All those months of getting up early, getting the kids ready for school and helping them with their homework have come an end.  Yep, I’m talking about your kids getting out of school for the Summer.

If you are anything like me you might have mixed feelings about what’s happening around your house right now. After all, there are definitely some perks to having our children in school all day. If you are one of those parents having mixed feelings about Summer Break…. get over it. Here are some reasons to get excited about your Children’s Summer Break.

Catch up on a little Sleep

( image by viralbus)

Jump in a Pool with the Kids

(image by hoyasmeg)

Plenty of Time for Family Game Time

(image by Scott Ableman)

Roast Some Marshmallows and Make S’mores

(image by kretyen)

Build an Elaborate Sand Castle

(image by guy schmidt)

Fun Car Trips

(image by Kevron)

Go on a Camping Trip Together

(image by Lars Plougmann)

Have a Water Fight

(image by Dan Zen)

This is just a little over a handful of fun ideas to keep you excited about your Children’s Summer Break. Surely, you can think of some more. Some of my fondest memories of my childhood was from summer time. Grab your kids and get started making tons of Summertime Family Memories. It will time for them to head back to school before you know it!

In many areas around the globe Spring means that rain will fall more often than usual. And, the rain in Spring is important as our beautiful World needs it for its survival as we know it. Without Spring rain our beautiful flowers wouldn’t grow, the trees would begin to suffer and our land would become dry.

But, as a mom I know that when it rains it means that our children become crazy, rambunctious children. They begin to become stir-crazy from being in the house for too long. Children love being outside… they love running around, discovering nature and playing which helps exhaust their never ending energy a bit. But, when they are in the house they can’t do this. When the weather is bad for many days on end children begin climbing the walls and our stresses as a parent begin to climb.

But, unlike rain in the Fall and Winter…. rain in the Spring and Summer tends to be warmer. As long as the rain storm is not an electrical storm there is really no danger in letting your children get wet. As a matter of fact with the right kind of rain clothes your children can not only really enjoy themselves out in the rain, but they can also learn a lot from it.

Remember children have an easier time learning things when they are using more of their senses. They can learn a lot about the reason for rain, where the rain goes, why it is raining in the first place when they can experience it with all of their senses…. When they hear it, when they smell it, when they see it, when they feel it and possibly even when they taste it.

Rainy Day Activities – Inside and Out

Below you will find tons of Activities to do in the Rain. Some will be Rainy Day Activities that you can do outside, some of these activities will be for inside. And, I will also be adding some Educational Rainy Day Activities as well. The goal of this Rainy Day Activities post is to make sure that you no longer have to be discouraged if it rains. There are plenty of fun activities to do in the rain, both indoors and out.

