More than a quarter of a century after learning the states to the tune of “Do your ears hang low”, I still remember the states alphabetically in this way. And even though I’ve never had ANY use for the greek
Learning Tricks & Treats
In our house, we’re working with my 1st grader on quickly reading letter blends instead of sounding them out. (E.g. ing, ack, ou, tion, kn, etc.) But, flashcards are boring–not just for HER but for ME. Being that I am
Touchy Touchy
Watch a well-acted movie scene or play with lots of interaction. Write all of the character names down one column, then make one column for touching and one column for being touched. Have your child make a tally mark by
Backyard Bug Banquet
Use your child’s gifts for observation and analysis and use your backyard or nearby park as a math & science lab. One way Deborah Churchman of American Forests suggests is to mix overripe fruit and honey in a blender, then
Out-of-the-Box Gaming
Much of the appeal of video games for kids lies in flexing their logic/strategy muscles and developing spatial aptitude via the game’s fast action and leveled challenges—not to mention getting the opportunity to be a “hero”—all of which can be
“Uno Más” Game Repurposing Post
For those of you who have enjoyed playing our repurposed Candy Land and Twister games, here’s one for another game you probably have in your home that may or may not be collecting dust. UNO! Take the subjects in which
References We Used As We Developed Kidzmet
Genesis of Kidzmet While we started building the current version of Kidzmet in late 2010, the inspiration for the idea actually came from Jen Lilienstein’s undergraduate senior thesis in 1994. Under the direction of Dr. Francesca Cancian at UCI, Jen
Money Matters & Markers
In our current age of plastic money, it’s not just our government that no longer grasps the concept of money & budgets…it’s our families and kids, too. While it’s no secret that allowances can help kids to understand the value
How Playing Angry Birds Could Make Your Child Smarter
Have you noticed that kids nowadays are always glued to their phones or playing video games instead of going outside and hanging out with the neighborhood children? It seems that good ol’ fashioned games like duck, duck, goose are a
Haiku and Tanka
Pick up a child-friendly Haiku collection like If Not for the Cat or Cricket Never Does to introduce your child to the art and science of Haiku and Tanka. Talk about the structure of Haiku (5 syllables in the first line, 7 syllables in