Tearing For Toddlers

Okay, so I have been a little quiet on the blog front......actually that is an understatement, I have been a terrible blogger lately! Sorry to those of you who check in regularly only to find no updates :(
I could say I have been super crazy busy (which is true, we have ALOT going on personally at the moment but then so does everyone!) or I could say I have been more exhausted than usual (which also is true for so many reasons I can't even begin to explain!) but to be brutally honest.....I am a perfectionist.
I have procrastinated posting a blog simply because I wanted it to be perfect....I wanted the perfect picture and the perfect post to go with the perfect pictures. But let's face it perfection is near impossible and nobody wants perfection. People want real.
So, I promise to try my very best to worry less about posting perfect pictures and worry more about just posting regular, real, meaningful posts :) Bare with me, as my friends and family will know that 'letting go' and just 'going with it' does not come easy to me! But for all of you, I will try ;)

Tonights post will be short and sweet (I hope!) Like many mammas out there I juggle many balls in the air when the bath/dinner/bedtime part of the evening hits....I have many little activities I whip out to keep my little guy buzzing busy so I can get dinner prepped, cooked and served. Recently I was perusing the wonderful world of google and came across an activity that managed to keep my little guy busy for a lot longer than I expected!

 I cut up strips of coloured paper,

supplied him with a tin dish....

 and let him tear to his hearts content!

This was such an easy and minimal prep activity that not only kept him entertained but helped encourage fine motor skills and hand-eye co-ordination.....fun and educational, it's a double win!

            

                                 

Number Punching

Our Term 4 School Readiness class kicked off today and goodness what a busy morning it was! Being the first day back since a two week break, it was only right to start the first session off with a bit of revision!

We did a whole bunch of fun stuff this morning including a Number Punch activity which my students absolutely loved! They all felt like little teachers hole punching away and it was so adorable to watch! i got this idea from my Laugh & Learn 4 Kids Pinterest page but I switched it up a little by painting the numbers and words to add a bit of colour and brightness!

We started off identifying each number and using our 'magic finger' to trace each digit and write it in the air. We then used the single hole punch to punch the correct amount of holes to match each given number.

This activity was not only good for number identification and object matching but also for fine motor! The hole puncher required students to use their hand muscles while still holding the paper with the other hand. It took a few goes for students to get the hang of it but once they did it was hard to stop them punching! Haha
To start off, students used two hands on the hole punch while I held the paper then once they got the hang of it I encouraged them to hold the puncher in one hand and the paper in the other just like they do when cutting with scissors!

We also reviewed our Pencil Control skills by completing a simple tracing activity using oil pastels....

and we practised matching numbers and pictures 1-10 just to be sure we still remembered them!

Although it was a busy start to Term for with these munchkins it was an enjoyable morning with lots of holiday stories to share :)

iPhone Numbers 1-10

Ok so most of you have begun to work out that I love to see kids Laughing and Learning outside the ol'skool way just like we did as kids. In saying that, I do believe that technology is also a great learning tool and like so many learning tools out there it also has a place in the world of learning. All I can stress is to use technology in moderation and remember it is another tool but not is not the only tool.

With that said, the mamma of one of my sweet students was chatting to me about how we could get her little girl to better remember her numbers 1-5 and identify them with greater ease and speed.

We have tried and tested many ways and while many of them have helped both her mum and I were still trying to find a way that would click for her and give her that light bulb moment we knew would come....and finally it did!

Thanks to the trusty iPhone!

Her clever mamma realised that Miss J (along with her younger brother) knew her passcode off by heart so she decided to switch the code up with the numbers little miss was struggling to remember.

Little Miss J was struggling specifically with the numbers 2 and 5 so her clever mamma made sure the code had these two numbers and hey presto! She now knows her numbers 1-5! Even her three year old younger brother is able to identify and recall the numbers! So simple but oh so effective, even her 3 year old brother knows his numbers 1-5!

If you are going to use this little trick, I would encourage you to have your little one say the numbers aloud as they enter them into your phone. Doing so helps to reinforce the connection between the number and its name.

