Crafts for Kids: Olympic Wreath

Photo: uhuru1701 on Flickr

The Olympics are just around the corner. Are your kids getting excited for the Games? The Olympics are bound to inspire your family to hit the ice skating rink, sledding hill, and ski slopes (and when I say 'hit,' I sincerely hope it's not on your backside). Not only are the Olympics a great way to get your family more active, they're also a perfect learning opportunity.

Activity Village has a fun activity that you can adjust to suit any age. Using images of flags from different countries, your kids can make an Olympic wreath of their handprints. Here's the how to:

1. Print, color or draw flags on white cardstock. For youngest kids, you can use these printable flags. Older kids can research flag designs and either color flags or draw them freehand.
2. Take some time to locate each country on a map. Older kids can research and learn some basic facts about each country.
3. Have the kids trace their hands over the flags and cut them out.
4. Overlap the handprint cut outs and make a wreath. (Palm side in toward the center of the wreath.)
5. While watching the Olympics, when a country represented in your wreath is mentioned, have your kids go to the wreath and locate the country's flag. It's also a good time to reinforce the geography lesson and relocate the country on the map.
   

Be sure to check out AmeriKid for plenty of American-made toys that prove learning can be fun.

Do you have any other Olympic-themed crafts, activities or traditions planned with your family? Share your ideas in the comments.

Link Love: Haiti, Cadmium and Tantrums

Photo: jemsweb on Flickr

Here are just a few of the great sites we're reading this week.

Three AmeriKid employees are adoptive parents. It warms our hearts to see Haitian children that were already in the process of being adopted arrive to safety with their new parents. However, the flood of people wanting to help by adopting from Haiti is concerning, ParentDish explains why.

Adoption isn't the answer, but StrollerDerby gives us six ways to help Haiti.

Did you know every 15 minutes less sleep is correlated with a drop in grade point average. I didn't either! PlanetKid fills us in on the importance of sleep.

We all know about the danger of lead in children's toys and products. That's just one reason it's so important to buy toys made in USA. Now Non-Toxic Kids tells us how cadmium has been found in children's jewelry.

MomLogic knows we've all been there... welcome to Tantrum City.

Girls Don't Have to be Princesses

Photo: AForestFrolic on Flickr

Not long ago my neighbors moved away. As they were packing up the house where they had raised their two daughters, they came across puzzles, games, sports equipment and toys that they decided to get rid of. My son was the lucky recipient of most of the hand-me-downs.

One board game is about shopping at the mall. It's pink and purple and the box lid has pictures of happy, smiling girls. My son first stated that he would give it to my friend's daughter. Then he took it out (just to "make sure all the pieces were there"). He had a great time setting up all the 3D pieces on the board and reading the instructions. I mentioned that my friend's daughter was probably a bit young for the game. My son looked a little concerned. I smiled at him and said "If you want to keep it for yourself, you can. Boys can play that game, too." My son was so relieved. He liked the game but, because of the pink explosion and the girls on the cover, he felt that he shouldn't.

All it takes is a trip through a toy store to see that we're steering kids too heavily in one direction. The "girl's" aisle is stocked with pretty pink packaging and lots of princess-related items. The "boy's" aisle is heavy on action figures and trucks.

I think it's great if a girl wants to dress up as a princess or a fairy. There's nothing wrong with feeling pretty and sweet. But it's also great for girls to dress up as superheroes and firefighters, because there's certainly nothing wrong with young girls feeling powerful and capable. And I see no reason for boys to be limited to crash-em-bang-em-up toys. Boys are so much more than rough and tumble creatures. Boys should be at liberty to play with toy kitchens and take care of dolls.

From fairy wings to dump trucks, AmeriKid has many toys made in USA and they're not just for boys or just for girls... they're for KIDS.


What do you think? Do you let your kids play with toys that are primarily marketed to the other gender?

Crafts for Kids: Crayon Art

Photo: _PaulS_ on Flickr

How cold is it where you live? You know we're in the middle of a serious cold spell when even Florida and Texas have dipped below freezing. I love to look at the beautiful, crisp snow outside my window, but I don't weather the cold too well. I'm all for frozen slushies and frozen yogurt... but frozen toes? No thank you. So after a while at the sledding hill or some time spent building snowmen, I'm quick to suggest my son and I play a game or work on a project together. Inside. Where it's warm. A cup of hot cocoa doesn't hurt, either.

Recently, I went old-school with an afternoon craft. I remember making crayon and waxed paper sun catchers with my mom when I was a kid. It's an easy, fun craft suitable for almost every age (as long as a parent takes charge of the iron). My son and I made some sun catchers recently and we had a ball.

All you need are crayons in several colors of your choice, a crayon sharpener or grater, waxed paper, two thin towels, scissors, and an iron. You may also want to use a paper punch and ribbon to hang your sun catchers.

• Lay a thin towel on an ironing board or countertop then spread a sheet of waxed paper on the towel.
  
• Let your kids use the crayon sharpener to scatter multi-colored crayon shavings on the waxed paper. Or, if you have a crayon sharpener-less household like mine, a parent can also do the job with a handheld grater.
• Cover the shavings with a second sheet of waxed paper. Then cover with the second thin towel.
  
• Iron using low to medium heat. Lift the top towel frequently to check on your progress; continue ironing until all of the crayon shavings are melted.
• After the waxed paper/crayon sheet has cooled, let your kids draw fun shapes and cut them out. Cookie cutters make great stencils.
  
• If you choose, use a hole punch to create a hole at the top of each stencil then tie a loop of ribbon. Then hang your sun catchers in the window for the whole family to enjoy.

What types of crafts do you like to do with your kids?

Parent Poll: Is Homework a Hassle?

