Daily Activity for Kids – Day 4 – Ice Painting
Daily Activity for Kids – Day 4 – Ice Painting
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!
Today’s Activity: Ice Painting
Today we wanted to provide you with a simple activity that not only involves colour and art but also involves a bit of science. We are going to show you how to make ice paints.
Step 1: Gather the following items
- Ice cube tray
- Water
- Food colouring
- Popsicle sticks
- White paper
Step 2: Fill the ice cube tray with water but be sure not to over fill them.
Step 3: Add a small drop of food colouring to each cube. If you want to mix colours, have your child add a drop of a different colour to see what happens. You can have them guess the result before doing it.
Step 4: Cut a popsicle stick in half and use the flat end to mix the water and food colouring together. Leave the popsicle stick in and freeze overnight.
Step 5: Once frozen, have your child paint on white paper to see the results. You can have them mix the ice paints and see what colours they can create.
There are so many learning opportunities with this activity. Children learn how to freeze water and what temperature water needs to get to freeze. You can discuss colour mixing with your children and have them test various colours. Before doing this have them make predictions of what could happen. As they are painting, you can discuss with them why the ice cube is leaving colour on their paper. You can also discuss why the ice cube is melting. Once they are done painting, you could put all of the ice cubes in a large bowl and watch what happens as the colours mix together. Opportunities are endless for learning and fun.
This daily kids activity incorporates many learning areas based on our Four Pillars of Learning curriculum including: STEAM (science and art).
Daily Activity for Kids – Day 3 – Scavenger Hunt
Daily Activity for Kids – Day 3 – Scavenger Hunt
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!
Today’s Activity: Scavenger Hunt
With spring weather approaching, why not get outside for some fun, exercise and a break from the indoors and what better way to do that then with a scavenger hunt.
Step 1: Prepare your scavenger hunt list. It can include the following items.
- Something colourful (you can also name a certain favourite colour)
- A pine cone
- An acorn
- Something smooth
- Something rough
- Two kinds of leaves
- Two kinds of sticks
- Something bumpy
- A flat rock
- Something fuzzy
- Something pretty
- A chewed leaf
- A flower or petal
- A piece of litter
- Something you think is a treasure
Step 2: Plan where you will go. Will it be a local park, a hiking trail, or even your own backyard? You can decide to collect each item and bring it home or you can take pictures and make a collage of your journey to remember it.
Step 3: You can separate into teams to make it a fun challenge (make it competitive) or work together as a family to complete the list together.
Step 4: Once you have all the items (either collected or pictures), take them back home and create a fun story with the family using the items you have. E.g. There once was a beautiful (insert your something colourful) who became friends with a pine cone named (name your pine cone) and then keep going until you reach the end of your story. This builds language and literacy skills.
Step 5: Make a collage picture of all the items you collected. You can glue the actual items on the paper or pictures of them to your collage picture. This will be a lovely keepsake.
This is something that you can do daily or weekly. You can change your list each time. Every child loves a scavenger hunt!
This daily kids activity incorporates many learning areas based on our Four Pillars of Learning curriculum including: language and literacy, science (nature), art and physical activity.
Daily Kids Activity – Day 2 – Travelling the World
Daily Kids Activity – Day 2 – Travelling the World
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!
Today’s Kids Activity-Travelling the world
Children and even adults of all ages love to imagine and pretend. Where would you go if money wasn’t an option? What would you see? What experiences would you have? In today’s activity, you get to travel anywhere in the world from the comfort of your own home!
Step 1: Grab a computer, tablet or phone and sit down with your child to visit these sites together for great travel ideas. These kid-friendly websites are sure to give you some ideas for places you would like to visit.
www.kids.nationalgeographic.com
https://outdoorfamiliesonline.com/
https://www.familyadventureproject.org/
Step 2: Have a discussion with your child about the places you see online and have your child pick a place they want to visit. This is where you will go today.
Step 3: Find a space in your home to build a fort. Use sheets, blankets, furniture, pillows, anything that you have accessible to make your fort resemble where you are headed. Think about what you will need in your new place based on climate, such as blankets if it is a cold place.
