Nature Play Dough Mat - Free Printable

Good morning all!

Well, we're officially in winter here now in Australia, and it's been getting colder and colder! This means lots more inside time with Master J.

This week I whipped up a new playdough mat set for Master J, and I have to say, he just loves it!

Not only is this a great set for play dough, but it is also perfect for dry erase markers AND for some outside play. That's right, because these are laminated you can take them outside! Master J had a blast sticking leaves on the tree and picking flowers from the lawn to put on the stalks. A quick wipe when we were done and the mats are good as new!

This set has a rainbow, flower stalks and 2 trees, one with leaves and one without.

New to play dough mats? It's easy as can be! Download the file, print it, laminate the sheets and BAM! That's it, you are done.  Grab the PDF below!

Multiple Use Sticker Squares for Learning and Games

Morning all!

Sometimes, the most versatile busy bag games can also be the cheapest! Which is always a plus when you have little ones to entertain!

Today's project is so cheap and simple, but it has a whole variety of uses, sticker cards!

That's right. Stickers and cardstock. Sounds pretty basic right? Well, it is! In fact, it's barely a tutorial, it's so simple.

I picked up these packs of 180 stickers from The Reject Shop last year, they cost me only $2 a pack, and as of writing this, they still have them available too, wahoo! If you don't have a Reject Shop in your area, most discount/bargain stores stock packs of stickers, cheap.

You'll also need some cardstock. I have a stack of A4 sized coloured cardstock I picked up for $3.

Optional: A laminate machine! Now, you don't NEED one of these. In fact, the sticker cards work EXACTLY the same without being covered. I prefer to use it, because it means my cards will last longer, and be able to be used year after year. You could also cover them with clear contact if you wanted to.

Cut your cardstock into squares. Mine are 1.5 inches (just shy of 4cm)

 

Stick your stickers to the middle of the squares.

Laminate, if you wish!

See, I told you it was simple!

What I love about these cards though, simplicity aside, is how many things you can use them for!

Colour Matching.

Kids can match either the colour of the cardstock or the colour of the stickers.

Grouping.
Group together the same items (even if they have different coloured backgrounds)

Play a game of Memory.
This can be a simple 4 or 9 square game for smaller kids, right up to as many cards as you can make for older ones. Imagine using all 180 stickers for the ultimate Memory challenge!

Pattern Recognition.
Figuring out what comes next in a sequence, either with the sticker, or flipping them over and using the blank side to make patterns from the colours. For older children, the challenge could be matching the sequence with both the card colour and the sticker!

Story Prompts.
This is a great one for older kids to practice their creative writing skills. Get them to pick out 3-5 cards at random, and write a story using the images as prompts. Lots of fun!

So, there are just a handful of ideas of fun and learning games, all from $5 worth of supplies. Budget games? Yes please! 

Felt Board Shapes - Ant Picnic

Good morning all!

Woohoo, it's time for some more felt shapes! This months set is.... Ant Picnic!

Master J has such a fascination for ants. He'll sit there watching them for ages, and follow them about the yard to see where they go. Super cute! I figured an Ant Picnic might be a fun play set and boy was I right!

This set includes some oversized foods, and of course, the ants! It's all really simple to make too, yay!

Never made felt board shapes before? It's sooooo easy! Here's how!

First, gather your supplies. You'll need some felt, some scissors, some glue (I use 450 quick dry), and if you like some paint! I use fabric puff paint, but really, most would work just fine.

1: Download and print the template. You can download the PDF file here.

2: Cut out the templates from the paper. Then, you can either use them to trace around with a pen onto the felt, or pin them to the felt. I prefer to trace, it's much easier. Chalk works great for darker colours!

3: Cut all the felt pieces out. You may want to cut more than one of each thing. We did extra ants, 2 apples (one green and one red) and used the same shape for cheese, a piece of pie, and a couple of cakes!

You'll also need to cut out some thin strips for the ants legs and glue them to the back of the ant. Trust me, its WAY easier to do that and glue them on, cutting around tiny legs, insane!

Glue the stem on the strawberry, and the rind behind the flesh of the watermelon.

4: Optional. If you want to add more detail to your pieces, this is where you get the paints out! I tend to mainly just outline mine, but you can go as crazy as you like here!

