Page 23 – Playful Learning

Our Gratitude Tree

By Mariah Bruehl, 6th November 2013

“Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend.” -Melody Beattie

With family gatherings to plan and Christmas lists looming, it’s easy to let the meaning of Thanksgiving get lost or watered down. Ideally we would live in a constant state of gratitude, but I like the subtle reminder that Thanksgiving brings us each year. An excuse to stop and take pause-be thankful for all things, both big and small. I especially think it’s wonderful to teach this to our children in a world obsessed with having more. Last year we took an afternoon and composed a gratitude list, it was both endearing and eye-opening to see the things my children thought of. This year we decided to expand on that idea and take a moment each day to add at least one thing to a month-long gratitude list in the form of a gratitude tree.

When a quiet moment arises each day, my girls and I sit by the fire, write down something we’re thankful for, and then attach it to our tree. I love the idea of something tangible and beautiful to represent these thoughts we are focusing on this month. We decided to make fuzzy pom-poms from yarn and hang them from our tree with the pieces of our growing list attached to each one.

All you need to make a tree of your own is a few gathered branches, a vessel to hold them, and some slips of paper. Adding an extra object like our pom-poms into the mix isn’t necessary, but adds to the fun! You could choose anything you want, from acorns to leaves. You could also choose to cut your paper into fun shapes instead, like stars or feathers.

To make things easy, we used full sheet label paper to make our strips. Simply fold each strip in half, write your thought, pull the backing off and attach to your pom-pom or other object. The most important thing is to make things fun and accessible for the little ones. My girls love seeing all of the pom-poms on display and enjoy taking turns picking out the one we will use. Our strips, scissors, and pen are stored in a jar right next to the tree.

Whatever you choose to do, I hope you are able to pause for a moment with the ones you love and reflect on all that you are grateful for this month. It’s not too late to create a special moment with your little ones!

Children as Philosophers: Exploring Loving and Giving

By Mariah Bruehl, 5th November 2013

Monique of Green Acorns is with us today to share some thoughtful tips on helping our children to ponder life’s big questions.

As we approach this holiday season, many of us may be having conversations about what it means to give and why it’s important. We will be seated with family and friends discussing what we are thankful for. We will be sharing ourselves and what we have to offer with those we love.

Giving, love, thankfulness: These are significant topics that we should all explore, especially with our children. They are also topics that are deep and involved, yet children possess the skills that enable them to think about the issues. Children naturally wonder about the world around them, are great at asking questions and therefore, are natural philosophers. Have you ever been stumped by a question from a child like “does the universe go on forever and is that really possible” or “is it wrong to steal food if you are starving”?

Life’s big questions are complex and may not have clear right or wrong answers. Whether or not they do, isn’t it more meaningful to let children come to their own conclusions? It’s okay that we don’t have all the answers. It’s okay, and even helpful, to ask your child more questions in return. In fact, helping your child explore the issues for themselves demonstrates that we value their questions, their opinions, and what they have to offer.

Two books that many children know that touch upon the topics mentioned above are The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein and The Rainbow Fish by Marcus Pfister. I enjoy reading these books with children for the purpose of opening a dialogue about the nature of giving, sharing, friendship, and love. For example, should the rainbow fish give away something that is so central to who he is just to gain friends? Are those fish seeking his special scales truly his friends? What does it mean to be a friend to another?

This fairly short video is a good introduction to why practicing philosophy with children is beneficial. The Teaching Children Philosophy website provides a list of books, the philosophical issues raised by each book, and guides for initiating philosophical discussions with children about those issues. Don’t be hesitant to pick one up and give it a go with your elementary school age child. Remain open and be okay with not providing answers. I’m sure the conversation will be enlightening for both you and your children!

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11 Math Apps for the Little Ones (part two)

By Mariah Bruehl, 1st November 2013

It has been a while since I shared some learning apps, so over the coming months I hope to bring you a new collection from all areas of the curriculum to download for the new iPad you may be getting for Christmas! Some apps are free, but others have a cost incurred. There is something for everyone, even a few for Android users!

