Tot Learning

Pinterest is AWESOME!  I am a very visual person.  I can NOT see anything in my head; I must have a picture or actually do it in order to know what to expect.  So, pinterest has been very helpful in this area of my life.  I have been wanting to do some fun learning activities with Chloe and I'd read about some, but couldn't figure out a simple/frugal way to do it.  No, I am not doing a formal preschool thing, but she loves hands on activities and crafty things as do I and if she can learn at the same time, YES!  Below, we built a "river" out of foil.  Then we watched what would happen with light/heavy, big/small, flatter/bumpier surfaces, etc.  I don't know if she grasped much, but we enjoyed ourselves! 

                                                                                                                 






















While we were floating things on our river, Autumn played with the slide/swing nearby.  Contentedly playing with toys and watching the water flow.








I did some sensory type boxes when Chloe was smaller, but hadn't pulled out those things in quiet some time.  I thought it is about time to do that again, since Autumn is getting more interested in things of that sort.  Plus, Chloe is not too old for it yet.  She still loves to pour, fill, and dump.  I did a really simple one with oatmeal and cheerios as a base, so that Autumn would be okay tasting playing with it.

This week, Chloe and I started learning about insects.  I used the same box and hid some bugs inside.  Plastic bugs are a big hit in this house :) I also got her some paraphernalia with which to catch bugs.  Something I have learned...bugs are hard to find! (Obviously, I've never been a big bug catcher!)  We have a plethora of ants.  When I comb the deck I can usually find a spider.  We observed a wasp and have seen a few butterflies, but that's it!  Any hints?  Chloe doesn't really mind though,  she's just as happy "catching" nuts and leaves and putting them in her jar.

We are learning about bug's for at least another week.  Any fun projects for a 2.5 year old and a mom who may not like to touch bugs much?