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The Traveling Closet -Teaching Kids what Germs are and hygiene

by Mary Ann on April 25, 2011

Germs

Jack, Maggie and Mary have been very ill for two weeks so grandma school was postponed until Sat.

I decided this might be a really good opportunity to introduce the concept of germs, what germs are and how to maintain good health. That also meant teaching them about hygiene. So here is what I put into the Traveling Closet:

1. Pictures of real germs
2. A picture of what happens when someone sneezes
3. Yeast, sugar and a measuring cup to show how fast germs can multiply
4. A hand washing video for kids, how and why to wash your hands
5. A video on how and why to cover your nose when you sneeze
6. A magnifying glass
7. Pictures of healthy food
8. Some grain to taste i.e. granola
9. A tissue
10. The materials to trace our hands and stickers to mimic the germs that get on them
11. A germ worksheet
12. A coloring page

Mary exploring the contents

When I arrived I set my tub on the floor and began hugging and talking. Mary was the first one to look into the tub and she was soooo interested in the measuring cup. It was her favorite item.

On this day I just let them look at the contents and we talked about whatever they pulled out. Of course they were very interested in the pictures of the germs. When you introduce concepts that are very difficult for small children to grasp, such as the fact that a thing can be so small that you can’t see it, it is important not to scare or confuse them. Because one of videos showed some germs with faces I asked them if these germs had mouths, teeth, ears, feet, etc. They laughed and said, “no way”. We talked about the fact that germs are alive but that they do not look like people or animals but that they can give you a fever, a runny nose and a stomach ache.

YUCK, cover your mouth when sneezing

We talked about the picture of what a sneeze looks like. We took turns demonstrating how to use a tissue and then how to crumple it up and throw it away. I showed them what to do if you don’t have a tissue; USE YOUR SLEEVE! We sneezed and coughed on our hands to feel the wetness.

I had previewed many videos on germs and found that most of them were too advanced or used nasty germ cartoons that would scare children. However, I

Crawford knows how to stay well

found two pretty good ones about Crawford the Cat. Crawford showed how to wash your hands properly and what to do when you sneeze. The children loved the videos.

We talked about all the things our hands can do and how many things they touch that have germs, the dog, the swing, the toilet. Then we practiced washing our hands at the sink and we sang our hand washing song. That was a good hand washing lesson for kids because it included a soap pump dispenser and LOTS of water.

We looked at our hands through the magnifying glass and then talked about why we can’t see germs if they are there. If they were older, and interested, which they weren’t, we could have talked about microscopes and how they make germs visible and that the germ pictures we had were taken under a microscope. We could also have talked about what an organism is, what microscopic means and then what it means to be a micro organism.

Food for the germs

We talked about how to keep your IMMUNE SYSTEM healthy so it can fight the germs. We acted out our immune system punching the germs and knocking them out. They loved that! We went through the pictures of the good food and ate the grain. We talked about getting enough sleep and exercise.

The part that they enjoyed the most was when I demonstrated how fast germs can grow if they aren’t washed off. Mary poured her measuring cup of water in a small bowl. Maggie added a bit of sugar. (Here is where mommy mentioned that this is why we eat only a little sugar, so we don’t encourage things that aren’t healthy) Jack poured in the yeast and we watched it grow. YUCK.

Germs multiply FAST! You can get an idea by watching yeast grow.

While our yeast was growing we did the worksheet, circling those things which help keep us healthy and putting and X on those things that make us sick. Maggie who is almost 5 loved that part. Jack and Mary were not interested in the least. Age does make a difference in the things that they will be interested in.

Maggie likes projects the best - tracing hands is fun

Finally, we traced our hands, stuck some germs on them and attached them to a sign which

Wash your hands for healthy bodies art!

we posted in the bathroom. We never got to the color page.

It was fun. Mary mostly climbed on the table and had to be removed often. She carried her cup. Jack was interested in almost everything, enjoying growing yeast and the videos the most. Maggie loved it all, especially making her hand and the worksheet.

It was chaotic, as it always is when working with small children and lasted about 50 minutes. Ah success. This tub will be stored away to be repeated at intervals over the next few years while they grow so that they can really digest and learn how to stay healthy and what germs are. Next time I will add some books about germs and stories about staying healthy.

Small children can be challenging but Mary loved this germ activity

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Panoramic Sugar Easter Eggs for children to make

by Mary Ann on April 23, 2011

Panorama sugar eggs made by young children

I have taught hundreds of children to make sugar eggs. I taught two groups of kindergartners every year for over 15 years. I taught children how to make sugar eggs in Girl Scouts and community groups and for the city programs department. In fact two weeks ago I traveled to Colorado do make them with over ninety children in my grandchildren’s school classes. It was really fun.

