Watch a short documentary or TV show about animals (e.g. Meerkat Manor or Wild Kingdom) with the sound off. After it’s over, talk about what your child thought was happening during the episode and the “characters” each animal played. Replay
Audible Feast
As we all know, variety is the spice of life…but many of us get stuck in a rut when it comes to the musical genres to which we will listen. When you think about it, though, music is much like
Musical Musings
Listen to a piece of music from a ballet, then have your child draw a picture or make a model of the scene they believe is occurring at that point in the ballet. Have your child describe the picture (or
Quick Tips for Error-Proof Writing
A guest post by Brian Patterson of Grammarly For many people, there is nothing more annoying than a typo. Be it a misspelled word in the newspaper or a punctuation problem on a blog post, readers are almost immediately distracted
Math Frisbee Golf
Frisbee (or disc) golf is a fun way for the whole family to get some low-intensity activity on pleasant sunny days. And while a “normal” game of disc golf sharpens hand/eye coordination and visual/spatial skills, it’s easy to sprinkle in
The Music of Poetry
Pick up a copy of The Music Lover’s Poetry Anthology at your local library or bookstore. Choose a few of the poems that you think your child would enjoy, then download some of the musical pieces by the composers that were the
Make It Your Mission! Part 4
Think about how you want to set up your event. Do you want people sitting in chairs facing you at the front (e.g. stage/audience) Do you want people sitting in chairs in a round circle? Do you want people standing
Limerick Epitaphs
Talk to your child about what an epitaph is (a brief poem or other writing in praise of a someone who has passed away so that others could get a sense of who the person was). Then read some limericks
Head Start for Back to School
Simple changes that will make life easier for everyone Going back to school is tough for most kids—it’s a sudden blast of social anxiety, new responsibilities, and unfamiliar territory that hit all at once, and can leave both parents and
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

