Lessons Learnt Journal » indoor kids activities http://lessonslearntjournal.com Life with Kids Fri, 30 Dec 2016 05:32:02 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=4.0.38 DIY Bubbles & Dancing Yarn Discovery Bottles http://lessonslearntjournal.com/diy-bubbles-dancing-yarn-discovery-bottles/ http://lessonslearntjournal.com/diy-bubbles-dancing-yarn-discovery-bottles/#comments Thu, 16 Feb 2012 04:56:13 +0000 http://lessonslearntjournal.com/?p=2635 I feel like a mad scientist. Glue gun in one hand. An assortment of curious fiddly things sprawled out before me. Empty bottles waiting to be filled with bold liquids. The creation of a new discovery (bottle) awaits! Eeeek!! Making these is so much fun. Here are two new discovery bottles to add to our [...]

The post DIY Bubbles & Dancing Yarn Discovery Bottles by Pauline appeared first on Lessons Learnt Journal.

]]> I feel like a mad scientist. Glue gun in one hand. An assortment of curious fiddly things sprawled out before me. Empty bottles waiting to be filled with bold liquids. The creation of a new discovery (bottle) awaits! Eeeek!! Making these is so much fun.

Here are two new discovery bottles to add to our collection.

Bubbles Discovery Bottle:

Water
Dishwashing Liquid
Yellow powered tempera paint
Coloured matchsticks

Baby Play Bubbles Discovery Bottle Lessons Learnt Journal (1)

Dancing Yarn Discovery Bottle:

Water
Coloured yarn
Coloured beads

Baby Play Dancing Yarn Discovery Bottle Lessons Learnt Journal (1)

Little E made up a tenpin bowling game. He lined up our discovery bottles, found a soft toy ball and in true Little E fashion (with much influence from his older twin brothers to be sure), he threw the soft toy ball at the bottles with all his might.

Baby Play Discovery Bottles Lessons Learnt Journal 01 (1)

Because the ball was so soft and the bottles quite heavy, most remained standing. MUAH HA HA  HA! Not for long! Reminiscent of the mighty Hulk, Little E got in amongst the bottles and whoosh! With a few swings of his little arms the bottles conceded victory to Little E.

Baby Play Discovery Bottles Lessons Learnt Journal 02 (1)

Check out our other discovery bottles.

E: 1 year, 7 months

Lessons Learnt Journal

This post was shared with

It’s Playtime
Play Academy
Sunday Showcase

The post DIY Bubbles & Dancing Yarn Discovery Bottles by Pauline appeared first on Lessons Learnt Journal.

]]> http://lessonslearntjournal.com/diy-bubbles-dancing-yarn-discovery-bottles/feed/ 1 Lights Activity Box http://lessonslearntjournal.com/light-activity-box/ http://lessonslearntjournal.com/light-activity-box/#comments Thu, 09 Feb 2012 10:58:27 +0000 http://lessonslearntjournal.com/?p=2643   It’s 3 o’clock. I wish for that long awaited ding ding ding of the home bell, signalling the change of guards. Rest.   There is no ding ding ding of the home bell for the stay at home mum. There used to be the blessing of the afternoon nap, but my preschool twin boys [...]

The post Lights Activity Box by Pauline appeared first on Lessons Learnt Journal.

]]>  
It’s 3 o’clock. I wish for that long awaited ding ding ding of the home bell, signalling the change of guards. Rest.

 
There is no ding ding ding of the home bell for the stay at home mum. There used to be the blessing of the afternoon nap, but my preschool twin boys no longer subscribe to it. A cup of tea used to be my quick three o’clock pick me up. The effects of that are wearing off at an exponential rate.

 
At those 3 o’clock moments, I’m desperate for some sort of play that’s engaging for the kids, and requires minimal input and supervision from me. Tah dah! I would like to introduce our light activity box.

 

Gather all sorts of light related toys and gadgets into a box.

 

 

Torches, lanterns, coloured cups to stack on top of lights.