Rainy Day Activities to do Outside

• Puddle Jumping – What child doesn’t like jumping in a puddle? And, as long as the rain is a warm rain…. let them. As a matter of fact…. jump in the puddles with them.
• Slip-n-Slide – Drag out the Slip-n-Slide that you are storing away until summer. Hook it up and let the children have a Rainy Day Slip-n-Slide party.
• Fishing – Take the kids fishing in the rain. From what I understand the fish bite better in the rain anyway.
• Blow Bubbles - Bubbles can be a lot of fun in the rain. Plus your kids won’t be all sticky from the bubbles because its stickiness will be washed off from the rain.
• Tub Toy Fun – Grab some of the kids’ bath tub toys and bring them outside in the rain with the kids. Let the children use their imaginations to figure out how to play with them outside in the rain.
• Hunt for Rainbows – One thing that is common in Spring and Summer time rainfalls are rainbows. Take the kids out in the rain on a sunny day and look for rainbows.
• Rain Painting - Help the children grab some rain water in bowls then help them carry the rain water to a covered porch. With paintbrushes let the children get artistic with the rainwater (not paint) using the porch’s floor as their mural. What kind of cool designs did they create?
• Water Balloons - The kids are already wet from the rain, so what is a little more. Bring out some balloons fill them water and let the kids throw them at one another.
• Mud Pies – Kids love getting dirty. And, making mud pies is the perfect way for kids to be creative and get their hands dirty. All the kids need to make their glorious mud pies is aluminum trays, mud, water and other miscellaneous ingredients such as sticks, pebbles and leaves. Just remember these Mud Pies are not edible. They are just extremely fun to make.
• Float away – Set a pot out in the rain and let the kids float things in it. See what floats and what doesn’t float. Do rocks float? Do leaves float? Do sticks float?
• Play Ball – Let the kids play some football, soccer, kickball or any other ball sport in the rain. The games are not only more challenging in the rain, but getting wet and possibly even muddy is an added bonus for any child.
• Walk in the Woods – Take the kids for a walk in the woods (as long as it is not a thunder/lightening storm). Ask the kids if they notice how the rain sounds against the trees. Ask them if they notice the difference between walking in the woods on a dry day and walking in the woods during the rain. Is it more difficult to walk in the woods in the rain?
• Powder Paint Art - This Rain activity is so much fun!! Put some powder tempera paint into shaker bottles. Outside on a porch let the kids sprinkle the powder paint on poster board and let the kids set the poster boards out in the rain. Depending how hard it is raining will determine how long you will leave their powdered art work outside in the rain. Once the artwork is where the kids want then to be bring them inside to dry. Beautiful, huh?
• Rain Olympic Challenges – Make a fun competition day by using the rain as part of the fun. Come up with clever competitions for the children to participate in such as hula hooping, water balloon toss and obstacle course fun. All of these activities being done in the rain. Super fun and super challenging. Sounds like a win-win event to me.
• Make a Wet Land – Take out some plastic creatures like toy dinosaurs, toy animals, toy soldiers and action figures. Create a wetland and let the plastic animals and beings have a blast.
• Save the Worms – When it rains worms come to the service and you will find them all over the sidewalk. The problem is that once the sidewalks dry up the worms that don’t make it back to the grass will die. So, why not pick up the worms you see on the sidewalks during the rain and place them back on the grass where they can survive.
• Roadway and Construction Site - Why not let the kids take their little cars and big trucks outside in the rain. Let them create roadways in the rain and build construction sites with their Tonka trucks. Tons of fun to be had with that.
• Swimming – Again, I want to preface this with you have got to make sure that the rainstorm is just a rainstorm. This activity should not be done if there is a chance that the storm is an electrical storm (lightening storm). There is nothing like a hot summer rain while swimming in the pool. The raindrops make a nice soothing sound on the pool and since you are already wet you don’t have to worry about getting more wet, right?

Rainy Day Activities to Do Inside

Of course, there are tons of activities you can do inside on a rainy day. The activities below are just a teeny tiny sliver of the activities you can do. But, this should give you an idea…

• Board Games
• Build a Fort
• Bring out the Crafts
• Movies
• Got to a Museum
• Clean / Organize the house
• Write stories together
• Bake Cookies
• Have a Scavenger Hunt
• Go to the Library
• Bake a Cake
• Make Home Movies
• Have an Indoor Picnic
• Fingerplays

Educational Rainy Day Activities

• Rain Catcher – Make a rain catcher to see how much rain has fallen during that particular rainstorm.
• Crock Pot Cloud – Using a crock pot you can teach your children a little bit about what the clouds do and how it rains. Fill a crock pot half the way with water. After the water has been in there for a couple of hours and you see the water condensing on the lid bring the children over to the crock pot (being extra careful that they keep their distance from the hot crock pot). Once the children are in watching view of the crock pot show them the condensation on the crock pot and let them know that it is the same as a cloud being full of raindrops. Lift and tilt the lid and show them what happens – the rain begins to fall.
• What Floats? – Let a pot fill up with water outside while it is raining. Have children place an object in the pot filled with water to see if certain things floats or sinks? Let them tell you what they think will happen to that object before they place it in the water. Were they right?
• Evaporation – Evaporation is the process of water becoming vapor. This process can be confusing for children. But, one way to explain it is to perform this easy activity. Help your child pour water into a jar or glass. Take a marker and mark a line where the water is. Place the glass on the windowsill. Have the child check the glass every day. What does the child notice is happening with the water level? This is a great time to explain evaporation in further detail.
• Rain in different Lands – Go to the Library or search the internet with your children about different areas around the World and the amount of rain they get. Show them pictures of the different ways people have to live because of the rain in their area. For example, people who live in the Amazon compared with people who live in Asia.
• Dirty Rain – Collect Rain in two different containers. Place a coffee filter on top of the one container and the 2nd container use nothing covering the top. When it is done raining bring both containers in. Show the kids what the filter looks like on the one container. It will probably be pretty dirty depending on where you live. The larger the city you live in the dirtier the filter will be. Explain to them that raindrops start off clean, but get dirty when traveling through our atmosphere because of all the air pollution.
• Rain Changes Things – It is true. Rain does change things. During a nice spring or summer rain take a walk with your children and have them take notice of things during the rain. Tell them to use all of their senses to experience the changes.
• Be a Water Spy – Let the children investigate the rain and see if they can figure out where the rain goes during and after a storm.
• What do Animals do? - Let the children investigate to see which animals don’t mind the rain and which animals hide from the rain.

