The Joy of Teaching – Page 13 of 46

June 2, 2020
by Evan-Moor
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Math Facts Your Child Should Master Each Year: A Parent’s Guide

As children progress from simple math to more complicated functions, it’s easy to get swept up in the speed of learning and progress without mastering the appropriate skills. Math facts are the memorization of basic functions that will help your child increase his or her math fluency and apply that knowledge to more difficult problems. But do math facts really matter, and what math facts should children master in each grade?

Do Math Facts Matter?

The short answer is: yes! Math facts are the foundation for math fluency, and having a firm grasp on math facts allows children to excel in math classes as they progress in difficulty. Math facts, however, cannot improve math fluency alone. A combination of fact practice and number sense create strong math foundations. Fluency Without Fear, an article from YouCubed at Stanford University, writes:

What Is Math Fluency?

Math fluency is built from a combination of math facts, number sense, and practice. Math facts help children quickly apply knowledge, while number sense helps children make the problem easier for themselves.

Number Sense: 31-11 may seem daunting, but by using number sense, students can turn it into 30-10, and then use their math facts for easy mental subtraction. This is a good sign of math fluency.

Mental math is also key for math fluency, as it allows students to work through problems more quickly and efficiently. Being able to do mental math means your child has mastered that math skill!

How to Improve Math Fluency

There are many resources and strategies that can help your child practice and improve his or her fluency and math facts.

Evan-Moor’s Building Math Fluency workbook (available for grades 1–6) provides strategies and lessons for improving math fluency and practicing math skills.

Adding doubles is introduced with a tally mark strategy to help students learn these math facts.
Adding by tens teaches students to increase the tens place digit instead of counting in their heads.
Sums of 20 uses a strategy called “ten’s partners” that teaches children to use 10-7 to find 3 instead of 17+?=20. This mental math strategy helps students recognize easier thinking patterns to do simple math fact problems.

What Level of Fluency Should My Child Have?

It’s important to note that some students may need more practice than others, or more time to memorize and practice their math facts. Fluency Without Fear, an article by youcubed at Stanford University also states:

As every child learns differently and at a different pace, this guide serves as a recommended reference of where children should be. If your child isn’t where we’ve placed him or her, don’t worry! Work on your math fluency at home, and do not move onto the next skill until your child has mastered the previous one.

The sooner your child gets a grip on math facts, the easier it will be for him or her to master new math strategies and skills, but the most important thing is not speed, but rather comprehension and fluency.

Resources for Math Practice and Fluency

$Skill Sharpeners Math$

Skill Sharpeners: Math is another great workbook for practicing math.

Available for grades PreK–6 and helps fine tune math skills for each grade.
Perfect for at-home practice, the activities develop children’s number sense and fluency.

Building Math Fluency provides strategies for solving math that improves number sense and math fluency.

Available for grades 1–6.
Develops thinking patterns, strategies, and shortcuts for developing number sense.

Remember that every child will learn at his or her own pace, and it’s important to practice at home so children can improve consistently. Building math fluency takes time, patience, and practice, but it is an essential foundation for higher-level math and science. Creating a strong foundation for math fluency now will benefit your child as he or she reaches middle school, high school, and beyond.

$Math Flash Card Games$ Check out Games to Play with Math Flashcards for fun fact practice ideas!

For more great activity ideas and educational lessons, subscribe to our free e-newsletter here.

Christine Wooler has experience working with children as a youth soccer coach and summer camp counselor. She is currently studying English Literature and journalism in college. She enjoys exploring educational topics that help students have fun while learning.

May 19, 2020
by Evan-Moor
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Hands-on Learning Activities for Home: Underwater Fireworks, DIY Laser Maze, and Cardboard Construction

Create fun and entertaining learning opportunities at home with these simple activities! Create a DIY laser maze at home, conduct simple science experiments, and incorporate short mini-lessons from workbooks to keep children thinking and learning during school breaks. Listed below are free downloadable activities, workbook recommendations for all ages, and how-to’s for fun activities. Plus, don’t miss the free printables and social and emotional learning activities!