Panoramic sugar eggs

Despite having made hundreds of these eggs for friends and family I never had any for myself. So one year I made a very large one for the center of my basket (a flat, flower gathering type basket) and made 24 small eggs to surround it. It was gorgeous and a real conversation piece the whole Easter Season. I enjoyed that basket of eggs so much.

When Easter was over I carefully set the arrangement, basket and all, into my cedar chest for the next year. The cedar chest was stored in our garage.

The next Easter I went to the garage and pulled out the basket. It was perfect. The flowers on the top were in perfect shape and it was as delightful and beautiful as I had remembered. I was so excited to display it again in our home.

Then I picked up one of the small eggs and looked inside. NOTHING! It was completely empty because the bottom had been totally

He is risen!

licked out. Hard to believe isn’t it. I checked every egg, including the very large center egg and everyone was completely empty.

I have since thought how many surreptitious licks and how many weeks it took to empty all those eggs. To this day the culprit has not confessed, despite the fact that all the suspects are between 28 and 39. Every Easter I am reminded of this family story and we laugh about it still.

Isn’t that a perfect Easter story? They were empty!! Mary Madeline went to the tomb and it was empty. Jesus was not there, he had risen. What a glorious message and event which thrills the hearts of Christians all over the world.

This sugar egg project would be perfect for you and your children. It takes very few supplies and even a two year old can do it. Just remember that only adults care about the end result, children adore the process. So let them have a free hand, helping only when necessary, knowing that however they look in the end your children will be thrilled.

Sugar Egg Recipe and Directions

This keeps hands clean and sugar off the floor

1. Place 2 cups of sugar and 3 tsp. of water in a zip-lock type bag. You can color the easter eggs with food coloring for a tinted shell by adding a few drops of food coloring to the water before you add it to the sugar. Rub the bag between your hands until all the sugar is moist like damp sand. You don’t want any dry particles as they will flake away when the egg is done and you don’t want it too wet, or it takes too long to dry.(For information about using food coloring to color regular eggs take a look at Easter family traditions and tips on coloring easter eggs.) I talked with the children about why there is light inside the egg. We discussed the word translucent. We discussed that the sugar does have spaces between the grains that let in the light. We talked about why you wouldn’t want to completely cover the top of the egg with frosting or decorations. Just know that some children still will!

2. Pack the sugar into the two halves of an egg mold and scrape the top off with a butter knife to

Make the eggs level

make it level. Turn over quickly onto waxed paper. (Children over five can do this part of the process. They will mess up a few times but will eventually get an uncracked shell. If you are working with a group of young children it is better to have the shells premade for them. It lessens yours and their frustration.)

3. Take a piece of thread and make it taught. Slice off the tip of your egg to form an opening. With the point of a paring knife, scoop out just a bit of sugar to create a small cave like look to the opening. This prevents the front opening from hardening too much while the egg dries.

Scoop out the damp center of the sugar shell

4. If you are making the shells ahead of time you will be able to begin scraping out the sugar content to create a shell after about 1 ½ hours. This will give you a nice thin shell. You want the shell to be about a 1/4 of an inch thick. If children are scooping out the eggs themselves you may want to wait 2-3 hours so they are very firm. This makes a thicker shell which is less translucent but you will have less breakage. (I have to admit that when I work with groups of children I usually have the shells premade as this is a tedious, long part of the process that most children don’t care a fig about; they just want to construct the egg. However, I think it is important for them to know how it was done so I usually start with a demonstration of how I made the shells.) Use a spoon to scrape away the damp sugar on the inside.

5. Let your scooped out shells dry until they are very firm. (Mention that the shells are now concave.)

sugar shells

Make some “royal” frosting in your mixer. This frosting dries like cement. Here’s how to make royal frosting.

It can be made with egg whites or meringue powder. I always opt for meringue powder as the frosting is easier to make and holds up better, especially when working with children. You can purchase meringue powder at most craft stores that have a cake decorating section, baker supply houses and culinary stores. The directions are usually on the package.

1 lb powdered sugar

3 Tb meringue powder

5 Tb. water

It takes about 7-10 minutes of beating time and looks like marshmallow cream. If it is too thin you will need to add a bit more sugar. If too stiff add a couple of drops of water. Make sure the consistency is easy for children to squeeze out of a bag and yet will hold its shape really well.

I always use paste or gel food coloring, rather than liquid food color, as the liquid can thin the frosting. The paste and gel food coloring will also give you truer, deeper colors. A little bit goes a long way! These types of food color can be purchased any where cake decorating supplies are sold and last for many years.

