Toddler Theme: China

This week, we added a new country to our Children of the World series -- China.  My Instagram friend Sam (find her on IG here) is an expat with 5 kids who's been living in China and she helped me piece together a really fun week for Mia.  She suggested the book Through the Mist by Jan Abbott and we found that along with a few others at the library to get us started.  We also pulled out our trusty copy of Maps to see where in the world China was located.  Sam & her family live in Hong Kong which is very densely populated and the majority of people live in tall tower apartments.  Mia could relate to this because she also lives in a tall tower apartment.  We learned that the Buddha is very prevalent in Chinese (and Asian) culture, so we spent some quiet moments this week in meditation, thinking about things that make us happy.  And on Sam's suggestion, we also practiced some yoga stretches.

Kids in China commonly eat congee -- rice porridge -- for breakfast, so we made some, too.  I found an easy recipe on The Kitchn (find it here).  Mia's favorite breakfast food is cheddar garlic grits so as a nod to that, I made our congee with chicken broth and then topped with a poached egg and green onion.  You could also make it sweet with fruit and other toppings.  Sam also suggested we try dried seaweed.  I found some at Whole Foods and also World Market.  Mia wasn't so sure about the seaweed but Millie liked it!  Other dietary staples are soups, fish, vegetables, and noodles.  Did you know that eating noodles on your birthday is considered good luck?  As a little fine motor skills activity, we practiced using chopsticks to pick up pom poms and put them into a bowl.  Mia was actually doing a pretty good job figuring out the chopsticks but I also found a set of the spring-loaded kid ones from World Market.

I found a website that has country flag coloring sheets (find it here) so Mia was able to watercolor China's flag.  We talked about the shapes and colors on the flag as she worked.  Sam told us that the dragon is very important in Chinese culture and suggested that we make dragons out of play dough.  Another fun idea is creating a dragon out of cardboard boxes and household items.  This is the one her kids made.  Isn't it cool?  If you live in Denver, a fun themed outing would be to go to the Dragon Boat Festival at Sloane's Lake.  It's in early July each year.

And lastly, we learned a few words in Chinese.  Hello is ni hao (pronounced "nee how").  Goodbye is zàijiàn (pronounced "si chen").   Mia isn't really writing English letters yet, but as a fun activity we collaborated on a few word banners with Chinese characters.  Mia painted the backgrounds and helped me find the correct Chinese characters to use based on the letter.  Can you tell what we spelled?   

Thank you, Sam!  This was a really fun week and we learned a lot.  If you live in another country and want to help us plan a Children of the World theme week, please let me know (I promise, it's very little work on your end). 

A summary of all Asia week activities with links:

ACTIVITIES: Used chopsticks to sort pom poms by color as a fine motor skills activity, Learned a few phrases in Chinese, Learned a few basic yoga moves and practiced a few meditation techniques

ART PROJECTS: Tried painting our names in Chinese characters, Painted the Chinese flag (find free country flag coloring pages here), Sculpted dragons with play dough 

OUTINGS: Dragon Boat Festival at Sloan's Lake (usually in early July)

SNACK: Dried seaweed snacks, Congee for breakfast (get the recipe here)

BOOKS: Chopsticks by Amy Krouse Rosenthal, The Dancing Dragon by Marcia K. Vaughan, Tikki Tikki Timbo by Arlene Mosel, Through the Mist by Jan Abbott

If you'd like to share a photo of your kid doing theme week activities, you can email it to me (email button in the left menu) or tag me on your Facebook photo or use the hashtag #weeklytoddlerthemes on Instagram (if you are private, just make sure I'm following you or tag me in the photo).

Toddler Theme: Mail

This week, we learned about Mail.  It's a fun and simple theme week along the same lines as the Markets week.  These types of weeks are good for introducing some of the world's systems to young kids.  Library week is another possible week that just popped in my head.  Hmmmmm...  Like I was saying, though, these weeks open the door to lots of pretend play.  We did a little of that this week after we made our own trip to the post office.  I'm old fashioned and really, really (really!) like sending mail so we end up at the post office weekly.  They know us there and our favorite mail carrier gave us a fun mail coloring book.  Maybe you could ask for one at your post office.  While Mia worked on her new book, I created a mail-themed sensory bin for Millie using bubble wrap and pieces of sticky packing tape.  I'd be lying if I said that the bubble wrap was solely enjoyed by Millie, though.  We all got in a few snaps.  Another easy activity is a mailbox scavenger hunt.  Since we live in a high rise, all Mia knows about mail boxes involves large mail rooms with rows & rows of locked boxes.  This week, we set out to identify different kids of mailboxes across Denver.  Here's one we found that is outside of the building.  We ran across some that are boxes right at the street's edge.  And get this, we found some doors with mail slots in them!  

