On-The-Go Geoboard Using Food Pouch Caps

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Click here to read On-The-Go Geoboard Using Food Pouch Caps on Hands On As We Grow

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Are you going on a family trip, out to dinner, or to an important event? This DIY geoboard from Alisha is a great way to keep the kids entertained on-the-go.

Having some on-the-go activities is a great way to keep your kids occupied, while still being hands-on and advancing their learning.

This homemade geoboard is the perfect on-the-go activity that upcycles two common household items; a travel baby wipes container and food pouch caps, to create a fun and engaging hands-on activity for your kids. It’s a great tool to work on fine motor skills, shape recognition and formation, counting, and creativity (whew!).

Here are 25 Busy Bag Ideas for On-the-Go 

You only need six supplies for this DIY geoboard:

• A baby wipes travel container (affiliate link)
• Rubber bands, preferably in assorted sizes (affiliate link)
• 8 recycled food pouch caps (start collecting!)
• Felt or cardstock
• Scissors
• Hot glue gun and glue

The first step is to find that baby wipes container probably hiding in the bottom of a drawer (if not, there are some super cute kid-themed ones out there!)

Then collect and wash eight food pouch caps, I used the caps from my kids’ applesauce pouches.

Grab your glue gun and let it warm up while you’re positioning the caps evenly on the bottom of the baby wipes container (just move them around until you feel comfortable with the spacing).

Once your glue gun is ready (carefully) place some glue on the bottom of each cap and secure them onto the bottom of the baby wipes container (in the same spacing as practiced).

I’d love to say that the caps will stay glued forever, but they may pop off after awhile; so I would use a little extra glue and press firmly.

Now you need to make a pouch to hold the rubber bands.

I used a piece of felt that I cut the size of a small envelope (make sure the size will fit on the inner lid of your baby wipes container with a little wiggle room).

After you have cut your felt, get your hot glue gun and place some glue along the top of the felt.

Fold down the top to make a flap, like an envelope. This will make the top of the pouch more sturdy.

Then place some glue along the sides and bottom on the back of the felt.

Once the glue is on, carefully stick your felt pouch onto the underside of lid.

Hint: leave a little slack in the pouch so that little hands can easily get the rubber bands in and out.

Once everything is cooled and secure, grab a good amount of rubber bands in varying sizes and colors.

I recommend that you try out the geoboard first, to make sure that everything is secure.

Then, give your kids a chance to practice so that this activity is familiar to them when you are on-the-go.

My kids found it fun to put the rubber bands on and to also take them off and put them back in the pouch.

I recommend teaching your kids how to use the rubber bands and then put them back as well.

Also, if you have multiple kids, you may want to make more than one case (maybe in different colors?).

A great place to store your new DIY geoboard is in a travel bag, a seat pocket in the car, or even in your purse.

Just pull it out whenever needed and let the learning fun begin!

 

Here are some additional on-the-go and travel activities:

Busy Bag Activities

Traveling Activities 

Road Trip Bingo

Here are some more ideas for Geoboards:

Making Art with Geoboards from Artful Parent

Muffin Tin Geoboard from And Next Comes L

What are some other on-the-go activities that you have used?

On-The-Go Geoboard Using Food Pouch Caps

Hands On As We Grow http://ift.tt/2vlsBbi

Click here to read On-The-Go Geoboard Using Food Pouch Caps on Hands On As We Grow

---

Are you going on a family trip, out to dinner, or to an important event? This DIY geoboard from Alisha is a great way to keep the kids entertained on-the-go.

Having some on-the-go activities is a great way to keep your kids occupied, while still being hands-on and advancing their learning.

This homemade geoboard is the perfect on-the-go activity that upcycles two common household items; a travel baby wipes container and food pouch caps, to create a fun and engaging hands-on activity for your kids. It’s a great tool to work on fine motor skills, shape recognition and formation, counting, and creativity (whew!).

Here are 25 Busy Bag Ideas for On-the-Go 

You only need six supplies for this DIY geoboard:

• A baby wipes travel container (affiliate link)
• Rubber bands, preferably in assorted sizes (affiliate link)
• 8 recycled food pouch caps (start collecting!)
• Felt or cardstock
• Scissors
• Hot glue gun and glue

The first step is to find that baby wipes container probably hiding in the bottom of a drawer (if not, there are some super cute kid-themed ones out there!)

Then collect and wash eight food pouch caps, I used the caps from my kids’ applesauce pouches.

