Wow! This take home kit sure received an amazing response! As the weather changes, families will begin looking for more activities to do inside to keep children's hands and minds busy.
Included in our "Counting Down to the New Year!" kit was a Snow Man game, trimming Santa's beard activity and a paper chain to help you count the days to 2022!
If you missed out on this kit, here are the instructions so you can do theses fun activities at home with your little ones :)
New Years paper chain
What you need:
- Strips of coloured paper (about 1 inch wide by 6 inch long)
- Tape
On December 1st, start the count down to the New Year with the first link of your paper chain. Use the tape provided to make sure your first link is secure. On the 2nd of December, loop another piece of paper through the first. Complete these steps until you reach December 31st! On New Year’s Day, count the number of links that you have in your paper chain!
If you would like to complete your whole paper chain in one shot, that's great too! You could do the reverse...make the chain all at once, then tear a link to the chain to count down.
Making paper chains is a great way to start conversations about counting, colours and patterns, and also strengthens children's motor skills as they manipulate the paper in different directions.
Santa’s Beard
What you need: - Santa print-out (for a PDF of this Santa, please email Nina at aafrc1998@gmail.com)
- Scissors - Tape
To begin, you may want to colour your picture. What colour will you make the hat? How about the eyes and nose? What about the lined paper that will become a beard? What colour should the hair be? It is all up to you! Next, use tape the affix the “beard” to the face.
Using your scissors, cut along the lines to make strips of “beard”. Using a pencil or crayon, roll the strips of paper tightly around the crayon and let go to make a curl!
Using scissors at a young age helps children strengthen their fine motor muscles and hand-eye coordination. Don’t worry if they don’t cut on the line or if their cuts aren’t very long. Try holding the paper for them as they develop their skills. You may need to help them move the scissors in the correct motion as they practice.
Snowman Game
What you need: -Game pieces (one set for each player) - 2 cotton swabs, 2 short sticks, 1 carrot nose (orange fabric or paper), 1 toque (fabric or paper), 1 scarf (fabric or paper)
- Game cards and instructions (for a PDF please email Nina at aafrc1998@gmail.com )
This game comes from one of our Family Literacy Experience Bags – Snow Day! Family Literacy Experience Bags are available to borrow from AAFRC and include fun activities that promote literacy skills, pattern and colour recognition, social emotional development, creativity and more! For more information about this and other bags, email aafrc1998@gmail.com
Fun for all ages, playing age-appropriate games as a family will help children build their vocabulary and learn the skill of taking turns while making positive memories. Follow the instructions included to have fun building snowmen inside!
If your child is finding the game too complicated, try simply taking turns choosing snowman pieces. Game rules can be added as your child’s skill progress. Have Fun!
Feel free to send photos of you participating or your finished product to aafrc1998@gmail.com as we would LOVE to see how you are doing!
Stay tuned for more information about our next take home kit - "Deck the Halls!"