You might remember my earlier post about Math applications, here are a few more to add to the list:

Counting to 10 – Based around the concept of one to one correspondence, this app teaches using little penguins, moles, elephants, manta rays. It involves a lot of repetition with both visual counting aids, as well as a little narrator counting aloud for you as you go (available for Android as well)!
Fiete Match – An adorable app based around a seafarers theme. A lighthouse provides the base for this app and the different activities are stored within it. You can choose an activity by tapping on the porthole. I adore that the memory game has the user playing against the lighthouse keeper. The illustrations are beautiful-I adore this application for the illustrations alone!
Geo Board – This application explores the world of shapes and the possibilities which are presented when given a peg board and a rubber band. We have had fun creating our names, as well as various shape patterns. This application is aimed for those with some experience in using a tablet device (Little F, age 3, found it hard to use). It does not allow you to save your creations, however a quick screen grab by holding down the power button in the top right hand corner and the home key (on an iPad) will save an image to your camera roll.
KaleioDraw – A beautiful kaleidoscope of colors. Perfect for learning about symmetry and pattern.
Rush Hour – This is the same as the popular game created by Think Fun. Problem solving at its best! (available on android as well)
Montessori Numbers – Another app based on the foundations of Montessori created by L’Escapadou. This app is a delightful starting spot for introducing numbers, as well as for those moving into the hundreds. It uses tracing numbers, base ten, number stories, and one to one correspondence to help children learn. There are a number of difficulty levels going up to 999.
My First Tangram (iPad only) – An absolutely delightful shape application with so many adorable creations using the basic tangram shapes. A and R Entertainment have created a lot of apps, find them here on their website.
Tally Tots – created by Spin Light and available across all devises including Nook, Amazon and Google Play. This app focuses on counting patterns, has 20 different numbers with an activity for each, and includes audio and visual cues for each activity. A sing along number song as well as one to one counting patterns make this app adorable for the littles. Spin Light has created a huge number of applications, so have a look at their site for additional apps in the area of mathematics.
Tam and Tao in Numberland created by Les Trois Elles Interactive – Adorable in every way. This company create some delightful applications and Numberland is one of them.
Maths Tree by Bellamon – This application is the perfect visual introduction to addition, subtraction and number equations. The graphics are bright and cheerful perfect for a school set of iPads. You can add and subtract owls, doves, or peaches. The clear visual link between the the graphics and the algorithm makes the learning process very clear. Bellamon has created some delightful applications and their website is well worth a visit.
Cutie Monsters (iPad only) – This application is aimed at those learning base 10 and one to one correspondence. It is divided into two sections: a counting section and a jigsaw section. The graphics are adorable, and this is a lovely application to introduce to littles who are first time app users. See a you tube preview of the app here.

Designing Spaces for Children: Color

By Mariah Bruehl, 30th October 2013

Color is all around us, and part of everything we perceive. It affects us deeply and often we are unaware of its impact on how we feel and behave. When creating spaces for children, it is important to consider the overall impact of color. Most environments for children include a lot of color – from toys, furniture, even the clothing children wear – and sometimes too much color can have a dizzying and over stimulating effect.

Much like adults, children thrive in spaces that include both energizing and calm elements. So, how can you use color to create a space for children that is both energizing and calm? One of the simplest ways to consider color in your space is the presentation and organization of materials.

Art materials are rich in color and naturally attract the attention of children (and adults, too!) Organizing crayons by individual color brings them to life and encourages exploration. It creates a sense of order and is pleasing to the eye.

When materials are organized it’s easier for children to find the right color to express their unique point of view. The National Bureau of Standards estimates that the human eye can distinguish over 10 million different colors. Wow! With so many colors out there, we want to offer children opportunities to notice the subtle nuances of color and develop their own personal preferences.

Materials can also be organized by warm and cool colors. Warm colors consist of reds, oranges, and yellows, while cool colors are blues, greens and purples. These crayons are in glass jam jars but any clear container will do.

Some materials seem to naturally invite organization by color. Small tea light votives positioned next to a large bowl of beads encourages them to be sorted.

