Author: Laura

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Apples, Apples, Apples

Apples

Apples for tastingThis week we learned a lot about apples! We tasted tart, sweet, crisp, sour and four or five great colors. We also added our neighbor Bill’s large Korean pears to see how pears and apples compare. It was fun to find Korea on the world map. The children also looked at the tags on the apples and we found Washington on the map too.

We used our apple peeler and plastic knives to bake apples into an empty pumpkin for a tasty treat. We also made the best applesauce ever! The children were all quite happy each time we added it to the lunch menu.

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Recipes for Kids – Gak

Gak

GakGak is a substance that acts like a liquid until pressure is applied to it. Then, it appears solid. Kids have a ton of fun playing with Gak and it’s a good substance to help them learn about liquids and solids.

Recipe

Ingredients
1 cup Elmer’s glue
Food coloring
1 cup liquid starch

Instructions
1. Pour glue and food coloring in plastic container.
2. Stir until color is thoroughly mixed in.
3. Add starch a little at a time, stirring with a spoon or kneading with your fingers.
Stir until mixture holds together like putty

Test the mixture with your fingers. If its too sticky, add more starch in small amounts until it is smooth and rubbery.

A word of caution: Gak is messy! Play with it in an area you don’t mind getting messy.

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Building Skills – Crayon Melt

Crayons

CrayonsIf you’re looking for fun activities for you to do with your kids, you’ve come to the right place. We’ve got a ton of good ideas for building skills in your child. One great craft to do with your children is crayon melts.

Cognitive Skills
The heat causes the solids to transform into liquid.

Fine Motor Skills
Breaking small pieces of crayon with fingers

Sensory Skills

  • Warmth of the hot plate
  • Crayons feel silky and smooth
  • Wax is sticky
  • Noticeable smell when the wax melts

Language Skills
Discuss the changes of a solid to a liquid

Cooperative Skills

  • Share one hot pan
  • Take urns
  • Share space
  • Watch each other

Your child can learn a number of excellent skills by doing crayon melts.

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Halloween Family Fun

Trick-or-Treat

Are you looking for a safe, fun place for your little ones to trick or treat?

Trick-or-Treat

Come to downtown Sandy! Sandy Main Street is once again hosting its Trick-or-Treat trail!

Businesses in Sandy’s downtown will be handing out candy to trick-or-treaters on Saturday October 29th from 2-5pm.

Bring your camera in to the UPS Store or Chariteas for a photo op with one of the Halloween backdrops.

Photos can be entered in a costume contest to win great prizes!

You can pick up a map of participating businesses at The UPS Store at 38954 Proctor Blvd or at Chariteas at 38687 Proctor Blvd.

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Building Skills – Art Lathe

Art Lathe

If you’re looking for an excellent way to build skills in your child, consider an art lathe.

Art Lathe
Social/Language Skills

  • Watching and interacting with each other
  • Children share their excitement and emotions verbally

Cognitive Skills

  • Seeing the patterns and designs gives children an opportunity for matching and counting
  • Children learn cause and effect placing the paint on the spinning lathe, then watch the design that it makes
  • Dropping paint causes a unique design to take shape

Fine Motor Skills
Children use the pincer grasp when holding the pen, pencil, or small paint

Cooperative Skills

  • Share the art lathe
  • Take turns
  • Watch and learn from each other
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Pumpkin Patches in the Sandy/Boring Area

Pumpkin Patch

Pumpkin PatchAre you looking for a great pumpkin patch to take your little ones to this fall? We’ve got a couple of recommendations.

Bushue’s Family Farm
Bushue’s is a great place to take your little ones for pumpkin adventures.

They have a hayride that takes you out to their back acreage to gather pumpkins straight from the patch. It’s a bumpy, jumpy good time. They also have animals for petting, including pigs, goats, sheep, and a mini horse. You can make a dirt baby while you’re there and take him home and watch him grow. And, don’t forget the hay maze and the corn maze and take a ride on the pig train.

Bushue’s has activities that are totally age appropriate for the preschool set and is a ton of fun!

Liepold Farms
Liepold Farms is probably the best known and largest pumpkin patch in the area. Always a good time, Liepold’s offers a huge corn maze, tons of food to eat on site or take home, a kids play area with a corn bin (think of a sandbox with corn instead of sand) and both hay and corn mazes. You can also take a hay ride and there are plenty of great places for adorable fall family pictures.

There’s fun for the whole family at Liepold’s!

So, put on your mud boots, grab the family, and go have some serious pumpkin fun at one of our fabulous family pumpkin patches in Sandy!

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Recipes for Kids – Peanut Butter Play Dough

Peanut Butter Play Dough

Peanut Butter Play DoughWant a great edible play dough to make with your kids? Peanut butter play dough is a great solution. It’s fun to play with, easy to make, and it tastes yummy.

Recipe

Ingredients
3 and a half cups peanut butter
4 cups of dry milk powder
4 cups of sugar
3 and a half cups of honey

Directions
1. Mix together peanut butter and the sugar.
2. Beat in honey and milk powder.

That’s it! This recipe only takes about 15 minutes to make and offers endless hours of fun!

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Building Skills – Paper Mache

Paper Mache

Paper MachePaper mache is yet another excellent activity you can do with your child. Paper Mache can teach your child a number of skills.

Large Motor Skills

  • Tearing paper
  • Stirring glue
  • Applying paper to base

Social Skills
Children talk about the progress of the sculpture, taking pride in their work through conversations

Emotional Skills
The labors that such a project take will connect child with finished project

Cooperative Skills
Children share materials. This is a group effort where children construct together.

Language Skills
Books and illustrations about final outcome promote language.

Sensory Skills
The texture of the glue, cold, wet, sticky. The roughness of the dry paper.

Cognitive Skills
The process of paper mache: The glue changes from a liquid to a solid state.

Paper Mache is a great way to work with your child on completing an interesting project.

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Recipes for Kids – Finger Paint

Finger Paint

Finger PaintFinger painting is a great activity to do with kids. And, with this easy recipe, you can make it whenever the muses call.

Ingredients
1/2 cup cornstarch
3 Tbsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
2 cups cold water
food coloring

Recipe
1. In a medium pan, mix all the ingredients together.
2. Cook over low heat 10 to 15 minutes, stirring constantly.
Note: The mixture will turn from thin to thick in an instant.
3. After the finger paint has thickened take the pan off the stove immediately, and let the mixture cool.
4. Split the mixture into different bowls and add several drops of food coloring to each bowl.

Finger paint will keep in airtight container for about 3 days.

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Building Skills – Tempura Ice Cube Paints

Paint Ice

Paint IceThere are loads of great activities to do with kids. Today, we’re looking at tempura ice cube paints. They help your toddler develop a number of skills.

Fine Motor Skills
Using finger to pick up and control ice cube

Social Skills
Expressive language used while interacting with you and other children

Cognitive Skills
Matching colors to cubes builds sorting skills

Sensory Skills
Things that are frozen feel cold to the touch

Language SKills
Gives children a chance to verbalize cause and effect of what is happening to the tempura paint cubes

If you’re looking for a fun activity to do with your kids, give tempura paint ice cubes a try.