Thy pages fair and lovely

ADDED December 14, 2009

Remember the Christmas trees that people in the 70's made out of magazines?  Well I do, and I think it is high time for the Magazine Christmas tree to make a dramatic comeback! 

Since everything old is new again, why not re-purpose your old magazines into some beautiful Christmas decorations?  And when Christmas is over, toss them into the recycling bin. 

Any old magazines you have laying around your house are fair game -- and if you have kids 5 and under -- smaller magazines are better.

First, find an old magazine that everybody in your house is done reading.  (We keep all our magazines on decorative cake plates so they are easy to find.)
 

Fold the upper right corner down toward the spine of the magazine.  It looks like this.
 

 

Next, fold the upper right edge (that is on a 45 degree angle) in towards the spine of the magazine.



Fold the bottom of the paper up so it is even with the bottom of the page. (Like so.)
 

Repeat steps two through four until you have folded all the pages in the magazine. This is a great activity for kids while you are fixing dinner (and I hope we are having nachos for dinner.)
 

Finally, display your recycled Magazine Christmas Tree proudly.  You now have a very festive, new decoration.  (And when you guys are done -- or when Christmas is over -- into the recycling bin this decoration goes!)
 

All sorts of good, exciting, and better stuff

ADDED December 11, 2009

We're not kidding.  Lots of good stuff is in store for 2010, and we're very excited about it.

We'll let you know as we unveil fabulous new ideas and improvements here.  But at this early stage, we'd like to announce our blog's focus for 2010:  the Four F's.

They are:

Free, Fun, Family, and Creativity.

In 2010, our ideas will be free -- they will cost you nothing.  (Or practically nothing.)

Our ideas will be fun.  For kids and adults alike.

Our ideas will be family-oriented and family-building.  Our activities will create "quality time" for kids and their parents.

And next year, our ideas will build your child's creativity.  To succeed and be happy in the future, all kids will need to think creatively and come up with good, original ideas.  We'll be fostering that kind of thinking here.

(Right.  Creativity is not an "f-word."  Not even close, really.  But, well, we were being creative about it.  Okay?)

Maybe we're already doing the Four F's here, and it's not even 2010 yet.  But we're going to be doing even more of them next year.  Our ideas will be extra-strength, extra-special and extraordinary in the Four F's department.

Thanks to everyone who has enjoyed our blog in 2009.  Please keep following us in the new year!

 

Hooray, we say!

ADDED December 11, 2009

You know, we always like a good rhyme here at Today is Fun. 

Rhymes just "sound" good.  They are a special kind of speech.

So today's activity is very simple.  We feel that we haven't encouraged rhyming lately, so we're doing it now.

And since it's the holiday season, could you guys please come up with some holiday rhymes?

Some often heard, seasonal words are easy to rhyme, and others are quite tough.

Here's a list of words for you and your kids to work on:

• Snow
• Jingle
• Winter
• Santa
• Claus
• Stocking
• Menorah
• Rudolph
• Frosty
• Sleigh
• Reindeer
• Gift
• Tree
• Cozy

We can come up with rhymes for each of those words.  Can you guys?

If you'll allow us to inject a quick bit of learning here, there is more than one "kind" of rhyme.  A perfect rhyme rhymes perfectly.  For instance, "Ho, ho, ho" and "snow, snow, snow."  Imperfect rhymes -- also called half rhymes -- are "close," almost rhymes.  Such as "jingle" and "giggle."

We hope you and your kids have fun with a few holiday rhymes.  And please, can anyone email us with a perfect rhyme for "Hannukah?"

(Happy first day of Hannukah, by the way!)

(Thank you to ginnerobot and striatic for the great photos here!)

Get to the bottom of how everyone is feeling about the coming holiday

ADDED December 10, 2009

Length:  Fifteen minutes, give or take.

Parental Involvement:   Explain the concept -- help with reading where necessary.  Share your own thoughts about the holidays.

Kids Should Be Able to:   Reflect a bit on their preferences.  This activity is probably best for five-year-olds and up. 

Earlier in the week we created a free, downloadable PDF to augment your family's holiday-light-viewing experience.  (The post I'm talking about is here, by the way.)

That suggestion -- which seems to have received a nice response -- was all about what the kids thought about holiday lights and decorations in your neighborhood.

Today we'd like to provide you with one more holiday-themed questionnaire.  This one is more focused on your kids -- their holiday favorites and preferences.

What is your child's favorite holiday character?  Santa?  Frosty?  Rudolph?  (I personally am rather partial to the 'Snow Miser,' if you're familiar with that old kids' movie.)

What is your kid's favorite holiday food?  How about a favorite decoration?  Favorite song?