You can't have mail week without sending some mail so we wrote a letter to a pen pal.  Last year, I created a Flat Mia (based on the book Flat Stanley) using Bitstrips to make this little cartoon Mia character.  Once it was laminated, we sent it out across the country to visit friends and family.  They took pictures of Flat Mia on adventures and reported all the fun to us.  It's amazing how long her journey was but she finally made her way back home to us and we're preparing to send her out on a second journey.  If you are interested in being a host family, let me know via the comments or email! We're hoping that one day she will visit all of the states.  She's got 10 under her belt now.

Our art project this week was simple.  We made more artwork note cards similar to the ones we made during Manners week.  Get the full instructions in that post.  We were overdue for a stash replenishment, so I might start doing this quarterly.

Here's a little Mail week-related Mom Bonus for you.  Have you ever wanted to make your own font?  Well you can pretty easily and it's free!  Here's just one I've created.  So addicting!  Go to My Script Font and try it out for yourself.

A summary of all Mail week activities with links:

ACTIVITIES: Mailed out a letter to a pen pal, Sent our Flat Mia out on a cross-country adventure

ART PROJECTS: Made note cards with kid art

OUTINGS: Went to the post office to send out packages and buy fun stamps, Did a mailbox scavenger hunt

BOOKS: The Jolly Postman by Janey & Allan Ahlberg, Flat Stanley by Jeff Brown, Dear Zoo by Rod Campbell

BIBLE STORY: The 12 apostles spreading the good news about Jesus

BABY BONUS: Sensory play with bubble wrap and sticky tape

MOM BONUS: Created my own handwriting font (try it yourself here)

If you'd like to share a photo of your kid doing theme week activities, you can email it to me (email button in the left menu) or tag me on your Facebook photo or use the hashtag #weeklytoddlerthemes on Instagram (if you are private, just make sure I'm following you or tag me in the photo).

Toddler Theme: Markets

Our toddler theme this week was Markets and I had a blast.  I mean Mia -- Mia had a blast.  Alright, we both did!  My little sister and I used to spend hours playing store as kids.  In fact, we would ask for cash registers every Christmas.  You know, the ones with the laser barcode scanners and all the pleasing beeps.  Mia is the one with her own cash register these days and she similarly loves to play store, so we blew this week up.  Maybe I went overboard and didn't keep it simple, but hopefully you'll find some ideas you can implement, too.

You could use this week to focus on markets only (that's what we did last year when Mia was younger), but this year I also included an exploration into money, the fuel of commerce.  Up until this point, Mia only knew that daddy went to work to make the "monies," Papa gave her some to put in her new purse, and you're not supposed to put it in your mouth.  Living in Denver, we are lucky to have a wealth (ha, I'm funny!) of money learning opportunities -- The U.S. Mint and Federal Reserve both have branches here.  Tours of the U.S. Mint are free but require an advance reservation.  Mia is not quite up to that tour just yet, but we did the next best thing by checking out their virtual tour one afternoon (find it here).  Then one morning, we went to see the Money Museum at the Federal Reserve.  It's free and available on a walk-in basis.  It's not very big, but it's effective.  There is a display of the history of U.S. currency and also an exhibit that challenges you to spot the counterfeit bills.  Mia's favorite was the Currency Design Studio where she designed her own dollar, er, $1 million dollar bill.  Millie wanted to make one, too.  We also got a free bag of shredded currency on our way out.  "Mom! This smells like monies!"

Mia's always learning about sharing and borrowing but usually only as it pertains to toys and reckless little sisters.  This week we put that notion to work on a global and monetary level by participating in microlending.  Microlending is exactly what it sounds like, small loans.  We're talking $25 loans.  Kiva.org helps connect willing microlenders with borrowers across the world.  I was first introduced to this concept back in business school and I gave it a try.  My loans have consistently been paid back over the years and I turn around and reinvest the money with someone else.  It's amazing to know that my tiny loan has helped purchase a milking cow in Cambodia, built a pub in Uganda, bought startup products for a salon in the Philippines, expanded product assortment for a clothing store in Lebanon, and many other things.  My last loan was just repaid so I let Mia pick the recipient for the next one.  I always fund women with children they are putting through school (it's my way of supporting the fight against terrorism) and Kiva allows you to filter borrowers based on gender, country, industry, etc.  Once I applied the filters, I let Mia select one.  She chose to fund Hanan in Palestine as she expands her farming business.  There is so much learning that can take place around this one simple project, so I encourage you to check it out for yourself.  And just this week, I received an email from Kiva and they are giving out free trial $25 loans for first-timers...use this link if you want to give it a try.

