Toddler Fun, Week 8: Letter G, Number 8, Orange and Goldfish

Week 8

Letter: G

Number: 8

Color: Orange

Animal: Goldfish

Activities

1. Restaurant with Aquarium

Unfortunately, Jacksonville is in the process of building an aquarium, but doesn't have one yet.  So, I was trying to think of where there was an aquarium near us, when I remembered... restaurants!  So we went to one on the road while we were traveling, as well as one of our favorites here in Jacksonville, called Salt Life.  It's a great way to get to see fishies swimming around, and while it is not entirely free, if you're on the road and needing to eat anyway, might as well stop somewhere that has a fish tank!

2. Name Building Puzzle

One of the most important things kids should recognize and know how to write is their name.  I made Aidan this puzzle for his name by cutting a fish out of some cute scrapbooking paper, which I traced onto some paper, then cut into pieces, writing a letter from his name on each.  After that, we practiced putting them in order, and saying the letters out loud.

3. Feed the Goldfish Letter Game

For this game, I took a used Tide pod container, picked the labels off (which took well over an hour, just giving you fair warning), cut out fins and a tail, and glued those down.  Oh, and of course googley eyes.  Next, I cut out fish food flakes out of colored paper.  I had some pre-cut letters that I glued onto them.  I used the letters we'd already learned (A, B, C, D, E, F, G, R).  Next we "fed" the fish.  Sometimes I would call out a letter, sometimes he would... it was just a fun way to reenforce the letters.

4. Pet Store

We visited our local PetSmart to look at all the pretty fish!  I thought about buying one for Aidan, but decided against it, because we never know how long we will be home for, and we're moving halfway across the world in a few months.  I know it's just a fish, but I didn't want to get something just to have to get rid of it.  Plus, this way we get to enjoy ALL the fish, and it stays free.

5. Story Time at the Library

Our local library has story time every Tuesday.  We've gone a few times, and it's really fun!  They always read a couple books, sing some songs, finger plays, nursery rhymes, and starting this week, they even had centers set up afterward.  Look at the top left corner of the flannel graph.  See the goldfish in the pond??? God loves me. 

The center time was fun!  Of course, Aidan found a puffer fish (right hand), that was very hard for us to leave.  It worked out perfectly, I picked up the books I'd put on hold, and had a great time!




6. Goldfish Counting

I found this great one-to-one correspondence matching game here.  I printed them out, cut them out, and laminated them.  Then the goldfish were brought out - and fun times were had by all!  It's great for fine motor skills, one-to-one correspondence, counting and recognizing numbers, and plus, it's just fun to eat.

Snacks

1. Gone Fishin'

 For this snack, I used a hazelnut spread to-go pack (it has crackers on one side, and the spread on the other), and goldfish (in a blue bowl, to represent the water).  It's hard to teach your kids not to play with their food after this snack, haha!

This was a great activity for practicing fine motor skills.  Aidan dipped the cracker in the hazelnut dip, and then used it to "fish" the goldfish out.  He honestly had a blast!  You could do this with pretzels and peanut butter just as easily.








2. Goldfish Fruit Snack

For this adorable snack that I found on pinterest, I used a mandarin orange, some kiwi slices, a carrot slice and blueberries.  I arranged them all on the plate, and badda-bing, badda-boom... GOLDFISH!







3. We Mak Our Own Sunshine

This snack turned out so cute!  I made this one during the onset of Hurricane Matthew, and was in desperate need of some rays of sunshine.  For this snack I used cheerios, blueberries, cupcake flavored goldfish, pretzels, kiwi and a slice of mandarin.  Aidan loved this one!





4. Dried Apricot Fishies

Although this school of fish is super cute, it was not a hit with Aidan.  I tried to convince him that the apricots were fruit snacks, but to no avail, haha!  I used dried apricots, blueberries, pretzels, nutella (to stick them to each other) and candy eyes.

Crafts

1. G is for Goldfish

For this letter craft, I cut out an orange "G", fins tail and mouth.  Then, we assembled it all, while singing "I hear an echo, I hear an echo, G says /g/, G says /g/, goldfish and gorilla, goldfish and gorilla, G says /g/, G says /g/.

Books and Media

1. Not Norman by Kelly Bennett

This is a sweet story about a boy whose parents get him a goldfish for his birthday, but Norman isn't the type of pet he wanted.  He decides to take him back to the pet store, but starts finding out how cool Norman can be.

