Spinning Bunnies

Spinning Bunny Experiment
Each Spring we conduct the Spinning Bunny experiment.  Even though we know how to make them spin, it is still fun to drop the bunnies off our stairs and watch them spin to the ground.  If this is your first time, have you and your family "predict" which way the bunny will spin before you begin.

Here is a video to explain how to perform the experiment:  Spinning Bunnies

*Print out the bunnies below so that it fits on an 8 1/2 x 11 piece of paper.

Color, cut out, and fold on the dotted lines. Place a paperclip on the bottom. Hold onto the ears and drop. ​Predict ​which way the bunny will spin? Ears straight up? Two ears down? Or one ear forward and one ear back? 

Spinning Bunny pattern

Marshmallow Bunny Painting

I wanted to come up with something easy and fun for my first mommy and me class.  The theme is On the Move and this week we are focusing on bunnies and hopping.

 I pre-cut the bunny shape and they glued it down on the paper.  Next they dipped the marshmallow in the white paint.  *The best part was they didn't know that you could eat the marshmallow.  Maybe next year they will figure it out!  The project turned out cute.  They liked squishing the marshmallow and their fingers got a little sticky.  Keep wet wipes close.  Next time I want to try painting with Peeps. How cute would that be...stayed tuned!

Are You My Mother?

This project was inspired by one of my favorite board books, Are You My Mother? by P.D. Eastman.  It is about a baby bird in search of his mother.
Supplies: giant blue washable ink pad or washable paint for the bird, wet wipes, gift basket filler for the nest, glue, card stock or construction paper, orange marker for the beak and black marker for the eye.  You can get creative and add additional details on your paper.
This simple handprint bird will be sure to put a smile on mom or grandma's face this Mother's Day!!

Rainbow Mosaic

Every Spring I head to the store and get party streamers to match the colors of the rainbow. I make streamers for kids to dance with, door decorations and this year we practiced cutting them up in small pieces to make a mosaic.Afterr cutting up the pieces, we "painted" the glue on the rainbow using a sponge brush. Then we pressed the colors of the rainbow on the glue.  The cotton balls were the finishing touch. 

My older son is planning on using his rainbow as part of his leprechaun trap. (Pictures to follow)

For more rainbow activities, check out past March or St. Patrick's Day posts. Have a colorful day!

"Hands" Down cutest Lucky Clover

 In honor of St. Patrick’s Day, I thought I’d keep this project O’SIMPLE!  Yes, a lucky clover using only green paint or giant ink pad and cardstock or blank canvas.  Tip: have wet wipes close and paint outside or on a washable surface.  This creates less stress for you!

What makes this craft so special is the Irish Blessing you can add:

For each petal on this shamrock

This brings a wish your way,

Gook luck, good health, good friends, and happiness

For Today and Everyday!

March 17, 2014

(Modify text to fit your project- see photo)

St. Patrick’s Day is one of my favorite holidays, maybe because I married into an Irish name (O’Daniels) or that I love the magic of leprechauns and rainbows.  There are so many fun ways to celebrate this day with your wee ones.  I like to leave notes from Lucky, the Leprechaun starting March first.  I encourage my son to write back and see if Lucky leaves us any clues to his pot of gold. We go on nature walks and listen for the tapping of shoemaking in the grass from the leprechauns, listen to Irish music and dance the jig.  On St. Patricks Day, I decorate the house with rainbow streamers, go on a hunt for Lucky and eat Lucky Charms.  Sometimes the toilet water is green!  You never know what mischief Lucky has in store for us!

I have lots of other ideas found on the left found under St. Patrick's Day.

How do you like to celebrate St. Patrick's Day???

Ice Skating in Lamorinda!

This week we continued our winter celebration as we ice skated to some beautiful music.  Moms and little ones had fun skating and twirling together!  We even had a snowball fight without getting cold hands!  Next week we will begin looking for signs of Spring.
Join us for our next session beginning April 14 at the Lamorinda Theater Academy.

