Preschool Activity Ideas | Toddler Activity Ideas | Mommy With Selective Memory: how to get free time for Moms

Showing posts with label how to get free time for Moms. Show all posts

Thursday, December 29, 2011

How to Get 20 minutes of Free Time With This Fine Motor Activity

How to Improve Fine Motor Skills in Your Preschoolers and Get 20 Minutes of Free Time!

Sometimes we Moms just need 20 minutes of peace to do the dishes without someone climbing on the dishwasher door and/or pulling out clean steak knives. I have devoted myself to finding activities that my kids can do that will keep them busy for awhile. In the spirit of sharing my ideas, I have put together a video tutorial on one of my favorite indoor activities and also included some written instructions below. This project is absolutely perfect for enhancing fine motor skills and even working on colors so the next time you need some free time, don't turn on the TV or the iPad, try this instead. The video will tell you everything you need for this project, but you probably already have most of the supplies at home. I will be featuring other projects in the future, but keep in mind this particular project is probably best for children aged three to three and half since there are sharp pins involved. Here's to peaceful (and safe) dishwashing!

First you will start with a standard pin cushion, normally used for sewing and some long push pins with a large head:

easy game for kids, push pins, fine motor for preschoolers

Next you will need either a Parmesan shaker, or if you can't find one of those, get creative. I couldn't find one, so I bought a strainer at the dollar store and used the Cheerios cup:

Then you will give your young child the pin cushion and show her what to do. The first time we played this game, she emptied out all the pins three different times for a total of over 30 minutes!

If you enjoyed this post, you will love our book! Susan and I teamed up and released The Happy Mommy Handbook: The Ultimate How-to Guide on Keeping Your Toddlers and Preschoolers Busy, Out of Trouble, and Motivated to Learn in July, 2012. If you have ever tried to cook dinner while your kid clings to your leg and cries, this is the book for you! As we did above, we give you a Mom's point of view and a teacher's point of view, so that you can do activities that not only keep the kids busy, but also keep them motivated to learn and develop their natural curiosity. Kids behave better when they are given challenging projects to work on, which will in turn give you more free time to do the things you really need to do, like washing dishes, paying bills, and relaxing so that you can be a better Mom!

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Thursday, December 29, 2011

How to Get 20 minutes of Free Time With This Fine Motor Activity

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