Tuesday, May 31, 2011

Caterpillar's Get a Haircut

The grand finale of the caterpillar project was a haircut! It was great fun plus a wonderful fine motor activity to enhance writing skills!

Thursday, May 26, 2011

PANTY HOSE GRASS CATERPILLAR PROJECT

With all the rain we have been having lately Kangaroo Kids Prekindergarten class has resorted to some indoor gardening! It has been a valuable lesson in science and literacy as children used their journals to document the changes their grass caterpillars went through at each stage of their growth!

Here is how you can make a grass caterpillar at home:
Put some newspaper or an old plastic table cloth on your work surface.

Get a bag of soil and some grass seed and mix them together in an old bowl or tin pan.

Find an old pair of panty hose and cut it so you have one leg available for the caterpillar.

Fill the panty hose with the mixture of soil and grass seed.

Twist and tie off the open end so your mixture stays inside the stocking.

Use some string to tie off a few section of the caterpillar.

Now you just need to care for your caterpillar by spraying it with a little water every day to keep it moist. Have fun observing the changes! Find a notebook and have your child draw or write about what they see as an old stocking transforms into a lovely grass “caterpillar.”

Monday, May 23, 2011

“May is Fitness Month. Get Moving, America!”

Set the stage now with your children for a lifetime of fitness! With the rising rates of obesity, heart disease and depression, now is the time to role model a healthy lifestyle for our children. Sports and fitness activities not only increase fitness levels and keep weight down, but can also provide a hobby for life, and build lasting friendships. Here are a few tips to “Get Moving!”

1. Put exercise on your calendar! Making an appointment with yourself to exercise is just as important as your other commitments. Schedule time for exercise and it will soon be part of your routine.

2. Find a cause! The summer provides many opportunities for walks-- 5K or one mile family runs -- or bike rides for charities. Your family will be getting fit and helping others at the same time! What a valuable lesson for children stay fit and be involved in your community. Most states have running associations that list all events. Here are links for New Jersey to get you started: http://www.raceforum.com/ or http://www.runwalkjog.com/newjersey.htm

3. Get up and dance! Just turn on the music and have some fun in your living room. In addition to dancing being great exercise, the music can be uplifting as well. Create a “Dancing with the Family Event,” instead of, “Dancing with the Stars”! Have a family dance contest. It’s sure to get some laughs as well as providing a good source of exercise! Don’t forget to add some impromptu costumes to liven up the performance! There are many opportunities now for Moms and Dads to learn to dance. Interest in both ballroom and country western dancing has grown tremendously, so you can find lessons in studios and clubs in your area.

4. Join a team or sign up for some type of lessons as a family. Play softball, take a karate lesson or go to a Zumba or Jazzercise class. Many of these organizations have family events where parents and children can participate together. Park and Environmental Centers like http://www.somersetcountyparks.org/parksfacilities/eec/EEC.html provide many outdoor activities in hiking, kayaking, and outdoor education opportunities.

5. Exercise with your dog. But first, just like making sure you are healthy before taking on a new exercise routine it is also important to make sure Fido is fit for the new program whether it’s the addition of Frisbee or fetch sessions, or gradually increasing your daily walks. Remember a pet is a long term, year round commitment regardless of the weather or other events in your life. So if you don’t have a pet make sure your ready for the all the added responsibility before adding a dog to your exercise regimen!

6. Just get outside! In today’s high tech world, families spend so much time on computers, I phones, and television, reducing time devoted to exercise and socialization. Turn off the electronics and get outside. You can go for a walk or just play catch in the backyard or if you feel these activities are not productive enough, have your child help plant a garden or pull the weeds. This will help you accomplish something while everyone is increasing their (arm, back and core) strength bending, digging and weeding!

For more information about fitness month and national statistics on fitness visit the President’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sport at http://www.fitness.gov/

Friday, May 13, 2011

Outdoor Classroom

Spring is a great time to use the Outdoors as a classroom. Sensory experiences are in full bloom with trees budding and flowers emerging. Large motor skills which are so crucial in today’s high tech computer focused world can be developed by visiting the local playground, taking a nature walk or going for a bike ride. It is also good time to appreciate nature and to discuss ideas for how we can save our earth by taking care of the environment.

Don’t forget to dig for worms on one of those rainy spring mornings, it will not only enhance the fine motor skills children need for writing but will be a wonderful science lesson. Did you know Charles Darwin spent 39 years studying earthworms more than 100 years ago? We always hear they are good for our gardens but do you know why? Worms tunnel deeply in the soil and bring subsoil closer to the surface mixing it with the topsoil. Slime, a secretion of earthworms, contains nitrogen. Nitrogen is an important nutrient for plants. So there you have a science lesson for your child.

If you are not the type to dig for worms just take a picnic lunch and a blanket in the back yard and lie down and talk about the different types of clouds and weather patterns. Here is a kid’s site to review the different types of clouds before you venture out http://eo.ucar.edu/webweather/cloud3.html.

Don’t forget those hand eye coordination activities of throwing and catching! You may be developing a future Olympian! There are so many ways children can learn as you create an “Outdoor Classroom.”

Sunday, May 8, 2011

Happy Mother's Day

The most important gift you can give your Mom is time! Offer to give her a few hours to read a book or just relax! Volunteer to fix that leaky faucet or paint the room she has wanted to paint! Take her to her favorite activity whether it is a round of tennis, a walk on the beach or a trip to a special play! Make her day special!

Saturday, May 7, 2011

Children Learn Through Play

Children Learn through play! They are Explorers, Problem solvers and Inventors and love to learn through discovery. It is important they learn to ask their own questions and figure out answers rather than becoming passive, dependent learners.

At Kangaroo Kids we are building the foundations for future learning and encouraging a love of learning that will last a lifetime. Here are some tips to encourage a love of learning through daily activities. Encourage your child to join in family events like cooking. They will learn mathematical skills regarding fractions as they use your measurement tools. They will learn scientific principals as they see solids and liquids combining and changing to make new substances. They will add to their vocabulary as you use different words like spices, peeling, nutrition, and culinary. Cooking provides endless sensory experiences, fine motor skills and most importantly the time together will help to build lasting family bonds. It will also enhance your child’s self confidence as they successfully complete a task. In the next blog we will explore some of the ways children can learn through other everyday activities.