We think you should download this free PDF, too.  Print it out and spend some time this weekend discussing your children's holiday thoughts and preferences.  It will be a nice weekend, Christmas-is-really-coming activity.  (We also think you should share your favorites with your kids, too.)

And Christmas is really coming!  Only two more weeks now, people!  I sincerely hope my name is on Santa's "Nice" list.

(Many thanks to Tara Kelly Photography for the insanely -- and I do mean insanely -- cute winter smile photo above!)

A fun and easy way to reach out and touch some people

ADDED December 09, 2009

This one is kind of a no brainer, I have to admit.  But with all the holiday cards flying through the mail at the moment, maybe your kids should get in on the action?

Holiday cards are yet another way people check in with each other and wish friends well.  Isn't that something your kids might like to start doing?

We think this activity should have a few, clear steps:

(1)  Just like their parents, kids should make a list of people to receive the cards.

This list should be on the short side, probably, because making and mailing more than a handful of cards can get to be quite a bit of work.

We think that the best recipients are grandparents (who can be counted on to appreciate both some attention and some fine kid artwork) and the kids' close friends.

(As an aside, my three-year-old has lately been refusing to give me any of his artwork for me to keep or hang up.  He insists on mailing or giving his masterpieces to one or another of his young buddies.)

(2)  Once the list has been compiled (and perhaps approved by a parent), it's time for the kids to make holiday cards.

Of course, you guys could run out and buy some -- but why?  Isn't one-of-a-kind art more special?

The cards could be drawn with crayons or cut from construction paper.  It might be a good idea -- I would think -- for the kids to represent some holiday-type stuff on their cards, but really, it's up to them.

(3)  Find suitable envelopes to mail the art.  I've found that slightly-larger-than-normal envelopes are a good way to go. 

The kids might not be able to address the envelopes, but they certainly can add some more art and decorations.

(4)  Finally, mail them out!  It'd be best if the kids could accompany you to the post office -- if you can swing it.  They should be the ones to put their cards into the mailbox, so that they have a final physical connection with the activity.

If you'd like to mail us a holiday card, well, our address is  Today Is Fun, PO Box 643, Santa Monica, CA 90401.  We appreciate cards.

(And we appreciate edenpictures for the photo above of holiday card admiring.)

How many Santas did you see? Did you wear a hat?

ADDED December 08, 2009

Length:  Amount of time can vary.  We do about half an hour to forty-five minutes in the car, fifteen minutes of filling out paperwork afterwards.

Parental Involvement:   Explain the concept -- encourage careful observation.

Kids Should Be Able to:  Enjoy holiday decorations.  Do some counting.  Express themselves a bit.

The holiday season is here, as you may have noticed.  You certainly can't walk into any store without seeing decorations or hearing holiday tunes.  You might have noticed some lights on the houses around your neighborhood.  In fact, you may even have put some decorations out yourself.

We say: great.  Kudos to all.  It is indeed a special time of year, and we like to see people celebrating.

One thing my wife and I do with our kids during this time is bundle them into the car half an hour before bed and drive around to admire all the nearby holiday decorations.  My kids (aged three and five) never tire of inspecting each different home's holiday efforts.  They love to see all the variations on the holiday theme and all the possibilities that decorations can offer.

If you do this kind of evening drive-around, too, we've created today a helpful questionnaire to augment the fun.  We call this the "Holiday Decoration Inspection Report" -- it sounds nice and official, we think.

The questionnaire asks questions related to a holiday decoration tour.  How many Santas did you see?  How many snowmen?  What was your favorite decorated house?  Did you wear a hat?  And so on.

Download it (for free, naturally) by clicking here.

These questions will get the kids thinking, counting, and evaluating their experience.  You may want to show the kids the form *before* you get in the car, to get them thinking along these lines.  And of course, no one is obligated to answer all of the questions!  And there are no right answers!  Of course!

And if anyone ask you to evaluate your experience visiting popular parenting blog Today is Fun, well, we hope you're full of holiday generosity!

(Many thanks and holiday warm wishes to Chase N. for the use of the photo above!)

A coloring project where kids take anything and draw it as a "Christmas thing!”

ADDED December 07, 2009

Length:  A few minutes to half an hour.

Parental Involvement:   Explain the concept -- admire the results.

Kids Should Be Able to:  Draw with colors.  Use their imaginations.

Christmas is coming, as you might have heard.  Somehow there's only a little over two weeks left until that most exciting of holidays.

Holiday spirit is definitely in full swing with holiday displays in the stores, lights up on houses, and cards making their way through the mail.

(Today's activity was created by my five-year-old son, I'm happy to report.  I'm happy to report this, because the more fun ideas he has for kid's activities, the less work it is for me.  He's welcome to take over my blogging duties any time.  And I really can't wait until he's ready to take over the rain-gutter-cleaning and oil-in-the-car-changing chores, too.)