I asked some of my friends on Twitter as to what activities they use to play in the rain as a child. This is the responses I got….

As you can see from the responses I received on Twitter  rain, mess, mud and creatures were super important substances in enjoying the fun of playing in the rain. Kids love experiencing things with all of their senses. And, I think that adding some rain to their outside play can increase the fun levels. Kids love getting messy and the added rain to the outside dirt creates the substance of pleasurable mud. Mud is messy, mud is moldable and mud is usually off limits. And, we all know how children love doing things that they feel they are not normally allowed to do. And from the answers I received from my Twitter friends, getting messy, building things and playing with creatures equals tons of fun in the Spring/Summer rain season.

And, I also want to mention that as long as children aren’t getting a chill outside that playing in the rain can be safe. Make sure to dress your child appropriately to play in the rain. Clothes such as a raincoat, poncho, boots or goulashes are perfect. And, once the child is done playing in the rain make sure they quickly take off all clothes that are wet and if need be let them take a nice warm bath. You can even warm them up from the inside out by offering them tea, hot chocolate or a cup of soup.

So as long as their is no chance of lightening and the weather is warm enough it is pretty safe to let your children play outside in the rain. As a matter of fact, enjoy the rain with them. Adding a bit of rain water to children’s play is a sure way to create lasting memories, some education and a ton of fun.

Thank you Alysson Fergison, Steve Plunkett, steaprok and Ruud Hein for anwering my question regarding Childhood Rain Day Fun via Twitter.

Top Image by woodleywonderworks

It’s Springtime and when I think of Spring I think of grass growing, trees getting their leaves back, flowers blossoming, animals running around, kids playing outside. Basically, when I think of Spring I think of “Life”.

With that being said I’m going to write about something that combines two spring like topics….

Life & Gardening.

Okay, before you start think I have absolutely gone bazerk let me explain.

There is a lesson that every parent should teach their children. It is the lesson of Respecting other Living things.

This lesson can be a very tough one to teach, but when you start teaching this lesson early and continue throughout the child’s life you have a better chance of raising happy human beings that won’t take life for granted. And, using Gardening can help you teach your children this life lesson without them knowing that you are teaching them any lesson at all.

Why does gardening Work in helping teach children to Respect Living Creatures?

Plants start from seeds and with love, nurture and food they grow into healthy plants. However, just like with any other living thing, if they are neglected they will not thrive and they might even lose their life. Your children will learn first hand the reward they get from taking care of the plants (they will see them turn into beautiful thriving plants) and they will learn the sadness that comes when they lose something they didn’t take proper care of. It already sounds like life, doesn’t it? This is why gardening works in teaching your child to respect life.

Children can learn many basic life skills from helping you care for the garden.

Many of the same things human need to survive so do plants. This again is why gardening is such a great way to teach children about respecting living things… because of our survival similarities.

Things Plants Need to Survive

• Plants need water just like we do.
• Plants need Nutrients just like we do. But, we get our nutrients from the food we eat… plants get their nutrients from within the soil. They call this fertilizer.
• Sunlight – Plants get their energy from the sunlight
• Plants need air, but not for oxygen, but for Carbon Dioxide. When they use Carbon Dioxide they spit out oxygen. So, we need plants in our life because they produce the oxygen we use.

