9 Av with Kids ... 2016 edition

Once again we find ourselves in a broken world this year when the sad weeks roll around on the Jewish calendar.  May this be the LAST one!

When this sad day comes, I like finding ways to make 9 Av meaningful with our kids.  Usually our activities include (or newly include this year):

1) making an "Unconditional Love Will Rebuild the World" - "Ahavat chinam yiboneh et ha olam" poster- this year it will be especially working on the kids' "sisters" relationship.  We're really trying to encourage the kids to treat each other like friends, not rivals.  We frequently say, "that's not how friends treat each other" to help remind them how to play nicely.  We also say, "your sister is the friend that Hashem gave you in your family!  She can be your friend forever."  (That was a digression, but for a worthwhile cause...)

2) This year I thought of doing a short skit of the Kamtza/Bar Kamtza story, and they will either dress up for the skit or use these popsicle stick puppets:
http://birkatchaverim.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/kamtzapuppets.pdf

3) Here are a few videos that I found new this year for kids- there are probably more.  There are certainly tons for adults.
http://www.g-dcast.com/yavneh/#
not really for kids but has cute graphics: https://www.alephbeta.org/course/lecture/tisha-bav-2014-lecture-1

4)  An idea from Mishpacha magazine: Make hands and hearts bracelets.  Holding hands and hearts together, we’ll bring the Beis Hamikdash!

5)  We videotaped the girls and their friend doing an "Ahavat Chinam, Sinat Chinam Theatre" where they put on my hats or scarves for basic costumes and made up their own scenes of kind acts or nasty acts.  The audience (my sister, "Doda Marie" and I) had to guess what they were doing.  They got to watch the video of themselves while they colored the puppets/poster.

Here's an article on Ahavat Chinam- "free love," if you will:
https://www.ou.org/life/inspiration/loving-without-reserve-in-the-nine-days/

Unconditional love will rebuild the world

Games for education- clipped from Dr. Laura/kidfocused.com

Here are some of games that have great teaching tools for kids:
Play Cards
1. Go Fish- this card game helps kids sort and it helps them think ahead, or strategize. This kind of critical thinking is what many schools sorely lack.  Schools often ask kids rote memorization questions, but critical thinking is the muscle that when flexed causes big learning.
2. Uno- I started with my son when he was 3.  We had an actual Uno deck of cards with the color coordinated cards.  You can also play Crazy Eights with a deck of cards.  Just like Uno but eights are wild cards.  Kids learn card suits with this game, which is a good skill to have.
3. Kings in the Corner- this game spreads across the table, showing kids the order of cards.  It is pattern practice as well.  The cards must be laid out black, red, black, red, and from Kings down to Aces.  Even young children 3 and over can grasp this. Their later teachers will be impressed they are already familiar with pattern formations too.
4. Old Maid- deal all of the cards.  Each person picks a card from the opponent to their left and discards pairs until one person is left with the Old Maid. With the set we have, Ursula from the little mermaid is the old maid.  Young children may have a hard time holding all their cards so have them place them on a table with something to block them from view. The rest of the game is easy enough and it will excite kids about cards, strategy, and help practice good sportsmanship.
Other Games:
5. Work on a puzzle together- some families I know always have a puzzle out on the coffee table.

6. Blow bubbles
7. Invest in a magnetic erase board like the Magna Doodle- tons of fun and you aren't using any paper.  I used this toy with the kids so often I even wrote an article- Ode to the Magna Doodle.  Starting about 18 months you can play one of baby's first games with it- I call the game day/night. Black out the screen and say "Night." With one swipe erase and say "Daytime!" Kids even that little will chuckle- it's so cute.  Soon thereafter kids understood light and dark- as soon as they're old enough to walk, they can help sort laundry after this game. We have the daytime (lights) pile and the nighttime (darks) pile to this day.
8. Hangman- another great game on a magnetic erase board like a Magna Doodle. Very young children can play hangman with 2 and 3 letter words. Older children can play for longer words and phrases. Turn the table and let your child make up the word. When they're young, they may misspell the word, "but there has to be a vowel!" It's great practice and they'll get it soon enough
9. Yahtzee- Today you don't have to buy the full game. You can print the score sheet off the Internet and grab 5 dice.  Bunco is also very close to, and less complicated, than Yahtzee.  Dice games like these help with early Math.
10. Scrabble- great about 5 or 6 on. Encourage one app for your older child- Words With Friends and play with them.
11. Memory- Starting at 3 years old, this is sure to be a favorite. There are inexpensive memory games targeted to boys, girls, or gender neutral.
12. Play Monkey in the Middle with a third person- throw the ball over one person's head. If she catches it, she doesn't have to be the monkey anymore.