2. The Goldfish Yawned by Elizabeth Sayles

This is a sweet bedtime story where a boy drifts off to sleep, and has a dream about a sailboat and how things come alive in his bedroom.

3. Flashy Fish by Mary Elizabeth Salzmann

A nice book with pictures of goldfishies.  It was great for talking about colors and things.

4. Goldfish (Pet Care) by Kelley MacAulay

This was a great book about (and a good reminder about why we're not) getting a goldfish. It has facts about goldfish, pictures of them and aquariums.





5. Bible App For Kids Storybook

We read from the Bible every night before bed, but this week we focused specifically on the story of the boy with the two fish and the five loaves of bread.  We also sang these lyrics to the "Happy Birthday" song: "One boy had two fish, and five loaves of bread.  He gave them to Jesus, lots of people were fed."  We did a little finger play along with it, which proved to be more difficult than expected, haha!

Toddler Fun, Week 7: Letter E, Number 7, Gray and Elephants

Elephants are awe-inspiring.  They burry and mourn their dead, touching one another is important, the calf/mother relationship is tender and long-lasting, they recognize themselves... they are amazing.  I've always really liked them, and I'm so glad Aidan does too!  So, here is our elephant week - I hope you enjoy it!

Week 7

Letter: E

Number: 7

Color: Gray

Animal: Elephant

Activities

1. Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens

We have zoo memberships, so really, we spend as much time there as we can. We recently spent the morning there with some friends, and had a wonderful day! The elephants are really great, and you can look at them from out of a cave, which makes it that much more exciting for our little boy.

2. "Elephants Never Forget" Memory Matching Game

I downloaded an animal matching game here.  I printed them out, cut them out, then glued them to foam paper, cut those out, glued those to scrapbooking paper, cut them out again... and now it's a matching game.  At first, we matched them all.  Then, we started with small batches - 4, 6, etc.  We turned them all 2-at-a-time, and tried to remember where we'd seen that animal last.  I was surprised at how well he did!  I could also tell the moment his brain got too tired to focus anymore, haha.  He turned into a little monkey, climbing on the ottoman, making silly faces... you know the drill. 

3. "Safari" 

I made Aidan a safari Jeep out of a box.  He's been sitting in it to watch TV, been putting all his animals in it, pushing it around... it's been a hit! 


4. Bay & Bee

 We really love our Bay & Bee membership!  It's an indoor play space based on Montessori and Waldorf teaching methods.
This week, one of the days that we went, Aidan found a recycling truck, and an elephant, and some green "peanuts".  He reenacted a whole scene from 

Paw Patrol.  One where Rocky, the recycling pup dispenses peanuts to get the elephants to follow him.  I love how much he remembered it!!!  Also, that day they happened to have a local band come and sing, and he really enjoyed dancing!  The singer's name was Mere Woodard, and you can buy her album on iTunes.  She was REALLY great!






5. Letter E Recognizing 

 For this activity, I painted a paper towel role gray, punched two holes in it, through which I strung some string.  I tied it around Aidan's head to make a "trunk".  The game was, I'd tell him the name of the letter (E, R, or F), then he had to use the trunk to touch it.  I figured it would be a great gross-motor activity - and it WAS.  But he didn't like the trunk.  So it evolved into him jumping on the letter I said, which was just as great!

Snacks

1. Elephant Waffles

For this breakfast, I used a waffle, a banana, a black berry, an apple slice, and candy eyes.  Aidan ate everything but the waffle, haha!  He's such a fruit-lover!

2. Elephants on Parade

For this tasty treat, I used half a banana, pretzel, kiwi, pineapple and animal crackers.  I went through 3 little bags of animal crackers looking for elephants, and could only find two, so I added a giraffe.  Then we read A Surprise for Giraffe and Elephant.





3. Horton Hears a Who Snack

For this snack, I used apple slices, kiwi, fruit leather and a mini white chocolate chip.  I cut the apple slices to look like a trunk, the fruit leather into circles, and then little cuts in it.  Arranged it all on the plate, and there you have it!






4. Elephant Sandwich

I found some adorable sandwich cutters on amazon, and couldn't help myself.  I made Aidan's favorite turkey and cheese sandwich, used the sandwich cutter, used black olives for eyes, and a banana and kiwi for the tree and grass.  Aidan was a big fan!

