Part time child care

Daily Activity for Kids – Day 43 – Popsicle Stick Activity

During this COVID-19 pandemic, many parents are home with their children and looking for things to do. This is a daily post to give you ideas of fun things to do. It comes from activities that we implement at our daycare centre using our Four Pillars of Learning curriculum. Since we are closed during this time, we are sharing the activity for you to implement in your own home. Enjoy!

Daily Activity for Kids – Popsicle Stick Activity

Popsicle sticks are so versatile and are a great material to have on hand for your child to explore with. They can be used to create art or engage in engineering activities such as building structures. This activity is simple and open-ended. Resist the temptation to have an end product, just let the creative juices flow.

Step 1: Gather the following items: popsicle sticks (craft sticks), rocks, glue, small pine cones, leaves, natural feathers, any other types of natural collage materials you have on hand.

Step 2: Put the materials on a tray for your child to explore with. Give the child instructions to make something with the materials on the tray. They don’t have to use all the materials but they can if they want to.

Step 3: You can also participate with your child and make something while you sit beside them. Engage in conversation about what they are making (let them tell you what they are making instead of making any assumptions about it). For younger children, you can label the objects you are using as you go to build language skills. You can add in some math skills by counting the objects too.

Step 4: Take a picture of the creations made by you and your child. You can print and hang the photo or post it here too to make the child feel proud of their accomplishment.

This daily kids activity incorporates many learning areas based on our Four Pillars of Learning curriculum including: (STEAM – art, engineering, math) and language skills.

Daily Activity for Kids – Day 42 – Watercolour Art Activity

During this COVID-19 pandemic, many parents are home with their children and looking for things to do. This is a daily post to give you ideas of fun things to do. It comes from activities that we implement at our daycare centre using our Four Pillars of Learning curriculum. Since we are closed during this time, we are sharing the activity for you to implement in your own home. Enjoy!

Daily Activity for Kids – Watercolour Art Activity

We have a fun watercolour art project for you to do with items you will most likely have at home.

Step 1: Gather the following items: baking sheet or plastic tray (to protect your table, and contain any liquid), ice cube tray, liquid watercolours or food colouring, droppers, paper towels, black construction paper, scissors and glue.

Step 2: Pour small amounts of liquid watercolour into an ice cube tray. You can also make the liquid watercolour by adding food colouring to water.

Step 3: Now that you have your watercolours ready to go, give everyone a few sheets of paper towel and put it on the tray. We used the paper towel that’s perforated into half-sheets, and we used one half-sheet per skyline silhouette. Give everyone a few extras though because they’re going to love the process and you can make extra watercolour paper towels just for fun.

Step 4: Using a dropper, add drops of colour all over the paper towel to create the colourful backdrop for their silhouettes.

Step 5: When the paper towel is completely coloured, set it aside to let it dry. You can place it on a drying rack or drape it over a bowl. For toddlers, you may want to stop the activity here and just dry the paper towel art. For preschoolers and older children, continue the activity.

Step 6: Next have the children cut their cities out of piece of black construction paper. You can help your child by drawing it out and having the child cut it along the lines. This is a great activity to teach children to cut along a straight line.

Step 7: Glue the construction paper skylines to the colourful paper towel to see your skyline silhouette come to life.

This daily kids activity incorporates many learning areas based on our Four Pillars of Learning curriculum including: (STEAM – art, science, engineering) fine motor skills.

Daily Activity for Kids – Day 41 – Mixing Liquids Activity

During this COVID-19 pandemic, many parents are home with their children and looking for things to do. This is a daily post to give you ideas of fun things to do. It comes from activities that we implement at our daycare centre using our Four Pillars of Learning curriculum. Since we are closed during this time, we are sharing the activity for you to implement in your own home. Enjoy!

Daily Activity for Kids – Mixing Liquids Activity

Science is a fun and interactive way for children to learn. We have a great activity that can be done to teach children about liquids and their ability to be mixed or not mixed together. Have your child guess what is going to happen before you begin the experiment. Write down the guess and see if they were correct.

Step 1: Gather the following items: tall jars or glasses, corn syrup, water, food colouring and oil.

Step 2: Place the jar or glass on a hard level surface like a table.

Step 3: Pour ¼ cup of corn syrup into the glass or jar.

Step 4: Add ½ cup of water into the jar, along with some drops of food colouring.

Step 5: Add about ¼ to ½ of oil into the jar.

Step 6: Watch to see what liquids mix together and which ones don’t. Record the results and talk about it with your child.

This daily kids activity incorporates many learning areas based on our Four Pillars of Learning curriculum including: (STEAM – science) and language and literacy skills.