Spring Has Sprung - Hands and Feet Art

Spring has Sprung with a ton of cute crafts using hands and feet.  I was a bit overwhelmed when I researched what my boys could do for April's project.  Initially I thought of a handprint bunny - "Some bunny LOVES you!"  I painted my son's pinky, index finger and palm white and pressed on blue paper.  However, it came out too light.  So I tried brown paint.  Looked messy.  Next I thought of a cute yellow chick and the wings would be handprints.  However, no yellow paint.  So finally, I decided on a footprint butterfly. What was great about this project was that I was able to use colors I had and my older son got involved by painting my younger son's foot random colors.  I put my 18 month old in his high chair (confined) and my 6 year old "tickled" his foot as he painted it.  I poured out three colors on a paper plate and used a sponge brush to paint his feet.  You can use one color or multiple colors.   Don't forget your wet wipes!  Once foot is painted press on card stock.  You want the feet to be facing out so the big toes are to the edge of the paper (opposite).  Leave just enough room between foot prints to make the butterflies body.   Once dry, use a Sharpie to draw the body and antenna between the two footprints.  Have your child press their thumbprint at the end of each antenna.

I found this quote that describes my 18 month old perfectly:

  "I'm like a butterfly; pretty to look at, hard to catch." 

 I hope you enjoy getting crafty this month.  Happy Spring!

Smart Eggs

Mommy and Me starts April 14, 2014 at the Lamorinda Theatre Academy
http://www.lamorindatheatreacademy.com/Mommy_and_Me.html

Smart Eggs

Looking for a way to use all those plastic Easter Eggs?  Here are three ways you can use them to teach letters, numbers and rhyming!  TIP:  Use plastic eggs that are easy to twist or open and close.  It can be frustrating when it is difficult to put them together.  You want to make this is a fun and independent activity!
Use a Sharpie to write on the egg.  For rhyming, write the first letter on one half and the rime on the other half.  Twist egg to create different words! For letters and numbers, have your child match the correct answers.

Another egg-cellent idea...practice basic addition and/or subtraction fact families.  Turn the egg vertically and write sum on the bottom half of the egg and on the top write the different problems that add up to the sum.  Now twist the egg to see the various ways to get the answer.  Inside have 4 jellybeans.  Your child can visually make the problems.  For example: if the sum is 4, write 0 + 4, 4 + 0, 1 + 3, 3 + 1, 2 + 2 around the egg.  Hope this makes sense...this idea came to me at 4am as I was feeding my baby.  :)

Check out this post for more fun ideas using plastic Easter eggs: http://mrsodaniels.blogspot.com/2010/03/what-to-do-with-all-plastic-easter-eggs.html

Leprechauns Have Arrived!

For Mommy and Me class information, click here: http://mrsodaniels.blogspot.com/2013/02/spring-has-sprung-classes-start-april.html

Looking in the tall grass

Today we found evidence that the leprechauns have arrived in Moraga!  In fact, we must have been close because they left behind their hats and some gold coins. The silly leprechaun left a trail of gold coins (yellow circles cut from construction paper), which we had to follow.  Along the way we came across foot prints, wild turkey, trash, and clovers - lots and lots of clovers.  However, we did not find the lucky four leaf clover.  I have a feeling the next few days we will be looking for those tricky wee leprechauns.

We found their footprints!

Counting the leaves

We found some treasure and their hats!

For more St. Patrick's Day fun, check out some of my past posts.  Look at the Activities on the right and click on St. Patrick's Day.

Spring Has Sprung - Classes Start April 8th!