DIY Laser Maze

This is a fun activity that will help your child take a break from workbook pages and get him or her moving. It can be adapted for any age level with easy adjustments! All you need for this activity is painter’s tape and a hallway!

Using painter’s tape, tape one side of the tape to one wall of your hallway or staircase and stretch it diagonally or laterally across to the other side. Repeat this process, leaving enough space between each tape piece for your child to fit through to make a laser-esque maze! Make some “laser beams” low, some high, some diagonal, some parallel to the floor, etc.

Challenge Tip: Make it more difficult to complete the maze by adding more tape and asking questions that have to be answered correctly before moving on the next stage.

What’s 2+2?
What color is a banana?
Spell the word “cat.”
What is 9×8?
What are three adjectives that describe you?
What is a nonfiction book?
Is a fiction book real?
What is a noun?
Are bears mammals?

Build a Fort

Forts are magically capable of making anything more fun. Turn your bunk bed, couch, or kitchen table into an awesome fort using sheets, pillows, and blankets. Use flashlights or lamps inside to turn your fort into a workbook, reading, or homework space that your kids will love.

Create a weekend fun night with your fort!

Watch a family movie in your fort together.
Have a family living room sleepover in your fort.
Build a Lego or doll world inside your fort.

Children will love feeling like a spy in this super fun and simple activity! It will provide hours of endless, mostly hands-free fun!

Cardboard Construction Company

Using cardboard or other pliable building materials you have around, such as pool noodles, blocks, and pager, make a play space. The possibilities are endless, and it will keep your kids busy, thinking, and having fun! Here are some more ideas for what you can make with cardboard:

restaurant
school space
cardboard airplane
playhouse
airplane, bus, or car
dollhouse
soccer goal
puppets
DIY painting canvas

Use paint and markers to turn just a box into anything you want!

Underwater Fireworks Science Experiment

This simple at-home science experiment is great for younger children who like hands-on activities. All you need for this experiment is water, oil, food coloring, a fork, and a couple of glasses. Simply follow these directions to experience an underwater fireworks show!

Fill a tall glass nearly to the top with room temperate or slightly warm water.
In the other glass, pour a tablespoon or two of oil.
Add a couple drops of food coloring (the color of your choice) into the oil.
Using a fork, briefly stir the oil mixture. The oil mixture does not need to be thoroughly mixed, just enough to break up the food coloring.
Pour the oil mixture into the tall glass and watch!

Oil and water don’t mix, and food coloring will dissolve in water but not in oil. As the coloring sinks in the tall glass, it will slowly start to dissolve, and you’ll be treated to an underwater fireworks show!

Top Activity Books to Inspire Learning

Creativity and a desire to learn are born from boredom! Encourage your child to learn about topics that he or she is interested in from Evan-Moor’s favorite at-home activity books. With books on STEM, math, reading, writing, science, geography, social studies, and more, there are plenty of activities and mini-lessons for your child to explore and engage in.

STEM and Science

Smart Start: STEM for grades PreK–1
This workbook uses hands-on activities to teach mini-lessons about earth, life, and physical science. Each grade level uses different concepts such as magnets, animal habitats, and weather to explore different areas of science. Each unit provides concept reading pages, comprehension activity pages, and hands-on experiments and activities to apply the lesson.

Skill Sharpeners: Science for grades PreK–6
Study different areas of science, such as physical, life, space, environment, and engineering science with Skill Sharpeners! The older grade levels teach children about anatomy, waves, energy, and more! This activity book uses full-color pages and hands-on activities to keep children engaged in their learning, and plenty of different topics so they can learn about what interests them.

Top Student Activity Book Has It All!

Top Student for grades PreK–6
Give your child practice in every subject with Top Student activity books for grades PreK–6. Top Student is a workbook that covers all subject areas and provides over a hundred pages of activities and mini-lessons to help your child learn. It covers basic subject areas like writing, social studies, grammar, reading, math, and science, but also has activities in more advanced subjects such as computer science, social and emotional learning, and STEM! This workbook is great for at-home learning and provides a variety of activities so your child won’t get bored. Also included are mindful moments lessons to help children connect with their emotions and actions. Each activity book for grades PreK–3 includes reward stickers.

