Reusing Plastic Eggs on It's Playtime

This week I'm rushing. I have two other posts I want to get done and a baby who's being less then cooperative; ahhh the life of a mother. But I wouldn't trade it for the world. As we speak I'm typing one handed so I won't make this long.  There were many amazing ideas shared last week.  Thank you all for joining in.  With Easter around the corner, here's one post with many ideas....

KC Edventures posted 10 Fun Ways to Recycle Plastic Easter Eggs.  Science, reading, crafts, plastic eggs aren't just for jelly beans.

If you were featured this week, don't forget to grab your special "featured button."
  

<a href="http://messypreschoolers.blogspot.com/" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeEYKQj4S7oHoLKfsA3PoeXgaNMJ5dxkdUxIphbmwXOlbFg78Gwl73-rT8AdMTgmqYmIJZrkJRYOqOEItkCbR_exui4YhZqLlwZaBHXhC5slGyqPScnxvq-zrQezw9-MdIUiecgW3fxKg/s1600/featured-messykids.jpg" width="150/" /></a>

These activities plus more can be found over on the It's Playtime Pinterest Board.  Happy Pinning! 

Now, on to this weeks play date! 

It's Playtime is a community and Thursday link-up hosted by:

* Rachele : Messy Kids (That's me!)
* Rachel & Holly : Quirky Momma
* Jillian: A Mom With a Lesson Plan

How to Play :

* Link up a post about a playful learning experience enjoyed by kids.

* Give us love and pop a button into your post/blog. Invite your readers to the weekly play date!

<a href="http://messypreschoolers.blogspot.com/"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-VWLA7lm_Fqc/TaNHGpGSuVI/AAAAAAAAEX0/DGSvqIT7fyU/s320/RED-itplaytime.jpg" width="150" /></a>

* Stop by one of our blogs every Thursday and add your link about play. Your link will show up on each of the blogs in the It's Playtime community.

* Each week the playtime hosts will choose favorite posts to feature. (By linking you are giving us permission to use an image and link to you, if featured.)

* Be sure to visit some of the links that catch your eye. Commenting on posts that you find interesting or inspiring is a wonderful way to develop your own playful community.

By linking up you give us permission to grab a picture and feature you here, on a site we write for, on FB or Pinterest.   If we share your link, we will always credit you, send people to your original post and use only ONE photo.

"

Eggcellent Fun on It's Playtime

Easter activities are in full swing: eggs, chicks, bunnies, they're everywhere!  Thanks to all of our friends here at It's Playtime, you can find a good chunk of those activities shared on our linky.  Thank you to all of those who joined us for last week's play date and shared your wonderful projects.  This week I'm featuring EGGS, EGGS, and more EGGS.

Over at Putti's World, the girls created 3D Easter Egg Decorations using contact paper and tape as the canvas.  Creative and decorative!

Don't let the name fool you.  These Jello Eggs from Momma's Fun World look sweet but  are a bubbly science project your kids are sure to enjoy.

Do you have a ton of plastic eggs you don't know what to do with?  Try making these Yogurt Berry Popsicle Eggs found over at Play Eat Grow.

If you were featured this week, don't forget to grab your special "featured button."

<a href="http://messypreschoolers.blogspot.com/" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeEYKQj4S7oHoLKfsA3PoeXgaNMJ5dxkdUxIphbmwXOlbFg78Gwl73-rT8AdMTgmqYmIJZrkJRYOqOEItkCbR_exui4YhZqLlwZaBHXhC5slGyqPScnxvq-zrQezw9-MdIUiecgW3fxKg/s1600/featured-messykids.jpg" width="150/" /></a>

These activities plus more can be found over on the It's Playtime Pinterest Board.  Happy Pinning! 

Now, on to this weeks play date! 

It's Playtime is a community and Thursday link-up hosted by:

* Rachele : Messy Kids (That's me!)
* Rachel & Holly : Quirky Momma
* Jillian: A Mom With a Lesson Plan

How to Play :

* Link up a post about a playful learning experience enjoyed by kids.