I am excited to announce that I will be starting a Parent and Me class starting April 8 at the Lamorinda Theatre Academy in Lafayette, CA!  http://www.lamorindatheatreacademy.com/ 

Sample Art Project

Each week we will have fun exploring Spring themes...sun, rain, bugs, butterflies, and more.  Classes begin with a simple craft and at the end of the eight weeks you will have a collection of art and memories to fit into a scrap book.  Be prepared to move, dance, and laugh together with your little ones.  The songs and poems can be easily learned to continue to do at home.  Skills include socialization, colors, numbers, gross motor skills and building self-confidence in a fun, safe environment!

Who:  18 months - 3.5 years old and an adult
When:  Mondays, 10:00-10:50 April 8 - June 10 (8 weeks, no class  April 22 and May 27)
Where:  Lamorinda Theatre Academy, Lafayette, CA
Why:  To create special memories together and while having fun learning basic skills
Cost: $150, materials included

REGISTER online http://www.lamorindatheatreacademy.com/ 

Miss Diana's Bio:
Over 11 years of experience teaching kindergarten in the Capistrano Unified School District in Orange County, Diana O'Daniels is currently enjoying being a mom of two young boys and teaching Mommy and Me and Kindergarten Readiness Classes.  She enjoys giving parents the tools and confidence needed to prepare their children for a successful start in school.  Her classes for children are always fun and engaging as she teaches skills necessary for kids to start school.

Here is what some parents are saying about Diana O'Daniels and her classes:
With my oldest child I took several popular "music" classes and Paint, Paste and Pour classes and I would by far say that Diana’s class was head and shoulders above these classes.  I enjoyed the format she used for her class, which consisted of a 50 minute class which had a daily theme broken up into a simple, yet creative and fun art project, followed by music, discussion, and story, all tied into the theme, then followed by time for the kids to get up, march around and dance, play with instruments, scarves, or balls… needless to say it was a packed 50 minutes, which was perfect for the attention span of a toddler.  I LOVED the fact that I was getting a little bit of everything in her class: art, music, movement, and on top of that, there was education tied in.  Some of the topics that we covered were rain, rainbows, frogs, worms, trains, butterflies… and there was a small informational lesson about each topic, tied into introductions to letters, colors and numbers.  The cherry on top of all this was Miss Diana.  She is kind, patient, fun and engaging.  I found some other teachers in the other classes I took to be significantly lacking in many of these areas, particularly personality.  I stopped taking Music Together because I found the instructor to be abrasive.  Diana has a fun and appealing class to match her personality which kept me coming back.  - Anne Larandie - mother of 2

If you haven't heard of this class...and you haven't heard of Mrs. O'Daniels...then you HAVE TO CHECK IT/HER out!!!  Marcos took her class in the fall at the Talega Swim and Athletic Club and it was amazing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  I can't sing enough praise for Mrs. O'Daniels.  She is smiley, loving, energetic, smart, and super enthusiastic.  One of the best teathers I have EVER seen.  Marcos LOVED it and learned a lot.  Check it out!!  You won't be disappointed.  We love it so much, we are doing it again!!! - Alicia Duzman, mother of 4

We can't thank you enough for what you did with Thomas.  He was not super excited about me leaving him...and after just one week he LOVED your class (he actually prefers your class to his preschool!)  If you decide to put together another class in the future, please let us know.  You are so smiley, animated, and loving toward the children.  Thank you!! - Diann Alexander,  mother of 3

Spiral Rainbow Cookies

I saw this idea on Pinterest and loved it.  I made them for my son's class in honor of Dr. Seuss' birthday (March 2).  However, after making these, I realized they would be perfect for any occasion.  You could pick the colors you need for Christmas, 4th of July, St. Patrick's Day, Easter, or even the colors of your soccer team,...

The best part was that this activity is VERY kid friendly.  My five year old son and 10 year old neighbor helped to make these colorful and delicious cookies!  They were busy forming the dough into grape size balls, rolling, and dipping into the sprinkles.  They loved seeing the colors mix.  Each cookie is different!

I have attached the link to the sugar cookie recipe and directions for the rainbow spirals.  I hope you and your kids have fun making these yummy treats!

