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Exploring Green

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We have been following along with Play Create Explore and their weekly exploration of color. Last week was yellow. This week is green. Here are some activities that we did at our house:

White Rice Sensory Tub on Green Light Box

Using our multi-colored light box we turned the green lights on and placed 2 large food storage containers on the light box. I added some dry white rice. Even though she is 2 1/2, this was Ladybug's first time playing with a rice sensory tub, or anything like it, so I kept it simple and we just had rice. We talked about how it felt, looked, sounded and even tasted (not MY choice!) first. Then we drew pictures and lines with the green light showing through. I showed her how to make the first letter of her name and she tried to trace it. I got out some pouring cups to work on transfer skills. This was another new thing for her…we had used cups to pour larger items but rice was the smallest thing we've used. She had fun pouring it from one container to the other, trying to pour it from higher and higher. I DID have a plastic table cloth underneath. I'm trying to be one of those “embrace the mess” moms but my aversion to cleaning keeps me from allowing unnecessary messes.

Shamrock “Shake & Play” on the Light Box

Ha, do you like how I did not call this the same thing as a popular seasonal cold beverage from a major fast food chain? Anyhow. So I found these clear plastic green shamrocks at the Dollar Tree and knew it would be great for the Light Box. I laid out our “fancy” plastic dish with the shamrocks on it and the plastic, round tipped tweedlers and a green cup. Ladybug filled the cup with the shamrocks and then I showed her how to place her hand over the cup to shake it.

How Colored Light Changes Things

We also used the multi-colored light box to look at green things and see how they changed when we turned the light box green under it. Ladybug really liked changing it back and forth and adding new things to see what the green light did to it. I took the pictures before we started adding other colored items and did not think to snap another one!

Why Are Leaves Green?

This green theme was timed perfectly not just for St. Pat's Day but also for seed sprouting! By happy coincidence my husband recently planted seeds with Ladybug and this week they are getting big. Thinking about green things gave us a chance to talk about why leaves are green and to take a close look at our little sproutlets. I had to brush up a bit myself and then figure out how to discuss it with a toddler. I'm not expecting her to retain this lesson for her SATs or anything but it is nice to have an introduction to biology for her.

Green Foods

I follow Today I ate a rainbow on facebook which has lots of great reminders to eat a lot of colors but I had never really talked about eating colorful foods with Ladybug. As luck would have it, this week Little Big Man also got to try avocado for the first time, which Ladybug helped me mash for him. It was a nice way to start the week off and focus on green foods each time we had them.

Quilt Color Search

Little Big Man received a beautiful baby quilt from his Aunt when he was born. We use it for tummy time and other floor play. We brought it out for color explorations this week and tried to find all the green pieces. Little Big Man likes to look at the colors and Ladybug enjoyed telling him where all the green ones were. Some are lighter and some are darker so it was an opportunity to explore many shades of what she has now deemed her favorite color.

Green Toy Scavenger Hunt (with bonus Infant Toy Safety Talk)

Well this is just what it sounds like but in our house it had an added bonus. We started by finding all the green toys that we could find and putting them in a clear bin. Then Ladybug and I showed all the items to Little Big Man who is 5 1/2 months old. This was a perfect opportunity to discuss what kinds of toys are okay to give him and what kind are not. Ladybug enjoys “teaching” Little Big Man all sorts of things so it was pretty natural for us to teach him about green together. He loves to watch Ladybug talk so it was a win win win win.

Green Shaving Cream Mixing Bag

I have a mild allergy to something in shaving cream so I don't like to use it for play. A great unmessy alternative was listed on Play Create Explore and we tried it out. Just fill a zip top bag with shaving cream with a little green food coloring, tape the seal shut and let your kid squish it and goosh it to make the whole thing green. I was not brave enough to snip a corner of the zip top bag and let Ladybug “paint” with it. Maybe outside when the weather is nicer?

Thanks to Play Create Explore for the great theme ideas! Looking forward to Red next!



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2 Comments

  1. Oh I LOVE your green week! Your exploration on the light table was awesome 🙂 I am so glad to have you following along..your ideas are so fun! I’m looking forward to YOUR red week as well! 🙂

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