Somehow, growing up in California in the 80's and 90's, I was never required to take a geography class. Since I never took a personal interest in the subject, my geographical knowledge is downright embarrassing. I'm determined that my kids will not grow up with the same shortcoming. I'm always ...
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Inventor’s Box for Little Kids
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Recently, I made my 4 and 6 year olds their own Inventor's Boxes. I didn't want my 2 year old to feel left out, but I also didn't want to give him a bunch of tools and electronic components. I came up with this Inventor's Box for Little Kids as a compromise. It's really more of a craft box, but so ...
Homemade Inventor’s Box
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I love the idea of open-ended learning. It's fun to do projects with my kids like our homemade wobblebot or propeller car, but I truly believe that kids learn best by messing around and seeing what works and what doesn't. There's nothing like hands-on experience. I first made an "inventor's box" ...
Homemade Propeller Car
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My kids love when we make little homemade "robots" that move and wiggle around. I've been wanting to make something more car or rover-like with wheels for awhile, but I wasn't exactly sure how to connect the motor to the wheels. This little propeller car kind of feels like cheating, since the ...
Homemade Steady Hand Game
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Instead of having kids glued to hand-held devices this summer, why not have them make their own? A homemade, single-player, steady hand game is a fun, easy project for elementary-aged kids that teaches them a little bit about electricity. To play the game, kids try to follow a curved wire path with ...
Ziplock Solar System I-Spy Busy Bag
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I'm a little ashamed to say, but I don't really worry about entertaining my preschooler and kindergartener. They are pretty good at entertaining themselves. However, if they start to melt down and I ABSOLUTELY need a minute, I can put on a movie and be confident they will leave me alone for at least ...
Look Inside a Volcano Activity
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I'm not sure there exists a more fun and easy science experiment for young kids than a homemade volcano. All you really need for a volcano science activity is baking soda, vinegar, an empty container and maybe some food coloring and your kids will be begging for more. My kids LOVE homemade volcanoes ...
Coding a LEGO Maze
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There's no denying it. For better or worse, technology is taking over the world. Being able to program a computer is a skill that will serve our children well in the future. I didn't write my first simple program until I was 18, but ultimately I got my PhD and worked full-time writing and operating ...
Goodnight Moon Game
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This fun, open-ended game based on one of the world’s most popular books for babies and toddlers is the perfect first board game for young kids. There are lots of different ways to play making this game appropriate for a wide range of ages. Product: Goodnight Moon Game Company: Briar ...
Color Code
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Color code is a fun, challenging, single player game that uses a different skill set than many logic puzzles aimed at similar age kids. It requires kids to use spatial reasoning, but rather than using 3 dimensional shapes, it requires kids to layer a series of flat (2 dimensional) images to make a ...
Michelle has a PhD in Engineering from Stanford University and a Bachelor's Degree from the California Institute of Technology. 