The sugar cookie recipe: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/easy-sugar-cookies/ 

Rainbow Pinwheel Cookie recipe:  http://www.soudersstudios.com/recipes/rainbow-pinwheel-cookies.php

The only thing we did differently was that we only had 4 colors of the food coloring.

finished product

rolling and making spiral

Teacher Appreciation

Trusting Tigers door decoration

Pencil vase

I'm a little late posting this but here you go...

The class will be bringing flowers to the teachers on Tuesday.  As Room Mom, I wanted to make sure they had a place to hold their flowers.  I found this idea online, so here you go:  This cost approx. $15 for two vases.  I found 2 jumbo cans of Campbell's soup at Big Lots for $1.50 each.  They were 50 oz.  The Dollar Tree had colored pencils, 10 for $1.00 The large soup can needed 48 pencils!  The ribbon was from Michael's.  I would recommend a smaller can if you are making this as a gift from one child.
Directions:  Empty, clean and dry the soup can.  Place on it's side, put a small amount of hot glue near the top and bottom and place a few pencils in place, press.  Continue all around the can.  Place a rubber band around it to hold in place.  Then put a drop of hot glue in the middle and attach the ribbon.  Wrap around and tie with a bow.
For a finishing touch, create a sign to put into the vase, "Thanks for helping us bloom!"  or if you have a class photo write, "Look how we've grown!  We appreciate you!"
This bouquet of flowers will be sure to brighten their day! 

Doesn't take long to assemble!

 

 

 

Mother's Day Gift Ideas

It is that time of year when we are struggling to find some meaningful and heartfelt gift for our moms or mother-in-laws.  Usually it ends up being a photo of the family or kids.  Yes, they love photos, but after awhile they run out of space to display these cherished images.  Here are some inexpensive alternatives that she will love and be proud to display.

Photo Flowerpot:  Originally saw this idea on www.pinterest.com under Teacher Gifts but thought Grandma would love and appreciate it too.  You can use photos of your family or include photos of all the grandchildren and/or their families.
Depending on the number of photos, chose a terracotta pot to fit.  Print the photos on regular printer paper.  You or your child paint the pot first.  When dry, modge-podge the pictures onto the pot.  Once everything is glued down well (with some coats on top) spray the whole thing down with some clear acrylic spray to remove any stickiness. 

http://pinterest.com/pin/200410252138059128/

I found this quote that would be the perfect finishing touch:   "A garden of Love grows in a Grandmother's heart."  Author: Unknown

Garden Stone:  These are always a hit and easy to make.  Handprint or footprints make it a special keepsake.

Brag Bag and Shutterfly 8x8 book

Brag Bag: Paint your child/children handprint using fabric paint on a canvas bag.  Once dry, put a special book about Grandmas or if you have time, a digital photo book inside.  She can take this anywhere and show off to her friends.
One of my favorite books for Grandma is The Gifts of Bring Grand and Grand-O-Grams by Mariane Richmond.  www.amazon.com

 "The Gifts of Being Grand", for grandparents everywhere, pays tribute to the special joys and rewards of grandparenthood.  You can have your child add a letter to grandma telling the reasons why they love them or have them draw a picture.  "Grand-O-Grams" is a bound book of 40 everyday and seasonal postcards that allow grandparents to keep in touch with those precious grandchildren.  I added a book of postcard stamps. 

The Storyteller in Lafaette has a great selection of books. 30 Lafayette Cir Lafayette, CA 94549 

Craft supplies and garden kits can be purchased at Michaels in Pleasant Hill.

Parent Praise

Hear what parents are saying:
I had the pleasure of attending Diana O’Daniels’ (“Miss Diana”) classes for 18 month – 3 year olds for 5 months. I have nothing but wonderful things to say, and in fact I am disappointed that she has relocated because I was hoping to take her class with my second child who will be 18 months in July.