13. Dots and Boxes- my 4-year-old loves this game. The person to close the square gets to put his or her initials, which claims the square once it's time to tally up the boxes. You can play with older kids too by adding more squares.  It's great for teaching kids to think strategically. (show image)
14. Pictionary- write simple 3 letter words like "pig" "lip" for 3 year olds to read and then draw.  For older kids write out more complicated words and phrases.
15. Play Sorry. At four years old my kids have been able to play this game. With the four pieces having to make it around the board before someone wins, it's helped them learn to problem solve as well as early reading.  The Sorry cards are straight forward "move forward 3 places."  They see the number and then start to recognize words like "forward."
16. Say patterns out loud. A, B, A, B, See if your child knows A to be next in the pattern.  You may also do with numbers. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, _.  As they get older try, banana, apple, orange, banana, apple, ___?  My daughter begs to play this game whenever we're in the car.

key points from The Case for Make Believe by Susan Linn

The Case for Make Believe by Susan Linn

Boy, I’d be proud if I could say I wrote these amazingly strong messages about the value of play for children!  I am very glad I read this book so carefully.  It was fascinating and highly instructive!  I hope you find these topics as compelling as I do if you are taking care of kids!  And some of these bits of wisdom can be applied to adults as well.  I hope the highlights I listed below inspire thought and action and that you go check this book out from the library!

Notes from The Case for Make Believe by Susan Linn

·         Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood- aim is to mitigate the harmful effects of commercial culture on children

·         We need to prevent ourselves from raising a generation of children who are bored or anxious unless they are in front of a screen

·         2007 study found that children are active, not passive learners, acquiring knowledge by exploring their environment = play

·         Play flourishes in environment that is simultaneously safe and open to sponteous activity (Winnicott)

·         Just playing = “water to learn about the physical world and nature of materials” and other things that look like play but are very educational to the child

·         Using puppets in therapy to communicate with children:  each puppet can represent a different person or point of view, which can be a protected way to express unacceptable thoughts of feelings.

·         When children pretend to be attached by imaginary things, it gives them a chance to gain a sense of themselves as competent and to learn to cope with fear in smaller doses.

·         A review of 1000 studies over 30 years, a review concluded that “viewing entertainment violence can lead to increases in aggressive attitudes and behavior, particularly in children.”

·         “From the safety of ‘Once Upon a Time…’ dairy tales allow children enough distance to grapple safely with the most passionate of human emotions- grief, envy, fear, rage and joy.”

·         Violent punishments in fairy tales can be a springboard for talking about social justice issues with older children

·         Playing make-believe with children gives adults an opportunity to share new ideas and information, including those that counter prevailing sterotypes.

·         Phenomenons that coincide: Kids Growing Up Sooner AND Adults Staying Younger Longer!  (Children are taking longer to achieve real independence after college.)

·         “Developmental psychologists believe that children develop at their own rates, but that there’s no real shortcut through development stages.”

·         Middle Childhood (ages 6-12) is being eroded- First they are bombarded with toy marketing, then all the tech toys when younger, and then when older they are getting into inappropriate things sooner.

·         “The longer parents delay, the longer babies have a chance to develop the capacity to make things happen, to solve problems, to create their own amusements- to generate creative play.”

·         The skills children learn in play- critical thinking, initiative, curiosity, problem solving, and creativity, as well as more ephemeral qualities of self-reflection and empathy- are essential to thriving in and protecting a democratic society.”

·         …”These are in contrast to the values children learn from a commercially dominated media: unthinking brand loyalty, impulse buying, the notion that self-worth is defined by ownership, and a belief that consumption is the solution to all ills.”

·         Since the 1980s attention to the concern about “latchkey kids” we have come to the point where parents don’t think they have what it takes to raise kids without frequent use of screens.”

Indoor winter fun with kids in st. louis (little kids, low cost, and mostly close by!)

Well, it's 20-ish degrees on a Sunday morning in St. Louis.  Time to put some ideas down about what to do in this weather, in this city!  Sundays are especially tricky but I encourage some planning ahead to tackle that!

http://saintlouis.kidsoutandabout.com/  Great website, just found it!  (added to list Jan. 2014)
great museum list, make sure to read all the way down! click to open in new window

