This morning when I was re-playing the 4th of July in my mind, and thinking It’s time to share a writing activity with my Mommy Teachers, I had an idea…how much fun would it be for little ones to write about and/or draw fireworks? And when I was thinking about a good “writing tool” for this activity I thought about the Q-tip. Let your little ones paint with a q-tip and then sprinkle glitter on top of their picture. Then, when it dries they have the perfect snapshot to “write about” – with your help of course.
This might sound like a headache because it is “messy,” but just lay down a bunch of newspaper and don’t sweat the mess because kids need these experiences for their creativity to blossom.
I found these q-tips if you want to dip the whole thing in paint and then lay it down in all directions to make it look like fireworks flares.
Me, My husband, and our one year old on the levee, overlooking the Mississippi this HOT fourth of July day 🙂
Some fireworks to jog your little one’s memory!
ooooohhhhhh…….aaaahhhhhhhh
Share your Fourth of July Family pics on the Mommy Teacher Facebook Page!
Tonight my lights went out and I saw the mini flashlight sitting on the table and got to thinking….your lights go out every night at some point right? When I was a little girl I shared a room with my sisters and we never wanted to talk and giggle more than when mom turned those lights out and walked out of the room. We would stare at our cielings and talk the night away.
How much fun would it be if you layed down in bed next to your kiddos with flashlights “writing” on the cieling. Write letters, your name, your little one’s name, simple rhyming words, numbers, or shapes having your little one “mirror” what you have written. Practice sounding out words together and forming the letters that make up that word.
I think your little one will really enjoy this experience 🙂
Hi Mommy Teachers! It’s Casey, a fellow mommy teacher, stopping by from Kidspired Creations! I am a stay-at-home mommy and I run a kids room decor business on the side. Before I was a mommy, I was a Pre-K and Kindergarten teacher, so Jessica and I always love to chat about teaching tools and activities.
I texted Jessica earlier about this super AWESOME find that I got from Wal-Mart for $9.95 today! I could not WAIT to share it with her… and now you!
This poster sticks to the wall and is easily removable AND reusable! Trust me, I’ve already had to stick and restick it a few times because I didn’t like where I put it. Printed on it are 10 writing lines (two solid lines with the dashed line in the middle) which is how kids learn to write straight, even, upper and lowercase letters.
It comes with 3 dry erase Crayola crayons which are fat and easy for James’ little uncoordinated fingers to use. A wet wipe easily erases everything (I’m sure you can use a dry paper towel as well, but I was lazy and the wet wipes were right there). Though James hasn’t written on the wall YET, I still have my Magic Eraser on standby for when the time comes.
James is a beginning writer so it is really important for me to start off teaching him to write simple straight lines and diagonal lines. After he masters those, he will also work on circles, squiggly and zig zag lines, both from the top solid line to the bottom solid line, and then from the middle dashed line to the bottom solid line. It is also important for your child to get in the habit of starting at the top and working down, and starting on the left and working right… left to right, top to bottom… that’s how we read and write and now’s the age for them to have that knowledge!
James was having a hard time understanding the concept of writing between the lines, so we played connect the dots. I drew two dots and he had to connect them to make the diagonal line… always starting at the top dot, of course.
My goal is for my husband or me to write a letter on the poster for James to read each morning when he wakes up and then eventually, he can do a journal every day like Jessica talked about in her last post. James especially dislikes writing on paper, but really enjoys writing on his new board with crayons! Let’s hope it lasts! Mommy is at least having fun with it… Especially since the crayon even wipes off the wall using a wet wipe!
Today is a simple challenge to encourage you to be intentional about the writing process. One of the first things I do for children to teach writing skills is to make a journal. I have made writing templates for you so that all you have to do is print them and 3-whole punch them: click HERE to get them.
Every day date the top right of the page and brainstorm a topic to draw and write about. I usually pick something that applies to our plans for the day or a reflection of what we did the night before. Otherwise, I come up with something writing about a favorite candy or food, etc.
Then let your little one draw a picture free of any critiques or suggestions. You can always give ideas if your little one is stumped but you dont want to squash their creative juices. Then, guide your little one (dont dictate!) about how he/she will write: start all the way on the left side so you have room to write, write until you reach the end of the line and then start at the beginning of the next line. Talk about spacing, height of the letters, and other print concepts, but DONT overwhelm or overteach. Just give them tips and guidance (maybe just one new tip a day. You will be surprised at their understandings over time. Help them sound out words, but when you start dont focus on proper spelling, focus on the sounds they are actually hearing in the words.
If your little one asks: “So it that right?” Answer “Those are all the sounds you can hear in the word”
Later on you can show them the way that the word “looks in a book” by writing it out, but encourage them to sound out and write JUST the sounds they hear at first.
I got to be with my nieces for a little while yesterday, and my sweet niece Kaylee, at 5 years old asked me “Aunt Jessie, can you do some Kindergarten things with me?” We were literally walking out the door when she asked me this and I thought, how can I say no to that? But knowing I would see her again today I said “I will bring something for us to do tomorrow when I come, okay?” She smiled and took the promise to heart. So, the first thing I did when I got up this morning was to brainstorm some things I might bring to her.
One thing that I decided to bring was a homemade drawing and writing template because she is now at the stage where she wants to know how to spell everything. Some children are at the point where they are only writing one word to label a picture they have drawn so I made one template with only one line under the space for the drawing. However, some children are ready to write out one or two sentences describing their picture. So I made a template with two lines for one sentence and three lines for another.
I plan to ask Kaylee to draw a picture for me and then
explain to her that the space at the bottom of the page is for her to write
about the picture. Then, I am going to ask her to sound out the words and allow her to use inventive spelling. Inventive spelling is when children simply write all the sounds they hear in the word. But if they want to know how is actually spelled then I will show them the way that the word “looks in a book.”
But no matter how you use this template….as always, make it
FUN!