With my oldest child I took several Music type classes and Paint, Paste and Pour classes and I would by far say that Diana’s class was head and shoulders above these classes. I enjoyed the format she used for her class, which consisted of a 50 minute class which had a daily theme broken up into a simple, yet creative and fun art project, followed by music, discussion, and story, all tied into the theme, then followed by time for the kids to get up, march around and dance, play with instruments, scarves, or balls…needless to say it was a packed 50 minutes, which was perfect for the attention span of a toddler. I LOVED the fact that I was getting a little bit of everything in her class: art, music, movement, and on top of that, there was education tied in. Some of the topics that we covered were rain, rainbows, frogs, worms, trains, butterflies… and there was a small informational lesson about each topic, tied into introductions to letters, colors and numbers. The cherry on top of all this was Miss Diana. She is kind, patient, fun and engaging.  Diana has a fun and appealing class to match her personality which kept me coming back. The only reason we stopped attending her class is because my son began attending school which interfered with Diana’s class, and as I previously mentioned I was looking forward to signing my second child up for her class once he was old enough. I am very disappointed that we don’t have her class anymore, and there is nothing that even comes close to replacing it in our community. Our community took a big loss when Diana left.  - Ann, San Clemente



Dear Miss Diana,

Thank you so much for the pictures and for making this an amazing class. Nicholas and I have done a lot of "mommy and me", music, art, and gym classes and this is by far the most interactive, organized, and fun. Thank you so much for all the effort you put into making this class very worthwhile for the children!

See you next week and definitely next session!

Nicholas' mom


If you haven't heard of this class...and you haven't heard of Mrs. O'Daniels...then you HAVE TO CHECK IT/HER out!!!  Marcos took her class in the fall at the Talega Swim and Athletic Club and it was amazing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  I can't sing enough praise for Mrs. O'Daniels.  She is smiley, loving, energetic, smart, and super enthusiastic.  One of the best teathers I have EVER seen.  Marcos LOVED it and learned a lot.  Check it out!!  You won't be disappointed.  We love it so much, we are doing it again!!!  

Easter Basket Fillers

Chocolate and jelly beans galore, but not what I want my kids to eat early Easter morning.  Do we have candy, YES.  However, I try to limit the amount and have other fun items too.
Here is a list of non-candy items to fill an Easter basket:
bubbles
sand toys
art supplies or coloring/activity books
play dough
sun glasses
swim suit or sun hat
garden tools/packets of seeds
kite
books
real carrots with the green attached
chap stick

Non-candy items to put into the plastic eggs:
coins
stickers
erasers
rings
Cheerios cereal, goldfish, raisins, bunny crackers
play dough
army men
leave some empty

What do you include in your child's Easter celebration?

Dear Easter Bunny

Every year we write a note to the Easter Bunny and place it in our basket with some fresh carrots.  This is a great opportunity to ask the Easter Bunny any questions, like how do you hide all the eggs or decorate some many?  As the parent, take this opportunity to have your child help you "sound-out" beginning sounds to some of the words and model how to write a letter.

In the morning, most of the carrots are gone or half eaten and the Easter Bunny leaves a note thanking us for the delicious carrots.

Happy Easter!

Spring Gift to make for GIRLS or MOMS

I confess, I made this craft for my girlfriend's birthday, but can easily be made by kids too!  It was fun and easy to get creative on this Spring garden scene.  I picked out some flower hair clips at the store (Forever 21) and then set to work to make this card.  Using a single sheet of 8 1/2" x 11" blue card stock paper I cut small slits where I wanted to place the flower clips.  The rest is the Spring picture was made from card stock too.  When complete, place the clips and write a special message one the bottom.
This would great for Mother's Day, teacher appreciation, or a birthday gift.