Daily Activity for Kids – Day 40 – Animal Exploration Activity

During this COVID-19 pandemic, many parents are home with their children and looking for things to do. This is a daily post to give you ideas of fun things to do. It comes from activities that we implement at our daycare centre using our Four Pillars of Learning curriculum. Since we are closed during this time, we are sharing the activity for you to implement in your own home. Enjoy!

Daily Activity for Kids – Animal Exploration Activity

Technology can be a great educational teacher when used correctly. Ask your child to pick a country, any country they name. Or a younger child can point to a country on a map. Once they have that country picked out, have them look for an animal that is commonly known to that area. For example, In France there is a cute little animal called a Garden Dormouse. If you have a younger child that is unable to pick a country or animal, you can choose one yourself and still continue with the activity. With your assistance, ask your child to use google to find out the following things about the animal they have chosen.

1. How tall can their animal grow to be?
2. What does their animal eat?
3. Where does their animal live?
4. How much does their animal weigh.

To expand on this activity you can even have your child create a story based on the animal they found. This is a good way to learn how to do research on google and to learn about a new animal.

This daily kids activity incorporates many learning areas based on our Four Pillars of Learning curriculum including: (STEAM – science, technology) and language and literacy skills.

Daily Activity for Kids – Day 39 – Mailbox Letter Activity

During this COVID-19 pandemic, many parents are home with their children and looking for things to do. This is a daily post to give you ideas of fun things to do. It comes from activities that we implement at our daycare centre using our Four Pillars of Learning curriculum. Since we are closed during this time, we are sharing the activity for you to implement in your own home. Enjoy!

Daily Activity for Kids – Mailbox Letter Activity

Introducing new language skills and word recognition can be fun for children of all ages. Nothing is more exciting to a child than to receive mail that is addressed to them. This activity uses the mail to teach word recognition.

Step 1: Create a mail box using a cardboard box, shoe box or any other item you have at home that will work. Your child can decorate the mail box using paint or crayons to make it their own.

Step 2: Once the mail box is complete you can begin to send your child letters, addressed to them. Inside each envelope, on a piece of paper you can write down words to teach your child. You can start with words they may recognize like their name or yours. You can add other words they would see in their day. For younger children, you could also draw a picture of the word to help them to “read” it.

Each day you could write a different word. If you want to make this even more fun, your child can take the word and put into google translate and it will pronounce the word for them. For older children you could use google translate to hear how that word would sound in a variety of different languages. You could also extend this activity by having your child write letters to you as well and mail them to you. You could use the real mail with the cost of one stamp or you could setup other mailboxes for each member of the family within the home. It’s a great way to communicate messages to each other.

This daily kids activity incorporates many learning areas based on our Four Pillars of Learning curriculum including: (STEAM – art, technology) and language and literacy skills.

Daily Activity for Kids – Day 38 – Calming Jars Activity

During this COVID-19 pandemic, many parents are home with their children and looking for things to do. This is a daily post to give you ideas of fun things to do. It comes from activities that we implement at our daycare centre using our Four Pillars of Learning curriculum. Since we are closed during this time, we are sharing the activity for you to implement in your own home. Enjoy!

Daily Activity for Kids – Calming Jars Activity

Creating calming jars can be fun and soothing at the same time. When children are stressed they sometimes don’t know how to express themselves in a way that is clearly understood by those around them. Sometimes it can come across as angry, sadness or a temper tantrum. Providing your child with a calm down jar can help in this situations. They are very easy to make.

Step 1: Gather the following materials: plastic water bottle, water, food colouring and sparkles.

Step 2: Mix everything together inside the bottle and place the lid on tight. You can glue it on or put strong tape around the opening to make sure that it cannot be open.

Step 3: Give it to your child and have them shake it. The colour and sparkles floating around will help to calm your child and distract them from their feelings.

You can expand on this activity by adding different things in the bottle. You can add small items that float or sink, or oil which will separate from the water.

This daily kids activity incorporates many learning areas based on our Four Pillars of Learning curriculum including: mindfulness and fine motor skills.

Daily Activity for Kids – Day 37 – Balancing Activity

During this COVID-19 pandemic, many parents are home with their children and looking for things to do. This is a daily post to give you ideas of fun things to do. It comes from activities that we implement at our daycare centre using our Four Pillars of Learning curriculum. Since we are closed during this time, we are sharing the activity for you to implement in your own home. Enjoy!

Daily Activity for Kids – Balancing Activity

Balance is important for the healthy physical development of children. Age appropriate balance and coordination allows the child to be involved in sports with a reasonable degree of success as it aids fluid body movement for physical skill performance (e.g. walking a balance beam). It also helps children develop and maintain appropriate controlled body movement during task performance which, when effective, limits the energy required and minimizes fatigue.