That's it, your done! See, super simple!

Number Puzzle File Folder Game

Morning all!

We've been exploring file folder games for a while now, and Master J really REALLY enjoys them! I really enjoy how easy they are to store, and to make.

Not only are they oodles of fun, but they are educational, and great for hand eye co-ordination too. I've got a few more of these up my sleeve this year so keep an eye out for them!

Today's file folder game is for puzzle number matching. We've been working on numbers a lot lately so I thought a puzzle match would be fantastic to help with number/word recognition and also matching. I have colour coded them to help out younger kids, but if you want to make it a little more challenging you could always print it in black and white.

If you've never made a file folder game before, they are super easy to do!

Here's How!

First, grab the files and print them, you can find them at the bottom of this post

Cut the pieces out! Now, I laminate EVERYTHING because I want them to last got a long time, but if you don't have one, you could always clear contact them, or not cover them at all and just use the pieces as they are, however I wouldn't use Velcro on them if you are not covering them, as they may rip easily.

I positioned the word side of each puzzle on some coloured paper and laminated the entire sheet, and then stuck it into the file folder with double sided tape.

For the other half of the puzzles, I laminated them cut them out, and used velcro self sticking dots for attaching them to the file folder in the right spots. Honestly, I had such trouble finding a way of sticking things to laminate! I went through 5 types of glue and nothing would hold, and then a friend mentioned the self sticking dots and they work PERFECTLY! So forget the glue, and grab the dots! I picked mine up from Woolworths (a big pack for around $6), but most craft/grocery/discount stores have them.

Then stick the cover on the folder and your done! Told you it was easy peasy. I used double sided tape for the cover too, and I didn't bother to laminate that piece.

The only thing left to do now is enjoy it with your little one!

Insect Play Dough Mats

Good morning lovelies!

Wow, we're ending out the second week in March already! Is it just me, or does it feel like this year is really flying? We're gearing up for both Mr Mamma, and Miss C's birthdays at the end of this month, busy busy!

Today I have for you, some super adorable insect play dough mats! Master J loves bugs. He loves to watch snails, chase grass hoppers and squeals with delight at butterflies as they fly past.

This set of mats incorporates some simple instructions, but as always, can absolutely be used for free play. We've also been using them for counting practice and colour recognition. What colour are the caterpillars stripes? How many spots are on the butterflies wings? Oodles of educational fun!

I've gone with A5 for these ones, like I did with the Monster Mats, instead of A4. I think I'll do that for all future ones as well. They just seem to work better that way. Because the sheets are laminated, you could also use them with a dry erase marker for even more usability!

This set has a lady bug, a butterfly, a bee and a caterpillar.

New to play dough mats? It's easy as can be! Download the file at the bottom of this post, print it, laminate the sheets and BAM! That's it, you are done.

Felt Board Shapes - Sweet Treats

Good morning all!

I'm so excited about today's felt shapes! I have to admit, I have a bit of a sweet tooth, actually our entire family does. Thankfully, these sweet treats are sugar free, fat free, and won't leave a mess on your toddlers hands (or have them bouncing off the walls!)

The Sweet Treat felt set comprises of donuts, ice-cream, cupcakes and of course cake! Because no dessert set would be complete without some good old fashioned layer butter cake! Om nom nom.

Never made felt board shapes before? It's sooooo easy! Here's how!

First, gather your supplies. You'll need some felt, some scissors, and if you like some paint! I use fabric puff paint, but really, most would work just fine.

1: Download and print the template. You can download the PDF file here.

2: Cut out the templates from the paper. Then, you can either use them to trace around with a pen onto the felt, or pin them to the felt. I prefer to trace, it's much easier.

3: Cut all the felt pieces out. You may want to cut more than one of each thing. We made 5 candles, 3 donuts, 2 cakes, 4 different cake frosting "flavours" and a heap ice-cream scoops and cupcake pieces! Because mixing and matching is fun!

4: Optional. If you want to add more detail to your pieces, this is where you get the paints out!

For the ice creams, I outlines the scoops in a matching colour, and added some detail on the cone with diagonal stripes. Waffle cones would look great too! You could also add sprinkles with paint, or choc chips, as well. I didn't, because I cut some leftover felt up into tiny strips to use as sprinkles. Make extra scoops for stacking fun.