Crafts

1. E is for Elephant

Every week, we've been making a letter craft, to help Aidan remember the letter. Eventually we will have the whole alphabet, which will be great!  For this one, I cut out a gray "E", an ear, a trunk, two tusks and nails.  Then we assembled it all, and voila!  I think this one specifically turned out super-duper cute!






2. Elmer "Stained Glass"

I think I enjoyed this craft more than Aidan.  I took a ziplock, and cut it along the seems.  They I took the half that didn't have anything on it.  I put that on the book cover, and traced Elmer onto it, using a sharpie.  Then, I cut some tissue paper into squares.  I brushed some white school glue on it, and then we placed the squares all over Elmer.  Aidan didn't love how the glue felt on his fingers, lol.  One the glue dried, I cut out "Elmer", and taped him to the window.


3. Tinga Tinga Coloring Pages

I found some cute coloring pages featuring the Tinga Tinga characters!

Books and Media

We Read:

1. Elmer by David McKee

This is a classic.  This book is a great one to talk about how God made each of us special, and with unique giftings.  It's about an elephant, who unlike his friends is not gray, but rather multi-colored.  He colors himself gray, so he can fit in, but ends up finding out that his color and humor is what his friends love about him.

2. Richard Scarry's Polite Elephant 

Thi is a great book for practicing and teaching manners.  It's a little dated, but being polite is not going out of style at our house, so it's a good read for a little boy!

3. A Surprise for Giraffe and Elephant by Paul Gude

I found this book at our library, and it looked like fun!  It's good at teaching how to be a good friend, and we've been working on sharing, so it's great for that!

4. Little Elephant's Song by Wolfram Hanel

This is a sweet story about an elephant growing up, and finding his voice.  The illustrations are very sweet, and it's an enjoyable story!






5. Babar on Paradise Island by Laurent de Brunhoff

I've seen many of the Babar cartoons as a kid, and they are sweet stories about an anthropomorphic elephant family written by French author, Laurent de Brunhoff.  In the last few years he and his wife moved to Key West.  When we were there, we found this book, and I thought it was sweet.  It's not the greatest of his books, but I enjoyed it, and the Key West references were fun for us.

We Watched:

1. Tinga Tinga Tales

We found this show on Netflix.  It's based on African (Tanzanian and Kenyan) folk tales about how different animals received their distinctive characteristics.  The very first episode is about how elephants got their trunks.  The animation is inspired by traditional TingaTinga art.  I wasn't sure how well it would keep Aidan's attention, but he really enjoyed it!

2. The Jungle Book - The 1967 version.  It has Indian elephants in it, so it was great to talk about the similarities and differences between them and their African cousin.

3. Wild Kratts, Season 1 Episode 17, "Elephant in the Room" 

4. The Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot About That, Season 1 Episode 27, "Be Cool/Elephant Walk"

5. Horton Hears a Who (1970) - I love a classic Dr. Seuss movie!  Again, I was surprised at how well it held Aidan's attention!  Also, I love the phrase "A person's a person, no matter how small."

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Toddler Fun, Week 6: Letter D, Number 6, Brown and Deer

Being an itinerating missionary means being gone a lot, many hours in the car, and staying in strange places many nights.  But it also means we get to see SO MUCH of our state and country!

This month we are mainly in the Ocala/Central Florida area, which is simply beautiful.  So, in honor of that, I decided to do "D is for Deer" week.  I hope you enjoy!

Week 6

Letter: D

Number: 6

Color: Brown

Animal: Deer

Activities

1. Drive through Ocala National Forest

 On our drive home, we stopped at a pier to look around.  It was breathtaking!  Honestly. All we could hear was ourselves, and the birds.  Aidan loved it just as much as we did!  As we continued to drive, I was praying to see a deer.  I told my husband I would settle for a skinny cow.  Just then, we saw 3 deer 



by the side of the road!  Oh happy day!  I was so excited!  Aidan saw them too, he didn't particularly care, or understand why mommy was so excited, but it was a great moment!!










2. Deer Footprint Activity

I made footprint stamps using foam craft paper, 6-inch cardboard cake stands and elastic.  (I printed out a deer footprint, cut it out, then cut it out the foam paper.  I hot glued it to the cake stands - off of which I cut some of the side, attached the elastic, hot glued the foam onto the cardboard, and voila!  Then I cut out antlers and ears, and attached them to a pipe cleaner headband.

