Coast to Coast. Answering Questions About Our Backyard. After this weekend’s UPAEYC conference with Dan Hodgins, my backyard is starting to become “famous,” well, at least locally.
What an honor and a surprise! In response to some of the questions and comments, I am going to provide a few more photos to help those of you who are looking to make some changes to your outdoor classrooms. Our Mudpie Kitchen Like the other sections of our yard, I did not come up with this idea on my own. I was really inspired for this area by my blogger friend Jenny over at Let the Children Play. Our mudpie kitchen is evolving. We have 2 shelves right now, I do see this changing over time as we accumulate and make changes. Our hanging baskets are the metal frames for hanging plants. You can see, the baskets now match the copper molds. We currently have a plastic outdoor picnic table for our kitchen area.
How do we add water? You can watch some of the evolution of our mudpie kitchen area by clicking here. Rainy Day Fun – an indoor jungle gym. In 2012, be kind to your brain. "Here's my New Year's resolution: in 2012, I plan to spend at least 30 minutes a day without my iPhone.
Without internet, Twitter, Facebook and my iPad. Spending a half-hour a day without electronics might sound easy for most, but for me, 30 unconnected minutes produces the same anxious feelings of a child left accidentally at the shopping mall. For example, I was worried that if I did not capture that beautiful sunset and stuff it into my phone, I'd forget it.
"Even with something as beautiful as a sunset, forgetting is really important as a mental hygiene," said Viktor Mayer-Schonberger, a professor of Internet governance at Oxford University and the author of the book Delete: The Virtue of Forgetting in the Digital Age. "That things in our past become rosier over time is incredibly important," he added. Constantly interacting with our mobile devices has other drawbacks too. Children with views of and contact with nature score higher on tests of concentration and self-discipline. For the Children: Our Top 5 Outdoor Musical Activities with Children. "Life is like music; it must be composed by ear, feeling, and instinct, not by rule.
" -- Samuel ButlerWhat do you get when you combine music, children, and the great outdoors? An amazing experience to behold through sight, sound, and touch. Music draws us together, lifts our spirits, allows us to express ourselves, and is just out and out FUN. In this post I'll share 5 of our favorite outdoor musical activities. 1. A Wooden Xylophone with Mallets This idea came about one day when I was looking around on Pinterest and one of my friends had posted an image with which I fell in love. The original instructions called for 2 x 4 boards, but he knew we'd be putting the instrument away each day, so he made it with 2 x 3 boards to make it lighter in weight. Not only were the children amazed with the sounds, but it brought up some amazing open-ended questions. 2. 3.
Last year I began taking my iPod outside with the iHome and cranking up the music to give the children another musical opportunity. Series: how to create an irresistible outdoor playspace for children. What do children want in their outdoor playspaces?
This is the first in a series of posts that will look at things you can do to make a backyard or preschool playground an irresistible playspace for the young children in your life. Children love natural playspaces. When given the opportunity, children choose, and enjoy playing in natural environments and/or with natural elements. They do so because of the overwhelming play potential of such spaces. What do children want in their natural playspaces? WaterVegetationAnimals, insects, creatures in pondsSand (especially when mixed with water)Natural colour, diversity and change Places and features to sit on; in; under; lean against; provide privacy; shade; shelterDifferent levels, nooks, crannies, places to hideStructures or objects that can be changed, including lots of loose parts What does this mean for parents and teachers? Series: How to create an irresistible outdoor playspace for children.
Tomorrow: Just add water! George Washington's World for Kids: Play games about our first president. The Artful Parent.