INDOOR WINTER FUN IN STL WITH LITTLE KIDS!  (This might be turning into an all-ages list...)
1.  Library- our favorites are U City Public Library, St. Louis County Libraries (Mid-County in Clayton, Headquarters in Ladue, and central library downtown which was renovated and has awesome kids section)
2.  St. Louis Mills Mall (indoor playground + more for kids)
3.  Science Center!!!
4.  Discovery indoor play room @ Science Center (~$3 per person)
5.  Wild Wonder indoor play room @ Zoo ($2-3 per person)
6.  Art Museum
7.  History Museum
8.  Butterfly House
9.   Magic House
10.  City Museum
11.  Missouri Botanical Gardens has tropical dome and some other indoor spots
12.  Zoo has indoor children's zoo area, insect area, and a few other small indoor spots
13.  brewery tours (Schlaffly, Budweiser) (haha would they go for this???)
14.  World Bird Sanctuary- some indoor things to see
15.  Powder Valley Nature Center (nice indoor center, could walk outdoors a little if it isn't too frigid!)
16.  National Great Rivers Museum in Alton, IL.
17.  GATEWAY ARCH!  (has wonderful museum and films too)
18.  Hartford Coffee Shop (near Tower Grove Park) (lots of playspace meant for kids!)
19.  Kissing Nesi's soft baby cheeks!
20.  Rainbow Swing Set Superstore showroom (pay to play indoor playground store in Chesterfield)
21.  Dream Play Recreation showroom (pay to play indoor playground store in Chesterfield)
22.  Kemp Auto Museum (Chesterfield)
23.  TAKE A METROLINK or BUS RIDE!!
24.  Explore Union Station downtown
25.  Ice skating (Shaw and Forest Park outdoors, others indoors)
26.  The Heights (Richmond Heights Community Center) has pool, library, and two really special playgrounds.  we love this place!
27. Wednesday Play and Ride @ Faust Park Carousel
28.  Ladue Early Childhood Center offers a playtime on Friday mornings
29. Contemporary Art Museum has a stroller tour and play date for kids 2-5 on the first Wednesday of every month.  Been there, and it's really a nice thing to try!
21. Tour the Old Courthouse downtown, part of the Jefferson Nat'l memorial/Gateway Arch

And then there are all the commercial places like Bounce U., Monkey Joes, Little Gym, Gymboree, The Nest (brand new), Sky Zone, Sports Fusion, and places like that!  I don't have much experience there but it seems like a good idea if you want to drive out to Chesterfield.

...and I hope there are more ideas out there!

A SUB-LIST OF WHAT IS PRETTY MUCH FREE...
All the Forest Park places
try a new library
throw pennies in fountain at the mall
massive art projects!
play dates
cooking and baking projects
picnic, bonfire and cooking s'mores

...to be continued...

FAIR-WEATHER FUN
1.  See winter list; many are available year-round!!
2.  Grant's Farm
3.  Check museum and community center calendars for outdoor music
4.  Muny Theatre
5.  Numerous playgrounds to visit!
6.  Hiking trips
7.  Anandaga Caves, Meramec Caverns
8.  Cahokia Mounds
9.  Shaw Nature Reserve
10.  Theis Farm's Pumpkinland- awesome!!!
11.  Lumeier Sculpture Park
12. Purina Farms!
13.  Missouri Botanical Gardens has an incredible children's garden (and free on Wednesday and Sat. mornings for county residents!) (play places, lots of large and interesting things to climb on, nature explore classroom area, and lots of kid-level plants)
14.  Lone Elk Park- you drive through it!
15. World Bird Sanctuary
16. The working farm known as Suson Park
...and much more!

Hebrew Storytime

Back in February a friend and I jump-started a program where young kids would gather with their parents and a native Hebrew reader/activity leader, to be exposed to Hebrew through activities, movement, crafts, and listening to stories.  It went really well and I wanted to post the flyer to help remind myself and others about the concept.

The flyer (opens in new window)

If you want the outlines for our 6 sessions including games, stories, crafts, and songs to be lead in Hebrew, please leave a comment and I will send you the information I created!

CAMP NORAH- by moms, for kids! Torah, nature, art & lots of fun!

Wow, have April to June been busy, ever since spring arrived and summer started coming on the horizon! 

I'm on Instagram, joined Twitter to follow news (but not using it much yet!), using FB for PR and staying connected, setting up daycamp with Daniela, working the garden with Adira, preparing for summer sewing workshops, and keeping up with my busy hubby, cruising angel Nesi, and always-bustling home full of cooking, cleaning, and designing to dos!  

I'm thankful to my family and friends for their support on these many fronts.  Please browse my recent posts and let me know what you think- and if you'd like to sign up or be involved in any of my summer projects!

flyer for CAMP NORAH :) campnorah@gmail.com, see our FB group, or call us!

 

Update on our yard, deck, and garden work

Follow me on Pinterest!

http://pinterest.com/kfriedman18/backyard-ideas/

I have several boards on Pinterest, which allows you to gather photos of things on the internet into "idea books."

The one I'd like to highlight is Backyard Ideas.  Spring is coming and there are many wonderful things parents can do to encourage creativity, learning, and love of nature in their own yard.  Good luck to everyone who tries to implement the things they dream of!

Stuff to do in the winter with kids!!!
My newest ideas away and at home
Section 1) Away, Section 2) Home

My Parenting Ideas: Games, fun, and things to do with toddlers!

Great games to play, fun toys, & things to do - My great big list (and please submit your comments!)

Toddler gymnastics- rolls, body shapes, stretching, balance, etc
Build things with blocks (tower, zoo, house…)

Art!  Crayons, markers, scissors, coloring books

Music: parade, band, with or without a CD

Farm house-small model toys

Felt boards you can make or buy- tell stories or play make believe scenarios

Look at photo albums together- or make one!