 

 

We even placed our toy periscope in our light activity box. The mirrors inside the periscope are fun to bounce light off. My kids are too young to grasp the science behind that – (but one day I anticipate the question shall arise.)

 

 

It’s simple but intensely engaging. My favourite type of play – (and the kids love it too).

 

 

 Another KISS (Keep It Short & Simple) play idea.

N&M: 3 years 8 months
E: 1 years, 7 months

 
Lessons Learnt Journal

 

Check out other Short & Simple play ideas.

 

This post was shared with

It’s Playtime
For the Kids Fridays
Play Academy
Sunday Showcase
Sharing Saturday

The post Lights Activity Box by Pauline appeared first on Lessons Learnt Journal.

]]> http://lessonslearntjournal.com/light-activity-box/feed/ 4 Playdough Aliens http://lessonslearntjournal.com/playdough-aliens/ http://lessonslearntjournal.com/playdough-aliens/#comments Mon, 30 Jan 2012 13:09:03 +0000 http://lessonslearntjournal.com/?p=2588 I’m fortunate to have a very gifted preschool teacher as a friend. She asked how my day was. I rambled on about what a disaster my planned activity with the kids today turned out to be. The phrase, “What was I thinking?!” was repeated many times throughout our conversation. She reminded me of the KISS [...]

The post Playdough Aliens by Pauline appeared first on Lessons Learnt Journal.

]]> I’m fortunate to have a very gifted preschool teacher as a friend. She asked how my day was. I rambled on about what a disaster my planned activity with the kids today turned out to be. The phrase, “What was I thinking?!” was repeated many times throughout our conversation. She reminded me of the KISS principle – Keep it Short & Simple.

Playdough Aliens is KISS to its core.

Materials:

Playdough (2 months later, our original cooked playdough is still going strong!)

Big googly eyes

Coloured matchsticks

Fuzzy pipe cleaners

I love it.

The kids love it.

You’ll love it.

KISS

N&M: 3 years, 8 months
E: 1 year, 7 months

Lessons Learnt Journal

Check out other Short & Simple play ideas.

This post was shared with:

It’s Playtime

The post Playdough Aliens by Pauline appeared first on Lessons Learnt Journal.

]]> http://lessonslearntjournal.com/playdough-aliens/feed/ 1 Mr. Cornelius Makes Popcorn http://lessonslearntjournal.com/mr-cornelius-makes-popcorn/ http://lessonslearntjournal.com/mr-cornelius-makes-popcorn/#comments Thu, 12 Jan 2012 05:31:35 +0000 http://lessonslearntjournal.com/?p=2236 Kindergarten. This is where I met Mr. Cornelius. He was very economical, clean and a hit with the kids. Before my teaching practicum in a kindergarten class, I had no idea such contraptions like Mr. Cornelius existed. A popcorn maker: cooks popcorn in minutes, doesn’t require any oil or butter, so easy to clean and [...]

The post Mr. Cornelius Makes Popcorn by Pauline appeared first on Lessons Learnt Journal.

]]> Kindergarten. This is where I met Mr. Cornelius. He was very economical, clean and a hit with the kids. Before my teaching practicum in a kindergarten class, I had no idea such contraptions like Mr. Cornelius existed. A popcorn maker: cooks popcorn in minutes, doesn’t require any oil or butter, so easy to clean and portable. Needless to say, I promptly purchased my own Mr. Cornelius and he’s been an essential part of my kitchen and entertained countless children.

One dreary day I decided to introduce my children to Mr. Cornelius. Armed with a cupful of popping corn kernels, they wondered what this strange looking machine did.

The popcorn maker turned on and there were whizzing sounds followed by POP POP POP…. POP POP POP POP POP. Intriguing.

I think this next photo says it all. Perhaps you would like to caption it for me readers?

N&M: 3 years, 6 months
E: 1 year, 5 months

Lessons Learnt Journal

The post Mr. Cornelius Makes Popcorn by Pauline appeared first on Lessons Learnt Journal.

]]> http://lessonslearntjournal.com/mr-cornelius-makes-popcorn/feed/ 0