Download free Top Student kindergarten activity here. These free workbook pages are from Evan-Moor’s Top Student grade K.

Download this free sampler for social and emotional learning activities from Top Student for grades PreK-6 here.

A healthy mix of workbook pages and hands-on projects will keep your child engaged and learning during school breaks! The workbooks recommended will provide resources and activities that encourage at-home learning, while the other activities focus on at-home fun and creativity!

For more free lessons and activities, subscribe to our monthly e-newsletter!

May 4, 2020
by Evan-Moor
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Free At-Home Learning Activities for PreK and K!

Support your young child’s learning at home with fun activities that will keep him or her engaged and mentally active! Continue reading below for free activities, helpful suggestions, and other resources to help your PreK or kindergarteners prepare for the school year.

Circle the Ones That Are the Same

This fun and simple activity from Learning Line Think and Do for PreK and K helps improve your child’s cognitive skills and critical thinking. Children will look at a row of similar-looking animals and circle the two that are the same.

Download this free Evan-Moor activity here.

Jackie the Jaguar

This activity from Alphabet Puppets helps young students learn the alphabet and new words, specifically words with the letter “J,” with a Jaguar puppet named Jackie. The lesson provides materials for several different activities to help them learn things like J’s place in the alphabet, how to write the letter J (upper- and lowercase), J’s initial sound, and more!

Download this free lesson from Evan-Moor here.

Animal Collage

Using two different art techniques, children will create an animal collage that is paired with a short story. This activity from How to Teach Art to Children uses simple and easy-to-get materials and incorporates both reading and hands-on art activities that boost comprehension.

Download this free lesson from Evan-Moor here.

Try these activities at home for your little ones and practice skills that will help them excel in their kindergarten curriculum! These short mini-lessons interweave important fundamental skills into fun activities your child will love doing!

For more resources for your PreK and kindergarten students, check out the blogs listed below:

Kindergarten Readiness Checklist
Check out this blog to find out what your child needs to know for kindergarten and to find resources to help him or her prepare!

Five Activities to Get Active Boys and Girls Ready for Kindergarten
Visit this blog for suggestions and resources to prepare your younger students for the upcoming school year, without the challenge of getting them to sit down and do workbook pages!

The ABCs of Kindergarten Success: Ways to Help Your Child Learn the Alphabet
This blog provides lots of ideas and fun activities to help your child learn the alphabet, which will give him or her a head start on the kindergarten curriculum.

Check out Evan-Moor’s Learning At Home with Skill Sharpeners Bundles for grades PreK-6! These easy-to-use activity books provide valuable skill practice at home and include a parent guide with teaching tips and fun learning activities.

May 4, 2020
by Evan-Moor
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10 Activities That Kids Can Do with a Soccer Ball

Being stuck at home can leave your kids full of energy with nowhere to spend it. Use simple challenges and activities to keep them active, like using a soccer ball to make a mini-workout more fun! Keep reading for 10 simple and fun activities you can do with a soccer ball (or any ball) in your backyard that your kids will love.

This simple circuit can be a daily or weekly “challenge” for kids, and they can chart their progress.

1. Sit-ups with a Soccer Ball

Make sit-ups more fun and a little more challenging by holding a ball in your hands! Lying on the floor with your knees bent, hold a soccer ball between your hands and stretch all the way back, then sit up, bringing your hands and the ball in front of you to your shins and back again!

Start with just 10, but if this is too easy, do as many as you can in a minute!

2. Leg Lifts

Hold a ball between your feet and lie flat on the floor. Without moving your upper body, lift the ball, still between your feet, straight up in the air, and back down again.

Do 10 of these, or as many as you can in a minute.

3. Soccer Juggling

This can be really fun and really challenging! Without using your hands, bounce the ball off your knees, feet, or shoulders and see how many juggles you can do without dropping the ball!

