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November: Time to be Thankful, Care and Share

November 10, 2018 by Mama Carmody Leave a Comment

November: Time to be Thankful, Care and Share

It’s the first of November, which means the holidays are quickly approaching. Although we should always be thankful for the many blessings we receive, this is the time of year that those things especially come to mind. We have gatherings with family and friends. We laugh and share memories.

The children start making Christmas lists and thinking about the things they are hoping to get. It’s a good time of year to introduce your children to the fact that there are children, around the world, with much less than they have.

Introducing Your Child to Sharing/Caring

If you have been following me for a while, you know that I like to start out any learning experience with a book. I found a good book on my Epic! App. It is titled, “Sharing with Others”. I found a few copies on Amazon by third-party sellers (affiliate links included). The book shared how everyone has needs but we don’t NEED the most expensive items. It talks about who and how people earn money and that some people don’t make enough money for the things they need. The book gives examples of how to share (donate) items and money to help others. Even how donating our time can be very helpful. I like this book as a starting point for conversations on how we can help others.

Operation Christmas Child

An event I have enjoyed supporting, for many years, is Operation Christmas Child. It is sponsored by a ministry called Samaritan’s Purse. In the past, I have participated in this event with my children. This year I was able to introduce it to my grandchildren. I have wanted to do this with them the last couple of years but by the time I think about it, it’s too late. I stopped by Hobby Lobby, in October, and saw a display reminding me about the event.

How It Works

It is a fairly simple concept, which is one of the reasons I like it so much. You take a shoe box and fill it full of items that will then be delivered to a boy or girl (your choice), in a foreign country. The Samaritan’s Purse site gives you ideas of things you can (and can’t) put into the boxes.

Our Adventure

The Boxes

The grand-babies and I jumped in the car and headed to Hobby Lobby. I thought I had seen the cardboard boxes that we used to get from our church, but that is not what they had. I don’t know if all of the cardboard boxes were gone or if I had been so excited to see the display that I didn’t really look at it closely.

You see, when my children were young we either picked up special Operation Christmas Child boxes at our church, or we simply used an old shoe box we had around the house. Hobby Lobby had nice plastic ones that we could purchase.

I considered not purchasing the boxes and just going home and getting an old shoe box but I had already explained, to the children, what we were doing. They were excited so I wanted to move forward with the project. I had them each pick up a box, a lid, and a pamphlet, explaining what we could and couldn’t put in the boxes.

Shopping

Amaya

I decided to make it easy on myself and take the children shopping one at a time. I took Amaya first. She is 2 years old. I was a little worried that she wasn’t going to understand that we were not buying things for her but that she was picking things out for a friend that couldn’t afford them. I was very proud of her.

The first thing she wanted was a pair of sunglasses. I reminded her that they were for her friend and she said, “Ok.” I was finally convinced that she understood when she picked a pack of hairbands for her friend and then told me that she needed some too. Amaya picked out some useful things (guided my me) such as a hair brush, toothbrush, hairbands, washcloth and sunglasses. She also picked up some less practical things like bracelets, stickers, a mermaid doll (Amaya is REALLY into mermaids.) and a washcloth/hand puppet.

Amaya picking out things for the shoe box.

The “Wow” Item

The pamphlet from Samaritan’s Purse suggested we put a “wow” item in the box. I decided on a piece of clothing as our special item. Amaya and I headed to Kohl’s. We found a really cute little sundress, on the clearance rack. I bought one for the box and one for Amaya. I thought it might be exciting for Amaya and her friend to have matching dresses.

Keagan

Now that we had the items for Amaya’s box it was time to take Keagan shopping. He is 5 years old. The practical items that Keagan picked out were a brush and comb set, socks, toothbrush, washcloth, bandaids, a small notebook and crayons. The fun items he chose, for his friend, were a set of paints (watercolors), a ball, a Rubik’s cube style toy, some stickers and a dinosaur that you can sail through the air. I picked up the “wow” item earlier when Amaya and I were at Kohl’s. I chose a tee shirt with a monster truck on it, for Keagan and his friend.

Packing Our Boxes

Now that the shopping was done, we put everything into our plastic boxes. We placed the special “wow” items (dress/shirt) on top. I took a picture of each of the grand-babies, in their special piece of clothing, holding the packed Operation Child Christmas box. We will place a picture in each box for their special friend.

