang it for display. To show what you have learned, draw a Water Supply infographic without the help of a cheat sheet! :)

After all you've learned, visit this water supply quiz from the EPA or this (Brainpop) quiz on the water supply. If you have a Brainpop subscription, also do the activities and fyi for water supply.

Free Water Cycle Worksheet Printable PDF.

Learn about the Scientific Method (from Brainpop) so you can start an experiment about Science Projects.


Water Science Experiments:




Just for Fun:

Need a break from all of this school work? 

Play a free online game about Water or do a Water Word Scramble



Arts and Crafts Component:



Recycle Water Bottles into flowers
Water bottle recycling craft.



Recommended Reading:



The Water Cycle: Evaporation, Condensation & Erosion (Earth's Processes)

The Magic School Bus on the Ocean Floor

The Magic School Bus Wet All Over: A Book About The Water Cycle



Cinquain Poetry: Fun Adjective and Adverb Video Lessons and Online Activities for Homeschooling

Cinquain Poem Examples for Students

In this online homeschooling lesson, we explore adjectives and adverbs and then use what we've learned to write a Cinquain poem. We found some fun videos and activities to help teach the difference between an adverb and an adjective. Scroll down for examples of Cinquain poetryEnjoy!



Cinquain Poetry: Fun Adjective and Adverb Video Lessons and Online Activities
Cinquain Poem Examples for Students.

What does an Adverb do?

An adverb modifies verbs, adjectives, and other adverbs. Adverbs answer questions like: How? When? Where?

What does an Adjective do?

An adjective modifies nouns, pronouns, and phrases acting as nouns. Adjectives answer questions like: What kind? How many? Which one?

The adjective and adverb flash card video below is from Maple Leaf Learning. This video is best for preschool and early elementary, though it did help my third and fifth grader remember the difference between an adverb and an adjective.



Now that you are all caught up on adjectives, here is another fun video, which is more appropriate for second to sixth grade.



Here is another video from Grammaropolis. This one is my favorite!




Go old school and learn adverbs and adjectives with this Schoolhouse Rock grammar video.





Now, take what you have learned and use adjectives and adverbs to write a Cinquain. That's just a fancy word for a five line poem. Cinq means five in French.


Arts and Crafts Element

Supplies Needed:

Old Magazines
Construction Paper
Paste or Glue
Marker

Cut out adverbs and adjectives from old magazines.
Draw a line down your paper.
Label one side "Adjectives" and the other side "Adverbs".
Paste the words in the proper column.

Use the words to write a Cinquain poem.


Language Arts Element


How to Write a Cinquain


Line 1:  Use one word to describe the subject.
Line 2:  Choose two words to define the subject.
Line 3:  Pick three words to tell what the subject did.
Line 4:  List four words about how it happened.
Line: 5: Choose one word that restates or summarizes the action in your poem.


Math Element

Did you know there is math in poetry? It is better known as rhythm. If you completed all of the steps above, congratulations! You have written a simple Cinquain. Now, you are ready to plug in some more numbers and write a more complex Cinquain.

Rewrite your poem (or write a new one) using the following method. A true Cinquain is made up of a series of syllables.

Line 1: One word = two syllables.
Line 2: Two words = four syllables.
Line 3: Three words = six syllables.
Line 4: Four words = eight syllables.
Line 5: One Word and/or two syllables.

Once you've crafted the perfect poem, get some handwriting paper. Neatly, write your poem in Cinquain form. Decorate the paper to illustrate the actions and ideas in your poem.

Proudly display your poem for all to see!

Here are our examples of Cinquain poetry:

               Fishes.
      Black and Festive.
They wanted Mosquitoes.
Finally, they ate Mosquitoes.
              Delish!
-Jake

Is fishes a word? Yep.We used creative license to get two syllables in our first word. Jake wanted to write a poem about fish. So, he wrote a poem about various species of fish, or fishes to make the Cinquain work.

                       Kittens.
                 Tiny and Blue.
           Chasing Tiny Critters.
Catches the Fastest, Finest Chicken.
                     Pounces!
- Mayhem



Recommended Reading:


A Is for Angry: An Animal and Adjective Alphabet*

Poetry Patterns and Themes*







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