First Foods & Creative Kitchen Time

Image credit: What's Cooking with Kids (http://whatscookingwithkids.com/)

It's Spring Break! If you only have very young children who are not yet in a formal school setting, this may or may not mean anything to you. However, if you're looking for some fun things to do inside to beat the boredom blues this week, why not try some creative kitchen fun? Try baking with your child. (Not convinced this is a good thing or doable? This parent thinks it is: http://www.slate.com/articles/life/family/2012/03/children_cooking_how_young_can_they_be_.html) The library offers a variety of cookbooks with ideas for cooking not only for but with your children. There are also countless blogs online featuring ideas to inspire you - like here, here, here and here for starters. The Oregon State University Extension Service also visits our Corvallis Library once a month during Bedtime Storytime to present a healthy snack, nutrition and advice for feeding your family, and share recipes for families.

What if you have just a wee one at home that may be still nursing or just transitioning to solids? We've got you covered at the library, too. The library owns books on breastfeeding, first foods, making your own baby food, and even books on what to eat while you're expecting. Or maybe you've hit that picky eater stage with your toddler or preschooler. There's a book for that, too. (We've got DVDs on many of these subjects, too!)

But back to the topic of boredom busters for Spring Break. You don't have to just cook meals or snacks in the kitchen. The kitchen is also a great resource for science experiments, learning basic math skills (measuring!), and even the beginnings of chemistry (homemade volcanoes, anyone?). But even simple things like making goop or play dough with your child can turn a dreary afternoon into a time of creative fun and laughter. My favorite recipe for stove-top play dough is found in Feed Me, I'm Yours by Vicky Lansky.

Happy Cooking!

Squishitivities! Parent-Child Fun at the Farmers' Market

Image credit: Moving Smart blog
http://movingsmartblog.blogspot.com/2011/06/respect-mess.html

Parent-Child Fun at the Corvallis Farmers' Market!

Spend quality time with your child AND do you Farmers' Market shopping. Join us for "Squishitivities" - an exciting adventure in play created especially for parents and young children using games, arts and crafts, music and "messy" play.

These free activities will be at the Market four Wednesdays:

Dates: September 21, September 28, October 5, October 12
Time: 9 am - 1 pm. Drop in any time and stay as long as you like!
Where: Corvallis Farmers' Market on 1st Street
For more information, call 541-758-8292.

 
"Squishitivities" provides a positive, pleasurable and developmentally appropriate parent/child experience that promotes your relationship and results in growth in creativity, individuality, cooperative play, problem solving, music and movement, and social skills.

Co-sponsored by Parent Enhancement Program and LBCC Parenting Education, members of the Linn-Benton Parenting Success Network.

Projects for Dad

Are you a handy father or know one looking for new projects? Two new books at the Corvallis-Benton County Public Library might bring on some inspiration:

Geek Dad: Awesomely Geeky Projects and Activities for Dads and Kids to Share by Ken Denmead

The ultimate DIY project guide for techie dads raising kids in their own geeky image, in the spirit of The Dangerous Book for Boys. Today's generation of dads grew up more tech-savvy than ever. Rather than joining the Little League team, many grew up playing computer games, Dungeons and Dragons, and watching Star Wars. Now with kids of their own, these digital-age dads are looking for fresh ways to share their love of science and technology, and help their kids develop a passion for learning and discovery. Enter supergeek, and father of two, Ken Denmead. An engineer and editor of the incredibly popular GeekDad blog on wired.com, Ken has created the ultimate, idea-packed guide guaranteed to help dads and kids alike enjoy the magic of playtime together and tap into the infinite possibility of their imagination. With illustrations throughout, this book offers projects for all ages to suit any timeframe or budget. With Denmead's expert guidance, you and your child can: Fly a night-time kite ablaze with lights or launch a video camera with balloons; Construct the "Best Slip n' Slide Ever," a guaranteed thrill ride; Build a working lamp with LEGO bricks and CDs; Create a customized comic strip or your own board game; Transform any room into a spaceship; Make geeky crafts like cyborg jack-o'-lanterns or Ethernet cuff links. Brimming with endlessly fun and futuristic tidbits on everything from gaming to gadgets, Geek Dad helps every tech-savvy father unleash his inner kid - and bond with the next generation of brainiacs. (Summary courtesy of Syndetics, Inc.)

Handy Dad: 25 Awesome Projects for Dads and Kids by Todd Davis

Skate ramps, zip lines, go-carts, and more! In this super-fun book, Todd Davis extreme sports athlete and host of HGTV's Over Your Head presents 25 awesome projects for dads to build with their kids. Busy dads can choose projects that range from simple to challenging and take anywhere from five minutes to a full weekend. Readers are given all the directions they need to grab materials that can be found around the house or at the local hardware store and get to work banging up a sweet BMX ramp or half-pipe, building a tree house or tire swing, or throwing together a slip-and-slide or tie-dye station for an afternoon of fun. With plenty of color photographs, easy-to-follow instructions, and detailed illustrations, Handy Dad is chock-full of creative and inexpensive ways to keep kids (and dads) entertained for hours. (Summary courtesy of Syndetics, Inc.)

