Fall Activites

October Alphabet: U is for U-pick Pumpkin Patch

visit to pumpkin patchOne of October’s highlights is going out to the pumpkin patch. It’s no wonder it’s a favorite for kids and they love doing it year after year.

Against the backdrop of gold and brown, pumpkins seem to glow. Each season has its own colors and yellow, orange, and red are unmistakably fall. Seasonal changes can be a source of wonder for kids. The temperature is cooler, days are shorter with dark coming before bedtime, plants are dying and drying, and there are fewer bugs and birds. Going out to choose a pumpkin is a wonderful way to connect with the season of fall.

There’s so much fun and learning that happens in a pumpkin patch.

• Special words are needed to tell about pumpkins, like round, wrinkled, heavy, stem, vine, flat, curved, and more.

• Even a small pumpkin can be fairly heavy, and the bigger ones weigh as much as a child. Muscles get lots of exercise in a pumpkin patch as kids run, bend, walk, and carry.

• As kids choose a pumpkin, they are comparing them for size, shape, and color. This is an important thinking skill. There’s a lot of information to consider before kids make their choice.

• Not just language and exercise, there’s math and science too. How many pumpkins could there be? Count some of them. As for science, kids get to see how and where pumpkins grow.

• A visit to a pumpkin patch certainly appeals to the senses.

visiting pumpkin patchEyes are busy looking all around, while fingers explore the smooth skin and bumpy stems. Noses can smell the dirt and mud and the drying leaves and stalks. Ears hear voices, boots crunching on leaves and dry grass, and maybe a wagon or tractor. The taste part happens at home, unless there’s hot chocolate or pumpkin treats outside.

There’s so much to explore and enjoy in a pumpkin patch.  Is there one in your area for a family adventure?

October Alphabet: R is for Red – Color Activities for Kids

fall color activitesEven though red is hard to say for kids, it seems to be an easy color for them to know. Let’s do some red color activities for kids. After all, red is very much a fall color too.

color red activitiesTo start the day, kids can perhaps find something red to wear. Are there any red foods for breakfast or snack? Maybe some strawberries with yogurt or dried cranberries on cereal. Apples are red on the outside and pomegranates are red on the inside.

Children will most likely have some red toys. Blocks, Legos, trains, trucks, cars, and other toys will likely have some red choices. As kids play, we can ask them if there are any red items.

It can be fun to paint with just the color red. Kids can draw anything with a red marker. A fun fall activity is coloring over leaves with a soft crayon.

fall leaf rubbingPlace a leaf underside up on a table and place a fairly light paper like newsprint on the top. It helps to anchor the paper with a bit of tape on each corner. Using the side of the crayon, kids rub it over the part of the paper covering the leaf. Abracadabra, the edges and lines of the leaf appear. Red is easy to see, but try some other colors too.

clifford-fall-puzzleStories about Clifford The Big Red Dog by Norman Bridwell have been around for ages. Besides reading books, kids might enjoy this puzzle of Clifford and fall leaves.

What other red fun might there be for color activities for kids?

Q is for Questions: Kids Ask More Than 300 Questions A Day

Would it surprise you to know kids ask more than 300 questions a day? Certainly, there is enough time in a day for that many. I don’t know why anyone would ever dispute this number, they just haven’t been around a toddler or preschooler recently. Kids are curious: they just want to know. Some good … Continue reading Q is for Questions: Kids Ask More Than 300 Questions A Day

October Alphabet: M is for Music Fun for Kids

The next letter in October’s alphabet, is M. M is for music fun for kids. Wow, is there ever a lot of research on music for learning and brain development. A study from Germany’s University of Munster found that music in early childhood can actually enlarge parts of the brain and in the book, “This … Continue reading October Alphabet: M is for Music Fun for Kids

Alphabet Fun for Kids or A is for Autumn

Although the date for autumn is in September, October feels like fall. Since autumn starts with A, today’s  play-of-the-day is some alphabet fun for kids. This book by Roger Will has both. While many parents think that kids have to know their alphabet before starting school, what kids can use is some basic familiarity with … Continue reading Alphabet Fun for Kids or A is for Autumn

Fall Sensory Play #5 – Sense of Taste

Eating is, without a doubt, a sensory experience for children and adults, and in addition to the sense of taste, also appeals to sight, smell, touch, and sometimes sound, too. For children, the texture and the color can be just as important, or even more important, than the flavor or taste. Preschool kids can be … Continue reading Fall Sensory Play #5 – Sense of Taste

Fall Sensory Play #4 – Sense of Touch

Exploring the sense of touch is fun for kids and influences their physical, mental, and emotional health. Our sense of touch develops before all other senses and is amazingly sensitive. The skin over our entire bodies will react to touch so It is a primary channel for receiving information about the world. We did 3 … Continue reading Fall Sensory Play #4 – Sense of Touch