* Give us love and pop a button into your post/blog. Invite your readers to the weekly play date!

<a href="http://messypreschoolers.blogspot.com/"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-VWLA7lm_Fqc/TaNHGpGSuVI/AAAAAAAAEX0/DGSvqIT7fyU/s320/RED-itplaytime.jpg" width="150" /></a>

* Stop by one of our blogs every Thursday and add your link about play. Your link will show up on each of the blogs in the It's Playtime community.

* Each week the playtime hosts will choose favorite posts to feature. (By linking you are giving us permission to use an image and link to you, if featured.)

* Be sure to visit some of the links that catch your eye. Commenting on posts that you find interesting or inspiring is a wonderful way to develop your own playful community.

By linking up you give us permission to grab a picture and feature you here, on a site we write for, on FB or Pinterest.   If we share your link, we will always credit you, send people to your original post and use only ONE photo.

Documentaries Your Children Will Love

Let me begin by telling you I am in no way being paid for this promotion.  Oh, and I haven't received anything for free either....except knowledge...O.K. that's cheesy, but it's true.  Now that I've gotten that out of the way....

I love documentaries but they have to be a specific genre.  Nature mostly, with some historical thrown in there if they cover Egypt, or secret societies, or mysterious treasure.  I want my kids to love them too but that's a little harder.  I can't seem to get them to sit with me long enough to enjoy a good documentary....until now.

Last year I saw a recommendation for one called Microcosmos.  It's about bugs.  If you have a child who LOVES bugs, this is perfect.  There's very little talking; only some at the beginning.  The rest is visual.  It's bugs in a meadow: ants, snails, caterpillars, beetles, water skis, etc.  and they are doing what bugs do.  The ants collect food and battle, a dung beetle attempts to move a big ball of poo up a hill, and the caterpillars eat leaves.  It sounds mundane, but it's visually stunning.  My son fought me tooth and nail when I suggested watching it, but loved it by the end.  I found it stunning.

    

The other documentary I came across is called MicroPlanet.  This one, narrated by a child, brings life in and around a pond up close in vivid detail and beauty.  It was educational, without being overly complicated.  Great for a good day of snuggling with your little one while learning.
   

The great part?  I found both of these documentaries on Netflix!  We have the subscription which allows us to watch shows and movies instantly so I didn't even have to wait for it to arrive in the mail.

Have you watched any kid friendly documentaries lately?  Please share in the comments below.

St. Patrick's Day on It's Playtime

Lot's of St. Patrick's activities were shared on It's Playtime last week.  Here are some of my favorites:

I love, love, love this activity from Gift of Curiosity!  Create your own Leprechaun Rocks then dissolve revealing a special surprise inside.  It's play, it's science, it's perfect for St. Patrick's Day!

Create a lovely Shamrock Sun Catcher like the ones over at Crystal & Co.  They used purchased shredded paper, but if you have a paper shredder of your own, run some colored construction paper through it.

If you were featured this week, don't forget to grab your special "featured button."

<a href="http://messypreschoolers.blogspot.com/" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeEYKQj4S7oHoLKfsA3PoeXgaNMJ5dxkdUxIphbmwXOlbFg78Gwl73-rT8AdMTgmqYmIJZrkJRYOqOEItkCbR_exui4YhZqLlwZaBHXhC5slGyqPScnxvq-zrQezw9-MdIUiecgW3fxKg/s1600/featured-messykids.jpg" width="150/" /></a>

These activities plus more can be found over on the It's Playtime Pinterest Board.  Happy Pinning! 

Now, on to this weeks play date! 

It's Playtime is a community and Thursday link-up hosted by:

* Rachele : Messy Kids (That's me!)
* Rachel & Holly : Quirky Momma
* Jillian: A Mom With a Lesson Plan

How to Play :

* Link up a post about a playful learning experience enjoyed by kids.

* Give us love and pop a button into your post/blog. Invite your readers to the weekly play date!