See if you can build up to 5, 10, 15, or even 20 juggles without dropping the ball!

4. Dribbling Relay

Set up cones or markers of some kind about 15 feet away from each other. Then dribble to each cone as fast as you can. Make it more interesting by doing it forwards, backwards, and sideways. To make it more like a relay, make two teams and see who can finish first. Or, put the ball on the opposite cone and run, skip, or jump to the ball and then dribble back. Get creative!

See how many times you can get to each cone in a minute.

5. Bowling

Use your soccer ball as a bowling ball and set up water bottles or cones as pins. Bowl the cones down (kicking the ball instead of rolling it), or, to make it more of a challenge, bowl the cones and then race to pick the cones back up.

See how many cones or targets you can knock down in 10 tries.

6. Soccer Bocce or Target Practice

Using another ball or cone, kick the ball and try to get it as close to the target as possible without hitting it. Other players can hit your ball farther away, too. Whoever gets closer to the pin gets a point.

The first person to reach 5 points wins! (multi-player)

7. Minefield

Set up cones or other objects in your yard, spread out a few feet apart. Try to dribble from one side of the yard to the other without touching any of the objects. Start slow, and then see how fast you can do it! If you touch a cone, you have to start over!

Time yourself to see how fast you can dribble through objects without touching them. Set a goal to reduce your time.

8. Twists

Sitting on the ground with your feet in the air, hold a soccer ball between your hands. Without moving most of your body, twist to one side, touch the ball to the ground, and then twist to the other side, doing the same thing.

Do 10 twists, or however many you can do in a minute!

9. Butterfly Kicks

Lying flat on the floor, hold a ball between your hands, arms outstretched behind you. Without bending your knees, start doing butterfly kicks, kicking up and down, like you’re swimming.

Do butterfly kicks for 20 seconds.

10. Superman

Lying on your stomach with your arms and legs outstretched, hold a soccer ball either in your hands, between your feet, or both if you want to challenge yourself. Raise your arms and legs off the floor as high as you can, then back down.

Do this 10 times or hold it for 20 seconds.

These fun exercises are great for keeping kids active and will be fun even if they don’t play soccer. Get creative and make the challenges and exercises more difficult for your kids depending on their ages. Encourage them to challenge themselves in each exercise and do the best they can.

For more great activity ideas and educational lessons, subscribe to our free e-newsletter here.

May 1, 2020
by Evan-Moor
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Teaching Kids Art: Learning About Texture with Paint

Help children learn new avenues of expression and creativity using art. Art is a wonderful activity that helps children to learn the importance of taking risks and solving problems. In the words of Henri Matisse, “Creativity takes courage.” Allowing children to take risks in a safe environment gives them the courage to become critical and creative problem solvers as adults.

Teach children about texture in art with this free texture art activity! This art project from How to Teach Art to Children teaches children about textures in art and how to use things from around the house to make different patterns and textures in your projects! It also teaches about making “prints,” which is the shape or pattern a certain painted object makes when pressed on a canvas.

Download your free texture art activity here!

Supplies Needed:

White construction paper (12 x 18 inches) or canvas
Tempera paint in multiple colors
Sponges, potatoes, cookie cutters,
and other household objects you
want to print
Plates or foam trays for paint

Encourage your children to be creative in how they place their prints and in the objects they use!

Directions:

Set up each child with paper, paints, sponges etc.
Have them fold their construction paper into fourths, so that when you unfold it there are clearly four sections of the paper.
Pour a puddle of paint onto the plate or tray.
Dip one edge of the sponge or other object into the paint.
Press the painted edge on the paper.
Lift the object straight up.
Repeat the printing process, using a different object and color in each section of the paper.
Allow time for the paint to dry and discuss the printed texture
effects each section has.

Repeat this process with different objects, or do it again without sections so your child can mix textures and colors together.

Tips:

When dipping the object in paint, be careful not to do too much. You want a thin, even coat of paint on the object, but not so much that when you print it, there’s excess paint on the sides or around the object’s print.
After you print the texture, it’s important to lift it straight up, without wiggling or moving the object around the paper. That can make fun patterns, too, but it won’t create the desired print effect from this project.