Shipping

We now need to find a place to drop our boxes off. You can go to the Samaritan’s Purse site and find a drop-off location near you. There is a suggested donation of $9, per box, to help with shipping. In the past, when I participated through my church, I didn’t have to add the shipping, although it was helpful. You should check with the site you are dropping off at, to see if they require the shipping cost or not. Samaritan’s Purse has an option, this year, if you donate the shipping cost online, you will be able to track the boxes. I decided to do that so the grand-babies and I can see where our boxes go.

Final Thoughts

I have always enjoyed participating in this event. I’m glad to have included my grand-babies this year. Hopefully, they will begin to see the needs of others and have a heart to help out. Since my grand-babies are young, I purchased the items this year but it will be a good future lesson for them to learn to save some of their own money to help purchase these items.

The National Collection Week for the boxes is November 12 – 19. Although this date is upon us, you still have time to participate. If you have never done anything like this before, I highly recommend it. It is a lot of fun and it has been especially rewarding sharing it with my grand-babies.

Memorial Day Learning Activities

May 30, 2016 by Mama Carmody Leave a Comment

Memorial Day Learning Activities

with free printables

Memorial Day is a special time to teach young children about honoring the brave men and women who gave their lives for our country. With simple explanations and meaningful activities, even preschoolers can begin to understand the importance of this national holiday. Below, you’ll find easy Memorial Day activities designed especially for young children to help them learn, remember, and show respect.

Content

What is Memorial Day?
Ways to Celebrate Memorial Day
Craft
Story Time

What is Memorial Day?

Did you know that the observation of Memorial Day was actually started to remember soldiers that lost their lives in the American Civil War? More soldiers died in the Civil War than any other war from then until now. That’s hard to believe, isn’t it?

Memorial Day was originally called Decoration Day. People would put flowers and flags on the graves of soldiers, to honor the sacrifice they made.

Many years later, World War I broke out between the countries of Europe. The United States entered the war and many U.S. soldiers lost their lives. Decoration Day was then changed to honor U.S. soldiers that died in any war, not just the American Civil War. People started calling the holiday Memorial Day.

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Ways to Celebrate Memorial Day

Fly a United States flag, at your home, to honor the soldiers.
Purchase flags or flowers, take them to a cemetery and put them on soldiers’ graves. If you take flowers, it would be a nice touch to add a laminated thank-you note. The reason I say to laminate it is because it will be out in the weather in a cemetery.
Send a sympathy or thank you card to a family that lost a soldier in a war.
Go to a parade, wave a flag, stand and cheer loudly for soldiers that march by. Be sure to yell, “thank you” a few times.

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Craft

Fingerprint Poppy Flower
I found this craft idea on the Craft Morning blog.

Materials Needed

Memorial Day template (This one was designed for my preschool class. Cut the 8 ½” x
11” piece of paper in half to create two pictures.)
Blue construction paper, cut in half to make two 4 ½” by 6” pieces
Red paint
Black paint
Green paint
Glue stick
Paint brush, small point brush
Paint brush, wide brush

Instructions

Glue ½ of the white template to the cut blue piece of construction paper.
Either have the child put his/her thumb in the red paint or use a paintbrush to cover the thumb with paint.
Make 4 or 5 thumbprints to create the petals.

Cover the tip of the index finger with black paint and place in the middle of the flower.
With small point paintbrush, make the flower stem.

With wide paintbrush, make overlapping X’s to create the grass at the bottom of the picture.

Memorial Day: Fingerprint Poppy Craft with free printable

Fingerprint Poppy Craft by Crafty Morning

*Because I was using this craft in a 3 year old classroom, we only made one flower per paper. If I were doing this craft at home with just one or two children I would make several flowers on a 8 ½” X 11” piece of paper like the original craft from the Craft Morning blog. Here is a template for the larger size picture: Template for 8 ½” X 11”

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Story Time

Below are books that I have read and reviewed for your convenience. (affiliate links included)

Memorial Day (Holidays and Festivals) by Rebecca Rissman

Reading Level: Ages 4 to 6 yrs old
This is a great introduction to Memorial Day, for the young child. The text is simple and the information is basic. It does not go into a lot of depth about the wars and people dying although it does mention it. I would use this book in a preschool class.

Memorial Day (Let’s Celebrate) by Clara Cella

Reading Level: Ages 3 to 8 yrs old
This is probably my favorite book for the younger child. It gives very basic information as to what Memorial Day is and how we celebrate it. The illustrations are big beautiful photographs. The book suggests ways to thank soldiers that are currently serving. There is even a section in the back of the book with a craft and other activities to carry on the learning.