   

We spent the rest of the week learning about different types of commerce.  There was the weekly trip to the grocery store and the subsequent adventure at the self checkout.  Then a visit to the local farmer's market to support the food producers directly and get our kitchen knives sharpened.  And lastly, a stop at some local stores to support small business.  Some vendors only sell food and some sell clothing and some vendors don't sell anything at all but instead, services.  A lot to consider when we set up our own stores to pretend play this week.      

My favorite was the musical instrument store she created one afternoon.  As added customer service, she demonstrated each instrument for me before I purchased.  Who wouldn't want to buy a kazoo covered in toddler saliva?  Mia has her own toy cash register (IKEA sells a cute one) but we also have a couple of fun store apps that I thought were worth sharing.  The first is Toca Store by Toca Boca (in the App Store) and I like it because it's set up to be a 2 person experience which really illustrates the essence of commerce -- supply and demand.  The game isn't very fun without both parts, just like markets rely on both supply and demand.  The second app is called Little Zebra Shopper (in the App Store) and it turns your iPad into a little point of sale system that actually scans downloadable barcodes!  They have lots of different printable products on their website that you can assemble yourself but I made a little adaption.  I cut out all the box fronts and glued the corresponding barcodes to the back of each one.  Then I had them all laminated at Staples and cut them apart.  I store all of the now-flat products in a zippered pencil pouch and pull out as a special busy bag.   

To round out our theme week, Mia ran her very first store as a little fundraiser for a friend.  She decided that she wanted it to be a cafe and we asked permission to set up shop in our building's lobby one morning.  Mia was involved in the sourcing & buying, marketing & advertising, merchandising, and sales.  I supplied the baking skills and Daddy, of course, was her best customer doubling her final sales.  We're happy to report that Mia's Cafe grossed $500 and sold out within 90 minutes.  The demand was high!  And our neighbors are very supportive and generous.  Plus, the Mia's Cafe sales team is pretty cute.

A summary of all Markets week activities with links:

ACTIVITIES: Learned about how money is made at the U.S. Mint (see the virtual tour here), Spent hours on store pretend play, Invested some of our money on Kiva.org and learned about microlending

ART PROJECTS: Made marketing and signs for Mia's Cafe

OUTINGS: Visited the local farmer's market, Used the self checkout at the grocery store, Took a field trip to the Money Museum at the Federal Reserve

BOOKS: The High Street by Alice Melvin, To Market, To Market by Anne Miranda

BIBLE STORY: Jesus cleansing the markets from the temple

If you'd like to share a photo of your kid doing theme week activities, you can email it to me (email button in the left menu) or tag me on your Facebook photo or use the hashtag #weeklytoddlerthemes on Instagram (if you are private, just make sure I'm following you or tag me in the photo).

Toddler Theme: Texture

Squishy.  Scratchy.  Smooth.  Slippery.  We're learning about textures this week!  This is a perfect theme week when you're stuck inside and a really good one to get younger siblings involved.  We pulled out all of our touch & feel books and talked about texture adjectives.  Another fun way to learn about textures is to create texture cards to explore together (the Children's Learning Activities blog has a good write up on making your own set...check it out here).  And then throughout the week, we were on the hunt for textures in the wild.  We found a sticky spider web on a walk and a bumpy wall at the doctor's office.  Millie found this texture by the creek.

The Target Dollar Spot currently has little tubs of sand dough and we played with that a few days before dinner.  Sensory bins would be a really great texture week activity, too.  I've been wanting to introduce Mia to printmaking so we tried a method called monoprinting (quite literally, a print that can only be made once).  I spread some finger paint on a cookie sheet and Mia drew with her finger in the paint.  Then I laid a piece of white paper over the design and peeled it off.  She was pretty excited by the result and it was no time at all before my kitchen cupboards were covered with drying prints.  I might actually frame a couple of them.      

Last year, I setup a tray of household items (beans, feathers, cotton balls, glossy magazine clippings, etc) and let her create a texture collage with glue.  "Sooooo sticky!" 

