Increase your child's awareness of his body and listening skills through this fun activity
What You Need:
- A paper plate
- Green and red crayons
What To Do:
- Have your child color one side of the paper plate red and the other side green.
- Explain to your child that when you show him the green side of the plate, he should run toward you, and when you show him the red side of the plate, he should stop.
- Start by showing him the green side and encourage him to run toward you. Then show him the red side, and remind him to stop, if he doesn’t stop on his own. Alternate showing him the green and red sides again, until he reaches you.
- Vary the activity by: 1) using different movement such as hopping, tip-toeing, or crawling, 2) changing roles – have your child hold the paper plate and you run or stop –depending on the color he shows you.
Note: This activity works best in an outdoor area with lots of open space.
A healthy snack to eat with vegetables
What You Need:
- 16 oz organic, plain Greek yogurt
- 1 cucumber, seeded and grated or sliced thinly
- 1 garlic clove, pressed
- 1 T. lemon juice (add more if needed)
- 1 tsp. olive oil
- ¼ c. parsley, fresh chopped
- 2 T. fresh chopped dill
- Salt and pepper to taste
What To Do:
- Scoop the Greek yogurt into a bowl.
- Add the cucumber and mix well.
- Talk about the ingredients and have your child add the parsley and dill as well as the pressed garlic, lemon juice, olive oil, pinch of salt, and dash of pepper into the mixture.
- Mix well and taste, adjusting the flavor if needed.
Adapted from Farm to Keiki by Tiana Kamen
Make bubble art with a straw and liquid soap.
What You Need:
• Liquid dishwashing soap
• Wide-mouthed cup or bowl
• Food coloring
• Straw
• Scissors (for adult use only)
• Paper
• Old newspapers
What To Do:
1. Line your work area with old newspapers to protect your work surface, or do this activity outdoors.
2. Have your child squeeze a squirt of dishwashing soap to a cupful of water.
3. Add one drop of food coloring into the cup.
4. With the scissors, cut a small notch on the side of the straw about half an inch down from the top. This will prevent your child from swallowing the bubble solution while she is blowing.
5. Show her how to blow gently into the straw to make bubbles in the soap solution.
6. Talk about how blowing air through the straw causes the bubbles to form.
7. Add another color to the cup and talk about what happens.
8. Have her blow a little harder, then softer into the straw. Ask her what happens when she changes her blowing.
9. Place a sheet of paper over the bubbles. Lift it off and let it dry. Do this several times with different sheets of paper.
10. Ask her to tell you about the pictures she sees in the various pieces of bubble art. Describe to her what you see.
11. Ask her to pick her favorite example of bubble art and find a place to display it.
VARIATION:
Once the sheets of paper have dried, cut them into smaller pieces to make greeting cards. Ask her what message she’d like to share with someone and write her words in the card. Help her address and send the card to the special person.
! Safety Alert: Adult-size scissors are not safe for young preschoolers. Keep them out of children’s reach. Be sure to monitor your child while she is playing with the soap solution. Remind her that she should not drink the soap solution.
When it is time for your baby to sleep, softly sing him a lullaby
What You Need:
None
What To Do:
When it is time for your baby to sleep, softly sing him a lullaby. Use words and songs from your child’s family culture, or make up a lullaby using a familiar lullaby tune. Here are the words to a popular Hawaiian lullaby.
Pupu Hinuhinu
By Nona Beamer
Pupu Hinuhinu (shiny shells)
Pupu Hinuhinu e (shiny shells)
O ke kahakai kahakai ee (I found you by the shore, the shore)
Pupu Hinuhinu e (shiny shells)
Pupu Hinuhinu (shiny shells)
Pupu Hinuhinu e (shiny shells)
E lohe kakou ee (let's listen to our shells)
Pupu Hinuhinu e (shiny shells)
Pupu Hinuhinu (shiny shells)
Pupu Hinuhinu e (shiny shells)
E moe, e moe e (go to sleep)
E moe-e-ee (sleep)
