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Warmer weather is here for many of us, and for those of you “up North”, the days will soon turn balmy for you as well (I promise!).  With warmer weather we get to enjoy budding plants, more outside playtime, and (our favorite) BUGS!

Exploring the world around us should be an integral part of growing up and learning.  Studying nature and the outside world allows children the opportunity to learn more about how we, as humans, work and live with and in the environment, taking care of our planet and the inhabitants thereof.  Through nature, children can explore patterns and solve problems.  They can learn to make decisions based on how that decision affects others around them, and they can observe life cycles of other creatures to learn more about themselves.  And, nature is simply COOL.  Bugs included!  Just ask any child what a worm or a beetle is, and they can certainly tell you!

WonderBrains offers a variety of products to promote observation of living creatures in a safe way - safe for children as well as the creatures!  Products, such as the Bug Explorer, are perfect for safely “catching” a variety of insects and observe them in a non-threatening way.  And, the insects can be released back into their natural habitat.  Or, look into products such as an ant farm or ladybug farm to bring insects that might be more difficult to capture into a safe observation area.  One of our favorite insect-toys in our family is the butterfly habitat.  With it, my boys can send off for caterpillars that the boys then watch as they grow and metamophosize into beautiful butterflies.  We then release them in our own back yard, where they can be spotted for quite some time afterward. 

Whether using store-bought product or making your own collection system (jars with holes in the lids, plastic containers, nets), bugs can be easily observed and recorded.  Even little tikes love to draw pictures of what they see.  Simply stapling a few sheets of paper together to make a journal or record book can open up many doors and opportunities to learn.  Encourage your child to ask questions, to look for answers, and to write or draw what they see.  Keep a journal of types of bugs found in your backyard, and encourage your child to keep track of the numbers of each kind they see and find.  Take photos of different insects to use as a reference when looking for more information at your local library or online.

As with any type of creature, teach your child some safety tips when handling living things.  Try not to touch any creature so as not to harm the animal (or have the animal harm your child!).  Always ask an adult before attempting to capture an animal/insect in order to make sure that the child is being safe and aware of the surroundings.  Try not to disturb the animal’s habitat, and be sure to release the animal back at the same place it was found so as not to confuse it.

Bugs can offer a multitude of learning opportunities and adventures!

As the school year continues to fly by for me, I know that it isn’t quite the same for my son.  The bus ride is no longer a novelty; it is a way home and apparently not high on the “fun” list anymore.  I decided to mix up the routine a bit and offer a bit of cheer in celebration of the warmer weather we are having here in the South lately.  We’re having a Spring Fling Snack Party!

The bus stop is literally at the end of our driveway, and about a dozen or so neighborhood kids disembark at our stop.  Our plan is to set up a picnic table on the driveway, loaded with juice boxes, fruit and other healthy snacks.  Kids will have the chance to grab a snack and even stay for a bit to shoot some hoops, play with sidewalk chalk or throw a Frisbee.

Some important points to remember about this kind of mini-party is to notify parents ahead of time, even if just a day or so in advance.  No one wants to be waiting on the porch for a child who ends up staying for 20 minutes to play.  It is also a chance to gather neighborhood parents together to get to know each other and network.  Allow siblings who might not be in school yet the opportunity to come and play as well.  And, don’t forget - many kids will still have homework and other commitments after school, so keep the gathering brief.

My older son is a sports fanatic.  He’d rather pick up a ball (basketball, baseball, football, soccer ball…) over anything - including FOOD - most any day.  Give that boy a ball and a big grassy area and he’s in heaven.  So, it only stands to reason that those are the things that he should have for his 10th birthday this year.  Thus, the tailgate birthday party is born!

For my son’s birthday this year, we are decorating our family vehicle with window paint and markers, much like the high school kids in town do for a football game.  We have permission to use our church’s multi-use sports field, and all of our guests are meeting there.  We are grilling in the parking lot (hamburgers and hot dogs), serving up root beer in the bottles (complete with koozies that we are personalizing for the occasion), and then the kids will play some ball in the field for entertainment.

An additional idea for this type of party is to plan it around a local high school’s sporting event.  Depending on the time of year, most schools offer some sort of sport during the school calendar.  Purchase tickets to the game, and tailgate in the parking lot beforehand.  Then, watch the game or event and cheer on the local team!  It is a fun and economical way to celebrate with your little sports fan!

Our older son grew up with grandparents, aunts, and uncles all within an hour of our home.  He was truly raised by a village of people!  However, before the birth of our second son, we moved four hours away from our amazing family support system.  We knew, though, how amazing those relationships with extended family were, so we came up with a way to help our younger son identify his kin as he grew older.

We took pictures of all of our relatives and printed them out on sheets of photo paper.  Then, we mounted these pictures to magnetic sheets.  Next, we cut out each individual person (I cut close to the outline of the person to make them “paper dollish”) and cut out names for labels for each person as well.  Our refrigerator and dish washer are decorated with smiling faces of family and close friends, and our sons both love to “play” with their family.  When we talk to relatives on the phone, the boys can look at that person they are talking to and make a connection with them!

In what my husband would call “typical boy fashion”, we have moments at the table of which I am not proud.  Moments of bodily noises, discussions that tend to curb many an appetite and, in general, not the greatest manners on the block.  So, to encourage my boys to be better behaved at dinner at home, I tried a few ideas.  My thought is, if we practice good manners at home, we’ll have an easier time remembering them when we’re out or at a friend’s house.

While none of these are the end-all, beat-all solution to teaching your children manners, they are some great ideas to encourage that kind of behavior.  Of course, the best solution is consistency and modeling.  If you want good manners, then SHOW good manners, and ENCOURAGE good manners.  These ideas lend themselves well to that theory.

1. Make it a tangible award.  We recycled an old trophy of my husband’s to be our “Manner Trophy”.  Each evening (you could also stretch it out over the course of a week with older kids), we present one child with the Manner Trophy for outstandingly good manners at the table (or the most improved for those that aren’t quite there but are trying really hard!).  That child gets to temporarily keep the trophy until the next award ceremony.  Old medals and ribbons also work well for this.
2. Make it a game.  We made a list of rules we wanted our boys to follow while eating a meal, such as “elbows off the table” and “thank the person who prepared the food.”  At the beginning of the meal, each person at the table is given 10 of an object, such as 10 toothpicks or 10 pennies.  During the course of the meal, if someone spots a violation of a rule, he (or she) may politely ask the offender for a toothpick or penny.  The winner of the game is the person with the most objects when the meal is over.  We try to make the “prize” something simple, like a sticker or another little treat, but as a family we try to make it an all-around tie so everyone wins!
3. Give out simple rewards.  This works well with younger children because the reward can be almost immediate.  Write out on slips of paper some simple rewards, such as reading an extra book at night or playing a board game or getting an extra fifteen minutes before heading to bed.  The rewards can be specific to each child.  Place each child’s reward slips in a special jar or container (we use recycled spaghetti jars labeled with the boys’ names).  When mealtime goes well and the kids use their good manners, each gets to choose a reward slip from his jar.

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