Kidmade Magnetic Nativity Scene

 

Homemade Magnetic Nativity Scene

 

Little Sweets loves to draw.  This past week she decided to draw a Nativity Scene. ( She is five and draws better than me.)  I thought it would be fun to turn her drawings into magnets so that she and hers sister could play with the pictures.  It turned out to be a huge success the girls love the magnets. 

 

Here is how I made the magnets.

                           1.  I copied her pictures on the copy machine.  I made several copies so we would

                                have extra if we lost a piece.  I also didn't want to ruin the originals.

                           2.  Laminate the pictures.

                           3.  Cut them out

                           4.  Place sticky magnets on the back

                           5.  Have fun playing with the magnets.

 

 

The Stable

 

 

 

 The Three Wise Men

 

 

The Shepherd and The Angel 

 

The Nativity Scene 

 

Please note magnets are dangerous if ingested.  Keep them out of reach of small children that still place things in their mouths.   

Christmas Math Activities for Preschoolers

 Fun Preschool Activities with Mini Ornaments

 

I picked up these mini ornaments in the dollar section at Target.  

 

Counting

 

Little Peanut picked a number card, identified the number,

and used tongs to place the correct number of ornaments on the tree.   

 

Fine Motor

Little Peanut loved using the tongs.  She picked up the ornaments with the tongs

and placed them in an ice cube tray. 

 

 

Sorting

Little Peanut sorted the ornaments by color.   

Fun with Egg Shakers

Little Sunshine loves her Egg Shaker

Apple Activities

Apple Activities

This is my round-up of Apple Activities that I have done with my children.

Size Sequencing Apples

Painting with Apples

Sorting Paper Apples by Size

Rolling an Apple in Paint to Paint a Picture

Paper Apple Patterns

Measuring an Apple with Unifix Cubes

 

Making Patterns with Real Apples

Using Child-Chopsticks to Put Pretend Apples on the Apple Tree

Using Tweezers to Put Beads on the Correct Color Apple

 

Identifying Letters on the Apple

 

Identifying Numbers and 

Placing the Correct Number of Playdough Apples on the Tree

FREE Printables Caterpillar Activities

Letter "C" 

Caterpillar Activities

  You are more than welcome to print off these files for personal use, but please direct others back to my original post and do not directly link back to pdf.  If you use these printables you are agreeing to abide by this disclosure policy

Letter "C"
Little Peanut placed pom-poms with magnets on them on the letter "C".
You can download this printable here.

Little Peanut made a caterpillar by stringing beads on pipe cleaners.

Little Peanut placed the beads on the corresponding color on the caterpillar.
You can download this printable here.

Little Peanut used a Bingo Stamper to stamp the correct number of circles on the caterpillar.

You can download the caterpillar counting cards here.  

Little Peanut placed the correct color pom-pom on the correct caterpillar.  We also talked about the color patterns.  You can down load this printable here. 

                                                               
                                              Don't forget to stop by next week for Letter "D" Printables

Building Castles with Geometric Shapes

Teaching about Geometric Shapes

This week I was teaching my daughter the names of various geometric shapes.  Instead of just showing her the shapes I let her play with shapes.  She used the shapes to build a castle.  This was a great way to make learning about shapes fun.  

I like to party here.

Letter "B" Button Activities

Letter "B" Button Activities-
FREE Printable Friday



You are more than welcome to print off these files for personal use, but please direct others back to my original post and do not directly link back to pdf.  If you use these printables you are agreeing to abide by this disclosure policy.

Letter "B"
Little Peanut placed buttons on the letter "B".  You can get this printable here.

Sorting
Little Peanut Sorted buttons by size and by number of holes.
You can get the size sorting mat here.
You can get the button hole mat here.

Fine Motor and Color Matching
Little Peanut matched the button to the same color pipe cleaner and placed the button on the pipe cleaner.
This activity teaches color and helps a child with their fine motor skills.

Counting Cards
Little Peanut placed the correct number of buttons on the correct counting cards.
This activity helps with number identification and one to one correspondence.
You can get the printable here. 

 

Button Sorting
Little Peanut sorted her buttons by color.

Don't Forget to stop by next Friday for letter "C" Montessori Activities

I like to party here.

Compassion Explorer Magazine for Kids- Great Teaching Tool

Did you know that Compassion has a magazine for kids?  I just found out about it and asked that they send it with the compassion magazine I get quarterly.  The magazine is a great teaching tool.  I use it to teach my daughter about different cultures around the world, geography, and about helping and praying for others. The magazine has an arts and crafts section, examples of kids who care for others, and a devotions section.