I love to make watercolors with children. And the best part, if you can’t find the color you’re looking for, it’s time to mix your own!

Color mixing is such a fun activity for children and can be explored with a set of watercolors like these or with other paints. I like to use the three primary colors red, yellow, and blue, and also include white with a small amount of black to explore tints and shades.

Displaying materials in interesting places can add visual richness to your space. When not in use, watercolors can be placed on a nearby windowsill or shelf where they are sure to evoke a sense of wonder as light passes through each color.

Organizing art materials are just one way to think about color. How do you use color in your spaces for children?

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For more inspiration on creating spaces for children, check out our Playful Learning Spaces Workshop.

Start: November 4, 2014

End: November 21, 2014

To register, click here.

https://vimeo.com/70405462

Color Theory for Little Ones

By Mariah Bruehl, 25th October 2013

Randi from Swoon is with us today to share some fun tips for exploring color with children. Don’t forget to watch the video with your aspiring artists for a does of inspiration…

Whether we recognize it or not, color plays an important part in each of our lives. It can excite us, inspire us, or remind us of something important. Understanding how color works is both fun and useful. My girls and I have talked about color theory and mixing before, mostly in the midst of afternoon painting sessions, but recently we decided to get messy and play around with it a bit. We started with a nice sized piece of butcher paper and three bottles of finger paints: red, blue, and yellow.

The Basics:

Most adults know and take for granted the fact that all colors stem from the three primary colors-red, blue, and yellow. This fact alone is fascinating for children, especially when they can see the colors being “made” right in front of them! Mixing the primary colors to make the secondary colors of violet, green, and orange is a great activity and starting point, especially for young children. I placed a portion of each primary color in a triangle shape to start with, and then my daughter used her fingers to carefully mix each color with the one next to it to make up the secondary colors: red+blue=violet, red+yellow=orange, yellow+blue=green.

This transformation was not a surprise to my daughter, as she already knew these simple concepts, but she was delighted to make the process happen herself using her hands. We recreated this scenario many times before moving on! In fact, we made a fun little video…

Color Theory for Little Ones from Randi Edwards on Vimeo.

If you have older children, or a young child with an excellent attention span, here are a few more things to explore:

Advanced Concepts:

Tertiary Colors: Mix each primary color with the secondary color next to it to create the tertiary colors, which are: blue-green, yellow-green, yellow-orange, red-orange, red-violet, and blue-violet. Talk about the differences in these colors.
Make a Color Wheel with all 12 of the colors you’ve created. Talk about which colors seem warm, and which seem cool (see an example here).
Complementary Colors: Two colors directly across the wheel from one another are said to be complementary colors. Because of their opposite natures, they have a striking appearance when placed near one another. Spend time playing with these colors next to each other. Mix them together to create gray/black.
Shading and Tinting: Mix white with a color to create a lighter tint (for example: make pink out of red), or add black to make a darker shade. You can also add a small amount of the colors complement to darken the shade.
Color Harmony: Experiment with placing and playing with different color combinations. Which ones seem to work well together? Which combinations are your favorites? What do different colors and color combinations mean to you or remind you of? How do they make you feel?

*A note about materials: My daughter and I used finger paint, which was a lot of fun, but does not carry a lot of pigment. To make a bigger impact, or to explore some of the more advanced concepts, you may want to switch to acrylic paint as it is more pigmented and heavy bodied. You can still use your hands!

A few of our favorite books about color:

1. Color Dance by Ann Jonas

2. The Game of Red, Yellow, and Blue by Herve Tullet

3. The Day the Crayons Quit by Drew Daywalt

Printable Bookmarks Two Ways

By Mariah Bruehl, 23rd October 2013

Monique of Green Acorns is with us today to share useful bookmark printables to inspire the young readers in our lives…

There have been so many lovely book lists recommended here at Playful Learning, it’s clear that we all share the desire to instill a love of reading in our children and that our children do enjoy books, whether they’re reading to themselves or being read to.

