I Spy Shadow Boxes

Just had to share this fun, environmentally friendly craft for all ages that my children have been continually making and playing with for months now. Using odds and ends from around the house or from your recycling bin, create a collage in a shoebox. Then use the collage to play "I Spy", an all-ages game that most children never get tired of. Close the sheoebox lid and take it with you for an entertaining game while you wait at a restaurant, doctor's office, or in the car.

Like in the national bestseller I Spy books by Walter Wick and Jean Marzollo , kids can choose a theme to create their collage around, or go completely random. Some ideas for materials include pictures cut from magazines, material scraps, shells, small toys left over from birthday party goodie bags or Happy Meals, stickers, foam letters or shapes, puzzle pieces, or anything you can think of.

I Spy clues can vary based on age, such as 'I see something red', 'something that begins with b', 'something that rhymes with wish', or 'something you find at the beach'. The game can also be played in a 20 Questions format as well, where the guesser is only allowed to ask yes or no questions about the mystery object. Games such as these build thinking skills, and are more engaging to children when their own works of art are involved.

My kids made their first I Spy Shadow Boxes at the Raynham Public Library's summer art workshop led by Lee Gullens, local artist and children's book illustrator. If your children are interested in art classes, the museum offers Art Exploration, a drop-in for preschoolers on Friday mornings, and Judy's Art Studio, art classes for children ages 5-18 held at the museum after school and in the evening. A local business recommended by Mrs. Gullens is Turtle Feet in Easton www.turtlefeetonline.com, newly owned by Kevin Hebb, which offers "art classes with an academic twist" for ages 3-12.

One final I spy idea: Another mom once told me when your kids do something that makes you want to pull your hair out, don't scream... take a picture. Someday you'll look back and laugh. So one day when my kids' room was extremely messy, I went around taking pictures. We now use those pictures for playing I Spy on long car trips. And yes, it brings us lots of laughs.

The Waiting Game

Wait, wait, wait. I guess there's a reason they call it a waiting room. It seems I've spent way too much time waiting in doctor's offices lately, and now that it's flu season, an increased amount of children will be going to the doctor's for an increased amount of waiting! But try to look at the bright side: here you have some uninterrupted quality time with your child.

Before your child ever has a chance to get sick, head over to the Children's Museum in Easton's doctor's office to have a trial run of a doctor appointment to ease any fears. Take turns being the doctor and patient, let your child use the stethoscopes, scales, and splints, and talk about what the doctor is checking for during each part of the appointment.

When the day comes that you find yourself in the real doctor's office, here are a few simple games to keep your child/children entertained and learning. Most activities involve no preparation, since, if you're like me, who has time to think about anything else when you've got a sick kid?

Nurses are famous for handing out stickers: Use them wisely before sticking them on! My preschooler loves to take turns hiding the stickers around the office and finding them. Just make sure all the stickers are hidden in visible spots so your child doesn't need to touch any of the medical equipment. You can also line up your stickers (or even use cards from your wallet if you haven't received any stickers yet) on the examining table and take turns hiding a penny under one sticker and guessing which sticker it is under. "You're getting warmer/colder" makes it more fun.

Been sitting too long? See how many times your child can hop on one foot or clap her hands. Try a game of Simon Says and take turns being Simon. Older kids enjoy taking a wadded up piece of paper or tissue and playing finger hockey down the length of the examining table. Make a big deal of setting up the boundaries and making the rules to help your child stay engaged.

Use your surroundings: See if you can find all the letters of the alphabet or of your child's name on the posters hanging in the office. Study a magazine picture, then look away and take turns quizzing each other on the details of the picture. Compare things: How are those two chairs different/the same? How is this computer like our one at home? Are you as tall as that poster?

You probably unknowingly carry around a whole slew of entertaining devices in your bag.

• Use a pen as a microphone and begin telling a story. Pass the microphone around and each person can add a part.


• Experiment to see how many things in your bag can roll. Make a ramp out of a book and have a contest to see which can roll the fastest/farthest/straightest.


• Have your child close his eyes and place an object from your purse in his hands. Can he guess what it is?