How to Use Gardening to teach Children to Respect Living Things

• Teach by Example – By your kids seeing you gardening and raising / caring for plant your children will do the same.
• Start with seeds instead of buying kits - This way your children will see the growth of a plant from a simple seed.
• Separate parts of the garden for each child – this will be easier for them to see the fruit of their labor. Part of the gardening process and the learning experience is the rewarding feelings your children will get when they see their plants growing well. Separating helps the children be able to easily detect which plants are their plants.
• Give the children their own Gardening Tools to take care of their portion of the Garden – Not only should the tools be for their size, but them having their own tools reminds them that this is “their” responsibility.
• Take lots of pictures of the Garden’s progress - Sometimes when you are watching over your garden daily it is difficult to see the progress. However, with frequent pictures you can see the progress from one week to the next. Progress reminds the children their hard work is paying off. The pictures also remind them that you are proud of them, and pictures also gives them bragging rights. Can you see how these pictures can be a motivator? This will help them stay involved with their project.
• Kids Love pulling Weeds – But at the very beginning it is very difficult for children to determine what is a weed and what is the plant. One idea to fix this problem is to place something around the seed that was planted that won’t damage the plant itself. Some parents use a paper cup with the bottom cut out of it to place around the seed. This way they know anything growing around the cup is, in fact, weeds and should be pulled.
• Gardens let them learn by using their Senses – Children learn and enjoy life using all of their senses. And, they will learn far more by touching, smelling — and in the case of vegetable gardening, tasting than in any book. However, you should always be supervising what it is their touching or putting in their mouths.

Discuss the Circle of Life

For children that are old enough to understand the concept of the “Cycle of Life” discussing it during gardening is perfect. Just like humans, plant life is precious. It can come and it can go. If a plant is shown neglect it will not be able to thrive. Without plants humans wouldn’t be able to survive. We need the oxygen the plants produce. Humans eat plants…. we thrive on the nutrients plants make. Hence, the cycle of life. We need each other on this earth. And, life is not something anyone should be taking for granted.

What Skills can Gardening Teach Children

• Patience
• Perseverance
• Nurturing
• Respect
• Empathy
• Compassion
• Sense of Empowerment
• Pride
• Moral Character
• Teaches the Cycle of Life
• Responsibility
• Self Confidence
• Caring

All of the above skills are skills needed to help your child grow into a loving, caring and hard working individual.

Keep in mind that when something is fully grown in the garden these items can be shared to put smiles on other people’s faces. Such as flowers given to friends and loved ones; Or, fruits and vegetables for the hungry. As you can see, yet another great way to teach your children to respect and care for living things.

By gardening you and your children will be playing an active role in making the World a more beautiful place. So, you want your child to learn to respect living things???? Teach them to Garden.

Above Image by foundphotoslj

Benefits of Exercise for Children

Physical Benefits to have Kids Exercise

1. Less likely to become overweight
2. Reduces the risk of heart disease
3. Less chance of Diabetes
4. Strong muscles, bones and joints
5. Helps children sleep better
6. Lowers blood pressure
7. Improves Balance
8. Stronger back hips, shoulders, legs and arms which means fewer future injuries.
9. Better able to handle physical challenges
10. Less apt to start smoking
11. Improves motor coordination
12. Makes you feel good

Emotional Benefits to have Kids Exercise

1. Interpersonal Skills – Participating in team sports or by playing with others.
2. Better self esteem
3. Better body image
4. Less Depression
5. Lessens the chance of drug and alcohol abuse
6. Bonding with friends and teammates
7. Handles adversity
8. Reduces anxiety
9. Helps them cope with stress better
10. Sharing skills
11. Better outlook on life
12. Handles emotional challenges better

Intellectual Benefits to have Kids Exercise

1. Enhances academic performance such as Math, Science, English and Social Studies
2. Learns to communicate well with others
3. Improves time management
4. Keeps kids attention in the classroom by reducing boredom
5. Exercise increases blood flow to the brain making it easier for the brain to learn.