Step 4: While sitting in your fort, use the laptop/tablet/phone to find out information about the place you are visiting. Talk about the animals who live there, food they eat, local temperatures etc. The websites listed above are a great start. You can even find videos that will give you visuals of the place you are visiting and have them playing in the background.
Step 5: Extend the learning by adding on more activities throughout the day. You could make a local food from the area (e.g. Pizza for Italy, Tacos for Mexico etc.) Take the music from the place you have visited and create a music video including all the family. Make it fun and get moving. Grab some paint or other creative materials and make a picture of something you saw on your visit. It could be the food, the village, the ocean, etc.
This is something that you can do daily. Plan a list of home vacations you will take over the next few days. This is a fun and creative way to educate your children and have fun in the process. Let your imagination go wild! Your kids will love it!
This daily kids activity incorporates many learning areas based on our Four Pillars of Learning curriculum including: STEAM science (cooking), technology (computers), engineering (building), art and language.
Daily Activity for Kids – Day 1 – Kindness Rocks
Daily Activity for Kids – Day 1 – Kindness Rocks
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. Since we are closed during this time, we are sharing the activity for you to implement in your own home. Enjoy!
Today’s Activity: Kindness Rocks
Step 1: Go for a walk in the neighborhood and collect rocks of all sizes. Try to find some as big as the size of a child’s hand.
Step 2: Put out some paint in various colours and paint the rocks. We encourage both adults and children to participate and paint their own rocks. You can use a paint brush or a toothbrush to make it easier to paint smaller rocks. Let them dry completely.
Step 3: Get a permanent marker and write a kind message on the rock. Ask your child what they would like to say to help someone have a great day. This helps children develop empathy.
Step 4: Go for another walk in the neighborhood and leave the rocks out for other people to find them.
Step 5: This can extend beyond Day 1. Go back to the places you left the rocks and see if they are gone. Make it like a scavenger hunt. If they are still there, you can move them to another spot.
This activity can be repeated and if enough people in the community are participating, you could also go out and find other people’s rocks. This could have a huge multiplier effect. Share this activity with a friend and you can also go out and find each other’s rocks. Most of all, have fun and know that you may brighten someone’s day!
Check out our boredom busters page for more ideas.
Boredom Busters for Kids of all Ages
Boredom Busters for Kids of all Ages
In light of the social distancing protocol and closure of schools and events due to the COVID pandemic, we thought we would provide you with some safe alternatives to prevent boredom and still allow families to have some outdoor fun as well. These are some safe activities to do with families during this time.
1. Go for a walk. On a walk you can admire everything that is still blooming and alive outside. Take a breath of fresh air, count the number of dogs you see, count any flowers you can see blooming, or just enjoy the sunshine. If it’s raining, take an umbrella and rubber boots and still get out there.
2. Go on a hike. Being out in the woods is a safe place to be and still follows the protocol of social distancing. Collect sticks, pinecones, other items that can be used for activities inside the house. Again you can look for squirrels, climb trees and just enjoy the outdoors. Be sure to stay away from flooded rivers and lakes that may be high in the early Spring.
3. Make spring cleaning a fun game. Have your child(ren) clean out old clothes, toys and other items they can donate to a local charity that collects these items. Research the charity online with your child so they can see where the donations will go. A visual helps them understand what they are doing and why.
4. This a great time for family board games and puzzles. Grab a board game you haven’t played for a while. Sit down, no tv on and enjoy the time together. Work on a puzzle together as a project or make a LEGO structure.
5. If you want to help your child with educational activities while they are off school, visit the page www.kidsactivitiesblog.com – they provide enough activities to keep the kids busy for the entire time they are off.
6. Have a lip sync battle at home. Turn on your favourite music and create fun memories by singing and dancing together.
7. Make a movie. Use a phone or tablet to record your movie. Put on costumes and make it up as you go. Have fun with it and involve the whole family in the movie. Let everyone take turns recording and performing in the movie. You will have a great keepsake to look back upon.
