Home Preschool (Ages 2.5-4) Week Six: Letter F and Number 6

Remember that the "Facts about..." pages and other extras are not included in the blog text, but they are included in the printable version. Some of the ideas in these plans came from Brightly Beaming Resources. Each daily session of "School Time," as my son calls it will last about half an hour. Adjust the lessons for your child's age and level of education. Enjoy!

Here is the printable version of this week's lesson plans: Letter F and Number 6 Lesson Plans

Links found in the lesson plans:
"The Farmer in the Dell" YouTube Video
Letter F Worksheets
Number 6 Worksheets
Flamingo Images
Flamingo Coloring Pages
Firefighter Images

Heart-(Or Moose-)Shaped Pizza and Calzones

I'm sharing two fantastic recipes and my fun idea for doing something with my kids, but all three are definitely worth trying! My little guys absolutely loved making these pizzas and my three-year-old was surprisingly good at it. Not only that, but these little pizzas and calzones are adorable and delicious. They would be perfect for a slumber party dinner or just a dinner with friends or family because everyone loves pizza and kids love making things their own!

Home Preschool (Ages 2.5-4) Week Four: Letter D and Number 4

Something to remember about these lesson plans is that the printable version has the printouts that go with it. For example, the "Fasts about The Desert" sheet for this week and the letter and number pages for each week. These are not included in the text on this post.

Here is the printable version of this week's lesson plans: Week Four: Letter D and Number 4

Links found in the lesson plans:
"Hey Diddle Diddle" You Tube Video
Letter D Worksheets
Number 4 Worksheets
"Clair de Lune" You Tube Video
Dolphin Images
Dolphin Coloring Pages
Desert Images

Home Preschool

Age 3: Letter and Number of the Week

Week 4: Lesson Plans for the Letter D and the Number 4

Preparation:

·         Print out large letter and number sheets (included) and post them somewhere the child can see them all week.

·         Create theme word flash cards with the theme word on one side and a picture depicting the word on the other.

·         Print out the poem of the week (included).

·         Create a flashcard with the name of the composer of the week on it.

·         Print out animal/plant word sheet (included), “facts about” page (included), coloring page, and image of the animal/plant of the week.

·         Print out social studies fact sheet (included) and an image of the subject of the week.

·         Collect supplies for art project.

·         Optional: Plan a day for an outing in keep with the theme (ideas included) and buy ingredients for snacks, baking, or cooking in keeping with the theme (ideas included).

Utah Hikes: Red Ledges (Mini Moab)

If you have ever been to Southern Utah, one of the main features you notice is the red rock all over.  Unfortunately, we live about 4 hours away from there and so we don't have the chance to enjoy the red rock very often.  I had heard of a hiking trail called Red Ledges, or Mini Moab, about 15 minutes up Spanish Fork Canyon that sounded like fun for the family.  What we didn't know when we got there was that there are multiple paths and some are more difficult than others.  When you get to the trailhead, there are a few paths you can take.

If you go straight, it starts off fairly flat, but quickly turns steep.  We had our two kids with us (3.5 year old and 16 month old) and the older one did alright at first, but my husband had to carry her up a few spots and I had to carry the baby most of the way.  Since it's red rock, it is a little slick and sandy, and doubled with some steep spots, it was fairly difficult to hike with small children.  However, if you are hiking with older kids (age 6+) they could do most of it without help.  When we got to the top, there were a few trails we could choose from to get back down.  We decided not to try and go down the same way we came up and instead took another of the paths that wound around until we made it back down to the road, where we walked back to the parking lot.

Free Things To Do With Kids: Visit the Capitol Building

This one is even educational, guys. I'm getting ambitious. Well, it wasn't that educational for my baby children, but it definitely could have been more educational if they were a bit older. Also, if I knew more about government...

Anyway, we actually don't live that close to our current state capitol. It's about an hour away, but Quinn (the hubby) had a massage appointment downtown so we drove him up and visited the capitol building while we waited! I don't know about your state capitol building, but the one in Salem, OR was gorgeous and so is the one here in Salt Lake City, UT! You can walk the grounds, go inside, and they even offer tours.

When we went, the place was crawling with tourists, so I got out my camera and became one of them! When in Rome, right? The boys had a lot of fun walking the grounds and looking at all the beautiful paintings. It was the perfect way to spend an hour, but we could easily have spent more time there.

Get Out Of the House Without Breaking the Bank: 10 Free Or Cheap Activities For Little Ones

As you all know, I love to get out of the house. I have to do it at least once a day or my crew (my two screaming toddlers) and I get a little grouchy. If I were rich, this would be easier because I would just go shopping or to Disneyland half the time. But I am not. So I get creative. There are actually hundreds of things to do with your little ones outside of the home, but for some reason, it can be hard to think of them sometimes. So I've compiled a list for you so you don't have to do the thinking. Just the doing. And for me, figuring out what we're going to do is half the battle of getting out of the house.

 1. Kids Summer Movies and Dollar Theaters

• Many theaters offer cheap movies for kids during the summer. For example, these Kids Summer Movies at the Larry H. Miller Mexaplex in Vineyard, UT. They are usually older movies and the showtimes are during the day, but the kids will love getting out of the house and going to the big theater to see a movie.
• Usually I would say keep the babies at home if you're going to a movie, but these are perfect for bringing little ones. Most people will understand if a child starts screaming and needs to be taken out. It won't be the end of the world.
• Dollar theaters (or just cheaper theaters) will offer slightly older movies at a much cheaper price. For example, Movies 8 in Provo, UT (which has $1 Tuesdays) and Water Gardens Theaters in Pleasant Grove, UT and Spanish Fork, UT (where popcorn and drinks start at $1!).