7. I purchase disposable decorating bags for children. I cut off the tip to make a hole. I do not use decorating tips as the frosting dries up making it harder for children to squeeze it out. If you do not have access to these decorating bags you can use a zip lock bag with a small hole snipped into the corner of the bag. I put the frosting into the decorating bag or the zip lock bag, twist it tight and rubber band it. This helps children to keep the frosting in the bag.

Use your imagination for the inside of your egg

8. You can use miniatures purchased at a craft store for the inside of your egg. You can also stick stickers on stiff paper or cardboard and cut them out. It is also fun for children to draw and color their own small pictures which are treated the same way as the stickers.

9. Put a spoonful of green royal frosting into the bottom shell and allow the child to spread it around with their finger. Make it thick so that whatever they put inside the egg will stand upright. The size of the shell will determine the amount of frosting that you need.

10. Use a bead of the royal frosting around the outside edge of the bottom shell. (I always talk to children about the word perimeter here.) Now put the two halves together.

11. At this point I talk with the children about the magic of the egg, that sometimes even adults will ask “How did you get those little bunnies in there”. I tell them we need to cover the seam so no one will know how they did it. I also show them that they should decorate around the front opening. Just remember that some children don’t and won’t want to decorate the front opening or the seam.

12. You can decorate your egg with frosting flowers purchased in the cake decorating section of the craft store. You can use small silk flowers snipped from their stems. You can use small candy decorations from the baking aisle of the grocery store. Use your imagination. You can even use raisins and nuts. There are many wonderful ways and ideas to decorate Easter eggs.

13. Let your egg creation dry overnight before handling.

Because I have never been a picture taking person, I am indebted to a couple of great websites for the pictures I am sharing with you today.

http://candy.about.com/od/candybasics/ss/sugar_eggs_2.htm

http://www.franklyentertaining.com/2010/04/01/sugar-eggs/

http://www.cakesbyjan.com/panoeggs2.htm

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Easter family traditions and tips on coloring easter eggs

by Mary Ann on April 22, 2011

pictures of Easter Eggs Dyed With Onion Skins

Gorgeous and totally natural Easter Eggs Dyed With Onion Skins

“Mom, come on. It’s almost Easter and we have to color the eggs.” These words were spoken in a voice of desperation and a full two weeks before Easter. Out came the huge soup pot. In went 3-5 dozen eggs. Out came 15 cups, vinegar and boiling water. In went the dye. (Cake decorators have a lot of colors!) Fifteen large spoons followed. Nine chairs around the table. Very tight!

“I want blue.” “No, I want blue.” “Guys, guys, you can all do blue.”

“Barry!!!”, as six, yet to be colored, eggs hit the floor. “Don’t worry guys; this will be cool, tie dye eggs. You’ll love them”. (Said with all the enthusiasm I could muster.)

“Quick, grab the paper towels. Run!”, spoken in a voice of slight hysteria by one child as pink dye moved slowly across the table top and onto the floor. I ran for the towels.

“Kate, you have to remember to put the lids back on the markers. They’re gonna dry up.” “Stop that, your bumping my elbow. Now

Children love dyeing Easter eggs

my tree is crooked.” “Look mom, you really can see my name. You couldn’t even see my name before and now you can. How does that work.” “Hey, we are running out of eggs. I only got to color six. Not fair. Can we boil some more?”

And so it went each year of the forty years that we colored eggs. Nothing really changed much even when we were down to just three, Kate, Don and I. There were still spills and someone would think we didn’t have enough eggs.

I love holiday traditions and this egg dying ritual was one of ours. Some years went better than others but each one brought us closer as a family. Each one tied us together in a bond that exists today. Traditions matter to children. These are the things that they can depend on; certain foods on the table at holidays, special activities done year after year, favorite people gathered together. Family traditions are important to me.

Let me share some Easter egg dying tips that I learned as I went along. If you keep them in mind when dying easter eggs things will go smoother.

Keep those pesky beautiful eggs from rolling away

Less is more. Keep it simple, nine cups of dye not fifteen.

Keep all the eggs, un-dyed and dyed in egg cartons. They can’t roll; much safer.

Cover the table top with two or three layers of newspapers, the whole table. You will save paper towels!

No rugs anywhere within a four foot radius of the table. This is a must.

And, if you don’t live in Montana (as we did) and the weather is good, do it outside! : )

Here is a fun egg dying project that you just might want to try. Why not dye your eggs with everyday kitchen ingredients.

How to make and dye easter eggs:

Before you begin, you’ll need hard-cooked eggs that are completely dry and room temperature.

