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Once I saw the magical Mermaid idea from @natures.playroom that was inspired by @sensory_with_florence it was a no brainer to create this T-Rex Version. As the base I placed this dinosaur cut out I happen to have in bulk. You can also draw it out on cardboard or poster board. Then I cut sturdy recycled craft rolls in different sizes and glued them on to the dinosaur. You can also used recycled toilet and paper towel tubes. In a tinker tray I placed rocks , dried beans, wood cookies , and flat marbles. In the bowls is dyed rice using liquid water colors to make it lime and green colored. Scoopers or tweezers of different kinds are placed as the tools a child(ren) can use to transfer the loose parts and rice onto the dinosaur. This invitation packs so many benefits. When using tools such as scoopers, tweezers, or hands to transfer materials it requires precise movement and helps in hand-eye coordination. It engages and exercises the child's ability to promote attention to detail. When designing the body of the dinosaur with loose parts it fosters problem solving skills, creativity, exposure to new materials, and decision making through play. Through this kind of invitation they are really creating, developing/mastering fine motor skills + hand-eye coordination, and becoming aware of limitless possibilities.

Like shaping a cloud! Cloud Clay is a soft, puffy light-as-air unique modeling material for sculpting, sensory play and much more. Sensory materials such as this has many benefits for children. The most important is the fine motor skill development. It is great for strengthening muscle tone in little hands – squishing, squashing, rolling and flattening cloud clay all develop children's muscles and encourage pre-writing and other skills such as cutting with a scissors, using a tweezers and holding a pencil. It also engages the children in their senses. When children participate in hands-on activities that allow them to use their senses, they will be more likely to retain that new information. If it's in their hands, it's in their brains. The tools pictured are: Colorations® Textured Dough Rolling Pins- These Textured rolling pins take your dough or clay invitations to the next level as they add patterns and texture to creations! Colorations® Wooden Sculpting Tools- These solid wood tools for sculpting and adding texture to all types of clay, dough and modeling materials are great for creating designs, pre-writing skills, and life skills. Colorations® Mix & Match Sensory Dough Bal l- Perfect for creating patterns, designs, & textures with dough or clay but can also be used with paint and stamping for open ended process art invitations.

Mac Barnett and Jon Klassen’s The Shape Trilogy (Triangle, Square, Circle) books have been written as self-contained stories, but they do link together. In the stories packed with humor and unique illustrations, the shapes are familiar to everyone, but nothing really tells what their personalities are going to actually be like. As you read the stories it unfolds how the characters are differentiated by very simple traits and you are able to come know the each of the shapes. The striking simplicity in their illustrations, humorous, thoughtful offerings that emphasize the importance of keeping your eyes and mind open to wonder where others see only rubble and rocks. This invitation was pretty simple to be in alignment with the imagery of the books. On a piece of poster board or butcher paper you can draw the three shapes with a black marker . Provide your child(ren) with an array rocks in a tinker tray. After reading the stories invite your child(ren) to recreate the characters with loose parts. Invitations such as this give opportunities to work on spatial awareness. As they manipulate the loose parts to fit inside the shapes they are enhancing their fine motor skills, hand-eye coordination, and shape recognition.

This earlySTEM™ JR Explorers Set from Discount School Supply is specially designed for curious toddlers. This set pictured here consist of a coin drop, rocking balance, and ball drop. With this set a child will explore and experiment with object permanence, attribute comparison, measurement, cause and effect, spatial awareness, fine motor development, eye-hand coordination, reasoning, cognition and problem solving, comparing and categorizing, sort and solve puzzles. Toddlers also find it satisfying to place small objects in and out of containers, experiment what will or will not fit, think things through while seeing the results of their thought process and enjoy the challenges. Babies and toddlers learn through repetition and these sets ultimately encourage the children to discover cause and effect relationships as they experiment again and again and again!

