“Bloom” by Julia Seal of a beautiful book that has a great message for children about climate change and pollution. The illustrations in “Bloom” are so stunning they inspire little ones to make their own craft jellyfish. Before reading this book I didn’t know that a group of jellyfish is called a bloom and that […]
Who knew a few paper plates and cardboard rolls could unlock hours of giggles and genius? Building a marble run with everyday items isn’t just a rainy-day lifesaver and summer STEAM activity — it’s a hands-on adventure in creativity, problem-solving, and good old-fashioned fun. I found this marble run idea from the frugalfun4boys web site. […]
Here’s a cute project I found on the First Pallette web site. I always include children’s books that correspond with the projects we do. I read “Are You a Dragonfly?” by Judy Allen and “Fast Facts About Dragonflies” by Garstecki-Derkovitz while doing this project. My 7-year-old Nanny Kid clipped her pretty dragonflies on her bedroom […]
For a Memorial Day craft project I had a 5-year-old paint an abstract American flag on tin foil. I used hot glue to make a box and lines on the tin foil for the child to paint inside the lines. Be sure to read children’s books about Memorial Day while doing this project. We recommend, […]
For kids that like using their hands to make projects, this is such a simple slime recipe to make at home. The 7-year-olds I care for are addicted to making this slime. I never measure the glue and laundry detergent precisely but mixing the two ingredients together always works. I bought a bunch of glue […]
I love finding activities to do with kids that correspond to their favorite books. I also enjoy using recyclables to make crafts with kids. The Mini Mad Things Instagram page sells inexpensive templates to trace onto cardboard to make crafts. I recommend using pastels and paint sticks for these cardboard projects. I used the unicorn […]
Making sun catchers is an easy project to do with kids of any age. The 18-month-old toddler, 4-year-old, and 7-year-old I babysit for all love making sun catchers for every holiday and season. I find using self-adhesive laminating sheets easier than using contact paper. I recommend purchasing some self-adhesive laminating sheets by tapping the links […]
My Nanny Kids are addicted to making these simple, colorful sun catchers for every season and holiday. For spring, I printed out butterfly templates (listed at bottom of page) and read children’s books about butterflies with the children in my care, (books listed below). Using self-adhesive laminating sheets is even easier than using contact paper […]
After 30 years of working as a nanny and family assistant I thought I had done every Easter project possible with children. But I found these beautiful and easy-to-make Easter Crowns on the Sassy Mamma web site to do with my Nanny Kids this spring. You can print the crowns for free on the Sassy […]
I love the Mini Mad Things web site. For a very low cost you can purchase the templates for these bunnies to print out and trace onto cardboard from the recycling bin. After cutting them out I let the kids use paint, markers, or Sharpie Paint Pens to decorate the bunnies and use the bunnies […]