Textures aren't just limited to feeling, though.  We made special snacks this week to learn about mouth feel and texture in taste.  A really simple one is an experiment where you compare crunchy and creamy peanut butter.  We expanded on this and made ants on a log with squishy peanut butter, crunchy celery and chewy/wrinkly raisins.  Another afternoon, Mia ate Pop Rocks for the first time.  Whoa, those are neat!  You can also hear textures, too.  We identified smooth sounds versus bumpy sounds.  Do you have any favorite texture activities to share?

A summary of all Texture week activities with links:

ACTIVITIES: Went on a texture scavenger hunt, Played with sand dough

ART PROJECTS: Created mono prints with finger paint, Made texture collages with glue and found items (beans, feathers, cotton balls, etc)

SNACK: Made ants on a log with squishy peanut butter, crunchy celery, and wrinkly raisins, Discussed the concept of mouth feel while eating Pop Rocks

BOOKS: Pat the Bunny by Dorothy Kunhardt, Have You Ever Tickled a Tiger by Betsy E. Snyder

BIBLE STORY: Jacob tricked Isaac by dressing up like hairy Esau

BABY BONUS: Finger painting

If you'd like to share a photo of your kid doing theme week activities, you can email it to me (email button in the left menu) or tag me on your Facebook photo or use the hashtag #weeklytoddlerthemes on Instagram (if you are private, just make sure I'm following you or tag me in the photo).

Toddler Theme: Treasure Hunts & Maps

This week our theme was Treasure Hunts and more specifically Maps.  I personally loved treasure hunts when I was a child.  They provide hours and hours of entertainment but there are also very educational aspects to treasure hunts.  Things like following simple directions (or complicated directions), learning prepositional words (under, over, near, far...), and honing spatial awareness.  We started our week out with the book We're Going on a Bear Hunt to brush up on some prepositions.  And because I thought Mia was finally ready, I shared with her my favorite movie of all time -- Goonies.  She calls it the pirate movie and watched it twice because she loved it so.  If your kid is really into pirates, then your week could take a turn into that realm.  Mia got a compass for her birthday last month, and this week we pulled it out to see how it works.  She's a bit young to master this skill but it was a good kickoff to learning about the directions (north, south, east, and west) and the compass rose on a map.  We played a little direction guessing game when we were outside one afternoon and I started showing her how to use environmental cues.  For instance, the mountains are to our west and the sun rises in the east.

To put all of this learning to work, I made a treasure map and surprised Mia with it one morning.  Do you know how to make an authentic treasure map?  It's easy!  All you need are scissors, a black marker, and kraft paper.  I like to draw a wavy border and then cut out the map.  Next, I draw a compass rose and then pictures to depict where I want Mia to go.  Things like blocks to signify the toy storage area or lakes to represent the bath tub.  Then I connect it all with dotted lines and an X for the treasure.  X marks the spot!  The last step is the most important...you must crinkle it all up.  So ball it up like you would to throw away paper and then un-ball it and then re-ball it up and repeat until you get it looking really old.  I rolled my map up and tied it with a ribbon before I presented it to Mia.  Below is a picture of a map I made for a treasure hunt last year.  Mia loves rocks so I used those for the treasure.  So Goonies, right?

On our hike this week, I put Mia in charge of the map.  All that really meant was that she had to pick which direction we were going to go when we came to a split but it did give us more chances to talk about the environmental direction cues.  And just to reinforce that spatial awareness, we collaborated on a map drawing of the living room.  At first she was a bit confused by the top down view we were trying to capture, but she quickly got the hang of it. 

Another fun activity is setting up a make-your-own trail mix station for your toddler.  We did this last year and Mia really enjoyed making her own combinations and saving them in little personal bags. 

A summary of all Treasure Hunt & Maps week activities with links:

ACTIVITIES: Learned about compasses and how to use them, Went on a treasure hunt

ART PROJECTS: Created maps of our living room

OUTINGS: Went on a hike and followed the trail map

SNACK: Made our own special Trail Mix with components from the bulk bins

BOOKS: We're Going on a Bear Hunt by Michael Rosen & Helen Oxenbury, Maps by Daniel Mizielinski & Aleksandra Mizielinska

If you'd like to share a photo of your kid doing theme week activities, you can email it to me (email button in the left menu) or tag me on your Facebook photo or use the hashtag #weeklytoddlerthemes on Instagram (if you are private, just make sure I'm following you or tag me in the photo).

