Our theme for the month of October is fall.  So, last week we did some fall related activities.

We started out by going to see some real pumpkins.

Hailey looking for the perfect pumpkin.

Hailey looking around at a (somewhat empty) pumpkin patch.

We also looked outside when we went on our walk and while playing in the back yard for some leaves.

Hailey finding some leaves to add to her collection.

Then we made a leaf collage.

Here’s what you’ll need: your leaf collection, contact paper, scissors and tape.

Put the contact paper onto the table, sticky side up.  I added some tape to the sides to tape it down to the table so that it wouldn’t pull up every time Hailey’s arm brushed it.  Then add your leaves to the contact paper.

After you finish adding leaves, put another piece of contact paper sticky side down on top of the piece of contact paper with the leaves on it.  Put them together so that the sticky sides are touching, this will hold your collage together.

Then we did a fall painting:

Here’s what you’ll need: paint, paper, and some fall related items- we used a pine cone and a leaf.

Hailey painting with the pine cone.

We had another fall related activity, but it also relates to our shape and color so I am saving it for tomorrow.

I haven’t posted in a few days because we took a nice weekend getaway to visit with family.  I’ll be posting about it on my Livin’ With Me blog soon, so check there if you’d like to see what we were up to.

Last week was my nephews birthday so I decided to have Hailey make some wrapping paper to use to wrap up his present.

Here’s what you’ll need: bubbles, bubble wands, clothespins, bowls, food coloring and a large piece of paper (not in this picture).

We did this project outside and used the clothespins to pin the paper up to our fence.  If you do this inside, be sure to protect the floor where you stand to do it as it will stain your floor.

Pour four dishes of bubbles and then add food coloring to the dishes.   This will stain your skin and clothes, so be sure to dress in old clothes.

Stir the food coloring into the bubbles.

Blow the bubbles onto your paper.  As they pop they will leave color on the paper.  It was a little bit windy out when we did this and so the bubbles kept missing the paper.  But we had a blast anyways.

The finished paper.

Does your toddler or preschooler love to paint?  I think that painting is probably one of Hailey’s favorite activities.  But, there are some days when I don’t really feel like dealing with the mess that usually accompanies painting.  So, something that is just as much fun to a toddler or preschooler that doesn’t create a big mess of paint is painting with water.  On a warm day go outside and give your child a bucket of water and a paint brush.  Allow your child to “paint” the sidewalk, patio, deck, driveway, etc.  The only mess that might be created is a little water on your child’s clothes- which is fine for a warm day anyways.

A very simple and fun activity to do with  your toddler is using sidewalk chalk.

Hailey and I spent a very long time the other morning writing with sidewalk chalk.  She directed me to write all of her favorite names.  (Brooke, Dottie, Daddy, ‘Ga,’ ‘Pa’)  We drew shapes and just spent time coloring.  Hailey loved it!

We didn’t do it this time, but if you wet the chalk before you write with it the colors will be much more vibrant. 

**One thing to keep in mind is that if the chalk breaks it can pose a choking hazard to toddlers who are still putting everything in their mouth.  So, this activity needs to be very closely supervised.

I used to spend time doing some gardening- planting flowers, pulling weeds, all of that good stuff.  Having a toddler makes it a little more difficult to get that kind of stuff done.  But rather than not doing it anymore I decided to involve Hailey in taking care of the plants.

We had a deck in our back yard that had to be taken down and new deck was built in a different place. So, where the old deck was we planted some grass.  Hailey and I have been checking the progress of the grass and I talk to her about how the grass needs sun and water to grow.

She also helped me pull all of the weeds out of our flower beds in our back yard.  She thought that was fabulous!  Hailey has her own little gardening set that uses to dig in the dirt to pretend to plant.  One of the tools is a watering can which she uses to help water the flowers.

When we are outside doing our gardening I talk to Hailey about how the flowers smell and feel.  She does not have a lot of toys for outside, but rather spends most of the time exploring.  Simple things like leaves and rocks can be turned into a learning experience for a toddler.

Give your toddler a bucket to use for collecting leaves and then talk about how they feel, look, smell, etc.  Let your toddler tear and crumble the leaves.  Collect rocks that are big enough to not pose a chocking hazard- meaning they can not fit through a toilet paper roll.  Talk about how the rocks feel.  Let your toddler take them in and out of containers.  Put the collection of rocks into a container that can be closed (ex- old coffee container) and shake for a fun noise.  You can also let your toddler wash the rocks.  All of these things will provide a lot of entertainment and learning for your toddler.

Anything hands on in nautre is a great way to teach your toddler.  And the more they participate in what they are doing the more they will learn and remember from the experience.