Grab your glue gun and let it warm up while you’re positioning the caps evenly on the bottom of the baby wipes container (just move them around until you feel comfortable with the spacing).

Once your glue gun is ready (carefully) place some glue on the bottom of each cap and secure them onto the bottom of the baby wipes container (in the same spacing as practiced).

I’d love to say that the caps will stay glued forever, but they may pop off after awhile; so I would use a little extra glue and press firmly.

Now you need to make a pouch to hold the rubber bands.

I used a piece of felt that I cut the size of a small envelope (make sure the size will fit on the inner lid of your baby wipes container with a little wiggle room).

After you have cut your felt, get your hot glue gun and place some glue along the top of the felt.

Fold down the top to make a flap, like an envelope. This will make the top of the pouch more sturdy.

Then place some glue along the sides and bottom on the back of the felt.

Once the glue is on, carefully stick your felt pouch onto the underside of lid.

Hint: leave a little slack in the pouch so that little hands can easily get the rubber bands in and out.

Once everything is cooled and secure, grab a good amount of rubber bands in varying sizes and colors.

I recommend that you try out the geoboard first, to make sure that everything is secure.

Then, give your kids a chance to practice so that this activity is familiar to them when you are on-the-go.

My kids found it fun to put the rubber bands on and to also take them off and put them back in the pouch.

I recommend teaching your kids how to use the rubber bands and then put them back as well.

Also, if you have multiple kids, you may want to make more than one case (maybe in different colors?).

A great place to store your new DIY geoboard is in a travel bag, a seat pocket in the car, or even in your purse.

Just pull it out whenever needed and let the learning fun begin!

 

Here are some additional on-the-go and travel activities:

Busy Bag Activities

Traveling Activities 

Road Trip Bingo

Here are some more ideas for Geoboards:

Making Art with Geoboards from Artful Parent

Muffin Tin Geoboard from And Next Comes L

What are some other on-the-go activities that you have used?

12 Letter H Activities

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We’re learning the letter H! I’ve gathered a bunch of fun letter H activities to do with your kids. Most of these crafts just look like fun and that is the best way to learn.

I’m excited to get crafting some of my favorite letter H things like hippos and hot air balloons!

12 Letter H Activities

Turn an uppercase H into a hippo! This is my kids favorite animal – so fun!

H is for horse. This fun craft turns a construction paper letter H into a horse. via Miss Maren’s Monkeys

Use your handprints to make a yellow beehive! via Pinterest

Cut out red hearts from paper and fill up a letter H. H is for hearts! via I Can Teach My Child

Make this fun hot air balloon from a paper plate. via Brilliant Beginnings Preschool

Or try making a hot air balloon from a cupcake liner! via I Heart Crafty Things

Use these great letter H free printables to practice.

Make a Hermit crab with your handprint – this is so cute! via Diapers to Diplomas

Use a paper plate to make this adorable hedgehog! via Fiche Maternelle

Make a hamburger! Use construction paper to build your own hamburger. via Pinterest

Practice writing the letter H with these playdough mats. via In My World

Make a construction paper helicopter with cotton ball clouds. via Ducks in a Row

Fun With Letters Preschool Alphabet Resource

Continue your Letter H learning by signing up for our email series Fun With Letters. This preschool alphabet resource is full of activities, worksheets and coloring pages.

The post 12 Letter H Activities appeared first on Kids Activities Blog.

Kid-Made Coffee Stirrer Froggies

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Summer is the perfect season for catching frogs! But if you don’t live near a pond or lake, what do you do? You craft, of course! Shared below is an adorable kid-made craft created from coffee stirrers! Coffee Stirrer Froggies are fun for kids of all ages and they are the perfect craft for summer.

Coffee Stirrer Froggies

My children love all things frog! To make this sweet summer craft you will need:

• Wooden coffee stirrers
• Red and green markers
• Glitter (green)
• Green pony beads
• Wiggly eyes
• White school glue
• 1 craft stick (standard sized)
• Scissors

After gathering supplies, begin by coloring the coffee stirrers green with the marker. Next, glue 2 green coffee stirrers together with white school glue.

Tip: Use wax paper to protect your surface while glueing.

While the craft sticks are drying, glue a wiggly eye on each of the pony beads. Use the glue to secure the pony bead “eyes” to the craft sticks.

Just for fun, lightly coat the craft sticks with glue, then sprinkle green glitter all over them.