If your child is especially interested in this art technique, share fine art pictures that have distinct textures and discuss how the artist may have achieved that kind of texture. Listed below are examples of art from famous artists that used texture.

Vincent van Gogh used texture in his famous still life “Vase with Twelve Sunflowers.”

Leonardo da Vinci used texture when drawing his inventions such as his “Flying Machine.”

Pablo Picasso used texture in his famous painting of “Three Musicians.”

Have fun experimenting with textures and patterns in your art projects. For more art lessons check out:

Teaching Art to Kids: Collages

How to Teach Pop Art

For more great activity ideas and educational lessons, subscribe to our free e-newsletter here.

April 30, 2020
by Evan-Moor
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Virtual Teacher Appreciation Gifts: 5 Tips to Thank a Teacher

With teachers going above and beyond lately to make the transition to at-home learning as smooth as possible, you may be wondering how to thank them this year. Though Teacher Appreciation Week is unconventional this year, there are still plenty of ways your children can thank their teachers for a great school year. Listed below are five easy ways you can virtually let your teachers know you appreciate them!

Write a thank-you note and mail it. Write a thank-you note, or have your child write one, take a picture of it, and email it to your teacher.
Take a picture or video of your child saying thank you. You can also ask your child to say what he or she likes best about the teacher!
Photo collage: Organize a classroom picture of each student holding a paper heart and email it to your teacher.
Step 1: If you don’t have contact with all the parents in the class, ask your school office for a directory of your child’s class. Let them know it’s for a teacher appreciation project!
Step 2: Send out a group email with your idea to thank your children’s teacher, with detailed instructions on what you want in the photo.
Step 3: Make a digital collage of all the photos! You can use any photo editing program or websites like Canva.com, where you can make one for free.
Step 4: Email it to your teacher!
Send a e-gift card: If you want to purchase a gift, you can always purchase an e-gift card and send it through email. For example: Starbucks, Amazon, Target, Barnes and Noble, or Dunkin’ Donuts.
Class video collage: Have students in your child’s class email you a short video of them saying what they love most about their teacher, then compile the videos and send them to your teacher. iMovie is a good program for this, and you can get it for free on Apple computers. It is easy to use and perfect for a project like this.

Even though the year took a surprising turn, children can still show their appreciation for their teachers with small gifts or homemade cards. It’s the thought that counts, and any show of appreciation will go a long way.

April 30, 2020
by Evan-Moor
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Teaching Art to Kids: Collages

Art projects are a great way to entertain your child, and can easily be connected to other subjects or lessons. Create a fun art activity with this free collage project from How to Teach Art to Children. Children will create two animals in a collage. The animals are the same except that one is made from cut paper and the other is made from torn paper.

This art collage project is paired with the short story “Alexander and the Wind-Up Mouse,” by Leo Lionni, which can be found online in print, e-book, or read-along versions.

For this project you will need:

Newsprint or other drawing paper
White construction paper 12 x 18 inches
Construction paper scraps in assorted colors
Wrapping paper or paper bags
Crayons, markers, or felt-tip pens
Scissors
White glue
“Alexander the Wind-Up Mouse” by Leo Lionni

Read the story “Alexander the Wind-Up Mouse.” You can expand on the reading portion of this activity by asking your child questions about the story, discussing the plot, etc. For example:

How do you think Alex felt when Willy came into the picture?
Why did Alex want to be the wind-up mouse?
Why did he change his mind?

Directions:

Read the story. The fable serves as an example between cut versus torn-paper art. In the story, the real mouse is the torn-paper version, whereas the mechanical mouse is the cut-paper.
Explain that you will be making a collage and provide your child with the materials. Have him or her pick out an animal for the project, such as a dog, bird, cat, etc.
Have your child draw the animal on the newsprint or drawing paper. Encourage your child to use basic shapes for the animal’s body parts.
Cut out the body parts and trace them onto construction paper. Trace each part twice.
Cut out one of the construction paper bodies and glue it onto the traced shape. Tear the other construction paper body out and glue it to the other traced shape.
Notice the difference between the cut and tear animals.
You can now create a background for your animals; for example: a tree for two birds, a field for two horses, etc. Use construction paper, markers, etc. to create the background!

