Blogcation???

For the past past week or two, I haven't been blogging much.  I seem to have been in another world.  And honestly, I'm not sure I can tell you where.  I think my brain has been so obsessed with Sprout's 2nd birthday, can't believe she's going to be 2 next week.  My parent's visit (yea!).  Our crazy mixed up life.  Keeping up with Sprout and just trying to keep up with life in general.

I had all of these ideas and objectives about what I wanted to do over the past few weeks, and I feel like I have accomplished very little.  Even with Sprout, I have had ideas as to what I wanted to do with her, and for the most part it just hasn't happened.

The other day, while I was doing laundry, Sprout came into the laundry room (where her supplies are stored) and pulled out the paint and a tray to put it in.  It was almost time for bed, so I told her that we would paint the next day and put the paint on the counter.  Then next morning, she was sitting next to me on the couch, while I was talking on the phone.  I looked at her to find that she had opened the paint, and had a little in the tray (thankfully not all over my couch).  Man, did I feel oblivious!!!  I got her set up at her easel with the paint she picked out.  As she painted, I thought about the fact that this wasn't an activity I picked for a tot tray, or an art project I planned out, but that my daughter was having a great time.  Isn't that what it's all about???

The other thing we've been doing a lot recently is Preschool Time Online.  Sprout really enjoys this as she works on letters, numbers, shapes, computer skills, etc with all of her Disney friends.  I love watching her as gets something.  It amazes me how she picks up on the things.  She pointed at the letters on The B Book  and said "B-O-O-K."  I know she didn't really spell a word, but I loved listening!!

We've also been trying to get outside, but with the crazy hot weather we have here, it hasn't been much.

Though this isn't a typical Tot School week for us, I am going to link up with Tot School, as this is what we have been up to recently.  I will try to do a post of the other activities we've done when I have a chance.

Tot School - Week 3

Sprout is 20 Months

This week our theme was Dr. Seuss in honor of his "birthday" this week. What a great theme! There is always another project that we can do or book to read. We were quite busy this week!

This week we had some more defined activities, though mostly Sprout had a choice of what she wanted to do, and she made most of the activities into a game of her own creation. 

Tot Trays

I did set up Tot Trays this week to develop some activities that are more focused for Sprout. I found the idea for Tot Trays at 1+1+1=1. Carissa has so many great ideas, her site has really helped me to focus our play more.

Our Tot Trays this week include 

• Baby's Boo (from Growing Up Learning) --  This is to help Sprout with her compassion for others, while she takes care of Mickey when he gets hurt.
• Knock It Down (also from Growing Up Learning) -- Sprout really like this activity, as she go to throw a ball at cups that I arranged for her on the floor
• Playdough
• A bag of red treasures to look at and sort
• A Small Spaces activity from Tot Trays
• A Transferring Activity from Tot Trays

Projects

We started the week painting the Cat in the Hat's hat. This was Sprout's first time using an easel. I was very happy with how well she did. Though she does seem to be in a "minimalist" phase.

As an added bit. Curiosity may not have killed the dog, but he did have something to show for it. Now this wasn't Sprout's fault. Simon just got too curious and got in the way. (Though I've cleaned his head, there is still a pink tint to his fur in this spot.)

We also did a Green Eggs and Ham coloring page. I gave Sprout the green dot paint and a green crayon.

Our final project for the week was our stART project that went along with One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish Blue Fish.  Please check out my post on this project.  I would love to get more opinions on this kind of art project.

Tot Books
This was the first time we have used a Tot Book or a Tot Pack. Though in some form, I probably did have high hopes, I wasn't expecting all that much from these this week. Sprout has never seen them before and is very active. She is not a big fan of activities where she needs to sit and play with someone, using "directions."
I started using the Dr. Seuss Tot Pack I made. Sprout was interested in taking the matching cards out of their envelope and putting them back in, but that was about it. She found the Little Einsteins Tot Book I made, and wanted to play with that. She was a little more into this because she knows those characters far better than Dr. Seuss'. Most of his books are a little long for Sprout to sit through.

Practical Play

Sprout also had some "real world" learning opportunities this week.  She found a Mickey and friends magnet of the fridge this week, and of course was drawn to play with it.  She learned that magnets don't stick to cabinets (sorry about the camera strap in the picture, I was using JGD's camera, and I'm not used to the position of the lens).

We also "washed the dishes" this week. I had planned to make Oobleck, but never made it to the store to buy more cornstarch, so I decided to give it a go with what I had. It didn't work, and I was looking for another sensory opportunity for Sprout. So we washed dishes. I got this idea from Montessori for the Earth. Sprout had a lot of fun with this activity, and the mess didn't get too bad.

