Is my blog taking forever to load for anyone else? Hoping it is just my computer. But if you are reading this PLEASE leave a comment and let me know if you have any trouble loading my blog. I have limited the number of posts on the main page but that doesn't seem to be helping on my computer. Any other bloggers have suggestions?
On to today's activity ---
It's a classic but always a favorite. Sam would have played this at the park today for hours with the same items but eventually I got bored!
Super simple - I used some cloth bags that I have from another game. One bag held a bunch of natural items and the other was for Sam to put her hand in. I would put one item in the second bag at a time. Then Sam would would close her eyes and put her hand in. She was tempted to immediately pull the item out so I would lightly hold her arm and the bag together making it so she had to keep her hand inside. Then I would ask her about what she was feeling. Simple comparison questions were the easiest for her; is it hard or soft? is it big or little?
I included several items that I knew she would get right away (leaf, stick, pine cone), a few that I knew she had seen and held before but might struggle with (acorn, acorn cap) and then one item she has never seen before (dried and hardened shelf mushroom). I wanted it to be neat for her to experience something new and not have everything be completely familiar.
Like I said Sam would have played this forever. And we even got Avery to put her hand in a few times and pull something out! Sam thought this was hilarious.
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The Nitty Gritty!
I did this activity with a bunch more items in a fifth grade classroom back in college. The students sat in a circle and each took turns putting their hand in the bag. After they had felt the item for a few seconds they had to write down descriptive words for what they had felt. They loved this activity.
This is a simple activity but there are so many ways to change it up slightly and adjust it for different age groups. For older kids (even adults) I have used more complicated things like bones, shells and fur/feathers and asked for specific identifications (close guesses!) for what the item is.
Just get creative and stretch your imagination and this activity can keep anyone entertained!
If you need some inspiration for getting involved with the November Monthly Challenge you must check out Earth Mama. She has her kids out hiking constantly. They are outside all the time. I hope my family will be just as involved in the outdoors as hers is someday. And love it the way her kids seem to.
She stopped by my little corner of blogworld yesterday and left me a comment! This was HUGE for me, so I need to make sure that everyone sees it!
"That is so funny, because I was hiking with my kids today too and was in the same boat...lots of encouragement despite the whining. We all made it out with smiles on our faces. Life sometimes can be a struggle and teaching our children to relax and work through it can be so wonderful!"
SO get out and hike! And then let me know how it went!!
Sorry I missed your email Abbie! It's been beautiful but Dougie's teeth have been really bad lately, so we've not had a chance to enjoy it as much as I'd like.
Also, your site is running really slowly for me too. Hubby says it's the Facebook widget stalling the content from rendering. You can disable it, but it's probably a temporary Facebook problem. If you want some help fixing it, just let me know and he can help you out.
Posted by: Mel | 11/09/2010 at 06:31 PM
another great outdoor activity!! I posted something for november's challenge hope it fits the challenge: http://lettersnumbersandbooksohmy.blogspot.com/2010/11/what-is-your-wish-for-earth.html
we are going on a hike tomorrow.
Posted by: welcome to our wonderland | 11/09/2010 at 07:10 PM
oh and yep your site is moving slow.
Posted by: welcome to our wonderland | 11/09/2010 at 07:12 PM
You are such a good mama; teaching her sensory stuff. It loaded slow for me, too.
Posted by: liz | 11/09/2010 at 07:25 PM
This is a great activity. My little one may not be too small for this. I'll have to try it and just prompt her.
Oh and your blog is a little slower lately although today it was faster than it has been.
Peace, Angela
Posted by: Angela | 11/10/2010 at 07:46 AM