Just in case you don’t believe that April Fool’s can help support kindergarten readiness, just think of how many times a sense of humor is important as a life-skill. Besides, who has more sense of fun than kids?
In the spirit of fun, you can tell kids that you have decided to make a dip of mud for snack. They can cut up the fruit, which is especially yummy with mud. Because bananas are soft, they are easy for small hands to slice with a plastic or picnic knife, although they might need a hand slicing crosswise. Grownup hands can slice some apple and orange. Other fruits that kids can help cut are strawberries and grapes. Even if the pieces are too small, kids will want to lick their fingers.
For mud, there are some options. While the kids are busy, you can make some chocolate pudding or mix a little chocolate milk or powder with yogurt. Put some in individual bowls. Once the fruit is ready, bring out the bowls and let the kids dip their fruit in the mud.
Did you know that a sense of humor is actually a complicated series of thinking skills? There are several involved: recognizing intention, realizing something is irregular and understanding symbolism, and the corresponding emotional responses. It is something that kids develop and need to practice.
Playing a trick on someone also requires planning and organizing. Your child needs to predict someone else’s behaviour and reaction. And, of course, there’s the element of imagination. There are social skills involved because the event is shared, helping children bond and form community. These are all kindergarten readiness skills as well as life ones.
There are lots of fun pranks to play on others today, like mixing up shoes, putting a sock (clean, of course) in a lunch kit, putting a pair of daddy’s big socks in their sock drawer, kids can put a pair of their socks in daddy’s drawer, putting sticker eyes on a banana or apple and more. Have fun! What will happen at your house for April Fool’s?