Download your free project here.

Ask your child to:

Notice the difference between the two animal designs.
Tell you which one looks more realistic.
Tell you which one was easier to make.

Read the story again, if necessary, or act out the story with your two animals.

Encourage your child to create more collages! He or she can make a collage out of photos, small objects, and other scraps of paper and materials.

For more fun art activities and ideas check out:

Teaching Kids Art: Learning About Texture with Paint

How to Teach Art to Children provides 96 art projects that teach the elements of art.

Learn about a famous artist with this Pablo Picasso activity.

For additional activity ideas and educational lessons, subscribe to our free e-newsletter here.

April 30, 2020
by Evan-Moor
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Handmade Cards for Mother’s Day

This year for Mother’s Day, make your mom a unique handmade card! Listed below are unique and fun cards that will brighten your mom’s day!

Finger Paint Flower Card

This card is a fun and easy spring-themed card!
For this card, you will need:

Finger paint
Pencil
Colored construction paper
Scissors
Tape
9 x 12″ white paper

Directions:

Trace a large flower (rose, tulip, etc.) on the colored construction paper.
Cut it out of the construction paper.
Tape the flower to the center of the white paper.
Using the finger paint, make colored polka-dots all over the white page!
Carefully remove the taped flower to reveal a white flower shape in the middle of your colored page.
Write a note or sign your name in the white flower part.

Mom’s Wish Express – Accordion-Fold Card

This fun train card uses accordion folding to create a Wish Train for Mother’s Day! Children will write what they wish for their mom this Mother’s Day in the provided writing forms and use patterns from the reproducible to create the Wish Train! This simple and fun card comes from Art for All Seasons, an Evan-Moor activity book for year-round art projects.

Download this free accordion-fold card template here.

Butterfly Pop-up Card

This activity guides children through making a beautiful butterfly pop-up card! These types of cards are easy to make, with just a few necessary materials, but produce colorful and fun cards! The activity also provides a reproducible butterfly page for the inside of the card. This activity also comes from Art for All Seasons, for grades 1–4.

Download this free butterfly pop-up card template here.

Mother’s Day Poems for Handmade Cards

Looking for inspiration to write a poem for your Mother’s Day card? Listed below are some free downloads of activities that will help your child write his or her very own personalized poem.

1. Description Poem: This activity will help your child write a five-stanza poem describing his or her mom! This lesson comes from Evan-Moor’s Poetry Patterns and Themes activity book (grades 3–6).
2. Rhyming Couplets: Write rhyming couplets about your mom or what she likes with this activity’s help! This activity is from Writing Poetry with Children (grades 1–6).
3. Acrostic Poems: This activity demonstrates how to write an acrostic poem, where you make a poem by using the letters M-O-T-H-E-R. This lesson comes from Evan-Moor’s Writing Poetry with Children (grades 1–6).

Use these activities and your own creativity to make unique homemade Mother’s Day cards. Mom will love getting a personalized and handmade gift from her favorite people in the world!

For more great activity ideas and educational lessons, subscribe to our free e-newsletter here.

For more Mother’s Day activities and ideas check out Mother’s Day Free Activities for Kids

April 29, 2020
by Evan-Moor
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Easy Pirate-Themed Scavenger Hunt for kids

Who doesn’t love a good scavenger hunt? The heat of the moment, racing another team to the finish line and the excitement that comes with solving word puzzles. Create the ultimate pirate-themed scavenger hunt for kids with this list!

Keep the kids outdoors with these backyard scavenger hunt items:

Flower
Leaf
Rocks
Stick
See or hear a bird
Something crunchy
See a spider web
Acorn
See a Mailbox
Your favorite outdoor item
Blades of grass

Scavenger Hunt Clues:
Scavenger clues can be hidden around your yard with each clue leading to the next or they can be handed out as each clue is answered.

