A Blustery Day

We’ve been talking about weather this week and how the weather in March can be like a lion or a lamb.  We talked about how windy the weather can be sometimes.  I saw a pinwheel over at Preschool Playbook and decided we should make it to help Hailey understand wind.

First you need a square piece of paper.  Put an X through the piece of paper.  In the middle, I drew a circle around a nickel.

Then Hailey colored both sides of the piece of paper.  After she finished coloring, I cut on the lines, stopping at the edge of the circle.  Next you have to bend every other corner towards the middle of the paper.

When you have the four pieces in the middle, take a straight pin and push it through all four pieces.  Then push the pin into the eraser on an unsharpened pencil.

Hailey loved her pinwheel!

Bartholomew and the Oobleck

As we continue celebrating Dr. Seuss’s birthday this week we read Bartholomew and the Oobleck by Dr. Seuss. And what fun would it be to read that book and not make some Oobleck?  So, that’s what we did.

To make the Oobleck you will need:
1 cup of water
2 cups of corn starch
green food coloring

Mix it all together and then have fun:

Ooblek is a Non-Newtonian fluid.  When you pour it, it’s like a liquid…

when you squeeze it, it oozes out of your hands…

when you push on it, it’s like a solid.

It is so fascinating to play with!

Presidents Day Activities

We did a few activities today to celebrate Presidents Day.

First Hailey found an Abraham Lincoln mask in one of my Mailbox magazines that she wanted to make.  I cut the middle out of a paper plate and then she painted it.

I cut out a hat and glued some popsicle sticks on.  I used clothes pins hold everything together until the glue dried.

Abraham Lincoln

Next we made George Washington’s cherry tree.  I traced Hailey’s arm and hand in pencil and then she painted inside the lines to make the tree.  (I found this idea at Preschool Playbook.)

Painting the top green.

The finished cherry tree.

Next we made Abraham Lincoln’s house.  Hailey glued some popsicle sticks on to make the house.  (I also found this idea at Preschool Playbook.)

Abraham Lincoln’s finished house.

Then we did a little experiment to see if we could clean some pennies.  Hailey mixed 1 tsp of salt with 1/4 cup of vinegar.

We found some dirty pennies.

As soon as Hailey dropped them into the mixture they started coming clean.  It made a big difference!

Happy Presidents Day!

Where do Animals Live in the Winter

As a wrap up to learning about where animals live in the winter I thought it would be fun to make a poster that I found at Fun4Kids.

Hailey colored several different animals.

Then she glued various pieces onto the poster- a cave, tree, burrows, rocks, etc.

Then we talked about (reviewed) where each animal lives during the winter and Hailey glued  the animals to the correct places.

Then Hailey added some snow (cotton).

Once it was dry I added the words.

Then we talked about how Polar Bears stay warm during the winter even though they live where there is snow.

First Hailey put her bare hand in the snow- and decided it felt pretty cold.

Then she put on a “blubber glove.”  I had 2 ziploc bags.  In one bag I put Crisco.  Then the 2nd bag I turned inside out and put inside the first bag so that the Crisco wouldn’t get all over Hailey’s hand.

Hailey put her hand back in the snow and thought it was pretty neat that it no longer felt cold.