For the footprint part, I put paint on the stamps, and slipped them onto his hands and feet.  Then he practiced walking on his hands and feet.  The prints weren't super defined, but he had a good time pretending to have deer powers!

The finished product! (Can you tell where he stood up, haha?)  I cut out the best-looking part, and hung it on our fridge.  I was particularly tickled that the footprint actually looked like a "D" on each side.









3. Forest Animal Habitat Placing

I had some stickers back from when I had time to scrapbook that were forest animals.  I printed out a picture from where we were in the Ocala National forest.  Then, we talked about where each animal lives - water, trees, on the ground.  Aidan knew where pretty much each animal lived, which was exciting!






4. Goofy Pictures

I don't use Snapchat, but I downloaded it this week, so Aidan and I could play around with the filters.  Of course, the deer one was our favorite, but we had fun trying out all of them.

Snacks

1. That sandwich, "doe"...

(I know the antlers make it a buck. :)) For this lunch, I used a sandwich - which I cut to look like a deer head, ears and neck, the crust for the antlers, cheese for the forehead, and black olives for the eyes and nose.  I also have him some pistachios and mandarin sections.  It was a huge hit!  Except for the olives, haha!

2. "D" is for Donut Deer

Our little guy is a HUGE donut fan, so I knew I needed to include them somehow.  So, for this snack I used cinnamon mini donuts, pretzels, chocolate chips and candy eyes (because I was tires of making them every time, haha!)

Crafts

1. D is for Donut

For this Alphabet addition, I cut out a brown D, and he stuck it on the paper.  Then he painted some white finger paint on it for icing.  I had pre-cut some colorful strips of paper, which he, with my help, cut into little "sprinkles".  This boy loves his donuts, so I knew it would really help him remember "D".








2. Deer Footprint Art

We made a couple of these, one for Daddy, one for Grandpa, and one for Aidan to put up on the wall in his room.  It's just his and my footprints, which I "doctored" up to turn into deer. :)

Books and Media

We Read:

1. Imogene's Antlers by David Small

I loved this book as a kid, and was more than happy to introduce Aidan to it!  It's about a young girl who wakes up one morning with antlers, and how that affects her life.  It's great for promoting creative thinking and imagination.

2. Stormy Finds the New Forest by Tom Storm

Our friend Amy brought Aidan this book back from Great Falls, Montana, where both she and the author are from.  This book gives a good explanation of the relationship between hunting and deer overpopulation.  It's more for older kids, so we just like looking at the illustrations, which are very pretty!

3. Over in the Forest by Marianne Berkes

We took this book out of the library, but really, I'd love to own it!  It's a great counting book, featuring forest animals, but what makes it even more perfect for our needs this week, is that it has each animal's footprints too!

4. The Deer in the Wood by Laura Ingalls Wilder

I am a big Laura Ingalls Wilder fan, and had a couple of these kids' version of her books growing up, so I was tickled to find there was a deer one!  It's about how Pa goes hunting, but so enjoys watching the deer, that he simply isn't able to shoot any of them that day.  I think it's so special, how it shows a gentler side to a man.

5. Baby Bear, Baby Bear, What Do You See? by Bill Martin/Eric Carle

Again, I was so glad to find an Eric Carle book that fit our theme this week!  There is a mule deer in it, and we've read it so many times, that Aidan "reads" it to himself, which is pretty much the most precious thing, ever.



We Watched:

1. Bambi 

This Disney classic has been moved back into the vault, but I was able to find it on Amazon.  If you don't want to spend the money, a lot of times you can find it at your local library.  I recently found the "Place Hold" function on my local library's website.  It allows me to find books, even at other libraries around the city, place them on hold, then my account tells me when they come in, and then I go pick them up.  They're waiting for me in a nice little bundle when I get there.  Perfection.


2. Paw Patrol, Season 2 Episode 11, Pups Leave Marshall Home Alone/Pups Save the Deer.  

If you're looking for it on iTunes, it's in the Paw Patrol Volume 3.  In true Paw Patrol fashion, there's an emergency, and the pups save the day.  In the second part of this episode, there is a deer family in trouble, and guess who is on their way to save the day?!  You guessed it! :)