Arr! My name is Captain Barnes, and I am a pirate ship captain! I need your help finding some treasure in your very own backyard! Will you help me? Great! You’ll even get to keep some of the treasure!

The first thing I need you to get is one of my favorite things. They can be all different colors, they smell nice, and I gather a lot of them for decoration whenever I’m ashore. I haven’t seen many recently, as you can’t find them in the ocean, so I need you to pick one. Do you know what it is?
Great work, crew hand! Onto the next item, then! This next item is usually attached to trees, but during certain times of the year they fall to the ground. They can be green, brown, red, and orange, depending on the season. We don’t have these at sea either. When they fall to the ground they make a crunching sound when you step on them.
Good work again! Maybe you’ll be promoted from crew hand to sailor! The next item comes in all different shapes and sizes. It can be found on the ground, at the beach, in shallow water, and in the mountains. It can be rough, smooth, grey, brown, or other colors. This is a mighty tricky one, crew hand? What do you think?
Great! Congratulations, you’ve been promoted to sailor! Back to work, Sailor, next I need something that can be used to start a fire, as a toy sword, or a walking stick. It’s made of wood, sometimes it falls off of trees. It’s like a small branch.
Arrrr, alright. This next item is different. I don’t need you to collect it, just see or hear it. This is an animal, who lives in trees usually and builds a home out of twigs and feathers and things. They lay their eggs in the home and fly high above us. When we are close to land, we see these animals in the sky and know there’s land nearby.
Keep up this good work and you’ll be well on your way to First Mate! I only need a few more items from you. You have a choice here, because sometimes this item can be hard to find. I’m looking for something else that comes from trees. The first one I’m thinking of has a nice scent and is cone-shaped. The second is a snack for squirrels.
Great work! Only a couple more things. This next item is often used in large sports fields or golf courses, so I’m told by my First Mate. It’s green. It starts with a g…
Last item! This one is perhaps my favorite. This item is your choice! Find something outside that you like; it could be a flower, a rock, a sound… If you can’t collect it, describe it to me in words.

It is my honor to promote you to First Mate! As a sea captain, I don’t get to see the objects you’ve collected very often, so I wanted to make a collection of all my favorite outdoor things. I’ll pick them up from you next time I’m in town. Thanks for the hard work! Who knows, maybe by the next time I see you, you’ll be a Captain of your own!

Answer Key
1) Flower
2) Leaf
3) Rock
4) Stick
5) Bird
6) Pinecone or acorn
7) Grass
8) Anything!

Download this Pirate Themed Scavenger Hunt Activity Download

For more fun Kids Activities, check out:

The Never Bored activity books for ages 4-10

Summer Boredom Busters and Learning Activities for Home

Subscribe to our monthly e-newsletter for free lessons and activities in your inbox every month!

April 20, 2020
by Evan-Moor
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Educational and Fun Activities for Indoors and Outdoors

Looking for activities to keep your children busy at home? Discover new activities and projects that will keep your child occupied and engaged without feeling like extra work for you or them! Check out educational activity ideas like counting money and reading activities, outdoor activities like scavenger hunts, and indoor crafts and projects that keep your child thinking and having fun! Look out for the free activity downloads!

Reading

With libraries closing, keeping children reading can be a challenge. You can always download digital copies of book purchases from Amazon. Have your child read aloud for 20 minutes (grades K-2) or read quietly for 30 minutes (grades 3-8). Check for understanding by asking your children questions about what they reading?

A few questions could be:

What was the author’s purpose?
Why did they write this?
What is the main idea?

Who, What, Why, Where, How are all good questions to start with.

If you have a reluctant reader at home, try using an incentive such as 20 minutes of reading for 20 minutes of tech time or television.

Counting Money and Telling Time Grades K-2

For younger children, this is an essential skill that is easy to practice! Round up your change around the house and some paper and pencils for these easy activities.