Photo: apdk on Flickr

Like those tiny sponge toys that freakishly grow when placed into water, a simple 20-minute homework assignment can grow into hours worth of pouting and whining and shouts of "I'm NOT doing my homework!" Or at least that's the case at my house... please tell me I'm not alone in my homework hassles.

My son is a very bright kid but, to him, homework is as fun as washing dishes or -- worse -- cleaning up the backyard after the dog. When there are bikes to be ridden and footballs to be tossed and toys to be played with, homework is the very last thing he wants to do.

I adopted my son when he was 10. Prior to that he hadn't been taught good study habits. But, as he now rounding the corner toward 13, I think my blaming his lack of study habits and motivation on his past is as nonsensical as my sister who blames her extra pounds on "baby weight" (even though her "babies are 20 and 21).

For a long time I hoped that, with my encouragement, my son would start to value the intrinsic rewards of doing his homework. (I know... I know. Go ahead and laugh.) But the longer I've been a parent, the more I've realized that the simple truth is homework in and of itself isn't something my kid is going to enjoy. While he'll be proud of the good grades he'll bring home, that far-away reward just isn't valuable enough to motivate him to do his nightly work.

After researching, talking to teachers, consulting with parents who aren't as green as I am, and climbing mountains to talk to gurus (okay maybe not that last one), here's what I've come up with:

• Study time, not homework time. We set aside a half-hour every evening for study time. Even if he doesn't have assigned homework, my son has to do silent reading or review work.
  
• Rewards. My son values outdoor play time above everything else, so he needs to complete his homework before we can go outside and play basketball or he can play with neighborhood friends.
• I need to be quiet. Nagging backfires on me every single time. It's better for me to remind him that he needs to get going on his homework, and then keep my mouth closed.
  
• Make the house homework friendly. When it's time for him to work, the TV and the radio are off and I engage myself in something quiet such as reading or working on the computer.
• Help has boundaries. When my son used to ask me to help him with his homework, he used to want me to DO his homework. (I assume a foster parent or someone in his past used to do this for him.) While every child is different, my son does best when I leave him to it and just keep myself available for assistance when he truly needs a helping hand.
  
• Check and cheer. When he's completed his homework, I check it over and then I praise him and give him hugs for a job well done.
• He's got no strings. When my son is really fighting his homework, I have to accept that I can't make him do it. He'll have to comply with the restrictions of no outdoor play and he'll know that I'm disappointed. He'll also have to deal with the bad grade and, if he was argumentative or disrespectful with me he'll have consequences for that. But I can't MAKE him do his work. Sometimes kids just have to live with the consequences in order to learn.
  

Is homework a hassle in your house? Vote in our Parent Poll. If you have any homework tips or stories to share, please comment.

Update: The results of our Parent Poll are in. 58% of ChatterKid readers agree that getting their kids to do their homework is a hassle. 33% sometimes have trouble with their kids. A lucky 8% report that homework is never a hassle in their house.

Resolving to Buy American Made

Photo: Berk2804 on Flickr

New Year's resolutions are pitiful little things really. They start out all shiny and bright on the first of the year... full of good intentions and lofty ambition. Then, as time goes by, they become a little neglected. Instead of shiny and new, they start to look crumpled and worn. By the end of the year, they're gathering dust bunnies in some forgotten corner. In fact, a recent poll found that 35% of made resolutions never even make it past the first of the year. But with a few tweaks on the old way of thinking, resolutions can stay shiny and new all year long.

Odds are, failed resolutions are a result of unrealistic goals or lack of short-term milestones. This year, give your resolution a fair shake. Instead of looking only at your long-term goal for the year, set a reasonable and achievable goal for each month.

Weight loss, smoking cessation, getting your finances in order... these are all good resolutions. But this year, why not set a resolution that will benefit many others besides yourself? Resolve to buy American.

There are so many benefits to buying American. The quality of the product is often higher and you can be assured that the product was made in a safe and well-regulated facility. When you see the price difference between a product -- say a t-shirt -- made in the USA and one made elsewhere, just stop and ask yourself why the cost is so different. Often, manufacturing practices in other countries ignore laborer's rights in favor of making cheap product. Do you really want to support that practice? What's more, American-made products support American jobs. And in these times of economic struggle, it's a caring act to support the jobs of your neighbors. Beyond those reasons, the safety of products themselves is often at stake. For example, toys made in USA are free of lead-based paint and other other common concerns with imports. You can also consider the environmental impact of buying American. Think of all the miles your oranges from Brazil had to travel, when you might have been able to purchase one from Florida or California instead.

But when most of the products on the store's shelves are made anywhere but the US, how can you reasonably resolve to buy American? First of all, don't expect to go cold turkey. Awareness of the issue is half the battle. As more Americans buy more American-made products, demand for products will increase. When you make this resolution, know that it probably won't be a 100% change. Try these short-term milestones in order to make your resolution a reality:

1. Read the fine print. For a starter, just read the fine print when making a purchase. See where your chosen product is made or shipped from and choose American-made when available. Be aware that an American-based company does not mean the product was manufactured here.
2. Do your homework. Once you're more aware of your purchasing habits, start researching products before purchasing them. There are many online companies selling only American-made products. While you might not be able to find American-made products on store shelves you can find them online. Also research stores and support those who make an effort to carry more American-made products.
3. Buy handmade. While many mass-produced items may be made overseas, handmade goods like those sold on Etsy are a great way to know where and how your product was manufactured.
4. Go local. Especially for food items, going local can save you money and is a great way to support your local economy. Buy in season at farmer's markets or roadside stands. Canning and freezing are environmentally-friendly ways to make your products last throughout the year.
   

Sources: Time, MSN Money