Do you have a kid’s birthday party coming up? Wooden toys and/or toys that don’t require batteries are a little more eco-friendly. Wood is easier on the planet in so many ways. And batteries aren’t easy on the planet. Plus, you’re doing the parents a favor by not having to replace batteries every few months. (=

Here’s a list of some planet-friendly gift possibilities:

• Melissa and Doug toys, puzzles, etc. I also particularly love the Melissa and Doug alphabet sticker book for a great gift.

 

• Wooden tinker toys

 

• Craft supplies, markers, paints, pads of paper, and play-doh

 

• Balls/sports equipment

 

• Pop-up books (for kids 3 and older)

 

• Photo collage or photo book with pictures of the birthday boy or girl

 

• Legos (they’re plastic, but they last a long time and don’t require batteries, so I decided to include them as a possibility).

 

• Duplo sets (I love this gift for a 2 year old). Amazon has a bunch of cool sets for girls and boys priced around $10 (Baby Zoo and Police Bike, etc.).

 

• “Plastic” toys made from corn starch and other biodegradable materials

 

•   Gift card or a gift you know they want

 

Of course we still give the occasional plastic gift that requires batteries, etc. But, we try to go the more eco-friendly route most of the time. Do you have a favorite planet-friendly gift to give?

~Carrie

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“What do you want to be when you grow up?” It’s a classic question. For some people, their answer stays the same and for others it changes often. Some of the careers I remember considering when I was little were hotel manager, pediatrician, and teacher. Of course, teacher was what I finally decided on, sometime in high school.

I created a lesson for approximately 3rd grade and above that has lots of choices for career paths. The main part of the lesson is a comprehensive checklist of 216 different jobs.

Below is a sample of the first part of the lesson. I included as many modern jobs as I could (blogger, etc.). If you’d like to see a full preview of the lesson, go to my TpT Store and click on the light orange Download Preview button.

 

 

This is the first of 4 pages full of career choices. Hopefully this is a starting point to get kids thinking about what might interest them!

~Carrie

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This is my second installment of “10 Things I De-cluttered this Week.”

Here’s what I was able to send off to charity (from top left to right):

• Two vases
• Maroon bag
• Rolodex that my husband needed for a prop at one time
• Party hat
• Container for vacuum sealer (I still have two of these in case we ever start using them)
• A pair of my old shorts that are a little out of date
• Two outgrown kid’s shirts
• Orange juicer (I got a glass one and I decided I just need one)[spacer height=”20″ mobile_hide=”true”]

Most of these items came from my basement. Good luck with your own de-cluttering! Every little bit helps. (=

~Carrie

p.s. Click here to see my first “10 Things I De-cluttered” Post

 

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I’m excited to be doing a guest post on Living and Learning at Home.

10 of my Favorite Tips for Reading with Your Child:

1. Let them choose between a couple of different books to read to you. They’ll feel more invested in the process if they’re able to decide which book they’re most interested in reading.

For the rest of the tips, visit Living and Learning at Home.

~Carrie

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This was an easy activity for my kids to practice sight words and letters. It was inspired by Playdough to Plato’s Sight Word Pancakes Game that I saw on Pinterest.

We decided to pretend they were flipping hamburgers. It’s great because this game can be differentiated. My Kindergartener flipped sight words while my 3 year-old flipped letters. You can write the letters or words yourself or your child(ren) can write them before you begin, if that’s something they’d enjoy. I also like the fact that you will most likely have the materials to make this game on hand.

Materials:

• Cardboard
• Scissors
• Marker
• Pan
• Spatula
• Words or Letters that your child needs to practice

 

Use a circular stencil like a cup to draw circles on the cardboard. Cut out the circles and write words or letters on them.

To play: They can talk about the words or letters they’re flipping. You can also ask them to flip different words to help them learn the words.

My kids wanted to keep playing with the burgers after they were done flipping them in the pan. Fun!

~Carrie

 

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