The thing is we need to start treating exercise as something fun…. treat kids exercise as an activity. If we can retrain our mind to think of fitness as fun then our children will have an easier time seeing it that way. Kids fitness does not have to be a chore, but instead it can be a bunch of activities that children participate in. How much better does “Kids Exercise Activities” sound than just saying “Kids Exercise“? It sounds more appealing, doesn’t it? And, making Kids Exercise more appealing to our children is just the way to get them moving.

Here are 50 ideas of how to get your children moving. These are Kids Exercise Activities that are not only fun, but if done regularly will help keep them physically fit and happy. Oh, and join them….. kids have an easier time including physical fitness in their lives if their parents do it as well.  Plus, these Kids Exercise activities are fun for the whole family.

Kids Exercise Ideas

1. Tag
2. Monkey in the Middle
3. Dancing to some music
4. Kickball
5. Obstacle Course – create your own obstacle course using things you already have from around the house. Obstacle Courses can be inside the house or outside if it is a nice day.
6. Game of Catch
7. Simon Says – Get them moving with telling children such things as, “Simon says do jumping jacks” and “Simon says hop on one foot”. There are plenty of commands Simon could tell the children to get them moving.
8. Mother May I?
9. Yoga and Pilates – I let the kids join me in some of my daily workouts.
10. Ride bikes
11. Go to a Playground
12. Swimming
13. Twister – Twister is an awesome game that my family and I enjoy to play on our Family Game Night. By the end of the game we are all giggling and sweating. You really have to move around and stretch to do well at this game.
14. Hikes
15. Hula Hoop – I absolutely love the Hula Hoop and so do my kids. And wow, the hula hoop is quite a work out. See how this one mom used the hula hoop during her gym class while homeschooling.
16. Parachute Activities – Parachutes games help strengthen the biceps, triceps , forearms, back, and the deltoids. And, using a parachute with children teaches them team work. All the children must work together to get the parachute working properly. This exercise activity is best with many children.
17. Balloon Toss
18. Freeze Dance – Play music and tell the children to start dancing. Stop the music and the children must freeze until the music starts once again.
19. Frisbee
20. Bowling
21. Batting Cages
22. Red Light, Green Light
23. Roller Skating
24. Golfing – even miniature golf
25. Ice skating
26. Soccer
27. Tetherball – You can find tetherballs at many playgrounds, camps and community centers. Tetherball is a pole with a rope holding a ball. There will be two people playing and each player hits the ball the opposite direction. You win when you wrap the cord completely around in your direction and the ball hits the pole. I played this all the time when I was young and the workout was amazing. But, truthfully I had no idea. I just knew it was fun.
28. Jumping rope
29. Be animals – have your children pretend to be animals like a cat, bunny or snake. This will really get them moving.
30. Basketball
31. Relay races – If you have more than 6 kids then you could have relay races. Kids love relay races. It is a super way to get kids moving and exercising and them not knowing they are exercising at all. And, there are so many kinds of relay races to choose from. From Dress-up Relay Races to Egg Relay Races…. or make up your own.
32. Raking leaves
33. Skipping
34. Scavenger Hunt – Scavenger Hunts can be both entertaining and physcial. Since the majority of the time scavenger hunts are competitions the kids want to collect all the items and return them to the destination as quickly as possible.
35. Ping Pong
36. Head, Shoulders, Knees & Toes – You know the song where you touch the body parts when they are said in the song. Each time the verse starts over the song speeds up…. which means the movements go faster. This is a great kids exercise activity.
37. Hopscotch
38. Hide and Seek
39. Duck Duck Goose
40. Tug-of-war
41. Inline skating
42. Follow-the-Leader
43. Crab walk – Letting the kids move around the house or back yard in a crab walk fashion strengthen the children’s arms and abs. It’s also a lot of fun.
44. Volleyball
45. Stretch like a cat
46. Tennis
47. Picking up litter – Picking up litter around your neighborhood is a great way to get your kids exercising. Plus, it helps the environment.
48. Collect leaves on a nature walk
49. Shoveling Snow
50. Leap frog – This is a great children activity that all kids love. Leap frog can be played with just two kids and it is so much fun.

