Author: halverd

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Black and White Patterns

Materials
Black and white items (i.e. dried black beans and dried lima beans, black and white pom poms, black and white pieces of construction paper)

Directions
Introduce your preschooler to simple repeating patterns by starting a pattern using black and white materials. Place black object, then a white object, then black, then white.  Ask your child what color comes next.  Invite your child to continue the pattern. Then ask your child to create his own black and white pattern.  

For younger children, you may want to draw a pattern using black and white squares on a long piece of paper. Encourage your child to place black paper squares on top of the black squares drawn on the paper and white paper squares on the white squares drawn on the paper.  

Lesson Extension
Introduce your child to more difficult repeating patterns – black, black, white; black white, white; black, black, white, white

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Marshmallow (or Bananas) Snowman Snack

Ingredients
Marshmallows (or banana buttons)
Mini choclate chips
Tube decorating frosting
Pretzel sticks
Lollipop sticks

Directions
Place three marshmallows onto a lollipop stick.  Press pretzel sticks in the sides for arms.  Using the tube frosting, place a small amount of frosting on the back of the mini chocolate chips and gently press the chips onto the marshmallows to make eyes, mouth, and buttons.  Serve.

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Snow Ice Cream

Ingredients
1 Large bowl of fresh snow (8 – 10 cups)
1 10 oz. can Sweentened Condensed Milk
1 teaspoon vanilla

Directions
Mix all ingredients together.  The sweetened condensed milk freezes with the snow, so the ice cream is thick and delicious and ready to eat immediately.  You can also place it in the freezer by packing it into an air-tight freezer container and enjoy later.

Note:  If the snow is a wet, packing snow, the ice cream will have a consistency of what you are used to.  If the snow is dry and powdery and doesn’t pack well, the ice cream will be more loose.  Either way, both are delicious!

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Sock Snowman

Materials
Child-size white sock
Dry Rice
Scrap of material for the scarf – fleece works well
Two small googly eyes
Two colorful buttons
A small elastic band or white string
One small pom-pom
Scrap of orange felt for the nose
Black yarn for the mouth (optional)
Hot glue gun

Directions
Invite your child to fill the sock up with rice to the start of the cuff. With your help, secure the top where the cuff starts with a small elastic band or a piece of white string. Next, tie another piece of string or use an elastic band around the middle of the sock to make a head and body. Roll the top part of the sock down to make the hat. Tie a piece of fabric or ribbon around the middle for the scarf.  Using a hot glue gun, glue the pom-pom on top to finish the hat; glue two googly eyes, an orange felt nose, and a yarn mouth on the head; glue two buttons on the body. (an adult should do the gluing!)

Make a whole snowman family!  Your child will have playing and pretending with their own snow people!

 

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Noah’s Ark – Animal Cracker Activity

Materials
Children’s Bible with the story of Noah
Brown Construction Paper
Blue Construction Paper
Animal Crackers
Simple Ark Template
Glue stick

Directions
Read the story of Noah to your child. Using a simple ark template, cut out an ark shape from the brown construction paper and ask your child to help glue it onto blue construction paper. Next, invite your child to place pairs of animal crackers on the ark two by two. Name the animals. Count the animals.
Retell the story while your child enjoys eating the animal crackers as a special snack.
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Erupting Snow

Ingredients
I box of baking soda
1 can shaving cream
1 spray bottle with vinegar

Directions
Pour baking soda in a large bowl.  Slowly add shaving cream and mix until the baking soda and shaving cream becomes a moldable dough. Invite your child to make snowballs with the dough.  Then spray the snowballs with vinegar and observe what happens.  Snowballs can also be dropped into a bowl of vinegar to make a “snow avalanche”.  Such a fun sensory experience!

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Bringing the Snow Inside!

Materials
Tub of fresh, clean snow
Scoops, cups, basters, pipettes
Small containers with water and food coloring

Directions
invite your child to help you gather some fresh snow into a plastic tub.  Place the container on a hard surface and add scoops, cups, pipettes, basters, cookie cutters, etc. to the snow.  Encourage your child to explore, scoop, pack, dig, and create.  Provide water and food coloring to add fun colors to the snow.  

For a science lesson, invite your child to observe what happens to the snow as it stays inside.  

Have fun!

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Baked Snowballs

Materials
1 cup water
1 cup flour
Cotton Balls
Foil
Cookie sheet
Pam Non-Stick cooking spray
Food coloring (optional)

Directions
Mix water and flour. Divide into portions, if adding food coloring of choice. Wrap a cookie sheet with foil, spray with Pam Non-Stick cooking spray. Dip cotton balls in batter and place on baking sheet. Bake at 300 degrees for about 45 minutes. Let them cool and harden. Invite your child to smash open the cotton balls by pressing on them or using a small toy hammer. Close supervision is recommended.

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Felt Mitten Color Game

Materials
Assorted colors of felt 
Scissors

Directions
Cut a simple mitten shape out of each color of felt.  Cut a white circle out of white felt for the snowball.  Invite your toddler to close her eyes.  Hide the snowball under one of the felt mittens and then ask your child to find the snowball.  Reinforce colors by saying, “You found the snowball under the red mitten.”  Or ask your child, “What color mitten was the snowball hiding under?”

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Crayola Model Magic Snowman

Materials
White and black Crayola Model Magic
Small twigs
Scrap of felt for a scarf

Directions
Invite your child to roll the white Model Magic dough into three different size balls – small, medium, and large.  Place the “snowballs” on top of each other to make a snowman.  Use black Model Magic dough to add details like eyes, mouth, buttons, etc. Choose two small twigs to use as arms.  A small piece of felt can be used to make a scarf for the snowman.