School Holiday Fun

Well Term 3 here in NSW has drawn to a close and we are in school holiday swing now! I love school holidays for the simple fact that we all get to wind down, re-charge and most importantly spend more time together as a family.

Many of my students' parents dread the school holidays simply because they get the constant 'I'm bored' statement countless times a day! So I decided to share my go to idea for school holidays.

Way back when I first starting teaching in the mainstream classroom I always revelled in the school holidays for the obvious reasons but also because it meant I could create a to-do list (oh how I love my lists! I am definitely a list kinda gal!) of all the things I wanted to achieve over the break. More often than not my list was longer than I care to share but it didn't matter so long as I had a list to refer back to all was good in the world! My list had everything and anything on it from what I wanted to organise, re-organise, clean, create, visit, bake, sew, garden and the list goes on :)

Like I said I have done this to-do list business for years but little did I know that great mummy bloggers out there do the same thing and call it many different names! Whatever you call it doesn't matter all that matters is that you create one! With the kiddies of course!
I have done these to-do/bucket lists back when I was teaching in the classroom to tutoring my students and even now with my own little man. Of course I adapted and changed them accordingly each term/holiday/season.

Now that I have been blessed with my own little boy I get even more excited to create these lists of things I want to do together and let me tell you my list sometimes seems endless! Haha One thing I am doing a little differently since having my little man is break my list into the four seasons. For example right now I have a Spring Bucket List of all the activities and adventures I want to share with him this Spring. Obviously he is too little to sit and brainstorm ideas with but he doesn't need to worry because his mamma has a list all ready to go!

So in a nutshell to prevent the 'I'm bored' statements even surfacing create a bucket list of things to do over the holidays. Sit with the kids, get a large sheet of poster board/paper, coloured textas/crayons, put your thinking caps on and start brainstorming all the things you and the kids want to do together over this two week break. Write down everything no matter how big or small. Obviously they need to be realistic ideas that can be achieved but let the kids go with their imagination, add ol'skool activities, indoor and outdoor ones....have fun with it!
Then as you complete each activity tick it off the bucket list and every time the kids come to you complaining they are bored send them to the list and let them pick something to do. You may or may not achieve every single item on the list but that doesn't matter! Make the list a tradition, maybe do it each Summer holidays like the inspirational Erin@SunnySideUp or do it each holiday break that we get here in gorgeous Australia! I can assure you that once you start this list of sorts with your kids they will be reminding you to do it again and again each break you get!

Jump on my Pinterest page to get some cute and creative Bucket List ideas.

Our Spring Bucket List so far.....got my inspiration for this layout from Erin!

Ticking off each activity as we do them.....even though some are ticked off we will still do them time and time again during Spring. An example of this is gardening, we have spent numerous hours in the sunshine getting dirty and messy in our garden!

We currently have it posted to the wall of our Playroom!

Laugh and Learn Favourites

I have a new found love. The Melissa and Doug hand crafted toy range. I am currently obsessed with these gorgeous toys and puzzles!

I bought my son his first puzzle many months ago and my goodness does he adore playing with it! He knows his colours and shapes and matches them now with ease so of course I decided it only right to buy him one or two more! I got him a latch puzzle and a magnetic fishing puzzle both of which are providing him hours of fun and learning which makes us both happy! Each puzzle encourages colour recognition, hand-eye co-ordination, fine motor development, number identification and animal recognition.

The Melissa and Doug range is huge and many are hand crafted which I absolutely adore! In my opinion they are a mamma and teachers dream....they are bright, colourful, fun, encourage so many vital learning and developmental skills and most importantly let children Laugh and Learn at the same time! What's not to love, seriously?!

A well loved and well used Shape Puzzle! 

The Magnetic Fishing Puzzle. 

Encourages so many crucial skills for littlies.

The Latch Puzzle

Such a beneficial puzzle for fine motor development and hand-eye co-ordination! 

Love Love Love it!

I have so many useful posts coming up soon that I am so excited to share with you all. Be sure to share and like our Facebook page for updates!

