Surprise Me

For Ages: 8 Months - 2 years

Having an unexpected surprise delights any kid.

SURPRISE ME

Materials:
A few items small enough to hide in your hands such as cork, lipstick, coin, candy, etc.

Directions:
Show your child that you have a cork, for example, in your hand. Put both hands behind your back and switch the objects back and forth between your hands. Then, she has to guess which hand has the cork. Once she guesses, bring both fisted hands up and let her pry open your fingers one at a time to see if she guessed the correct hand. Do this game several times.

Now comes the SURPRISE part. After doing this several times, surreptitiously slip a coin, or another small object, into your fist instead of the cork by directing her attention elsewhere ("See that bird?"). The next uncurling of your fingers will surprise and delight her. She’ll likely want you to do it again many times. When she least expects it, change items again!

Whose Ring of String

For Ages: 3-10 years

In this game, children are encouraged to really look closely at one spot and see the tiny wonders of nature that are in our own back yard.

WHOSE RING OF STRING

Materials:
string
magnifying glass or jar with water in it (optional)

Directions:
Make a small circle on the ground with the string. Look carefully at the enclosed area with your child and notice what is growing there. Pull out a weed or blade of grass and see what the roots looks like. Is there a seed pod in the area? What’s inside?

Poke a hole and see if there are any insects around. What are they? What are they doing? Use a magnifying glass or a jar with water in it and look at different things up close.

Gather small things to examine and collect such as pine cones, acorns, petals, seeds, bark, leaves and pretty pebbles.

Paper Plethora

For Ages: All Ages

Paper is an inexpensive medium for encouraging creativity because it can be torn, ripped, wadded, crumpled, folded, taped, pasted, rolled, wrapped and scribbled on.

PAPER PLETHORA

Materials:
Paper: Squirrel away any scraps of different kinds of paper, such as gift wrapping paper, wax paper, discarded envelopes, photocopy paper, colored paper, aluminum foil, magazines, greeting cards, magazines, paper bags, toothpaste boxes and gift boxes.
Large box: to store the papers
Glue and or tape
Crayons or markers

Directions:
Have a Paper Day
Bring out the box of paper goodies and let your child have at them.

Tear out magazine pictures and paste them on a paper to make a collage.

Make new greeting cards out of wrapping paper designs or out of old greeting cards. Make sculptures out of aluminum foil. Tear small pieces of different colors and make a mosaic picture. Crumpled small pieces of tissue paper and make a 3-D flower on paper.

A Wish Collage

For Ages: Teens

To make a wish come true, you first have to define your wish.

A WISH COLLAGE

Materials:
Old magazines
Cardboard or heavy paper

Directions:
Think about something you’d like to have happened and find pictures that show elements of that wish. A wish to travel, for example, would have pictures of airplanes, happy faces, interesting sites and so on.

Glue them on a piece of paper or cardboard from a box and keep it in prominent position to be seen daily. Expect it to happen!

My Story is the Best Story

For Ages 3-8

Teach your little one the elements of story writing early by learning how to tell their stories. The best story of all!

MY STORY IS THE BEST STORY

Materials:
None

Directions:
At the end of the day, encourage your child to tell you the story of his day. Help your child tell the story by asking leading questions such as "What was the first thing you did when you woke up today?" "What happen next?" "Who did you see today?" "What was the best thing that happen today?" and so on.

If you want, turn on the tape recorder or video camera and let your child elaborate about his day for a family keepsake.

First Words

For Toddlers
Let the first words your children learn to read be the names of people they love.

FIRST WORDS

Materials:
Index cards
Pen

Directions:
her what they say and then lay them on the table and have her point out the one that is her name and then, your name.

Later, add new names to her pile and keep playing the recognition game. Delight in her success. Casually correct her errors.

You’ll be surprised to see how quickly she learns to read the words. Impress your friends and family!

Homemade Rattles

FOR INFANTS:
Even infants get bored with the same old rattles. Here's a quickie way to make interesting new rattles that are just the right size for her hands.

