Sensory Learning Part Deux! Pink Martini and Play Doh

After yesterday's Opera and Garden Exploration, today we had Pink Martini and Play Doh.  I see Pink Martini as kind of the Worlds Fair of Music.  Perfect for Art!  

He started outside with a little of each color and then ended up inside when he was determined to sculpt the fish in our fish tank.  Big fun!  

Sensory Learning in your backyard! :)

This morning with our homemade touch table.  A radio flyer wagon filled with mud, water, sticks, and bath toys.
See activity at bottom of page.

In early childhood development, we time and time again visit the subject of sensory learning and how creating a learning environment that plays to the senses really enhances a child's learning.  They retain more information through their senses than they do through strict direct instruction.

There are multiple articles to reference this theory and I will list them below........... but also your own senses should tell you that it works for you too! Don't you wish employers spent time creating environments for workers the same way we work to create environments for children to learn?  What a life it would be!

Here is the Activity:

You want to make the start of a day big adventure.  Tell your child you are going to listen to some music and play outside.  Talk through what you are playing for them (what kind of music, jazz, rock and roll, classical etc.) and go to the outdoors!  Here is an opportunity to do Music appreciation and science all together.  Having a background in Music, this was an exciting idea for me.  This morning with my son, I told him "We are going to listen to some music, are you ready?" I put in Mozart's Die Zauberflöte.  Research shows that Mozart is preferred by the listener because the chord progressions are predictable to the brain, however the only studies to link enrichment learning to classical music and Mozart, have shown a temporary jump in spatial reasoning tests. (See link below) If this is the case, I would think it would be perfect for outdoor sensory learning.  I feel another study coming on.

We went into the yard and filled watering cans to water the Garden, we raked, and we filled his wagon with water to use as an exploration table.  I let him choose what he wanted to put in the wagon.  He chose a couple of plastic toys and some natural world too.  He got some dirt, and some sticks and grass.  Our world is so full of plastic, that it seems a natural comparison for a child to make these days.  He stuck his hands in the muddy water and floated his plastic toys while listening to The entire Opera (which is a really long time).  He also detoured and found a caterpillar in the garden.  This was a beautiful green caterpillar looking for a place to cocoon.  We talked about the Little Einstein's video he has where the caterpillars migrate to Mexico.  Any connections to prior learning you can make are preferable and will enhance their experience.  A bee flew by and was studying the plants, so we talked about how he was looking for flowers to pollinate.

Here are some links:

http://www.uwosh.edu/departments/psychology/rauscher/Mozart%20and%20Mind.pdf


http://www.earlychildhoodnews.com/earlychildhood/article_view.aspx?ArticleID=227

http://shamslab.psych.ucla.edu/publications/tics2008-reprint.pdf

Professional development:

online course........   www.ascd.org/pdi/pd.html

Book..........  Multiple Intelligences, By Thomas Armstrong (I read the Second Edition)

Do we have a match?

I have repeatedly watched OPB with my son, and see this game everyday.  He loves it and talks to the TV.

If you haven't seen it, it's just a game on the TV that makes a picture when you complete a match.    I chose letters.  When you flip over two cards, you ask them..... "Do we have a match?"
The child says yes or no, and you confirm if their answer is correct and do it over.  If they make a match, leave it flipped over so they can see it for the next round.  When they flip the next set over, they can see if it meets the same criteria.  Mostly, are the pictures the same?  In my game, the pictures and colors match, and the letters are the same letter, but they are both upper and lower case versions of the letter.


  I started with A's, B's, and C's........

Here are some pictures of the cards used in my game.

I have him put them together when he has made a match.  These games are really fun but can only be done in short stints or your house will be a disaster (trust me).  I got these particular cards at TJMaxx for 3 dollars.  

Red, White, and Blue Pops! Happy Fourth!

Greek Yogurt White and Blue Pops :)

These popsicles were so easy........ 2 cups of plain greek yogurt, 1/2 cup or orange juice, and 1 cup of blueberries..... oh and 1/4 cup of sweetener.  I used Maple Syrup!  Stir and pour into your mold of choice.  I only made a few to test but they were delicious and festive.  My son loved them.

These Firecracker pops took a little longer to layer but they were delicious and simple.   First layer of red was 1 cup of strawberries and a quarter cup of maple syrup blended.    White layer was 1 cup of greek yogurt and 1/4 cup maple syrup with 1/4 cup of unsweetened shredded coconut.  I used Bob's Red Mill coconut.  The last layer was 1 cup of blueberries with 1/4 maple syrup blended.

The consistency of your berries may vary, if you need to, add a little water for your puree if it needs more liquid or if you are using frozen berries.  Enjoy the process of using seasonal produce to fulfill your sweet-tooth and your nutritional needs :)

When removing the pops, I had to persuade them a little by running the outside of the mold under a little hot water to loosen it.  

Morning Oats

Refrigerator Oats:

1/2 Cup Greek Yogurt

1/4 cup Rolled Oats

1 Tbsp Flax Seeds

1 Tbsp Chia Seeds 

(I used seeds from Bob's Red Mill)

Raisins

Coconut Milk (I used Vanilla So Delicious brand)

In 1/2 mason jar or any container that holds roughly 1 cup of contents, put in 1/2 cup Greek Yogurt.  Pour in your 1/4 cup of rolled oats on top, then a layer of flax seeds and Chia seeds.  Next layer your raisins on top, enough for roughly two row layers (helps sweeten the mixture a bit).  Then pour in your coconut milk till the jar line and screw on an airtight lid.  I use the regular mouth plastic lids by Ball.  Leave them to soak in the refrigerator overnight until the seeds plump and the oats "cook".  

It looks like the picture below in the morning.  Make sure you stir it well to have an even consistency.  You can sprinkle in some coconut, preserves, or additional dried fruit. 

Enjoy your healthy breakfast!

Turkey Nuggets

Here is what you need for Turkey Nuggets:

Organic Ground Turkey Meat

1 cup Rice Flour (I used Bob's Red Mill)

2tsp Italian Spices

Salt and Pepper

1 cup Olive Oil or egg wash (1 egg whisked with 1 Tbsn water)

Preheat oven to broil on 375 degrees.  I put the rice flour in a shallow dish mixed with the Italian Spices.  Also put the Olive Oil in a shallow dish to prep for the breading on the nuggets. Take a small ball of turkey meat, then roll it first in the Olive Oil (I have had a little more crispiness with an egg wash), and then in the Rice Flour mixture.  Place the balls of turkey on the pan, and press down on them with a flat surface like a spatula.  Place nuggets in the oven for 15 minutes.  Test them at 15, and if not quite browned on the outside (they should be slightly crisp) then check every few minutes until they are done.  Make sure they have sauce!  I used some ranch dressing and a honey mustard.  Let your creativity kick in on this one.  

The Ninja Warrior

I call this smoothie "The Ninja Warrior"

The boys in my household love that show.  My son says "Climb!"  On days like today when he just can't stop eating......... I decided to feed him this:

Makes two smoothies

1 cup vanilla yogurt

1/2 cup coconut milk

1/4 cup orange juice

2 Tbs whey powder or liquid whey

2 Tbs unsweetened shredded coconut flakes

1 Tbs Flax Seed Meal