For the donuts, I only outlined the icing, and not the actual donut. Again, you could add sprinkles to these too, and a whole variety of colours!

Candles! Such fun little additions. I made 5 initially, but I want to go back soon and do some more. They are excellent for counting! I outlined both the flame and the candle, and added some lines to give it that swirling texture that birthday candles often have.

I didn't outline the cake pieces. Mostly because so many other decorations usually get placed on the top, that I thought leaving them plain would create more open ended options for play. We've had sprinkles, candles and cherries from this set, but we have also put numbers and letters on the top of the cake, and fruits from another felt set. Oodles of fun!

Cupcakes! I have the most fun with these ones, because there are oodles and oodles of designs you can put on the cases! Try spots, dots, lines, stripes, flowers and even stars! Don't forget to make a few little cherries/berries for the tops! After all, decorating cupcakes is always a lot of fun.

That's it lovelies! That is the Sweet Treats set all done! Wait for all the paint to dry overnight and it's finished.

Wooden Counting Disks

Good morning all!!

This morning I want to share with you a very super simple project! Wooden countings disks!

Master J loves learning with his hands. He enjoys textures, and being able to get hands on learning is something he really thrives with. Lately we've been focusing more on numbers, and in particular counting to 10.

I was going to print out some flash cards for him, and was hunting in the craft cupboards for the laminate sheets when I knocked over a basket of supplies. Inside was these wooden disks that I'd asked a friend to slice from an old tree branch years ago for buttons, and never got around to finishing.

The idea hit me, that I could turn them into counters instead of printing something and here we are!

The best thing about this project is you can make as many or as few as you like, in whatever size you want! Plus, it's all made from dollar store items, and FREE items! This entire set cost me a grand total of $2. Now that's what I call cheap play!

You will need some wooden disks. Mine are sliced from a tree branch when we trimmed the trees back a few years earlier, but you could always use some driftwood from the beach, or go for a walk in the park and find a branch that has come out of a tree already. Keep in mind though that the thickness of the branch will play a part in the size of the numbers you can use. Cut your disks about a cm thick using a saw (or if you don't have one, ask a friend!) They don't even need to be the same thickness, some of mine are not. I figure we can talk about the thickness too and discuss which ones are higher and lower.

Next you'll need number stickers, and some paint. The paint I already had, and actually, it's puff paint that I use for my felt pieces, but any paint will work fine. The number stickers I had to go buy. We have a local store called Shiploads, which is a discount/bargain store, and I knew they had a huge range of cheap stickers, so that's where I went. Boy was I right, soooo many stickers! They also had a selection of rub on scrapbook transfers that I wouldn't mind trying later on, but for now I opted for foam glitter stickers. Mainly because I liked the added texture they would give the disks, plus the size looked pretty close to what I wanted. They cost me $2 for a big pack, and I have some to spare!

The rest, is super simple! The foam numbers had sticky backs, but I also added some 450 clear glue to them just to make sure they didn't come off, and positioned them into place on the wooden disks.
Then, I used a toothpick and dotted on some coloured dots for the matching disks. The puff paint also added another layer of texture.

And that, is it! Let it all dry overnight and you'll be done! Master J loves touching these. He tells me how the back of the disk is smooth, how the numbers are rough and the spots are bumpy. Best of all, we're starting to get more familiar with numbers, which is fantastic!

Maybe once he's a little older and we start looking at adding and subtracting, I'll make a few more and some symbols to extend the set further.

This idea would also work fantastic with  shapes and learning pattern sequences!

I hope you enjoyed this post, let me know how your little one goes with their disks if you make some too!

Outer Space Felt Set

Good morning all!

Master J loves rocket ships! He loves counting down with me and yelling BLASTOFF! So an outer space set was absolutely needed. I had a blast creating this one, and he has oodles of fun playing with it. That's a win win in my books!

This set is super easy to make, and even easier to customise! Want a patterned rocket ship? Go for it! Want other coloured planets? Sure! You can put whatever patterns you like on them, to create all sorts of planets or moons!

Grab the template here and make your own! 