Gardening 4 Kids

Earlier this weekI had the absolute pleasure of spending a few hours with a long time friend of mine and her adorable kiddies! In essence we had a little play date! The kids had fun playing and we had fun catching up!

This sweet friend of mine lives on a property of acres and in many ways is becoming more and more self sufficient. She has a thriving veggie garden and a bunch of chooks that provide her with fresh eggs daily. She has been growing some tomato seedlings in her mini green house and was kind enough to give me a few. She always has great tips and has such a green thumb!
You can learn more about her gardening expeditions and get some useful tips on her cute blog thelittlepottingshed.blogspot.com. Needless to say after visiting with her I felt extremely motivated and inspired to get into my own little patch which is exactly what I did this breezy Spring afternoon! 

Some time ago I got my veggie garden up and running (a long time wish of mine since we turfed our yard!). I thoroughly enjoy the short moments I spend pottering around with my little man by my side always helping wherever he can :) but I also revel in the fresh produce we receive! I simply love popping out to my garden and picking vegies for our meals and knowing I am feeding my little family wholesome, organic, homegrown produce is such a satisfying feeling!

I find spending time in the garden (if only even for a few short moments!) to be so therapeutic and peaceful and as a teacher I cannot stress enough how important it is for kids to get outside and play the ol' fashion way! 

Children these days just don't seem to spend the same amount of time in the great outdoors as we once did growing up. Being outside just playing, kicking a ball, getting dirty and running around is fantastic for the overall development of our kids emotionally, physically and mentally.

Sometimes it easy as adults to get caught up in the day to day runnings of life - needing to make dinner, putting a load of washing on, cleaning, finishing off bookwork or programming just to name a few.
I have always been big on taking time out and being 'fully present' with my students when they are engaging in a hands on learning experience, not only do they get so much more out of the experience but quite often I do too! Since becoming a mother myself I am even more aware of just how important it is to do this as our little ones grow up far too quickly and time is gone before we realise it! Time is of the essence as they say :)

So with all that said and done, today my goal was to revel in the outdoor fun with my little man :) I encourage you to do the same some time this afternoon. Whether it be now while the kids are home from school outside playing, during bath time or even reading a book together before bed....it really doesn't matter when it just matters that you stopped for even a few minutes and take the time to be 'fully present'....you won't get these years back.

My little patch :) 

Broccoli on the right with shallots and celery in the middle and far too many carrots on the left (which I need to thin out again!) A few other veggies in between which are hard to see....need another little garden bed this summer time!

So proud of my little broccoli plants...they have really taken off the last two weeks!

Lettuce

My tomato seedlings....so much pressure to make these little guys survive knowing they were grown and gifted especially for me! Haha

My favourite garden accessory at the moment...my little wind chime. LOVE hearing it chime in the late afternoon as the sun is coming down and the afternoon is setting in.....makes everything seem so peaceful :) Next on my list is a bird feeder!

In his element....outside playing in the garden!

Stay tuned for an updated Gardening 4 Kids post.....a how to on getting children outdoors and interested in gardening! In the mean time check out and follow my Pinterest page to get some great gardening ideas just 4 kids!

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Number Puzzles

Like many people these days, I have been caught up in the busy-ness of everyday life and have been a bit slack on the blog lately but I am determined to try and get back into posting more regularly!

Life lately just seems to be passing me by, which, is something that really bothers me and I am making a concsious effort to make some changes to just slow down and treasure the simple things in life.....will keep you updated with this!

Recently, I have been working with one of my school readiness students on identifying the numbers 1-5. This is an area this particular student has struggled with for some time so the last few weeks I have been trying various activities to try and help her better retain the numbers we have been focusing on.
In true Laugh and Learn style I wanted something that was both meaningful but fun too use so I created these cute number puzzles!
Due to her young age, my main goal was to get her to identify each individual digit. The word and object identification will come later. This activity was simple, I gave her the mixed up puzzle pieces and asked her to put he puzzle back together.The use of different colours for each number did make the task some what easier. If using this activity with older Kindergarten aged children I would definitely recommend  using the same/like colours so that the task would be more challenging.

This activity is available for purchase. Please email for info@laughandlearntuition.com.au further details.