In raising life-long readers, it’s important that children comprehend and can interpret what is being read, that they feel a connection with the stories and are engaged, and that they can respond in meaningful ways. Having three children ages five, eight, and ten, who love to read, there’s a range of reading skills to be mindful of in our household. Perhaps it’s similar in your home.

My oldest spends a lot of time reading on her own and, knowing that she has strong skills, it’s easy to leave it at that. She just about devours books, however, and I feel it’s important to have her pause occasionally and spend some time reflecting on what she’s just read. My middle child also has strong reading skills but as his book selections become more advanced I want to make sure what he’s reading is still a good fit for him. I also want him to practice summarizing what he’s read in his own words. And my youngest… she’s SO eager to read and wants to read chapter books on her own just like her big brother and sister. We’re currently reading the Little House series with her and she will often get out the book and “read” ahead on her own. She clearly wants to feel independent with her reading.

While reading with children, it’s a good practice to stop occasionally and ask questions and make meaningful connections (that reminds me of… remember earlier in the story… etc.). Sometimes, though, when life gets hectic, it easy to forget to check in and just keep on going. A tool that I have found helpful for keeping up with check-ins is a sort of “reader’s response” bookmark. This bookmark has questions right on it to ask after reading and serves as a reminder for me and my children to take time to review and summarize what has been read (the questions can be simplified for younger readers).

I also noticed, with my daughters especially, that when they pick up their books for reading the next time, they are scouring the page to find where they left off. My youngest just chooses a random spot. My oldest, carefree and ever industrious, will leave off right in the middle of a paragraph. So, I created a book mark with an adjustable indicator. When they open their books, they can clearly see where they left off last time. As all my children usually have more than one book going at a time, both bookmarks get well used.

Whatever stage your reader is at and whatever their style, I hope one or both of the bookmarks will be as helpful to you and your children as they have been for us.

Click here to download bookmarks. Print and follow directions to assemble and use!

New Classics for Children

By Mariah Bruehl, 17th October 2013

Rebecca from Thirteen Red Shoes is with us to share some lovely classic board books for the youngest readers in our lives…

Over the last 18 months a few delightful books have come on the market aimed at littles but based on classics we are exposed to a school. I adore this notion as some of my favourite stories have been recreated by two different publishing houses and i can share them with my boys at an early age.Gibbs Smith have created a Baby Lit Series with art work by Alison Oliver and text Jen Adams. The primers created are just adorable and range from Dracula to Sense and Sensibility to the new titles Sherlock Holmes and Anna Karenina! It is a delightful way to introduce little to the world of classic literature and she an abridged version of the longer stories by the likes of Jane Austen, Lewis Carroll and William Shakespeare. My favourite Wuthering Heights is available! Brooding and dark but still appropriate to share. There are also the most adorable totes to be used as library bags and prints which would look perfect in a library or reading nook space.

Cozy Classics are the other publishing house recreating classics for children. The style of Holman and jack Wang is very unique and ever so delightful. Each classic picture book in the series is condensed to 12 pages and 12 words which highlight the theme of the story in words which littles can relate to. The books present as word primers with beautiful needle felted illustrations. I think the needle felted creations making these books stand out in the ever producing children literature market and I believe that these will become classics in their own right. Here is a video of the process and behind the scenes of creating the pieces.

11 Picture Books that Inspire Children to Explore Outside

By Mariah Bruehl, 11th October 2013

Seeing the natural world through the eyes of a child is an enlightening experience. Their innate appreciation and fascination for all living things is a quality that that can lead to many fulfilling learning experiences.

The universe provides parents with unlimited opportunities for connecting and growing with their children. Whether you are examining a grain of sand, veins on a leaf or the parts of a flower—all it takes is some time spent together in the great outdoors and an attitude of inquiry to make the world come alive with infinite possibilities for discovery.

Children are naturally curious. The goal for parents and teachers is to transform their questions into meaningful life lessons.

One of the best ways to entice children into exploring the great outdoors is by reading a good picture book. The goal is to pique their curiosity by asking questions as we read. Then invite the little scientists in our lives to grab a magnifying glass and seek the answers they are looking for. All while spending a lovely afternoon outside. What could be better?