You will need:
Felt
Scissors
The templates for the outer space set
Puff paint (or regular paint and a brush)
Glue (I use 450 quick dry clear glue)

Step 1: Cut out the paper templates

Step 2: Use the templates to cut out your felt shapes. You can trace around them with a pen, or pin them to the felt and cut around them that way. I prefer to trace, then cut. I find it easier to manoeuvre the scissors in the smaller spaces without the paper in the way.

Step 3: Glue! Glue the find to the rocket ship, the centre of the sun to the outer piece, the rings to Saturn, and the cab of the ufo spaceship to the body. Wait for them to dry before moving on.


Step 4: Decorate! I use puff paint (from Kmart) to edge my felt shapes. I find it makes them POP and gives them more details. You don't need to do this of course, but I like the effect it has. It's also how I added the land masses to the planet, and lights to the spaceships.

Wait for it all to dry and then turn it over to your toddler! Happy days!

Bead Threading Busy Bag

Morning all!

Just a bit excited about today's post!

I've done a few Busy Bags in the past for other people and groups, but never really got around to playing with them more. Now Master J is a big 3 year old I'm finding these little bags of goodness to be really fantastic for entertaining him, while also being educational!

Right now we're all about colours, and so I thought I'd make some little colour related games for him.

This one has the added bonus of engaging their fine motor skills threading the beads too. We gave it a burl, and it got a toddler tick of approval!

It's super easy to do too! I've included the file in this post for you to download for free, to make your own little bead threading boats! The file has the 6 coloured boats that Master J has been playing with, and an additional 9 boats with numbers on them (1-9), for older kids who are learning to count!

Supplies Needed:
Access to a printer
Laminate Machine
Pipe Cleaners
Scissors
Hole Punch
Pony Beads

Steps:

1: Print out the file, you can download the filer HERE

2: Cut out the boats.

3: Laminate the squares, and cut them out of the laminate.

4: Place a hole in the side with the hole punch.

5: Loop the pipe cleaner through the hole, then twist to join both sides together. These can be as long or short as you like.

6: Grab the beads and play!

I hope you guys enjoyed this little busy bag! Let me know how your kiddoes go with it!

Play Dough Mats - Gumball Machine

Good morning lovelies!

If there's one thing Master J loves to do more than any other messy activity, it's play dough! He loves to squash it, smash it, pull it, poke it, roll it and jab it! He will happily spend a good 30 minutes totally engrossed in a blob of play dough and a few cookie cutters.

I decided to extent his play with a little educational aspect to it. He might be a little too little yet for a lot of numbers, but it never hurts to start introducing them into his play.

The idea for the gumball machines actually came from Miss L, who helped me design them in Photoshop, and picked out the colours! She has some more ideas, and so do I, so you can expect to see some more throughout the year.

Play dough mats are a fantastic resource for kids. They encourage learning while having fun, and add extra play aspects to their activities. The mats are laminated too, so they can be re-used again and again! Right now, he just has fun putting play dough blobs onto the shadows in the gumball machines, and doesn't seem too concerned about the numbers. He is, after all, only just (as in last week!) 3. But eventually we'll swap them out for a set without the shadows. The set has numbers 1-5, we'll eventually add to 10, but 5 seemed like a good starting point for his age.

We're also going to use them for placing pompoms on with a pair of tweezers, to help with his motor skills!

You can download the set of 5 with shadows and without in PDF format at the bottom of this post.

Simply save, print, laminate and play!

Ladybird Counting - Free BusyBag Printable

Hello again wonderful people!

Another busy bag printable for you all today. Ladybird Counting! Each leaf has not only the number word on it, but also has the right number of dots on the base of the leaf for counting fun. Younger children can place the correct number of ladybirds on each leaf.

Older children can use the included symbols to turn the game into simple addition. Grab the file below.

Cupcake Maths - Free BusyBag Printables

Good morning everyone,

Today I have my second busy bag printable for you all. This one is called Cupcake Maths. The sums are for numbers 1-5 and very basic. The answers are in cherries that need to be placed on the top of the cupcakes. You could also use Velcro dots so the cherries stick to the cupcakes (or even magnets if you wanted to). Laminate all the pieces so they can be used over and over.

This set comes in 2 colours, and you can download both PDF files below.