HOMEMADE RATTLES

MATERIALS:
Clear film canisters or cleaned plastic pill bottle or small travel-sized shampoo bottles.
Household items such as pennies, beans, salt, rice, buttons, paper clips, beads, sequins, sand, seeds, etc.
Cloth Tape (optional)

DIRECTIONS:
Put enough of any of the above materials in container so that when shaken it makes a noise. Close tightly. Tape if needed. Make some rattles all one material and others a combination.

You could also half filled some with colored or plain water and add objects that float such as beads, sequins and bits of cork.

Talk about what she is seeing as in "Those are pennies. They make a loud sound." "This is salt. It makes a soft sound."

It’s nice to learn about what’s in her world.

Self-Portraits

FOR AGES: TEENS
Many teenagers go through a phase where they become fascinated with their reflection in the mirror, especially during the period when their faces make that change from a child’s to a young adult’s.

In this activity, you and your changing child can take advantage of this fascination by drawing your mirror reflection

SELF PORTRAITS

MATERIALS:
Mirror
Pencil
Paper

DIRECTIONS:
Both of you sit facing a mirror and draw yourselves. Try and draw faithfully exactly what you see.
You can also draw each other’s reflections.

It’s fun to look only at the other person but not at the paper until you are done. This often gives a kind of Picasso look to the work.

Spotlight in the Dark

FOR AGES 1-7
flashlights in the dark can make a fascinating game

A SPOTLIGHT IN THE DARK

MATERIALS:
Two flashlights

DIRECTIONS:
In a dark room or on a dark night, turn both flashlights on and encourage her to "catch" your spotlight. Move your spotlight around the room and she has to move hers so it "catches" yours by covering your spotlight with hers.

Your turn to chase next.

Who's hands on top?

FOR ALL AGES:
Here is a silly fun game needing nothing more than two pair of hands and a goofy spirit.

WHOSE HAND IS ON TOP?

MATERIALS:
None

DIRECTIONS:
Put your hand on the table and ask your little one to put hers on top of yours. Then put your other hand on top of her hand and ask her to put her other hand on the top of the hand pile.

Then you pull your first hand out from under the pile of hands and put it back on top. Encourage her to do the same with her hand that is now on the bottom.

Keep repeating this pattern with the hand on the bottom of the pile moving to the top. Start very slowly at first until she gets the idea and then begin to speed up the action.

Got three pair of hands or more wanting to play? Silliness ahead!

Sock on a Bottle

FOR BABIES:
When babies are old enough to hold their own bottle, you can enrich that experience by creating a textural and visual delight with nothing more than a sock.

SOCK ON A BOTTLE

MATERIALS:
A variety of clean socks in different colors, patterns, and textures.

DIRECTIONS:
Place your child’s bottle into a pretty sock and hold it in front of your baby so he can see the new look. Change to a different sock on another day to add the element of surprise and enhance his ability to notice details.

Follow the Floating Feather

FOR AGES: TODDLERS

As mesmerizing as watching dancing dust motes, following the trajectory of a feather is both compelling and calming.

FOLLOW THE FLOATING FEATHER

MATERIALS:
Feathers

DIRECTIONS:
Hold a small feather up high and then let it go and encourage your child to watch it as it slowly falls. To help him keep his eye on the feather's movement, suggest that he catch it as it falls.

Drop the feather from different heights or outside to let him notice how air currents affect movement.

Also, blow the feather to your child and ask him to blow it back to you. If there are a few of you playing, see how many times you can blow it to each other before it touches the floor.

Beginning Hammering

FOR AGES: 3- 7 years

Hammering nails into wood is a fun activity. Make it easy and safe for young fingers by using stryofoam instead of wood.

BEGINNING HAMMERING

MATERIALS:
Block of styrofoam (such as the ones that come in boxes for shipping computers, printers, etc.)
Small hammer (tack hammers work well) or thick stick
Nails or golf tees

DIRECTIONS:
Show your youngster how to hammer nails or golf tees into a syrofoam block. They hammer in easily making each attempt a satisfying success.

If you want to give them a more advanced experience, use screws and a screwdriver instead.

Ice Cube Distraction

FOR AGES: 3-10 MONTHS

Babies can get fussy just when you are busy making dinner. It’s probably the smells that make them hungry. Distract them with an ice cube. They have the fun of trying to catch it as it skitters. You get to cook without interruptions. . Everyone is happy!