When children play with a sensory bin, they are playing with a variety of materials + textures which stimulate the mind and body through the tactile experience. Children learn best and retain the most information when they engage their senses. Many of our favorite memories are associated with one or more of our senses. Sensory play is, quite simply, any activity that stimulates the senses. By giving children the opportunity to investigate materials with no preconceived knowledge, we are helping them develop and refine their cognitive, social and emotional, physical, creative and linguistic skill sets simply through exploring. This sensory bin was filled with all things that begin with the letter B. Beans and buttons as the sensory base. Objects such as a boy , baby, blue markers , boat, buildings , brush, basketball, banana , bells, bread , bowl, bear and of course the letter B. Tip: To lessen the mess. Place a bed sheet, towel, blanket or mat as the base where the sensory play takes place for two reasons. 1) easier clean up 2) sets boundaries for the child to know that they can only play in that specified area.

Before having my son, I have always dreamed about creating a sandbox from an old boat. There are so many reasonably priced well loved boats or a dinghy such as this on Craigslist, EBay, or Facebook Marketplace. All this dinghy needed was a coat of paint, play sand, pirate flag, & sand toys . Something about an old boat, filled with sand truly is an enchanting and wondrous place for a child to play in. Children have a natural affinity for sand play. Whether you are parent or teacher providing children with a stimulating environment to enhance their play generates opportunities where a child can use their own play schemes imaginatively. There is no right way to use sand. It invites participation; it permits children to make and test hypotheses; it stretches the imagination; it provides a potentially soothing sensory experience; and it is an excellent avenue for children to learn physical, cognitive, and social skills. Sand play promotes physical development when the large muscles of a child dig, pour, sift, and scoop. Eye-hand coordination and small muscle control improve as children learn to manipulate sand accessories.

The book You Matter by Author and Illustrator Christian Robinson is filled with his unmistakeable vibrant diverse imagery that is filled with many perspectives around that world, engaging the reader to see how everyone is connected and matters. The beautiful message of self-worth through his simple but meaningful message of You Matter is prompt that can be for meaningful conversations for families and the classroom. His message and beautiful images ignited me to create Story Sequencing Props all with recycled materials and art supplies from Discount School Supply. Circle and story time is a powerful way to have conversations with children. Typically in an early childhood classroom we have the children participate with sequencing props ( felt stories , story spoons/sticks, puppets ,etc.) to act out a story. Being able to observe, recall, and sequence events is an important life skill. In sequencing, children learn about patterns in relationships and they learn to understand the order of things. By learning to sequence, children develop the ability to understand and arrange purposeful patterns of actions, behaviors, ideas, or thoughts. Ordering stories and directions helps children develop necessary skills such as reasoning and inferring. It also helps them become better writers later down the line as they learn there is a logical sequence of events in stories and life. To recreate this story I used recycled cardboard, acrylic paint , tempera paint , multicultural and washable markers, pipe cleaners, tissue paper , wood geo shapes , grandmas buttons , craft buttons , glue , and craft sticks .

Sulwe by Lupita Nyong'o and illustrated by Vasthi Harrison creates a whimsical story that inspires children to appreciate their own unique beauty. In the story Sulwe has skin the color of midnight. She is darker than everyone in her family and anyone in her school. As she finds out the meaning of her name, star, one night a shooting star comes to her window. Through her journey of exploring night and day her heart is opened to her own beauty and all that is around her. She learns that both light and dark together make the world strong and beautiful. To extend this literacy experience setting up a invitation to paint Sulwe’s stars is a great way to integrate the context of the story through process art. Simply cut out different shapes and sizes of stars , place the stars on a butcher paper , provide paint , paint brushes or simply let your child finger paint. Books related to the concept explorations such as invitations to paint are motivating and appealing to children. Information can be gained from the books read in context of a story and connected through the arts. Pictures in stories such as Sulwe impart a lot of meaning and information to help the children learn more about a topic, relate their own experiences, and guide the children's inquiry.