<a href="http://messypreschoolers.blogspot.com/"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-VWLA7lm_Fqc/TaNHGpGSuVI/AAAAAAAAEX0/DGSvqIT7fyU/s320/RED-itplaytime.jpg" width="150" /></a>

* Stop by one of our blogs every Thursday and add your link about play. Your link will show up on each of the blogs in the It's Playtime community.

* Each week the playtime hosts will choose favorite posts to feature. (By linking you are giving us permission to use an image and link to you, if featured.)

* Be sure to visit some of the links that catch your eye. Commenting on posts that you find interesting or inspiring is a wonderful way to develop your own playful community.

By linking up you give us permission to grab a picture and feature you here, on a site we write for, on FB or Pinterest.   If we share your link, we will always credit you, send people to your original post and use only ONE photo.

Play Dough Rainbow Match

*This post contains affiliate links

Up until about 7 years ago, I had no idea rainbows had an order.  I don't remember that lesson in elementary school so I drew them, all willy nilly, including colors like pink or heaven forbid, turquoise.  I came from a family of artists so I knew about color combinations but for some reason, I never applied it to rainbows.

So now I know, my kids know (well, my 5 year old is learning, the order that is), and we have happy, normal rainbows. And we can create them in many different ways.  One easy way involves only play dough, a sheet of paper with a simple rainbow drawn on it, and a sheet protector (see picture below). That's it!  Of course you need play dough in the colors of red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple (or violet for you artist types) but that's easy enough to make or even buy if you so choose.

Play dough is a fantastic tool for strengthening fine motor muscles in the hands.  While your child is pushing, pulling, rolling, squishing, and forming the dough, they are developing the muscles needed for writing and hand coordination.

The sheet protector allows for easy clean-up as well as the reuse of your rainbow.  The kids will need to roll "snakes" from the different colors of dough.  Then they can match each colored snake to the corresponding colored arch on the rainbow.  Don't forget to talk about color combinations as they form their rainbow.

A bonus exploration to this project is discovering lengths.  As the kids form snakes, have them show you the short snakes and the long snakes.  You can also challenge them to see how long they can make a snake without it breaking.  For pre-k aged children, get out a ruler or unit blocks and measure each colored snake.  There are many ways to build on this project.

Don't be afraid to let your little one explore with other tools.  My son sticks all sorts of things in play dough: pencils, toys, marbles, spiky balls, acorns, pipe cleaners, etc.  He hides things in them too.  I have to go through all the play dough before I toss it because he leaves all sorts of treasures hiding amongst the dough.

Want to make your own play dough?  Here is my quick, go-to recipe from The Imagination Tree:

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 cup salt
• 2 tablespoons oil
• 1.5 cups boiling water
• 2 tablespoons cream of tarter (optional but it does make for smoother dough)
• Coloring (gel colors or liquid water colors are most vibrant but regular food coloring works as well)
• Scents and Glitter are fun and optional

Mix all the ingredients in a bowl. Knead dough until it's no longer sticky. It will be very hot so be cautious. If the dough is sticky add a little flour as you knead until it reaches desired play dough texture.  

What kind of rainbows have you been creating lately?

It's Playtime with Shamrocks and Rainbows

March is a busy month for kid bloggers: Dr. Seuss's birthday, St. Patrick's Day, Spring, and this year, Easter.  It's an exciting month filled with Cat's hats, rainbows, flowers, shamrocks, and Leprechauns.  Check out these It's Playtime features for a colorful playtime with your kids.

Inspiration Laboratories shows us that it's easy to make a rainbow from items you have laying around the house....literally.  This activity is sure to keep your toddler/early preschooler busy and teaches color word recognition.

Combine art and science with these Magic Fizzing Shamrocks from Gift of Curiosity   Kids will love the messy fun and fizzy reaction they get from exploring this project.

If you were featured this week, don't forget to grab your special "featured button."