Last, use scissors to cut the end off of a regular craft stick. Color it red with a marker. Glue the piece of craft stick onto the green coffee stirrers to create the frog’s mouth.

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The Best Essential Oils for the Kitchen

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Are you looking for some natural remedies for your kitchen? Whether you’re looking to keep things cleaner or create a more welcoming kitchen, there are a number of remedies you may want to try out. Here are some ways to use essential oils for the kitchen that you must know about!

How to Use Essential Oils for the Kitchen

Make the Most of Natural Cleaners

If you’re trying to go greener and ditch the high-chemical household cleaning products, look no further! There are a number of items you may have on hand that can be used around your kitchen.

Vinegar makes for an excellent household cleaner. You can use it to disinfect cutting boards, clean your fridge, and so much more.

Another ideal household cleaner is lemon! It’s a great disinfectant, making it a great way to get rid of bacteria. Not only will it make your metal pots and pans shinier, but it can also get rid of tough stains and breaking up grease. You can either use lemon juice or lemon essential oil to reap the benefits!

Peppermint essential oil is another great disinfectant that you might want to consider using in your kitchen! In addition to killing bacteria, it can also kill mildew and remove stains.  

Create a Homemade Air Freshener

Are you tired of those kitchen odors that linger for hours after you’ve finished cooking? If so, you might want to try making a homemade air freshener. You can create a natural air freshener using essential oils. Lemon, lime, clove, and cinnamon essential oils can even get rid of fish odors! Peppermint essential oil can also make for a great DIY air freshener.

Create the Right Mood for Your Kitchen

Since the kitchen is the center of your home, the last thing you will want is for it to be a place of stress and arguments. Therefore, setting the right mood can go a long way.

For starters, take a look at your room décor. Calming blues and cheerful yellows tend to be great options for the kitchen. Try to avoid shades of red, which can make people angry.  

You might also consider using essential oils to reduce the stress in your kitchen. Lavender oil is a great option, as it has a calming effect on the mind and body.

These are just some natural remedies for your kitchen! There are plenty of great ways to lead an eco-friendlier life and improve your kitchen at the same time.

New to Essential Oils?

Ha! Me too…awhile ago.

It can be overwhelming with so many oils & choices.

This exclusive package {available for a limited time} gives you everything you need to get started and the information you need to know what to do!

As a Young Living Independent distributor, I started with their AMAZING starter kit & then added a few things I thought you might like…

…like a super huge essential oil information manual. I use mine ALL THE TIME. It is a place you can look up information about each oil individually or find information by looking up the problem you want to solve.

…like an Amazon gift card for $20! You can use it for additional resources or accessories OR just whatever you want!

…like membership in our group’s private FB community. This is a great place to ask questions, get suggestions and find out how other people are using their essential oils. As part of my team, you can also choose other groups like our business building or blogging communities as well.

Check out this article for more information about how to get this essential oil deal from Kids Activities Blog.

 

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Make Your Own Rainbow Paper Beads

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Get out the printer and some scissors and have fun making your own pretty rainbow paper beads. Rainbow crafts are so much fun because you can use so many different colors. You can create with the whole rainbow, or just pick a few of your favorites and combine with your friends. Today I have a craft for you that was a favorite for me as a kid. Paper beads!

Rainbow Paper Beads

You can make a bunch  of beads from any kind of paper and then make necklaces, bracelets and other fun accessories. I’ve got a free printable rainbow craft  sheet for you to use so you can make these really colorful rainbow beads.

Materials:

• Printable Rainbow Bead Activity sheet designed by Jen Goode
• Scissors
• Glue – I like Aleene’s because it sticks really nicely
• Toothpicks
• Yarn or twine

How to Make  Rainbow Paper Beads

1. Cut out each of the color strips from the printed activity sheet.
2. Using pincher fingers, wrap paper strip, wide end first, around a toothpick.
3. Add a bit of glue to the last 1-2″ of paper and then roll completely.
4. Remove from toothpick and let the glue dry.
5. Once all the beads are dry, thread them on to a piece of twine or yarn to make your accessories.

 

Tip: don’t roll the paper too tightly or it will be difficult to not only remove from the toothpick, but it will also be hard to thread the bead on to your project.

 

 

Threading tip: Add some tape to the end of the twine, about 1″ long. Trim to a pointed shape. This will stiffen the twine and allow little hands to thread their beads on a bit easier.