Snowy Fun

The weather report hints at snow for the weekend, so I thought I'd share a few snow-related books and activity ideas.

That's Not My Snowman...by Fiona Watt (Usborne Touchy-Feely Books)

This touch and feel board book is irresistible for little eyes and hands. I shared this with a group of one-year-olds this morning and they just could not resist interacting with this snowman book. New copies of this board book can be found at the library in the board book bins.

All You Need for a Snowman by Alice Schertle (Harcourt, 2002)

Lists everything that one needs to build the perfect snowman, from the very first snowflake that falls. Great for building narrative skills!

Snowden by Nancy Carlson (Viking, 1997)

Kelly doesn't know how to ice skate. But, fortunately, she meets a magical snowman who teaches her that with a little help and patience, wonderful things can happen!

Snow by Roy McKibe and P.D. Eastman (Beginner Books, 1962)

Two children enjoy sledding, skiing, making tracks, building a snowman, and other activities in the snow. This early reader is lots of fun to share with preschoolers and young school-aged kids.

If you're looking for snow-themed crafts and activities, try:

Preschool Snowman Arts & Crafts from Everything Preschool.com http://www.everythingpreschool.com/themes/snowmen/art.htm

Winter Fun: Snowmen Snacks & Crafts from Family Fun online:
http://familyfun.go.com/arts-and-crafts/season/specialfeature/winter-fun-snowmen-ms/

Fun for Little Ones

As the weather becomes colder, you might find yourself looking for more indoor activities to do with a very small child. Check out these resources for great ideas to keep boredom at bay:

http://familyfun.go.com/parenting/child/dev/specialfeature/famf0703familyfun123-games/

http://www.lil-fingers.com/: Lil' Fingers Storybooks is a site for toddlers with educational games, storybooks and coloring pages.

http://www.literacycenter.net/lessonview_en.htm: Literacy Center Play & Learn - get to know letters, numbers, colors, shapes and more.

http://www.preschoolexpress.com/toddler_station.shtml Preschool Express: Toddler Station offers a wealth of activities to enrich your toddler's day.

http://www.preschoolrainbow.org/: Preschool Rainbow provides ideas and inspiration for early childhood educators, care providers and parents alike!

Summertime Fun Activities

I'm always looking for new and creative ideas for toddler and preschool activities. With the theme of summertime in mind, I recently came across this website. It contains just the thing I need - a list of one activity to try each day. You can sign up to have the list emailed to you, or just take a look at the list online at About.com. The 30 Days of Summer Fun for Babies and Toddlers site contains creative suggestions for making imaginative, yet simple summer memories.

What are your favorite ways to spend the summer with a small child?

Nature Play

Is play out-of-fashion these days? Do children get enough free time outside to explore their natural surroundings and build connections with the environment? Are days of making mudpies, searching for bugs, climbing trees, and taking nature walks on the brink of existence? Articles in popular magazines, blogs, and newspapers (see The Washington Post's recent article, "Getting Lost in the Great Indoors") have discussed the debate. What do you think?

The subject of play and children's connection to nature is a topic addressed in the following books.:


Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder by Richard Louv.

Author Richard Louv argues for the benefits of nature in childhood: creativity, science, connection to the Earth. He calls attention to a study indicating that 8-year-olds could identity media characters much more easily than they could identify the names of trees or insects.

The Geography of Childhood: Why Children Need Wild Places by Gary Paul Nabhan and Stephen Trimble.

These naturalist authors describe their childhood experiences and offer an argument for why they believe experiences with the natural world are so important for children.


Nature for the Very Young: a Handbook of Indoor & Outdoor Activities by Marcia Bowden.

This book offers a variety of fun, nature-inspired activities geared for the preschool through second-grade set.



Janice VanCleave's Play and Find Out about Nature: Easy Experiments for Young Children by Janice VanCleave.

A practical guide for bringing nature experiments home to your young child.



Get Out!: Outdoor Activities Kids Can Enjoy Everywhere (except indoors) by Hallie Warshaw with Jake Miller.

"This guide to outdoor activities in the park, playground, schoolyard, or sidewalk encourage children to get outside and play. Activities include games with balloons and Frisbees, pet shows, running a lemonade stand, being a street artist, and much more."


Nature Spy by Shelley Rotner and Ken Kreisler.

A photographic picture book that encourages exploring the outdoors.



Check out your local library for more books on the subject of outside play and exploring nature.