What did we read this week?
Well, we read several of Dr. Seuss' books. And we were able to finish most of the ones we read. Sprout even decided to read them on her own.

Next Week
I got jumbo lacing beads for Sprout to start using next week when our theme is colors and shapes. She found them, and wanted to play with them. I was quite impressed when she was able to lace one after I very briefly showed her how to use them. Then she dumped them all over the floor and we had a talk about treating our toys and properly and what happens when we don't.

To see what other people did this week go to Tot School.

Tot School - Week 2

D is 19 months old

After composing last week's post about Tot School, I was really looking forward to Tot School with Dylan this week. As odd as it sounds, I was happy to have a name for what I want to do with D. We have been doing projects and constructive play since D was able, but for some reason over the past 2 weeks my thought process on all of this has changed. I've decided to take a more active roll in what we do. In the past, I would plan an activity on occasion, but normally let D completely determine what we would be doing for the day. Now, I'm not saying that I believe at 19 month old should have be in a structured environment. I just think that by taking a more active interest and roll in D's activities, we can create a nurturing, loving environment for D to learn in.

Anyway... back to Tot School for this week. This week's theme was Purim. This was great theme to start with because there are so many activities that we can do for this holiday. The holiday's celebration is about being a kid at heart, no matter your age. We started the week reading from Celebrate: A Book of Jewish Holidays. This introduced D to the basic idea of the story, and how we celebrate today. We then made a crown for Queen Esther.

To make the crown we used dot markers to decorate a foam crown we found at Michael's. This was not the first time D used this kind of tool, but it was interesting to watch. I think she last used them a year or so ago in her Mommy & Me class. She got the hang of them real quick, and as I expected really enjoyed putting the top on and taking it off.

At first I gave D one or two markers to use at a time.  Letting her choose which marker we should open. As time went on, I took off all the tops and placed all the markers and their tops on the tray in front of D.  I was really impressed when she placed all of the tops back on the markers.  Matching the top the the correct bottle.  The only time she had a problem was when one of the tops fell on the ground.  The only cap she had left was for the marker in her hand, so she capped the extra marker with that one.  She fixed it after I got the marker top off the floor for her.

When D was done I closed the crown for her, and she enjoyed wearing and playing with it.  This lasted for about half an hour, when I changed her diaper she thought the should use it on her legs and it ripped. I taped it back together, but it's not the same.  After doing a couple projects with D, I have learned that she enjoys taking them apart as much as she does putting them together, so I know what's coming.  I am trying to teach her to respect what she makes, but it is her work, so I can't press to hard.  

Our next project for the week was to make a grogger, a noise maker.  This was fun.  We painted a toilet paper roll.  This was the first time D has used a paintbrush.  In the past, we stuck with fingers.  I was curious to see how well she could control the paintbrush.  She did a really great job!  I think we will do more with this.  If I'm brave, we'll even use the easel we have for her.

After letting the paint dry, I used packing tape to close one end of the tube.  D and I then poured some unpopped popcorn kernels into the tube.  Well, we tried.  I knew that I needed to find a container to catch our misses, but I didn't pick the right one.  This led to D practicing her fine motor skills as we picked up the kernels that we all over the floor.  (Thankfully, "Hoover" otherwise known as our dog was upstairs.)

Here is D with her final product!

Our final project for the week was our stART project.  This project went along with the book When It's Purim.  D made a craft hamantaschen.  To know more about this project please follow the link.

We then make real hamantaschen.  And have been enjoying making them disappear!

We had a really great week!

Now as I said I am really looking forward to next week.  For a few reasons, one is our theme for next week is Dr. Seuss as it is his "birthday."  The next is that I received an email with a link for Grow Up Learning.  This website is filled with ideas to use to "teach" your child through play.  This is one of the better sites I have seen for this.  It will track your child's milestones, and allow you to save activities, make comments and keep a journal.  Be sure to check this out because for a limited amount of time they are letting you join without a fee.  I am not sure what the fee will be if you have to pay one, but for a free resource this rocks!

The last reason I'm excited for next week is that I made my first Tot Book.  Carissa of 1+1+1=1 and Tot School has a great selection of Tot Books that she created and we can use.  I created two of my own for D to use in the coming weeks.  I will talk more about the Dr. Seuss one next week as I see how well it works with D.  I will upload my files in case there is anyone who would be interested in a Dr. Seuss Tot Pack for this coming week.

To see what other people did this week go to Tot School.