As you can see these activities don’t make you think of kids exercise, but instead they make you think of Fun Kids Activities. That is truly the idea here…. get the kids moving with fun Kids Activities.

Now, of course there are always organized sports you can get the kids involved in through your local schools, community centers, YM/WCA or Jewish Community Centers. Look through your local phone books to find the numbers and give these places a call. They are sure to have lots of fun Kids Fitness Activities and organized sports to get your kids moving to a healthy happier life.

*Note:  Check your Children’s Health Care Provider before starting them in any new exercise program or new strenuous physical activity.


Sources:

• Journal of Sport & Exercise Psychology
• Department of Health & Senior Services
• Mayo Clinic
• American Sports Data
]]> http://www.malt-o-meal.com/feeds/2009/03/17/reasons-to-include-kids-fitness-in-your-childrens-lives/feed/ 2 http://www.malt-o-meal.com/feeds/2009/03/04/20-winter-activities-to-do-with-your-kids/ http://www.malt-o-meal.com/feeds/2009/03/04/20-winter-activities-to-do-with-your-kids/#comments Wed, 04 Mar 2009 16:20:51 +0000 Shana Albert http://www.malt-o-meal.com/feeds/?p=915 It’s March and in many part of the World people are still experiencing extremely cold weather and snowfall. And, even if in your neck-of-the-woods it’s too warm for snow there is no reason why you and your children can’t enjoy some fun winter activities.

Below you will find more than 20 fun winter activities. Some of these activities are to be done in the snow, but most of them can be done whether you have cold winters or not. But, each of these winter activities are favorites of mine that I came across in the past couple weeks while traveling through the Blogosphere.

Favorite Winter Activities from around the Blogosphere

Studying Snow - Margot of Raising Sweet Shows shares her Snow Study with us. Through several activities she did with her children they got quite the lesson (a had a lot of fun) learning about snow. Image courtesy of Raising Sweet Souls

Silly Snow Fun! – This is one of the most fantastic ideas I have ever heard of to do in the snow…. my kids will love this. And, I plan on doing in with the next snowfall. Using food coloring to play fun activities in the snow like Find the Ice Cube and Spray Painting the Snow.Image courtesy of Blissfully Domestic

A whole list of Fun Winter Activities – Denny Phillips of Dollar Stretcher offers more than a handful of fun winter activity ideas. Winter does not have to be boring an idle…. mix it up a bit and have a super time experiencing this beautiful winter season.

Fabulous Snow Table – Check out this awesome snow table. What child wouldn’t love helping their parents make this table… plus inviting their friends over for a quick cup of hot chocolate at the table. It is beautiful and amazing that snow can create such a work of art. Image courtesy of The Children’s Nest

Fingerless Gloves from Felted Sweater – Okay, I know this isn’t the typical “Winter Craft”, but I think these gloves are so cute. And, they are made from old sweaters. It’s a great way to recycle and have fun on a Snow Day. Image courtesy of Croq Zine

Make Your Own Hot Cocoa – Okay, what kid (big or small) doesn’t love some hot cocoa after playing out in the snow? I know my kids love it. So, I felt the need to make sure to include these wonderful recipes in my link list. Also, if you or any of your children are Diabetic there is a Diabetic friendly hot cocoa recipe for you as well.

Not everyone has winter – Winter Activities

Winter Arts & Crafts from Preschool to Pre-K – Preschool To Pre-K puts together a bunch of winter crafts perfect for Toddlers and Preschoolers. This is a must read. Image courtesy of Preschool To Pre-K

How To Make Snow Globes – I don’t know about your kids, but I know my kids are fascinated with snow globes. Carol Bainbridge explains in great detail how to make a Snow Globe. This way your child can enjoy looking at the snow even when there isn’t any outside.

Winter activities when there is no snow – Julie Yang lives where there isn’t any snow. No problem….. she is super savvy. Check out her tips and ideas on how to have Winter fun when there is no snow.