 

 

Download this Free printable Rainbow Bead page designed by Jen Goode

These rainbow paper beads make a great kids activity for parties too!

More rainbow activities and crafts:

Rainbow Garland with Free Printable

35 Rainbow crafts and activities

Make Watercolor Rainbow Tassels

Cute Rainbow Coloring page

Make Watercolor Coffee Filter Art  

 

This is a great group activity for the summer too. The kids love to compare the beads and see how quickly they can make them.  I hope you have fun making your own rainbow beads!

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How To Store Kids Art

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Being a mom and an artist, I was so excited when my first son started preschool and began bringing home art projects. I had the grand idea that I would be able to save all of these projects in a portfolio for each of my children.

When school began, the art projects began rolling in at a rapid rate. I was inundated with finger paintings, alphabet creations and doodles. I quickly learned that unless I rented a storage locker, there was no way that I would be able to save everything that my children’s little hands created throughout their years of art classes.

As my second son began his educational adventure, I realized quickly that I was going to have to get very creative in finding ways to store kids art. We turned to some of our favorite blogs for easy and adorable solutions.

Fun Ways to Display Artwork

Turn your kids’ artwork into cute DIY placemats.

Make a kids art gallery using some colorful frames and wires with clothespins. via The Caterpillar Years

Colorful clothespins are perfect for stringing artwork along a wall. This way, it can be easily changed out! via Design Improvised

Use decoupage to turn artwork into something more permanent — add it to vases or notebooks!

Glue a clip onto a picture frame for a cute (and simple) way to display artwork. via Lolly Jane

Paint funky frames onto the wall for a more permanent solution! via Childhood 101

Scan the artwork and create a huge collage with it! via Clean and Scentsible

This frame is the perfect place for keeping all those pieces of art! Display one and store the others in the inside pocket.

Use a curtain wire from Ikea to hang artwork in a fun way. via Mums Grapevine

Personalize a pallet board with clothespins as a place to hang artwork. via Pallet Furniture DIY

Old clipboards make a great, nonpermanent solution for artwork storage. via Home Is What You Make It

Take a picture of artwork and create a photo book with all the images. via Life Happens

Create baby file boxes to house all the artwork from every grade. via Destination of Domestication

Use this free template to create an easy collage from your digital artwork. via Simple as That Blog

Make a kids’ artwork portfolio from poster board as a slim way to store projects. via Pajama Mama

Store all the artwork and papers in a Memory Binder — you can make one for each year, or combine multiple years! via Reluctant Entertainer

Display artwork in a shadow box, and add some crayons for a fun effect! via Dear Lizzy

How To Store Kids Art

• Go digital!   One easy storage idea was right at my fingertips for years, and I kick myself when I realized how long it took me to discover it. It is a solution that allows you to save copies of all of your children’s art with minimal effort. Simply scan them into your computer and keep them on a disk. You can label each picture with the date, project type or special occasion it represents. I now have a disk for each of my children for each year of school. I simply label it with the child’s name and the school year and I am able to save all of their artwork and many of the writing samples, without creating chaos in my home. While it doesn’t allow me to save all the originals, it does allow me to keep everything they bring home for future viewing.

• Creation station! In our house, we have a large desk that has been designated our creation station! It is where we keep our art supplies and where the children can complete projects anytime! I knew it was another perfect area to adorn with artwork, I just need to find a way. Then, one day while walking through the home improvement store, it hit me! I was walking through the plexi-glass aisle and realized that was my solution. After returning home and measuring the desk, I was able to purchase a perfectly fitted piece of plexi-glass at a minimal cost. I simply place the art work between the desk and the plexi-glass, and the plexi-glass also helps to protect the desk top while my kids are doing projects and is easily wiped off when things get messy

Once you begin to look outside the box and get creative with your storage solutions, you’ll find an abundance of options and hopefully have a little fun in the process! And if you choose to use a disposable option like digital storage, don’t trash the art work when you are done! Be sure to toss it into the recycling bin. Some of these ideas are quick and some take an afternoon to complete. Some are neat and clean and some may have you and your child messy as can be. But one thing is assured, you’ll be left with many memories without the headaches of having to rent a storage locker to keep it all!

Need some fresh art projects for your child?   The Quirky Mommas have some great ideas for you:

• Preschoolers Painting Stripes
• Ten Ways to Paint with Preschoolers
• Painting with Feathers

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