ICE CUBE ON A TRAY

MATERIALS:
Ice cubes
Tray
Food coloring (optional)

DIRECTIONS:
Place a large ice cube on your child’s high chair tray or table for him to chase around. Make them out of plain or colored water.

When it gets too small and might be swallowed, replace it with a large one before you take the small one away.

Other fun, but messy, things to splash and squiggle are soy sauce, mild mustard, ketchup, whip cream or meringue.

Jell-O blocks are fun to touch and to watch them shimmy and shake.

Five Good Moments

FOR AGES: TEENS

Life contains many kinds of moments. Teens can get stuck on a negative moment and enlarge its significance. This game shows children that good moments are always part of the mix if one looks for them.

FIVE GOOD MOMENTS

MATERIALS:
None

DIRECTIONS:
Suggest to your Teen:
"Pay attention throughout the day for five moments that make you feel good. The moment can be an interaction with someone or something lovely that you thought or saw or heard.. What it is doesn’t matter. What matters is that for at least a moment it made you feel good.

I’ll do the same and when we get together at the end of the day, we’ll share our five good things that happened."

The Knocking Game

AGES: ALL AGES

Listening to and identifying the different sounds objects make when you knock on them is a game that can be played at any time. When you want to change the focus of fussing children, try saying: "Hey, let’s play a game. Close your eyes and see if you can tell what I’m knocking on. No cheating!"

THE KNOCKING GAME

MATERIALS:
Common objects found around the house

DIRECTIONS:
Ask your player to close her eyes and turn her back to you. Then see if she can guess the object you are knocking on with your fist (or a spoon). Start with easy things such as a table and a window, and work towards sounds that are harder to identify, such as knocking on a book or lamp.

Take turns being the identifier and the "knocker".

Nature Bracelets

For Ages 1-5
You can start your little one’s exploration and appreciation of nature with this game of making a masking tape naturre bracelet. They’ll notice all the lovely color and shape variations there are in petal and leaf and adorn their wirsts with beauty.

NATURE BRACELETS

Materials:
Masking tape
Leaves and flower petals

Directions:
Wrap a piece of masking tape around your child's wrist, sticky side up, and then go exploring to find wonderful leaves, beautiful flower petals and other interesting things to attach to the bracelet.

Before bedtime, snip the bracelet off and attach it next to his bed or somewhere in view so he can admire his work and remember his fun time.

I love you because...

FOR AGES: 1-7 years
This is the kind of game that would make a lovely bedtime ritual or a sweet moment during a car ride or a bath. It’s hard to get tired of hearing in just what ways one is wonderful.

I LOVE YOU BECAUSE

MATERIALS:
None

DIRECTIONS:
Say these words or something similar to the child of your heart:
"Do you know why I love you? I love you because_______" Fill in the blank with anything about the child that you especially appreciate. In this game you can be general such as "You’re a kind person" or specific such as "You shared your chocolate ice cream with your little brother today" or "You hugged your classmate when you saw that she was upset".

It’s nice to end the ritual by saying:
"I love you because you are _______(fill in with child’s name)."
The ending lets them also know that just being them is enough to merit love.

Tube Game

For Ages: Babies

Here’s a funway to teach babies that things out of sight still exist. This knowledge helps her not worry when you’re not in view.

Tube Game

Materials:
Mailing tube or the tube from a paper towel roll.

Directions:
Place a small object like a toy car in one end and tilt it so it reappears on the other end. Let baby experiment with putting the car and other objects in the tube, tilting it and making it reappear.

Tape two tubes together for added suspense. When will it reappear?

Postcard Diaries

For Ages: 7-15 years
Next time you take a trip with your older child, buy her postcards that she can use to make a memorable diary.

Postcard Diaries

Materials:
Postcards
Pen
Ribbon

Directions:
Let your child select a few postcards each day or at each destination. As she writes entries on the back of each postcard, she is making a diary for that period of her life.

She can make a hole in one corner of each postcard and string them together with a ribbon or make her own puzzles (and keep her words very private) by cutting up a postcard into smaller pieces that she can put together later.