Teach your child to identify and name common coins and bills
Starting with coins, have then count and add the amounts of specific coins in their head for mental math. Start with small coin amounts and progress in difficult.
Create word problems and have your child use scratch paper to write the answer. (It is always a good idea to incorporate writing and check for understanding by having them write a sentence or two on how they solved the problem.)
- Ex. Ava has $10 to spend at the store. She picked up milk for $5.78, eggs for 3.25 and a back of chips for $1. 69. How much money will she need? Does she have enough?
Ask your child what time it is throughout the day, making sure you have a classic clock around.
Have your child draw a clock and draw hands for what time it is, or give them a clock drawing and ask them what time the clock says.

Outdoor Activities and Games

For when your children need to burn some energy, get some fresh air, and take a break from educational activities, check out some of these fun ideas!

Obstacle Courses: using objects from around the house (hula hoops, pool noodles, jump ropes, boxes, etc…) create an obstacle course for your kids! They’ll love running through it, and give them a chance to design and test their own obstacle courses.
Balloon Volleyball: divide your yard into two with a rope or jump rope (or use a net if you have one) and play volleyball with a balloon! Don’t let it touch the ground!
Scavenger Hunts: set up a scavenger hunt in your house/yard. Your kids will love hunting down objects or following clues. For extra fun, have them draw a treasure map to find “buried” treasure.
Tag Games: Classic tag, freeze tag, etc. are great games that will leave your kids tired! Try making up your own version of tag!

Cooking Activities and Recipes

Cooking and baking are fun for everyone, and you’re rewarded with a treat at the end! What kids don’t realize is that cooking and baking involve a lot of science and math. Challenge your child with questions about fractions, measurements, and how certain ingredients interact with others! Include your kids in the kitchen while making meals. Here are some fun and easy recipe ideas:

Art, Crafts, and Hands-on Projects

Arts and Crafts are fun but sometimes take a lot of materials. Here are some ideas and activities that require things you probably have around the house!

Paper towel roll marble run: Using leftover toilet paper and paper towel rolls, make a marble run for your kids. Use tape to hold the rolls together, and cut holes in the rolls to create your very own marble run!
Build a tower out of marshmallows and toothpicks: Remember, for stability, build from a wide base, up. Below is a free download about earthquakes with an experiment using mini marshmallows, toothpicks and gelatin (from Evan-Moor’s Skill Sharpeners: Science activity book, Grade 4.)

Download the free science activity pages here.

Finger-paint Geraniums: Have fun with this simple and easy floral art project from Evan-Moor’s Art for All Seasons for grades 1-4!

Download the free art activity here.

Superhero Project: With this superhero unit from Skill Sharpeners Critical Thinking activity books, kids can imagine what it would be like to be a superhero! There are short writing, reading, and math activities, and at the end children will get a chance to create their own superhero comic! The unit includes templates and cut-out super hero outfits for your child’s comic.

Download the free superhero activity here.

Chore Time and Writing

Introduce simple chores your child can complete at home based on their age and have them write “how to” instructions.

Kindergarten and first grade should start with a simple sentence such as “I can help with chores (you will need to spell non sight words such as “chores” or have them practice sounding it out. Kindergarten sample chore list:
- Pick up toys
- Make bed
- Clear table after meal
- Help make lunch (simple sandwich)
- Learn how to fold a shirt
Grades 2-3
Write a paragraph (2nd) and multiple paragraphs (3rd) using transition words such as first, next, then, last and write multiple sentences supporting a main idea. For example: How to organize your bedroom toys.
Chores for this group could include:
- Cleaning a bathroom
- Organizing a closet
- Proper way to load a dishwasher
- How to walk your dog
- Tips for picking weeds (or gardening)
Grades 4-6
Write a multi paragraph essay on what you do well. Children can choose their favorite chore or an activity they are good at to write a detailed description for “how to.” Upper grades can type out their paragraphs in google docs and include fun pictures. This activity could take the place of a weekly writing assignment by having children complete a new step every day. Brainstorming with a graphic organizer is a great way to start to encourage new ideas and organization.

*Have children edit their writing when they are finished. (Up the stakes and offer a small reward for each mistake fixed.)