Color Bubble Painting: Bubble Science

Creative Wednesdays What kid doesn’t love bubbles? What child doesn’t love painting and science experiments? My youngest charge absolutley loves doing this color bubble painting project. There are two ways to make bubble painting. It’s very important that the child is old enough to be able to blow out of the straws and not suck […]

Handprint Cupcake Card

Creative Wednesdays All kids like making, giving, and receiving Birthday Cards. For those that cannot write yet making a card from their handprint makes a great gift. It is a easy, thoughtful, and personal gift from your charge. What You Need: Heavyweight or Cardstock Paper Paint Paper Plate Paint Brush Markers Glue Stick Ribbon (optional) […]

Symmetry Valentine’s Heart

Creative Projects Symmetry can be used to make Valentine’s Cards at an early age with this very simple art project. Explain to the little ones that if you cut something in half and both sides look exactly the same, they are symmetrical. Allow the children to experiment using different sized drops of paint and spaces […]

Penguin Fun: Crafts and Books

Weekly Trip to the Library What child doesn’t like penguins? And now that’s it is cold outside it’s the perfect time to read and doing indoor crafts. This week I borrowed books from the library about penguins and has the kids make some penguins from different shapes cut out from colored construction paper. If you […]

Popsicle Stick Menorah

Creative Wednesdays The religious celebration of Hanukkah begins Sunday at sundown. The center of the celebration is the candelabra called a menorah. Hanukkah celebrates a miracle. After the Seleucid desecration of the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem, there was only enough sealed consecrated olive oil left to fuel the eternal flame in the Temple for one […]

Halloween Tins

Creative Projects While at a playdate with another nanny and her charges we made these adorable little tins. We simply removed the paper from soup cans and decorated them with construction paper and Halloween themed foam stickers you can find at nearly any craft store this time of year. Use them as pencil holders, as goody […]

Ice Cream Foot Prints

Creative Wednesdays When you care for kids too young to do much of their own arts and crafts independently you can still use them to help make cards and gifts for their family and friends. In this project, we used a toddler’s foot to create cute birthday cards with a personal touch. You Will Need: […]

Sea Shell Painting

Creative Project Wednesday The kids I care for and I love to collect a few pretty sea shells to take home as souvenirs when we visit the beach. We have made photo frames, shells hair clips, and simple necklaces with shells. This week we painted the shells to look like animals and balls. For younger kids […]

Painting Symmetry

Creative Wednesdays Symmetry can be taught at an early age with this very simple art project. Explain to the little ones that if you cut something in half and both sides look exactly the same, they are symmetrical. Allow the children to experiment using different sized drops of paint and spaces between the paint dots. The five-year-old I care […]

A Letter Per Week

Creative Projects: Learning at Home Whether the little ones you care for attend school part- or full-time or not it’s fun to encourage learning at home. One really easy way to reinforce learning with preschoolers and young students is doing fun projects on one letter each week at home. I like focusing on one letter […]