<a href="http://messypreschoolers.blogspot.com/" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeEYKQj4S7oHoLKfsA3PoeXgaNMJ5dxkdUxIphbmwXOlbFg78Gwl73-rT8AdMTgmqYmIJZrkJRYOqOEItkCbR_exui4YhZqLlwZaBHXhC5slGyqPScnxvq-zrQezw9-MdIUiecgW3fxKg/s1600/featured-messykids.jpg" width="150/" /></a>

These activities plus more can be found over on the It's Playtime Pinterest Board.  Happy Pinning! 

Now, on to this weeks play date! 

It's Playtime is a community and Thursday link-up hosted by:

* Rachele : Messy Kids (That's me!)
* Rachel & Holly : Quirky Momma
* Jillian: A Mom With a Lesson Plan
* Jenny : Let the Children Play

How to Play :

* Link up a post about a playful learning experience enjoyed by kids.

* Give us love and pop a button into your post/blog. Invite your readers to the weekly play date!

<a href="http://messypreschoolers.blogspot.com/"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-VWLA7lm_Fqc/TaNHGpGSuVI/AAAAAAAAEX0/DGSvqIT7fyU/s320/RED-itplaytime.jpg" width="150" /></a>

* Stop by one of our blogs every Thursday and add your link about play. Your link will show up on each of the blogs in the It's Playtime community.

* Each week the playtime hosts will choose favorite posts to feature. (By linking you are giving us permission to use an image and link to you, if featured.)

* Be sure to visit some of the links that catch your eye. Commenting on posts that you find interesting or inspiring is a wonderful way to develop your own playful community.

By linking up you give us permission to grab a picture and feature you here, on a site we write for, on FB or Pinterest.   If we share your link, we will always credit you, send people to your original post and use only ONE photo.

It's So Easy, It's Playtime!

Welcome to the weekly It's Playtime link party!  This week I'm featuring two simple ideas for play with items I'm sure you all have laying around the house.  So check out the features, join in the fun, and browse our linky for your next super fun play or art idea.

If you don't have TP laying around the house, well then, you're in more trouble then entertaining a bored preschooler.  Mess for Less shares their towering math game brought to you by Charmin or the TP of your choice.

How about Q-tips and a Colander ?  If you have those two items then you have some simple fine motor play shared by our friends at Fantastic Fun & Learning.  

Ok, after looking over this post, I swear I didn't share these two play ideas just to promote my Amazon account.  I really didn't!  But if you really want to buy a colander, well then, by all means, you should!  If you don't have TP, then I suggest running to the store because you shouldn't wait two days for Amazon to ship it to you.    

If you were featured this week, don't forget to grab your special "featured button." 

<a href="http://messypreschoolers.blogspot.com/" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeEYKQj4S7oHoLKfsA3PoeXgaNMJ5dxkdUxIphbmwXOlbFg78Gwl73-rT8AdMTgmqYmIJZrkJRYOqOEItkCbR_exui4YhZqLlwZaBHXhC5slGyqPScnxvq-zrQezw9-MdIUiecgW3fxKg/s1600/featured-messykids.jpg" width="150/" /></a>

These activities plus more can be found over on the It's Playtime Pinterest Board.  Happy Pinning! 

Now, on to this weeks play date! 

It's Playtime is a community and Thursday link-up hosted by:

* Rachele : Messy Kids (That's me!)
* Rachel & Holly : Quirky Momma
* Jenny : Let the Children Play

How to Play :

* Link up a post about a playful learning experience enjoyed by kids.

* Give us love and pop a button into your post/blog. Invite your readers to the weekly play date!

<a href="http://messypreschoolers.blogspot.com/"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-VWLA7lm_Fqc/TaNHGpGSuVI/AAAAAAAAEX0/DGSvqIT7fyU/s320/RED-itplaytime.jpg" width="150" /></a>

* Stop by one of our blogs every Thursday and add your link about play. Your link will show up on each of the blogs in the It's Playtime community.

* Each week the playtime hosts will choose favorite posts to feature. (By linking you are giving us permission to use an image and link to you, if featured.)

* Be sure to visit some of the links that catch your eye. Commenting on posts that you find interesting or inspiring is a wonderful way to develop your own playful community.