Toddler Theme: Camping

One of my toddler theme tricks is planning them around pertinent life events.  Take this week, for instance.  Our whole family came into town to explore Rocky Mountain National Park with us so it seemed like the perfect week for the Camping theme.  I mean, I barely have to do anything...it just happens! ;)

My most favorite theme week activity is a scavenger hunt except that with most theme weeks, I whittle it down to a simple singular item scavenger hunt -- shapes or yellow things, for instance.  But not this week...We did full-on just like when I was a kid nature scavenger hunts with a list and everything!  There are lots of free printables already floating around on the Internet and my favorite is the Hiking Scavenger Hunt printable from Make & Takes.  I pre-printed 3 of these sheets and put them in 3 separate brown lunch sacks with a pencil.  Mia got one kit on each hike and had great fun looking for all the items.      

Mia has really been into space and looking at the moon & stars so we let her stay up late a few nights to catch a glimpse of the Milky Way and the crescent moon.  Seeing stars like this is one of camping's sweetest perks.

Camping week art projects are the best.  Do you remember your own camp experiences growing up?  I pulled out my favorites from those days -- lanyard key chains and God's eyes made with found twigs.  I also picked up a woodland animals mask kit from Paper Source (link to the kit in the summary below).  These made for an easy afternoon gluing activity.  Nana brought pony beads & twine and they made lots of necklaces and bracelets together.

Mia's little sister Millie celebrated her 1st birthday this week and with all the family in town, we threw a joint party for both girls (Mia's birthday was just a couple of weeks ago).  Given that I like to make things really simple for myself, can you guess what their birthday party theme was?  Camp, of course!

A summary of all Camping week activities with links:

ACTIVITIES: Completed nature item scavenger hunts (get a free printable from Make and Takes blog), Stayed up past bedtime one night to star watch and view the Milky Way

ART PROJECTS: Made God's Eyes with yarn and found sticks, Created paper animal masks with this kit from Paper Source, Made lanyard key chains, Made pay bead necklaces & bracelets 

OUTINGS: Went on many hikes in Rocky Mountain National Park

SNACK: S'mores

BOOKS: This Moose Belongs to Me by Oliver Jeffers

BIBLE STORY: The Israelites camping in the desert for 40 years

BABY BONUS: Camp-themed 1st birthday party!!

If you'd like to share a photo of your kid doing theme week activities, you can email it to me (email button in the left menu) or tag me on your Facebook photo or use the hashtag #weeklytoddlerthemes on Instagram (if you are private, just make sure I'm following you or tag me in the photo).

Toddler Theme: France & Bastille Day

This was a pretty busy week with our family visiting from out of state, but we still managed to sneak in some toddler theme exploration.  And this week we added another country to our Children of the World series -- France.  It's perfect timing for learning about France, too, because they celebrate French National Day, or Bastille Day, on July 14th.  This date commemorates the start of the French Revolution.  Coming on the heels of American Independence Day, it gave me a little bit of a reference point for explaining to Mia the significance of this holiday as well.  

As a fine motor skills building activity, we worked on building structures with marshmallows and toothpicks.  Once Mia got the hang of it, we set to work building an Eiffel Tower-shaped structure.  We also attempted an Arc de Triomphe but ran out of marshmallows.  I'm not going to name any names (cough, Mia), but someone was eating on the job.

Another day, I surprised Mia with build-your-own crepes for breakfast.  My crepe making skills are sketchy at best, but World Market sells a pack of pre-made ones that you just heat & fill.  I set up those, strawberries, bananas, and Nutella, and then let her assemble her own.  I gave her crepes (she went back for seconds) a little dusting of powder sugar just for good measure before she devoured them.  I filled all of the leftover crepes with ham and shredded Gouda cheese and we saved them for lunch.           

Lastly, we learned a couple of words in French.  This is our first country in the Children of the World series where English is not the native language, so we first had to discuss the idea of other languages. I'm not totally sure she grasped that concept, but we did have fun practicing how to say hello and goodbye -- bonjour & au revoir.

A summary of all France & Bastille Day week activities with links:

ACTIVITIES: Tried to build a replica of the Eiffel Tower with marshmallows & toothpicks, Read about France in our Maps book                  

ART PROJECTS: Watercolored the French flag, the Tricolour

OUTINGS: Went to the French bakery for some bread and treats

SNACK: Filled our own crepes with fruits and Nutella

BOOKS: Henri's Walk to Paris by Leonore Klein, Eloise in Paris by Kay Thompson, Madeline by Ludwig Bemelmans, Oops! by Jean-Luc Fromental & Joelle Jolivet

If you'd like to share a photo of your kid doing theme week activities, you can email it to me (email button in the left menu) or tag me on your Facebook photo or use the hashtag #weeklytoddlerthemes on Instagram (if you are private, just make sure I'm following you or tag me in the photo).