8. Make food together. Whether baking banana bread or preparing a special tea party snack, cooking can involve the whole family with everyone participating.
9. Make a family art project and get creative. Everyone can use their own special talents to contribute to it. Some may like making designs on a computer while another may love painting. Try to incorporate everyone’s contribution into one project and make it a family keepsake. Art is great for reducing stress when there are no expectations and everyone does what they like.
10. Make a bird feeder and watch the birds come to enjoy your creation. There are many bird feeder recipes online to choose from.
While these are only a few activities to keep you and your family busy, try remembering back to your childhood and the things that you loved doing. This is the time to shut off electronics and get back to the good things in life. Enjoy it!
There are still things that are not cancelled in this trying time so enjoy the good things: getting outdoors, music, family, reading, singing, laughing and of course, hope.
STEAM Discovery Summer Camp Oakville
STEAM Summer Camp Oakville
S T E A M Discovery Summer Camp 2020 – Oakville
STEAM Summer Camp Oakville – Are you looking for a fun, active and educational summer camp in Oakville for young children 4-5 years old? Many parents are scrambling at this time of year trying to find the best experience for their child while they are off school for the summer months. For young children, it may be difficult for parents to trust that their child is safe and being well taken care of in a summer program. So, how do you choose a program to ensure your child is safe, happy and has an enjoyable summer?
Alpha’s Discovery Kids S T E A M Discovery Summer Camp offers a fun and educational summer program for children 4-5 years old. The summer camp will focus on Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math activities in addition to physical activity to keep children active throughout the summer. Our summer camp program is designed specifically for 4- 5 year old’s to keep them engaged and learning while having fun.
Participants will have the opportunity to explore through inquiry-based learning activities that develop critical thinking skills and problem solving abilities. Participants will also develop their independence, social capabilities and self-esteem, all in a positive environment.
Each week, the summer camp will incorporate a balance of Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math activities. In addition, physical activity both indoors and outdoors will be incorporated each day to ensure that children burn off some steam and stay active. Throughout the summer, field trips are planned to extend the learning in each area.
Click here to register or request more information
Why Choose Us
• Our camp program is run by teachers – not student camp counselors like many other programs. Our teachers are trained to work with children and have a child development background and experience.
• Our program offers a balance of indoor and outdoor activity to keep kids physically active and engaged in learning.
• Our S T E A M activities will give your child a head start in a growing field to develop skills that will help them prepare for the future.
• Our program is designed for 4-5 year old children so you can be sure that it will be age- appropriate and safe for them.
• We are licensed by the Ministry of Education so you can be sure that we maintain a safe, stimulating and engaging environment for young children.
• Our premises are inspected by the local Health department and we maintain safe and sanitary practices to ensure a safe and clean environment for children.
• We offer field trips to extend learning experiences beyond the classroom.
• The program includes before and after care between 7:00 am – 6:00 pm
• We have FUN!
Summer camps can create memories that will last a life time. Join us at Alpha’s Discovery Kids STEAM and Sports Summer Camp this year. Not only will your children learn positive skills and stay active, they will also have an enjoyable summer!
Dates/Cost:
Summer 2020
June 29 – July 3 – $220
July 6 – 10 – $275
July 13 – 17 – $275
July 20 -24 – $275
July 27 – 31 – $275
Aug 4 – 7 – $220
Aug 10 – 14 – $275
Aug 17 – 21 – $275
Aug 24 – 28 – $275
Aug 31 – Sep 4 – $275
Please note that field trip costs are not included in the weekly fee. Field trips cost is $20 per trip.
Payments:
Deposit: $75 at the time of registration (non-refundable)
Balance is due June 29th for weeks Jun 29 – Jul 31 Balance is due Aug 4 for weeks Aug 4 – Sep 4
Thanks for reading STEAM Summer Camp Oakville
Thanks for reading STEAM Summer Camp Oakville. If you have any questions about Alpha’s Discovery Preschool & Daycare, in either Mississauga or Oakville, feel free to contact us at any time.