• Lay out many items from your purse. Have your child close her eyes while you remove one item. Can she guess what you removed?


• Closely examine the details on coins. Kids will be amazed with what they will notice. Try to get the coins to spin or roll, or play heads or tails with them.


• Use items from your purse as stencils to draw around. Then have your child try to match the items with the outlines she drew.


• Place a coin or key under a sheet of paper and use a pen or pencil to rub over it and see the impression magically appear.

If you do like to plan ahead, visit the Children's Museum gift shop for a small, inexpensive toy or idea book to keep stashed in your bag. I personally keep a tiny wind up train in my bag that only comes out during periods of waiting (appointments, restaurants, etc.) and it provides great entertainment. Or feel free to print out this list and keep it in your bag for those unexpected periods of waiting.

Making Everyday Activities into Learning Games

Children are constantly learning. What may seem like an ordinary daily activity to you can be an opportunity for your child to discover understandings about the world around him and develop skills to build on. Our job as caregivers is to provide opportunities and support for these discoveries. Here are a few activities you can try at home as you go about your day.

Most toddlers and preschoolers just love to ride on swings. The rhythm of swinging back and forth lends itself to an essential pre-reading activity: rhyming. Research shows that being able to rhyme is a good predictor of reading success. Nursery rhymes and rhyming songs are a perfect way for children to develop these necessary skills. Try reciting rhymes to the rhythm of the swing while you are pushing, "Twinkle, twinkle, little star, How I wonder what you _____" and let your child fill in the blank in time with the swing's movement. Forgotten the words to Mother Goose? Check out this website: Mother Goose Nursery Rhymes

Got a child addicted to DVDs? One day instead of watching them, try sorting and graphing them for a fun, concrete math activity. You can begin by sorting into groups: Elmo, Barney, Disney Movies, etc. Count how many in each group and stack them up next to each other like a bar graph. Which has the most? Least? Depending on the ability of your child, ask more challenging questions such as How many Wiggles and Bob the Builder DVDs altogether? How many more Winnie the Poohs than Care Bears? Which groups have more than five DVDs? You can sort them different ways as well, such as DVDs with people and DVDs with animals; ones with cartoons and ones with real pictures; or sort by colors or writing style on the covers. Have your child think of a way to sort them too. (Another benefit of this activity is a more organized DVD shelf!)

Here's a math activity that can be made by writing numbers on an old Twister game mat with permanent marker or on the driveway with sidewalk chalk. You call out what to do, depending on the level of your child/children: Jump to the number 5, Twirl to 6 + 6, Bunny hop to the number that comes after 9. Children of different ages can play together, just vary what you call out so that it is appropriate for the child whose turn it is. This would also work using letters to practice letter recognition or spelling as well. Active learning such as this is an engaging way to both learn and get some exercise.

"I'm standing on my age: 4 1/2"

Preparing to go grocery shopping can also be made into a learning activity. Depending on the level of your child, he can use the grocery store flyer to circle pictures of the fruits and vegetable he would like to try, find foods that begin with certain letters or are certain colors, or circle all the number 9's on a page. He can "write" the foods she wants to buy on the grocery list. Even if all he can write is a few scribbles, he is learning that print has meaning and is developing fine motor skills. Your child can also cut out pictures from the flyer and glue them to the grocery list. While at the store he can look for those items, which will serve to keep him busy for a while.

This summer, with the goal of giving my 9-year-old something to do in the grocery store, I had her round everything we put in the basket to the nearest dollar and add them up to keep track of about how much money we were spending. I think I was even more amazed than she was when her estimate was only $3 off on a $120 grocery bill!

For some more ideas about turning everyday household chores into learning fun, try this website: Born Learning This is a great site to learn about your child's stage of development with lots of ideas of how to incorporate learning into everyday activities.

Coming next month: Since my family has been spending a lot of time in doctor's waiting rooms lately, next month I will be compiling some of the best activities to keep the kids busy (and learning) during those seemingly endless periods of waiting. Feel free to leave your comments and ideas as well!

Looking for More Activities to do with your kids? Check out Michelle's other articles