Pipe Cleaners and Magnets!

Learning about magnets always seems to be a fan favorite for the little ones, they love to explore their world and see what they can get to stick to their giant magnets and what will not. My youngest still considers it magic and thinks of himself as Harry Potter, when he has his wand handy!

For this fun activity, we took our scissors and a variety of pipe cleaners. I began cutting them down into smaller sticks and eventually my little guy decided to join in on the cutting fun too!

Roman hunted around for a container that was clear and had a lid that fit on rather snugly. This was a great little treasure hunt for him! Next, he loaded in all our strips into the container and snapped lid on tight.

Let the fun begin! He was able to realize what would stick to his wand and what wouldn't. Keeping the magnetic wand on the outside of the container and waving it around the exterior showed him how magnetic properties worked. I also threw in a marble, penny, paperclips and piece of metal chain, this allowed him to see what was alike and different from the pieces that did and did not get attracted to the magnet.

His favorite, was making stars out of the pipe cleaners, too bad he got upset when they would fall to the bottom after he removed the wand. This is such a fun and easy project to do with little ones!

Fun with Letters!

My little guy and I have been having fun with letters lately. Even though he knows his letters, recognition is always good at any level. We used pipe cleaners to make the letters of the alphabet, then took turns assembling them to make up the names of family members. He had a lot of fun with this one, and even wanted to move on to our extended family names!

When he was first starting to learn his name, I took a book ring and flashcards and popped his name onto 1 ring. I then did this for basic words like MOM, DAD and YES, NO. I keep these on a command hook (removeable) on the side of the learning nook bookshelf! They are easily accessible and always used!

I took this sheet of letters and printed it out 2 times and laminated it as well. I then cut out each letter individually and it became an instant memory game. We also use them to spell words or names and with our alphabet clothespins (lower case) to match them up.

There are so many things you can find around the house that are perfect for letter recognition! The upper case and lower case clothespins are in a bin and then I added some alphabet bulletin board pieces and another instant matching game.

Alphabet cookies are tasty and fun when paired with an alphabet place mat, it's fun to search for letters in the bowl and then match them up on the mat!

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Button Snakes

I'm obsessed with buttons! I love the colors, the sizes, the shapes and even their ages! They all seem to have a story to tell! I wanted to let my kids in on my obsession with some of my newer buttons (the non-vintage kind!!) and found the perfect activity!

I gave my youngest son a pipe cleaner and let him have at it for the first time and he sat so quietly, it allowed me to finish emptying the dishwasher! Next, we worked on colors and rainbow order, so I gave him direction on which to put on the pipe cleaner. He loved this and even clapped for himself! After we were done, he asked me if I would wear it as a bracelet! So, I plan to accessorize my outfit for BTU Chicago tomorrow with this new handmade bracelet!

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