St. Patrick's Day O'FUN

Individually wrapped treats in the pot

Don't let this St. Patrick's Day go by without a hunt for the gold with your kids.  There are so many different ways you can do it and they are ALL fun!  Here are some ideas to put in your pot of gold.  I take my black cauldron from Halloween and fill it with bright yellow tissue paper.  Then I wrap up treats in yellow tissue paper and tie.  That way each child gets the same number of coins/treats.  Some treat ideas include plastic gold or green coins, small bottle of bubbles in colored containers, chocolate coins wrapped in gold foil, Hershey kisses or nuggets (most contain almonds so check for nut allergies), Reese's Rollo (chewy caramel inside), peanut butter cups.  Just check out the candy isle for other ideas.
*NO suckers or hard candy.  Children are excited and the last thing you want them to do it run around with hard candy - CHOKING HAZARD!

 

Leprechaun Disguise

1.  Follow the Green String:  Each child has their own string that they have to follow.  Along the way you can place coins on the string, wrap it around trees, under chairs, or over benches.  At the end will be the surprise.  If it is a larger group, you can do one string and all the kids follow.  This is good your younger kids.
2.  Have clues written on green shamrocks and the kids have to follow them to get to their pot of gold.
3.  The Letter Hunt:  perfect for ages 4-6 and they LOVE IT!   http://mrsodaniels.blogspot.com/2011/03/hunt-for-golden-letters-st-patricks-day.html

Easy Decorations:  Hang party streamers the color of the rainbow from your doorways.  The kids have to walk "through the rainbow"! (more ideas for using the streamers: http://www.blogger.com/posts.g?blogID=5912000420279799351&searchType=ALL&txtKeywords&label=St.+Patrick%27s+Day

Easy activity:  Rainbow Bracelets:  use pipe cleaners and kids string fruit loops on the pipe cleaner for make a bracelet.  Good thing to do until everyone is ready for the hunt.

Snacks:
Snap peas, green grapes, lucky charms/fruit loops, kiwi, cucumbers, rainbow sherbert or mint and chip ice cream.  Be sure to serve ice cream in "wee" sized bowls and "wee" spoons found at your local ice cream store (the ones used when you sample the flavors).  I have been looking for mini ice cream cones, but have not found any yet. 

Have Fun!

MARCH and Green Food Coloring

Green food coloring is a must during the month of March!
For a healthier alternative try spinach juice, all the color, no taste. http://www.care2.com/greenliving/8-ways-to-make-organic-diy-food-coloring.html

March 2 is Dr. Suess' Birthday.  Don't forget to read, Green Eggs and Ham by Dr. Seuss and make some green eggs for breakfast.  Just a few drops of green and whisk before cooking.  A fun and memorable breakfast.

"I do so like
green eggs and ham!
Thank you!
Thank you,
Sam-I-am"

March 17 is St. Patrick's Day.  You never know where you might see some clues that those clever leprechauns visited your house.  A few drops of green in your child's milk or even in your toilet bowl.  Silly Leprechauns!

March 20 is the first day of Spring.  Make a batch on homemade play dough and add green food coloring.  Click here for easy directions: http://mrsodaniels.blogspot.com/2010/08/playing-with-playdough.html

Favorite ACTIVE Activities to do on a Rainy Day

The clock seems to move ever so slowly on those cold, winter days where everyone is anxious to get outside and play.  Here are three of my favorite indoor activities that are fun, safe and get you moving with the kids.

1.  Snowball Fight - Take tissue paper, paper towels or toilet paper and make balls.  Then away you go...have fun throwing the balls at each other. You can even move a bed out a bit to hide behind for safety from flying snowballs.

2.  Ice Skating - Put on some classical music and grab some paper plates.  Stand on the paper plates and start sliding your feet across the floor.  It is fun to hold your child's hands and slide them around.

3.  Balloon Pass - Blow up a balloon and start passing and catching it.  Try counting how many times you can bounce it off your head?

The best part about these activities is that no one or nothing can get hurt.  It is a great way to break up the usual play activities.  Have Fun!