Beautiful and natural blue eggs

For each color of dye, find a container that won’t get stained or that you can discard when finished. Make sure it is big enough to completely submerge an egg or several eggs.

Place an egg in the container. Pour dye over the egg, covering completely. Refrigerate until the desired color is achieved. (The longer the egg sits in the dye, the darker the color.) Remove the egg and let dry; refrigerate.

Lavender and purple eggs, naturally!

Coloring easter eggs with natural ingredients:

Lavender – Small Quantity of Purple Grape Juice, Violet Blossoms plus 2 tsp Lemon Juice, Red Zinger Tea

Violet Blue – Violet Blossoms, Small Quantity of Red Onions Skins (boiled), Hibiscus Tea, Red Wine

Blue – Canned Blueberries, Red Cabbage Leaves (boiled), Purple Grape Juice

Bright, sunny yellow and gold

Green – Spinach Leaves (boiled), Liquid Chlorophyll

Greenish Yellow – Yellow Delicious Apple Peels (boiled)

Yellow – Orange or Lemon Peels (boiled), Carrot Tops (boiled), Celery Seed (boiled), Ground Cumin (boiled), Ground Turmeric (boiled), Chamomile Tea, Green Tea

Golden Brown – Dill Seeds

Hues of red and pink

Brown – Strong Coffee, Instant Coffee, Black Walnut Shells (boiled), Black Tea

Orange – Yellow Onion Skins (boiled), Cooked Carrots, Chili Powder, Paprika

Pink – Beets, Cranberries or Juice, Raspberries, Red Grape Juice, Juice from Pickled Beets

Red – Lots of Red Onions Skins (boiled), Canned Cherries with Juice, Pomegranate Juice, Raspberries

Here is more fun with Panoramic sugar easter eggs for children to make

Here are some of the sites where I found these gorgeous pictures of naturally dyed eggs. Check them out.

http://www.mamalisa.com/blog/how-to-dye-eggs-naturally/

http://craftastica.blogspot.com/2007/04/naturally-dyed-eggs.html

http://www.instructables.com/id/Colored-eggs-using-onion-skins-and-beet-juice/

http://www.ehow.com/how_4891392_dye-easter-eggs-natural-way.html

http://frugal.families.com/blog/frugal-easter-egg-dyes

A beautiful centerpiece for Easter dinner

Why not share some of your egg dying experiences here, along with tips to help us all have more fun this Easter. I would love to hear from you and so would my readers!

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Improving creativity and creative thinking in kids with simple toys

by Mary Ann on April 21, 2011

Who plays, the toys or the boys?

When my grandson Jack was two he fell in love. Really in love! He was in love with Toy Story and its two main characters, Buzz Lightyear and Woody. I am amazed at how he can quote things from the movie. He doesn’t get to watch videos very much but he is certainly a quick study.

Isabelle

Well, Jack did not have a Buzz or a Woody so he did what children through all the ages have done when they needed a toy. He created them. Woody was actually a small doll and Buzz was a snowman. What they actually looked like didn’t bother Jack one bit. He loved his Woody and Buzz and he played with them all the time. He flew Buzz through the air yelling “to infinity and beyond!” He raced Woody to save the day, all around the house, yelling “Woody to the rescue”.

You could hear Jack making up situations for the two heroes to solve and the dialog that each had to say. He made all the boy noises you can imagine, rocket boosters, laser guns, speeding horses, damsels in distress, you name it. These simple home made toys helped Jack to use some critical thinking abilities. They allowed him to be creative. That is a great example of how simple toys allow creativity and creative thinking in children?

Then Jack had a birthday, his third birthday. It was a wonderful day with friends dropping by and relatives calling. There was cake and ice cream and balloons. It was fun. And then someone gave him a real Buzz and Woody. He was so excited.

Buzz made all the important sounds. He talked and had a real red laser light. He even had wings, just like in the movie. Woody talked too. Amazing!

Here is what I want to get to. Jack isn’t as in love as he was. He still plays with Woody and Buzz but the play is very different. He makes up fewer situations to be solved. After all, the dialogue of the dolls determines the situation. He makes fewer sounds. He doesn’t need to, the dolls do it. And his play is fraught with more frustration. He can’t quite figure out all the bells and whistles.

Watching Jack play with his made up Buzz and Woody was so fun. He was a riot. However, we all felt a little sorry that he didn’t have the real thing. Yet, now that he does we can see that it was even more fun for him when his playmates were a small doll named Woody and a snow man named Buzz.

Here are some other ways of encouraging creativity and creative thinking in children

Image Courtesy for Isabelle: Alicecantrell.com

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