The story Julián Is a Mermaid written and illustrated by Jessica Love introduces children to a world of freedom of individual expression. Julián is so enamored by the glimpse of the three women dressed up in the subway, as soon has he gets home he is filled with the wonder of the magic he has seen by dressing up just like the ladies in his own fabulous way. This book is such beautiful story to bring to life and invite the children to explore the concept of the book through a hands on experience such as recreating the imagery through loose parts play. After reading a story with your child or in your classroom, integrating the story through another medium (art, loose parts, STEM, STEAM, etc.) to extend the experience strengthens literacy skills as well as fostering creative thinking. Books related to the concept explorations are motivating and appealing to children. Information can be gained from these books in context of a story. The pictures can impart a lot of meaning and information to help the children learn more about at topic, interact, relate their own experiences, and guide the children's inquiry. One of my favorite ways to extend a literacy experience is with loose parts. What are loose parts? Loose parts are simply open ended materials that are perfect for limitless possibilities, fostering problem solving skills, creativity, exposure to new materials, and decision making through play. Through this kind of free play children are really creating: using what they have and what they already know, and combining that to create a whole that’s greater than the parts. Loose parts and free play in childhood develops the creative genius of the future. To set up this invitation you can draw/paint/print out the characters, laminate them, and the provide a tinker tray full of loose parts. Read the story to your child and then invite your child to recreate the pages from the book or simply let them create.

All children are naturally curious about everything and anything that catches their eye. They have this innate nature where they must touch and explore whatever is in sight. So many times as parents and educators we find ourselves saying they aren't allowed to play with everyday materials such as remotes, light switches, door knobs, locks, etc. The compromise and sanity saver is a busy board. Busy boards give children the opportunity to explore every day household items in a fun, educational way. It can be used as an interactive tool for the whole family or caregivers, enabling adults to be hands-on with the child's learning process. Busy Boards enhance a wide range of development skills including counting and number recognition skills, fine motor and hand to eye co-ordination, and enhancing their cognitive skills when exploring how to problem solve. They also boost a child's confidence and self esteem through achievement, encourages imaginary play, and provides children with a wide range of opportunities to develop these skills through tactile learning which all children thrive in. DIY Materials Needed: Thick plywood board in a rectangular or circular shape as the base. Under our Amazon Busy Board Idea list for all the bits & bobs manipulatives.

From the moment a child is born you can intentionally invite a child to be exposed to culture in your home and classroom. Through play, art, and books you give the power of exposure to provide a window for a child to see others, to appreciate others, to respect others, to love others, to be a mirror for others, and to live with intention. A parent is a child’s first teacher. Everything you and your child do together will teach important lessons that will help them grow and learn about their world. As educators embrace, celebrate, expose, and appreciate every culture as much as possible. What is emulated in the classrooms has a ripple effect in society. Everyday when we invite a child to enter our care we have the gift of intentionally laying the foundation of acceptance in the most formative years with hopes that it carries on throughout their lifetime. #beautifulbrownart Discount School Supply Multicultural Supplies: Art: Markers , Crayons , Pencils , Paper , Cut Outs , Kit , Tempera Cakes, Colors like Me Paint Play: Dolls , Dress Up , Figurines, Puzzles , Play-Dough , Learning Blocks , Music Books: Multicultural Books 3 Titles, Multicultural Board Books , Families Books , Food of the World Books , Global Babies Board Books For a more extensive list of books and play materials check out: Amazon List Here are some amazing Instagram accounts that provide resources through play, art, and books: @theconsciouskid @hereweeread @littleblackbooknook @diversereads @thetututeacher @inclusivestorytime @blackbabybooks @wambookbundle @themomtrotter @literacyforlittles @minilandusa @drbeckyathome @akidsbookabout @discountschoolsupply @homegrownfriends @southbaymommyandme

Simply go on a walk or your yard and grab a couple of flowers. We found these wild daises growing wild in a field. Provide your child with paint and paper and let them paint ! When children are given the opportunity to paint using different objects, it allows them to add texture to their art in a creative and open-ended way.