Today your kids should grab some paper and a handful of crayons and create some Christmas art.  This art will "Christmas-ize" anything that your child wants to draw.  You guys can make Christmas houses, pirates, princesses, Batmans, cars -- you name it.

The trick?  It's just a matter of color-selection.  The kids should just draw each item using red and green.  (They could mix in a couple other colors -- brown, black, purple -- if they absolutely need to.)  Limiting the color selection isn't just appropriate for the holidays, it also can lead to some interesting artistic results.  What does a princess look like using only red and green?  How does a house look made up of only red and green parts? 

(White is also an official Christmas color -- and we encourage your kids to work it in where possible -- but that one, for obvious reasons, is kind of tricky.)

Of course, if you guys celebrate Hannukah, this activity works well, too.  Just use blue and silver instead.

My son drew the photo accompanying these words.  As you can see, he used more than just red and green.  That's okay, too.  Truth be told, the picture started out in only red and green . . . but he decided he needed to add some color.  The activity was still a big hit and a great use of time.

We'd be delighted to see your kids' efforts.

They are really everywhere

ADDED December 04, 2009

 

 

A tracing sensation

ADDED December 03, 2009

Snowmen are really not difficult to draw, and that's because their body parts don't really need to be represented as round.  But today, we'd like to present the "perfectly round snowman."  (Or snow-woman or -person.)   The perfectly round snowman (PRS) is a tracing sensation that's sweeping the nation this December, so don't forget to tell your friends that you saw it here first.  You need: assorted sizes of bowls, cups or other round things, crayons, and paper.





After amassing your supplies, decide on a suitable size for the bottom section of the snowman.







Looks good to me!







Next the middle.







And now the head.







Arms are good here!







Great arm placement.  How about one more?







And finally, a theme to finish off the "Perfectly Round Snowman" -- my son chose an Egyptian theme.   I was hoping for something more Christmasy, but sometimes inspiration strikes, and you have to follow your instinct.




Looking good!




Finally the "Perfectly Round Snowman."

Complete with Egyptian clothing, candy cane action grip, and three electrical plugs.  



Have a comment or suggestion for us?  Leave it below and we'll get back to you ASAP!
 

Zero-Calorie Fun

ADDED December 02, 2009

For your little ones, Christmas is a long way off.  They must wait many, many weeks and even more days until the glorious event, but with a little creativity -- and today's activity -- you guys can countdown the days until Christmas.  You can even teach some math in the process.

First, you will need twenty-three of something your kids can count (if you are starting today, December 2nd).  We chose marbles.  Next, you will need two jars, one jar to hold the "Days till Christmas" marbles and the other to hold the "Days Gone By" marbles. 

When one day passes, have your kids move a marble from the "Days till Christmas" jar to the "Days Gone By." 

When the marble transfer is complete, it's time for the math "sneak attack," have your kids count the marbles in both jars or -- if they are a little older -- they can count the marbles in one jar and do the math to figure out how many marbles are still left in the other jar.  Fun, practical and educational!

We are big fans of this activity for two reasons: our idea has a lot fewer calories than one of those "chocolate" days-till-Christmas calendars, and second, doing math with your kids is very slimming.
 

The secret ingredient is math

ADDED December 01, 2009

Rice Krispy treats are nothing new, I admit it. But have you ever considered calling them "Math Snowball Treats?" 

I am sure you are wondering how I'm somehow going to work math into something called a "Math Snowball Treat."  Well, that is what we do here at TIF: we sneak learning into the most unusual places, and a Math Snowball Treat is easy learning once you know the secret. 

A whole pan of Rice Krispy Treats is quite dietarily decadent, and -- really -- who needs to make so many unless you are bringing them to a party?  So, I like to add some math to the treat by having my kids do some division.  Read the recipe with your kids and help them do a bit of dividing, so that you wind up with less to wrap up and store. 

Doing this will provide your kids with some wonderful, one-on-one math learning -- and you will wind up with only half as many treats.  (But kids, don't despair:  some treats are better than none).  Once the gooey dessert has cooled but is still pliable, butter up your kids' (thoroughly washed) hands and let them roll a few Rice Krispy Snowballs.  I've included a brief photo essay of our Math Snowball Treat adventure.

Kids are great helpers when it comes to stirring, but please make sure everybody is safe around hot pots.

Kids are also great helpers when it comes to (carefully) dropping marshmallows into the pot.

More careful stirring.

Some Rice Krispy pouring.

Buttering (thoroughly washed) hands

Once the mixture is cooled, it's time to make Math Snowballs!

We ended up making a "Math Snowball Snowman!"

Did this idea work for you? Use the comments section to let us know!  Happy dividing (and eating)!