Pendulum Play is excellent for learning cause and effect, physics, spatial reasoning, experimenting with weight and size, language, vocabulary and teaches kids how to work together.  I made this pendulum out of PVC pipes, string and tennis balls.  After the initial excitement of knocking blocks down, the kids began experimenting with the the limitations of the ball and began building their towers more strategically.  This is a great way for kids to learn through play!  Very easy set up!

Looking for ideas on Birthday decor.  This decal took 20 minutes to make.  I covered it in clear contact paper so it could last several play sessions.  Still need to add his jet pack but love the way it's coming out.  My boys are totally into Turbo Snails right now.

Also a good lesson for preschool age children

Our Apple Tree. The kids will pick apples during their dramatic apple stand pla

Our season buckets. Here the kids learn about the items associated with each season.

Our kids just love experimenting with gravity and water.  I made them these wall and deck activities with a quick stop at our local hardware store.

Here's a magnet ball and tunnel system.  I picked up a sheet of metal and used base board frames to create the border.  The tubes are made of clear ketchup dispensers and fastened together with electric tape.  I fastened the magnets to the back and lined the tubes up in various ways to create a fun and interactive play.

I call this tunnel system tulips and tunnels.  We combined the clear ketchup bottles with PVC pipes and connectors.  The tunnels are attached with grey plastic electrical fasteners. The tulips are attached with velcro so the kids can pick flowers

This is a fun and cheap way to inspire the topic of weather and how we dress for it.  Found the boy and his clothes at Learning Palace.

 I covered all in clear plastic shelf lining and added rings to hold the string.

I made the clouds out of cardboard and painted them white.  The weather signs are from printouts off the internet and placed them in these cute little frames.  We use this everyday!

In a grand effort to give my kids the best foot forward, I have been introducing education fundamentals through play.  After reviewing tons of eduction sites, I came up with a weekly curriculum that is used in pricey preschools and day care facilities .  Now my munchkins can have quality mommy time and a great education without breaking the bank.  It's so rewarding to see the light go on and be there to experience it with them.  The effort and time to create these activities is minimal compared to the  rewards!  Give one a try!

 Here are three of our favorite activities where the kids learn to sort colors, letters and numbers with spring related items.

Here's a fun way to organize your play area

Picked up these frames and removed the glass.  For the magnet, I cut metal to the size of the frame.  You can pick up a sheet from Home depot for close to nothing.  I created the chalk board by using chalk paint on the back part of the frame.  The last one is a felt activity.  Just cut out some felt to the size of the frame and hot glue around the sides.

The buckets below catch all the objects suited for each station.  I change the felt out weekly to cover new topics of interest.  We use the chalk board everyday!

This is a fun, cheap and easy way to organize and inspire !

When we bought the house, this was originally the dining room.  The white molding separating the yellow stripes from the blue was already in place.  I created the book shelf above the frames by using L brackets to suspend a strip of baseboard from the wall.  Total cost was $5!

Do it yourself-Felt activities your child will love

Making a felt activity station:

You can buy a frame or use an old one.   I used some old frames to create these adorable felt activity walls for the kids.  Take out the glass, cut a large piece of felt and glue it to the backboard of the frame.  Now you have a fun activity station ready to go for the kids. 

For the felt activities: just pick up some clear contact paper, print out an image you want to create off the web, wrap in clear contact paper and attach velcro (rough side) to the back of the covered image.

I used these images to create a bird and egg color sorting activity
Cover all in clear contact paper and place rough side of velcro on back of each.

Kids love cardboard boxes.  Next time you are about to throw one away, think about something fun you can make out of it.  Here are a few ideas on cardboard fun!

For Thanks Giving, we wanted to have a unique playdate that had a different theme than making a turkey or leaves.  I invited our friends to come sail the Mayflower at our house.  As a craft activity, we had them make binoculars so they can spot Plymouth rock.  This construction took 7 rolls of duck tape, 7 large boxes and 21 hours.  A bit over the top but an amazing playdate!

For class, I built the kids a castle out of cardboard.  This only took an hour.   The kids played with the castle for an hour. 

Our interactive Tree area is taking on a realistic life of its own. 3 years trying to find birds that look real and are play safe. Just found the butterflies and green leaves  My favorite thing about this play area is that it suits all three kids perfectly. Charlotte just loves pulling the items off the wall (everything is attached via velcro). Brendan and Liam play together building the scene each day. So sweet to watch and play with.