My Favorite Things - July 2011

By: Greta Schraer

It’s almost August and the summer has started to heat up! While it is great to get out to pools and waterparks, sometimes the air conditioning calls to kids just as much. This month, I want to share with you some fun summer insidecrafts to make those too hot days go a little faster. Prep for a few of these, and have them ready when your kids are. Oh, and along the way of this post I will share of few of my favorite resources to search for crafts!

DIY Crayons

What a great solution to all those broken crayons! This just looks fun… and easy! Simply cook the crayons in the oven until the melt and take them out to cool and harden. Use this idea to teach “yellow and blue make green” or let the child see what happens when they add a bunch of different colors. Circle disc crayons…fun for all ages!! Can I tell you how excited I am about this craft. Try a mini muffin pan if you don’t have enough crayons for a regular size muffin pan.

To see more of my favorite things, jump over to Regarding Nannies: My Favorite Things.

Around Town: Beech Acres Workshops

By: Greta Schraer

If you are looking for more resources, you may want to check out what is offered in Cincinnati for parents... like Beech Acres!

THEIR MISSION:

"Beech Acres Parenting Center has served children and families in Greater Cincinnati for 160 years. With a mission of Strengthening Families for Children, our programs are based on the guiding principle that parents, and other dedi cated adults filling that role, all want the best for their children, and all need education, support and guidance in raising their children to achieve their unique potential. We connect parents to resources, tools and sup port, peers and experts so they can enhance their parenting knowledge, skills and capabilities. We strive to help parents identify, nurture and guide the best in themselves and their children."

THEIR LOCATION: 

Beech Acres Parenting Center/ For the Love of Kids
6881 Beechmont Avenue
Cincinnati, Ohio 45230
(513) 231-6630 Phone

Satellite Office
4966 Glenway Avenue
Cincinnati, Ohio 45238
(513) 231-6630


Internet Address
www.beechacres.org

THEIR CURRENT & UPCOMING CLASSES
http://www.beechacres.org/Conferences-and-Events.aspx

Weds., Aug 10th - Raising Responsible Kids
Teach kids to do more by doing less.

Weds., Sept 21st - Raising Kids to be Self-Disciplined
How to be an emotional coach.

Thurs. - Fri, Oct 6-7 - Meditation training
Learn conflict resolution & negotiation strategies.

Mon., Oct. 17th - Dealing with Peer Pressure
Help your child make good decisions in tough times.

Thurs., Nov. 10th - As My Child Grows
Understanding your child's typical development and behaviors.

Tues., Dec. 6th - Is Your Child Overscheduled?
Learn how much is too much & when to say when.

FOR PARENTS
They also have an online community for parents, which just might be what your employers are looking for: http://www.beechacres.org/Parenting-Resources.aspx

Quick Tip Tuesday: Go Crazy with Googly Eyes

By: Amy Miller

Googly eyes last forever! You can’t just buy one or two, but what do you do with all those extra googly eyes? I try to save them for another project down the road, but somehow I end up finding googly eyes everywhere. Here are some simple, but very fun googly eye crafts, that maybe you haven’t thought of before. So, go ahead, Go Crazy with the Googly Eyes!

Silly Googly Sunglasses

Buy a pair of children’s sunglasses and add googly eyes. (Super glue, or self adhere googly eyes) Wear and act silly!

Googly Bracelets

Buy metal or rubber bracelets and glue/self adhere on googly eyes. Simple! Wear and have fun! You could also buy the different colored googly eyes really making unique bracelets. Little girls will especially love these to add to their dress up collection. Great for an activity/party favor for birthdays!　

Make Simple Everyday Chores Fun!

Just by adding googly eyes to a hairbrush, toothbrush, glue bottle, or pair of scissors you can make everyday things a little more fun for the kids. Now, they have a special friend to help them brush their hair, brush their teeth, glue and cut during art or even homework times. (Self adhering googly eyes will work best for this project. Easy to put on and easy to take off.)　

Rock Garden Friends

Have a scavenger hunt for rocks. Once the kids are finished searching for rocks, give them paint, glue, glitter, etc to decorate. Add googly eyes, of course. Place your rock friends in the yard, garden, or flower pot. You could also use seashells.

Googly Family Cups

Buy some cheap, white, and different size coffee mugs. Have the kids paint them and super glue/self adhere on the googly eyes. Drink and enjoy! When not using the cups, set them up as a family of cups for a cute decoration.　

Googly Eyes!

The kids will have lots of fun with this mess free activity. Just give them a few magazines and a pack of self adhere googly eyes. Now they can cover up the eyes of babies, animals, or whatever with googly eyes. Make even more fun or should I say funny by giving them photos and they can googly eye themselves!

I Spy With My Googly Eye

A traditional game with a googly twist. Play “I Spy”, but use a giant googly eye stick. (Large googly eye glued/self adhered to a tongue depressor) You have two activities in one: a craft and a game. Don’t throw that giant googly eye stick away! Recycle for your beginner reader. Encourage your young child to read and make it fun with the googly eye guide.

A few of my googly ideas came from familyfun.com, theteacherfreak.com, and frugalfamilyfunblog.com Check their sites out for more and then start…

Going Crazy With Googly Eyes!!!

Nanny 101: Living in Nanny Community

By: Greta Schraer

Welcome back. I know, it is hard to stay focused on your studies in the summer… So this week, let’s talk about life on the “playground”. Nannies need a good social atmosphere too, right? A community shares a common locality or culture. We as nannies live in a familiar world that can unite us in a short instant. I am amazed with the community I have that stretches across the world; most relationships sparked with just a basic commonality. So let’s have a brief lesson, then you can get back to your summer fun!

Lesson 1: Community Can Encourage You

Let me first recognize that community can be both positive and negative, encouraging and discouraging, simply put… good community and bad. Community CAN encourage you, if you surround yourselves with the right community...

To read the rest of this article head over to: REGARDING NANNIES: Nanny 101: Living in Nanny Community. 

Quick Tip Tuesday: Patterning with Sponges

By: Karen Musclow

A fun way to teach patterning is to cut a few sponges into various shapes (ex. square, triangle, circle) to paint with. Pour some paint into a wide container and get a large piece of paper. When I did this, I started a pattern and then had T finish it. We did this a few times and then T created patterns for me to finish. If you’re just beginning to teach patterning, you’ll want to use only 1 color of paint with 2 shapes, or 1 shape with 2 colors. Later, you can use multiple shapes and colors. When finished with the lesson, let the child go to town with the leftover paint and sponges for an art activity—you get 2 activities in 1!