My daughter loves the magazine and I am so glad I requested it.  If you are interested in receiving the magazine you can ask that they send you a copy with the quarterly magazine you receive or you can look at it online here.  Compassion also has a great free Christian Homeschool Curriculum check it out here.  

To learn more about Compassion International and how you can get involved with this amazing organization click here. 

Teaching Sequential Order Using Instruction Manuals

Teaching Sequential Order Using Instruction Manuals

Today we used an instruction manual as part of our math lesson.  I was trying to teach Little Sweets the importance of following a sequence and recognizing what step comes next.  I used a Brio Mec instruction manual as my teaching tool.  I showed her the manual and she picked out the vehicle she wanted to create and followed each step in the instruction manual.  This activity taught her the importance of following instructions as well as the importance of sequential order.  I love these manuals because they are made specifically with children in mind and have great pictures to show her what she needs to do next.  If you can't find Brio Mec sets  Lego manuals can also be great tools for teaching sequential order.  If you miss one step or go out of order your creation doesn't look like the picture in the manual.

She was so excited when she finished. Here is what her vehicle looked like after she followed all the instructions.   

Matters of the Heart Monday Week 1

Matters of the Heart Mondays 

 Join me on Mondays as we discuss how we can use God's Word to encourage, equip, and train our children in righteousness.

As a believer in Christ, it is my goal to use God's word as a tool in the education my children.  The Word tells us that "All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. " 2 Tim 3:16-17  Please join me on Mondays as we discuss how we can use the Word of God to instruct our children's hearts and how we can apply the principles found in the Bible to our children's lives as well as our own. 

 

Each Monday I will be presenting a reader's question on my blogs facebook page.  I encourage my readers to join in on the conversation and share scripture verses that apply to the question as well as practical advice

 

Week 1 Question:  How can I help my child be appreciative of what he has?

 

To join this conversation please come to my facebook page, like the page, and comment on the post.

 

Here is a link to my facebook page.
 

Matters of the Heart Mondays

Matters of the Heart Mondays 

 Join me on Mondays as we discuss how we can use God's Word to encourage, equip, and train our children in righteousness.

 

When we homeschool our children we are doing more than just teaching them to read, write, and do math.  We are teaching them how to live life.  As a parent my hope and prayer is that I will equip my children so that they can be successful when they reach adulthood.  As a believer in Christ, it is my goal to use God's word as a tool in the education my children.  The Word tells us that "All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. " 2 Tim 3:16-17  Please join me on Mondays as we discuss how we can use the Word of God to instruct our children's hearts and how we can apply the principles found in the Bible to our children's lives as well as our own. 

 

Each Monday I will be presenting a reader's question on my blogs facebook page.  I encourage my readers to join in on the conversation and share scripture verses that apply to the question as well as practical advice.

Join the conversation on my facebook page
If you have a question you would like me to post please email me at funfrugalhomeschool.com
 

I look forward to the conversation. 

Freebie Friday- Free Letter A Montessori-Inspired Printables

Free Letter A Montessori-Inspired Printables

You are more than welcome to print off these files for personal use, but please direct others back to my original post and do not directly link back to pdf.  If you use these printables you are agreeing to abide by this disclosure policy.

 Letter A Mat
Little Peanut used this mat as a playdough mat and a tracing mat.
You can download the mat here.

Apple Sorting Mat
Little Peanut placed beads and other maniupalitives on the correct color apple. 
She used tweezers to help with fine motor skills.

You can get this mat here. 

 

Apple Tree Counting Mat

Little Peanut picked a number card,
identified the number, and placed the correct number
of playdough apples on the mat.  She drew the correct number of apples, as well.

You can get the number cards here.
You can get the apple mat here. 

Apple Number Identification Mat

Little Peanut identified the number on the mat
and covered the number with a pom pom.
She used child chopsticks to help with fine motor skills,
 tongs can be used as well.
Dot Markers may also be used in place of pom poms.

You can download this here.

Don't forget to stop by next Friday for letter "B" Montessori-inspired printables.

Parental Supervision

Manipulatives that are used in these posts are items I used with my child.  Parents are responsible for deciding what is suitable for their child to use with printable mat.  All activities on this blog should be done with parental supervision. Any activity involving small pieces should be done with children over 3 years of age.   

Graphics are courtesy of Graphics Factory