Homeschooling My Kinetic Kids

It's only a few more weeks until Christmas!  Even if you don't celebrate that particular day, many schools and homeschool groups have a Winter Break around New Year's Day.  If you're anything like me, you're probably stuck at home with stir-crazy kids.  There's not enough snow to motivate them to go outside and they're just SO excited about presents that they can hardly contain themselves.  I'm finding myself on Pinterest searching for things to do with the kids and ways to keep them busy.  When I called on my friends at the Kid Blogger Network, I ended up with this awesome list! Snow Slime // No Time for Flashcards Holiday Slime // This Teaching Mama Melting Snowman Slime // Little Bins for Little Hands Grinch Glitter Slime // Citrus and Stripes Santa Slime // Growing a Jeweled Rose Cocoa Slime // Fantastic Fun and Learning Gingerbread Ooblek // My Bored Toddler Fluffy Snow Slime // Natural Beach Living Edible Peppermint Slime // Soccer Mom Blog Slime S...

Play dough.  So many things you can do with it to make it interesting.  Have them cut it with scissors.  Roll into snakes.  Roll with rolling pin.  Cut out with cookie cutters.  Bury beads in it and have them pinch them out.  Give them things to build with.  Add small toys and teach them to make tracks.  Add trucks and drive through the dough.  Add noodles, netting, or other things with textures and make imprints.  Poke it with a fork.  Roll it into balls.  Squish them with one finger.  Stamp them with rubber stamps (letters!).....  So much you can do! Play dough is so great for building fine motor skills!  Kids from about age 2/3 and above need to have their fingers in the dough as much as possible.  I made the graphic below as a reference for play dough ideas when you're feeling bored with the plain lump of dough.  Share it around and spread the fun! This blog post has been a few years in the mak...

For the fourth day of Star Wars week, I've joined with the wonder writers of the Kid Blogger Network to bring you their best Disney play dough ideas.  Kids love to squish, kneed, and roll dough.  These creative kits should keep them entertained and happy for hours.  Most of them use homemade recipes, but store-bought ones can be utilized as well.  Put together a few kits for grandma's house, birthday presents, vacations, and wherever else you end up this summer. Star Wars Seeing as it's Star Wars week, I thought I should dedicate a full section to the Galaxy far, far away. BB8 // Left Brain Craft Brain The orange, white, and grey in this invitation to play is so striking. Star Wars // Frugal Fun for Boys My boys love this little metal spaceships.  They would really enjoy playing with them in the sand play dough, too. Galaxy // Imagination Tree The silver stars look so inviting! Death Star // Little Bins for Little Hands Lego pieces and shades of grey play dough ...

I LOVE bees.  Every since I was a little girl and first saw the hive through a window, I've been hooked.  Of course, it probably helps that one of my names means "industrious like a honeybee" (which also might explain the flightiness). As part of my blog birthday week, I'm bringing out all of my favorite things.  I recently joined the Kids Blogger Network, so this "Celebration of Bees" is a collection of all the best from those writers and creators. Nearly everyone loves to color, draw, or doodle. Here are some bee themed ideas. Maya the Bee Coloring // Kiddy Charts Adult Coloring // Arts Crackers  How to Draw a Bee // Easy Peasy and Fun Honey Bee Coloring // In All You Do The moms of the Kid Blogger Network are a crafty bunch! Here's a small taste of their amazing ideas. Egg Carton Bugs // Pink Stripy Socks Clothespin Bee // Non Toy Gifts Honeycomb Craft // 123 Homeschool 4 Me Paper Bag Bee // I Heart Crafty Things Bee Foot Print // Fun Hand Print Art B...

I had a very bad blogging day and had to write this post twice.  I'm going to attempt to do as well on the second draft as I did on the first, but I'm a bit disheartened.  Ok, here we go again. This Wednesday, March 14, is the nerdiest holiday of all- Pi Day!  On 3.14, we celebrate circles, fractions, mathematical formulas, and all things geeky.  Those are all fun, but the best part of Pi Day is eating pie!  It's not always practical to make homemade pie in the middle of the week or in a school setting, which is why I'm dedicating my Pi Day blog post to pretend pies! I've asked for help from some of the best bloggers on the net to bring you a fun collection of play dough, felt pies, and pretend bakery ideas for kids. Felt Pies with Pattern from In Our Pond I made these felt pies two years ago for Christmas, and they're still my kids favorite thing for their play kitchen.  They love to put the pies in the pie pan, bake them, and serve them.  Eventually,...

This round-up was a big sacrifice for me, since I hate teeth, talking about teeth, and dentists!  Ick!  I don't want to touch teeth, pull teeth, or look at them (which makes it challenging to teach hygiene to the children).  My husband is even worse! Fortunately, I now have a good tribe around me!  The majority of these toothsome ideas came from the wonderful people at Kid Bloggers Network.  Thanks, guys!  I hope you all enjoy them! Tooth Fairy We don't do the tooth fairy at our house.  I pay the kids up front for their lost teeth with Disney Dollars (DD), our family currency.  Each tooth is worth $5 DD and $100 DD equals one $10 USD toy.  Dollars may also be earned by "going above and beyond" what your parents have asked you to do.  For example, if you're asked to clear the table and you sweep the kitchen as well, you'll earn some DD.  It's been working very well for us. Tooth Fairy Certificates from The Quiet Grove This blogg...