Coloring Coffee Filter Snowflakes – Marie of Make and Takes put together this awesome winter craft for her viewers. This is a wonderful craft to make an inside Winter Wonderland…. even if you have no snow where you live. Do a little imagining and add these snowflakes to your room for a taste of snow. Image courtesy of Make and Takes

Family Snow Ball Fight - Emily James of Kids Craft Zone posts an excellent idea for making snowballs out of paper and having an indoor snowball fight. This is great for anytime of the year…. not just during the Winter months.

Marshmellow Snowmen – Even if there is no snow outside there is no reason why you can’t build a snowman. Here Ziggity Zoom shows us how to build a snowman out of marshmellows, pretzels and licorice…. YUMMERS!!! Image courtesy of Ziggity Zoom

Santa and Snowman Milkshakes – Oh, my goodness…. these are so cute!! And, I bet they taste delicious too!! Whisk: A Food Blog offers a recipes for these milkshakes. And, I have to admit that they almost look too cute to eat…. I said almost. Image courtesy of Whisk: A Food Blog

Preschool Skill Builder: Water Bottle “Snow Globe” – Michelle Sybert over at Her Cup overfloweth posts this really clever craft…. how to make a snow globe out of a water bottle and glitter.

Activities to do inside on Snow Days

Winter songs, verses and finger plays for Children – Perhaps it is too cold or too messy to go out in the snow… no problem. The blog, “Our Day Our Journey” offers these winter songs and finger plays perfect for keeping your antsy kids occupied.

Spool Snowflakes – Do you have any empty spools laying around? Perfect!! Scrumdilly-Do shows you how to take those left over spools and make a beautiful snowflake craft with your kids. They are so much fun to make and aren’t they fabulous?! Image courtesy of Scrumdilly-Do!

Homemade Bubbles – January and February are known to be super cold months for many places. So, much so that most of the time you and your young children spend it indoors. Here is a great indoor activities for super cold days…. one that usually takes place in the spring and summer months, but when done inside it can be enjoyed anytime of the year. Image courtesy of Little Window Shoppe

Ten Cheap Kids Activities for Indoor Winter Fun – Katelyn Thomas at Simply Thrift offers 10 cheap indoor activities during the winter months. Keep this list handy for when the boredom sets in.

Penguin Printmaking – Gail of That Artist Woman offers this wonderful painting craft perfect for being stuck in the house during a Winter snowstorm. Using paint, a sponge and a potato you can make an adorable penguin painting with your children. Image courtesy of That Artist Woman

Snowman Footprint T-Shirts – Sharla at Blissfully Domestic gives you wonderfully detailed directions on how to make Snowman Footprint T-shirts with your children. Not only are they adorable, but they are great sentimental memory pieces that you will cherish a lifetime. Image courtesy of Blissfully Domestic

Chinese New Year Animal: Year of the Ox – On January 26, 2009, the Chinese will celebrate their New Year, which is the Year of the Ox. Shannon Hutton of Sparkplugging gives you the details on how to make this craft with your children. It is a great time to explain a little bit about the Chinese New Year with your children…. plus, it keeps the kids from getting bored while staying inside during a snow storm. Wow, that is one cute ox!! Image courtesy of Sparkplugging

]]> http://www.malt-o-meal.com/feeds/2009/03/04/20-winter-activities-to-do-with-your-kids/feed/ 2 http://www.malt-o-meal.com/feeds/2009/02/23/how-to-plan-a-family-game-night/ http://www.malt-o-meal.com/feeds/2009/02/23/how-to-plan-a-family-game-night/#comments Mon, 23 Feb 2009 13:45:09 +0000 Shana Albert http://www.malt-o-meal.com/feeds/?p=1233

In my last post I explained why you should be having a Family Game Night at your house. But, now what? What is the next step?

Don’t stress, Family Game Night can be as elaborate or as simple as you would like. The basic principle is the same…. spend quality time with your family. Get everyone in the family involved in the planning of the family activities and you’re off to a great start. And, the beginning of a wonderful family tradition.