Memorial Day (Our Country’s Holidays) by Sheri Dean

Reading Level: Ages 4 to 8 yrs old
This little book is a great introduction to Memorial Day. There aren’t a lot of details on the history of Memorial Day but your child will get the general idea of why we are celebrating. I would use this book with a younger child that is just beginning to learn about Memorial Day.

Memorial Day (Our Nation’s Pride Set 2) by Karen Latchana Kenney

Reading Level: Ages 5 to 8 yrs old
If you are wanting to share some basic information about Memorial Day with your children, this is a nice book. It shares about the reason we celebrate this holiday as well as some of the things we do to observe it. Your child will hear about wearing poppies and how to fly a flag on this special day. There is even a section at the back of the book with some additional fun facts.

Memorial Day (True Books: Holidays) by Christin Ditchfield

Reading Level: Ages 6 yrs old and up
You will find some very interesting facts about Memorial Day in this book. Did you know that Memorial Day was first started to honor the soldiers that lost their lives in the Civil War? I didn’t realize that myself. We now recognize and honor the soldiers that have died in any American fought war. This book shares the reason that poppies are associated with Memorial Day.

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Celebrating Flag Day

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The Lame Valentine Sensory Bin

February 20, 2016 by Mama Carmody Leave a Comment

The Lame Valentine Sensory Bin

I wanted to share with you, what I thought, was a lame Valentine sensory bin. Once again, I am reminded that I really shouldn’t prejudge an activity.

In case you haven’t heard, sensory bins are all the rage, right now. They offer a lot of benefits. Depending on what you put into your bin, your child could be using all four senses.

I was quite happy with my first sensory bin. It was a musical bin. You can read more about it in my post, “Generally Having Fun with Music”. But this bin, this lame Valentine bin….I was not at all happy with.

The Problem

One of the main reasons I was unhappy with the bin was because it really didn’t have many items in it. You can see through the bottom of the bin in several places because there really wasn’t much in there.

Many people add colored rice or beans to their sensory bins and I considered it but I was using this in my preschool class during our Valentine’s celebration. I had a lot of activities planned and I knew the kids would be a little wild, so I didn’t want to add sweeping up rice that would get scattered around the room.

Most of the items were purchased at our local Dollar Tree. There were small, smooth, hard, plastic hearts.

A few rubber erasers and some heart-shaped bracelets.

The Lame Valentine Bin: Erasers and Bracelets

I added some foam hearts. A few had sparkly glitter on them and some were plain. There were also some little heart-shaped containers.

Once I realized how few things were in the bin, I almost ditched the idea of using it. But I was afraid that I wouldn’t have enough activities to keep the kids occupied for the day so I took it along.

One essential item I suggest you use with any sensory bin is a vinyl tablecloth to place under it. If you are using the bin at home, for just a few children, a 60” by 84” cloth will be enough. I have found that, for my class of thirteen preschoolers, a 60” by 120” works better. The tablecloth helps with any “spillage” that might happen. It makes cleanup easier.

The Realization

I decided to use the bin as a backup/last resort activity, since I was afraid it wasn’t good enough to keep the children interested. The class had been sitting at tables playing with the playdough I had made for them. One of the children got tired of the playdough so I decided to get the bin out since the rest of the class was still enjoying the activity at the tables. As soon as the bin came out, several more children decided they were done with their playdough and before I knew it, the whole class was at the bin. I was mentally preparing myself for the squabbling and fighting that was about to take place, over the few items in the bin. But much to my surprise and relief, the children really enjoyed the bin. They sat for a good 15 minutes playing contently with the items and with each other.

My Conclusion

So what did I learn from my lame Valentine’s bin? I learned that the bin doesn’t have to be over-stuffed with items for the children to enjoy it. It didn’t have to have the small pieces of rice or beans. The children still had fun with the bin and they were able to experience many different textures. So if you don’t have a bunch of items for your bin or you don’t want to have the mess of rice and small beans, your child can still enjoy a simple sensory bin.

What type of successes or failures have you had with sensory bins?

Children’s Books about Martin Luther King, Jr.

January 16, 2016 by Mama Carmody Leave a Comment

Children’s Books about Martin Luther King, Jr.

Below are some books to help your child learn about Martin Luther King, Jr.. I love using books when teaching children. Children can learn so much while simply enjoying a story. There are varying reading levels for these books starting at age 4 and going up. They are listed alphabetically. There are some affiliate links below but all the reviews are my own. I either all ready have the books or I got them from the library and read them so I could review them for you.