With good balance and coordination there is less likelihood of injury as the child is likely to have appropriate postural responses when needed (e.g. putting hands out to protect themselves when they fall off their bike). The physical attributes of balance and coordination also allow appropriate posture for table top tasks and subsequent success at fine motor tasks.

Using an actual gymnastics beam isn’t the only way for a child to learn balance skills.

Indoors, use painters tape to make a straight line on the floor. Encourage your child to walk forwards, backwards, and sideways.

Outdoors, use a plank of wood, a rope, or make a line with chalk for the same activity. When your child masters a straight line, add semi-circles or zigzags to add a bit more of a challenge.

This daily kids activity incorporates many learning areas based on our Four Pillars of Learning curriculum including: physical activity and fine motor skills.

Daily Activity for Kids – Day 36 – Build a Bird Feeder Activity

During this COVID-19 pandemic, many parents are home with their children and looking for things to do. This is a daily post to give you ideas of fun things to do. It comes from activities that we implement at our daycare centre using our Four Pillars of Learning curriculum. Since we are closed during this time, we are sharing the activity for you to implement in your own home. Enjoy!

Daily Activity for Kids – Build a Bird Feeder Activity

As Spring is upon us and the birds are chirping, now is a great time to attract birds to your garden space. Here’s an easy engineering activity to do with your kids: build a bird feeder.

Step 1: Gather the following materials: Pine cones, Peanut Butter or Shortening, String, Bird Seed.

Step 2: Tie the string on the end of the pine cone.

Step 3: Let your child spread the peanut butter or shortening on the pine cone with a popsicle stick or plastic knife. This builds fine motor skills.

Step 4: Roll the pine cone in bird seed.

Hang the pine cone bird feeder outside and enjoy the birds that visit.

This daily kids activity incorporates many learning areas based on our Four Pillars of Learning curriculum including: STEAM (engineering) and fine motor skills.

Daily Activity for Kids – Day 35 – Caterpillar Math Activity

During this COVID-19 pandemic, many parents are home with their children and looking for things to do. This is a daily post to give you ideas of fun things to do. It comes from activities that we implement at our daycare centre using our Four Pillars of Learning curriculum. Since we are closed during this time, we are sharing the activity for you to implement in your own home. Enjoy!

Daily Activity for Kids – Caterpillar Math Activity

Math introduces children to numbers, shapes, sizes and being able to recognize things that are different and the same. Caterpillar math is a great way to get children to count while making a fun insect at the same time. All you need is paper, a pencil, crayons and paint.

Step 1: Gather the following materials: Paper, Pencil, Crayons, Paint

Step 2: On the paper, draw the numbers 1-10 on the left side of the page. Beside each number, draw a caterpillar face.

Step 3: Ask the child to colour each caterpillar head with crayons.

Step 4: Using paint (green is possible), have the child use their finger to paint dots for each part of the caterpillars body according to the number on the sheet. E.g. one dot for the first caterpillar, two dots for the next one and so on up to 10 dots.

For younger children you could add the circles of the caterpillars body to make it easier for them to paint and count the dots.

This daily kids activity incorporates many learning areas based on our Four Pillars of Learning curriculum including: STEAM (art and math).

Daily Activity for Kids – Day 34 – Tape Art Activity

During this COVID-19 pandemic, many parents are home with their children and looking for things to do. This is a daily post to give you ideas of fun things to do. It comes from activities that we implement at our daycare centre using our Four Pillars of Learning curriculum. Since we are closed during this time, we are sharing the activity for you to implement in your own home. Enjoy!

Daily Activity for Kids – Tape Art Activity

Art is a fun and creative way to introduce children to expression, creativity and emotions. Georgia O’Keefe once said that “I found I could say things with colour and shapes that I couldn’t say any other way-things I had no words for”. Art allows us to express ourselves in our own unique way. A fun project for children of all ages is tape art. It is simple and easy. You can create a great masterpiece to be framed. All you need are the following items.

1. Masking Tape
2. White Canvas or cardboard
3. Paint
4. Paintbrush

Have your child place the tape onto the canvas or cardboard. For younger children it can go anywhere they choose. For older children they can try and have the tape edges meet and create diagonal designs. Once their tape is down, those areas will be white. Then they can paint in the other areas. Once the paint is dry, they can peel off the tape from canvas or cardboard and they will have a beautiful abstract painting.

This daily kids activity incorporates many learning areas based on our Four Pillars of Learning curriculum including: STEAM (art).