Here is a list of the favorites we have discovered throughout the years…

Please do share your favorites as well!

How The World Works by Dorian & Young
How Things Work in the Yard by Lisa Campbell Ernst
In a Backyard by Jen Green
Linnea’s Almanac by Christina Bjork & Lena Anderson
Nicky The Nature Detective by Lena Anderson & Ulf Svedberg
One Small Square Backyard by Donald Silver
Outside Your Window by Nicola Davis
Step Gently Out by Helen Frost & Rick Lieder
The Great Kapok Tree by Lynne Cherry
You Can Be A Nature Detective by Peggy Kochanoff
Secrets of the Garden by Kathleen Weidner Zoehfeld

Crafts for Kids: Painted Stick Mobiles

By Mariah Bruehl, 9th October 2013

Monique of Green Acorns is with us today to share a lovely craft that puts all of the cool sticks we find on our nature expeditions to good use!

Today I thought I would share a craft that my kids and I recently enjoyed: painting sticks and stringing them into a mobile. I think I have mentioned before that my children love to collect things, especially bits of nature found during our walks and hikes. Well, that includes twigs and sticks. For whatever reason they find some attractive and must bring them home. I do try to respect their collections but must balance that with some guidelines. Some items get displayed on our nature table. Others, like their sticks, get used in a craft that they can proudly display and enjoy.

Here’s what you’ll need for supplies if your children also have a collection of sticks that need a purpose (or if you would just like to make a lovely mobile from bits of nature with your children).

We chose to paint our sticks “as is” but you can also give them a brief sanding before painting. Each child painted three, which is a good amount for young ones, and we found that acrylic paints worked well.

Since there has been a lot of talk about patterns found in nature around our house lately, my children wanted to paint representations of some of those patterns on their sticks. It turned out to be a wonderful activity for looking at patterns in more detail and inspired some interesting observations. This post provided some lovely inspiration. Of course, you can just enjoy the process of painting on some pretty colors. Aren’t these lovely?

Once the painting is done and dry, it’s time to string them together. Lay out your sticks in an order that you find attractive and space them as you like. You can then estimate how much yarn or string you’ll need, making sure to have extra for tying around each stick. We used yarn and embellished with beads so I added a piece of tape at the ends to make threading beads easy and to prevent fraying as we did so (this is a great fine-motor activity for little ones). The process looks something like this:

At this point you have a finished mobile but feel free to hang decorations off the lowest stick like pressed leaves, dried flowers, tassels, etc. Now you can hang and enjoy your lovely mobile!

DIY Math Beads

By Mariah Bruehl, 8th October 2013

These math beads are inspired by the Montessori Bead Material. The idea of the Bead Material is to help children understand numbers (particularly units, tens, hundreds and thousands), to quantify, to create complex numbers (3, 4, 5- digit numbers), as well as understand that each category is ten times larger than the previous; 10 is ten times larger than one, 100 is ten times larger than 10 and so on.

These math beads were really easy to make. All you need is:

some small beads – ok a lot of small beads
wire – I used 3 inch headpins but you can use any wire. 3 inches fits ten small beads nicely
beading pliers – or a pair of small pliers

Then simply thread your beads, twist the ends and trim. Easy.

I wanted my son Jack to be able to create 2 and 3-digit numbers, add and do simple multiplication so in our set I made:

2 sets of 1-9 beads
30 sets of 10 beads

Montessori Bead Materials also have 100-bead boards and 1000-bead cubes. That’s a lot more work, but the 10-bead strings are really simple and meet our needs for now.

These wonderful math manipulatives have so many opportunities for learning. You can:

Use them for addition.

Work on multiplication.

Skip count by twos or threes or…

tens.

And create complex numbers.

You could also use the math beads for working on fractions; so many possibilities. So why not make a set. They are really simple. You can pick up beads fairly cheaply at the dollar store and before you know it you’ll have a beautiful set of math manipulatives that you can continue to add to as your child’s understanding grows..