Share these books about Martin Luther King, Jr. with your children.

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (Holiday House Reader) by David A. Adler
Reading Level: Ages 6 and up
Learn about Martin Luther King, Jr. and his dreams. His dreams that all people would be treated the same. Find out how he tried to change laws with peaceful actions. One of my favorite quotes from the books is, “He taught his followers to fight hate with love.” We would all be better off if we could remember that.

Martin Luther King Jr. Day (On My Own Holidays) by Linda Lowery
Reading Level: Ages 7 and up
This is a very interesting and informative book about the struggles that Martin Luther King, Jr. faced during his lifetime. You will read about his hurt and disappointment when he is no longer allowed to play with his best friend; a little white boy. You will read how much Martin Luther King, Jr. loved to learn and was an excellent student. But most importantly, you will get to find out how much he wanted peace and for people to be treated equally, no matter the color of their skin.

Martin Luther King, JR. Day (Holidays, Festivals, & Celebrations) by Trudi Strain Trueit
Reading Level: Ages 5 and up
I love this book. There is a lot of historical information for a picture book. It is well written and not overwhelming. The book is broken down into eight chapters. Six of the chapters cover the story of Martin Luther King, Jr.. The chapters are very short and great for a young listener or reader. The longest chapter is two pages long and consists of nine sentences. The book explains what it was like for Martin Luther King, Jr. when he was a young boy growing up in the south. You will read about the way his family influenced his life. They encouraged him to be proud but peaceful. I plan on using this book as the basis for a lesson for pre-kindergarten and older. I highly recommend it.

Martin Luther King Jr. Day (Ready-to-Read. Level 1) by Margaret McNamara
Reading Level: Ages 4 and up
I enjoyed this book. It is a fun read but it doesn’t really talk a lot about the great things that Martin Luther King, Jr. accomplished. It mostly talks about him having a dream. It does say that he dreamed the world would be a better place but that is about all the information you get. I have seen a cute activity where kids write down their dreams, for the world, on little clouds. I would use this book to set up that activity but if I was really wanting my children to learn something about Martin Luther King, Jr., I would choose a different book.

Martin Luther King, Jr. and the March on Washington (Penguin Young Readers, L3) by Frances E. Ruffin
Reading Level: Ages 5 and up
This book is specifically about the march on Washington, D.C.. It tells about the events that led up to this peaceful protest. Pick up this book and find out what kind of changes were made in our country because of the march on Washington and why these changes were needed.

Celebrating the 4th of July with Children

July 1, 2015 by Mama Carmody 10 Comments

Celebrating the 4th of July with Children

Illustrated image of a family sitting on a red-and-white checkered blanket, watching fireworks on the 4th of July, with the text “Celebrating the 4th of July with Children – Love to Laugh and Learn” over a starry night sky.

4th of July! A time to celebrate the birthday of the United States of America. For me, the 4th of July is the 2nd biggest holiday of the year. I love celebrating the 4th and all it represents. I believe we, too often, fail to remember what it took to become a nation.

People traveled across the ocean, in uncomfortable conditions, to get to the New World. Once here, they experienced many hardships, including sickness and death. Settlements were established but then they realized they wanted to make their own laws and govern themselves. They had to fight to become independent and begin building their own nation. The freedoms we have today are granted to us because of the people that sacrificed their lives fighting for it. We need to appreciate and celebrate their sacrifices.

Patriotism has always been taught and celebrated in our family. It is something I have tried to instill in my children and now I hope to pass it on to my grandchildren. Now that I have a son-in-law serving in the Armed Forces, it means even more to me.

Celebrating the 4th of July with Children

You might be wondering how to teach your children the deeper meanings of the 4th of July. If you have been following me for very long you know I like to start with books. You will find several that I have read and reviewed below in the Story Time section. Choose a couple books and share them with your child. You will be surprised the conversations that will come up. Maybe not at the time you are reading but sometime over your 4th of July celebration, someone will bring up something you read to them in a book.

Start teaching your children how to respect the United States flag. Did you know that during a parade you are supposed to stand for the American Flag? You don’t have to stand every time you see one because, especially during an election year, many groups or floats might have the American flag with them. The very first American flag in a parade (usually carried by an Honor Guard) should be shown our respect by standing (removing head coverings) and placing your right hand over your heart. It’s not a time for chatting and goofing around but for remembering what the flag stands for and the cost of freedom. My 23 month old grandson is all ready learning this.