How to Plan a Family Game Night

Family Meeting

1. Hold a Family Meeting – The entire family should be involved in the planning of this event. The following will need to be discussed during the family meeting regarding Family Game Night:
   • What night of the week will Family Game Night be? Come up with a day that there will be no distractions and no cancellations. This should be a day that everybody can and will stick to.
   • How often will Family Game Night be? Weekly is best, but should be at least monthly.
   • Will there be teams or will everybody play individually? Teams are a good option if you have kids that range in age from very young to much older. This large range in age difference will mean that the children’s skills are at different levels. If you have teams then the older children can help the younger children in things they aren’t skilled to do yet.
   • Keeping Score – Will you be keeping score of the games?
   • Dinner – Is Dinner part of the festivities? If so, this needs to be discussed as well.
   • Rules – Rules to the Family Game Night should be discussed now as well. Some examples of rules….
     • No being a Sore Loser. Discuss the repercussions if this happens
     • No name calling
     • Other Rules
   • Begin / End Time – Discuss when Family Game Night should commence and when will it end.
   • Responsibilities – This is an important task to discuss. Since Family Game Night is a “Family” event everybody in the
     family should be involved. Even a child as young as two can have some type of responsibility… and should. Responsibilities can be rotated week to week so that everybody has a different job each week. Responsibilities can include the following:
     • Picking out the Family Games
     • Plan / Cook / Order Dinner
     • Plan Snacks
     • Reminders – can be written, drawn or something more original. Something that gets people excited and more importantly reminds them not to miss the Family event.
     • Teams – If having teams this person can come up with that week’s teams.
     • Games

Family Game Ideas

1. Family Game Ideas- Here are some ideas to what games would be great to play at a Family Game Night.
   • Family Card Games
     • Old Maid
     • Crazy Eights
     • Go Fish
     • Uno
     • Concentration
     • Blackjack
   • Family Charades
   • Trivia Games
     • Family Trivia – Using Index Cards write trivia questions that only Family Members would know. Great dinner time activity or random activity during game night. You can keep score or not, but either way it will be totally hilarious.
     • Trivia Board Games
   • Family Scavenger Hunt – Whoever is in charge of the game responsibility for that week will make a list of items to find. The
     entire family will get the same list and must find these items and return them to the required destination.
   • Family Fun Crafts - The person in charge of picking out the games for the week can find some crafts perfect for all age groups
     in the family. If the child is too young to handle this decision on their own a parent could help. Research online or go through a craft magazine to find family friendly crafts. It doesn’t have to be a game that the whole participates in on Family Game Night. As long as the entire family is involved it is bound to be fun for all.
   • Family Board Games – The classics are the best. They are good for each age group and there are a reason why they are “Classic”. They have stuck around this long because they are awesome. So, you are bound to have fun with them.
     • Checkers
     • Chess
     • Scrabble
     • Candy Land
     • Battleship
     • Monopoly
     • Operation
     • Chutes & Ladders
     • Twister

Family Game Night Itinerary

1. Plan the nights itinerary so everyone involved will know how the evening will probably flow. This way there is no surprises and children love structure (whether they realize it or not). Sometime during the week check in with the members of the family (remember they all have their responsibilities) and see what their plans are. What games do they have planned? What is for dinner? Will there be a game during the meal? Are there any snacks needed? Any supplies you need to pick up before the big event? Here is a Sample Game Night Itinerary: Family Game Night Itinerary
   • Dinner – Dinner Planned & Prepared by Mom and Timmy
     • BLT Sandwiches and Apple Slices on the side.
   • Dessert – Dessert Planned & Prepared by Susie;
     Family Card Game chosen by Susie
     • Orange Jello
     • Crazy Eights played while eating Desert
   • After Meal Games – After meal Move to the Living Room for the remainder of the evening.
     • Family Charades – Organized by John
     • Twister – Organized by Dad
     • Chutes and Ladders – Organized by Lola
     • Snacks – Game snacks planned & prepared by Susie
   • Next Week Responsibilities – Discuss next weeks Family Game Night responsibilities. Either have a plan to rotate or pick out of a hat.
     • Appoint everyone their responsibilities for next week.
     • Everyone chips in cleaning up.

And, there ya have it. It can be as simple or elaborate as you would like. The basics are always the same…. get your family together, have a good time and make some lasting memories. So, what are you waiting for? Plan your Family Game Night now.

Image above courtesy of deltaMike

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