Mini Me Montessori Pre-School

Lockdown activity:

Science craft: explore how water molecules move

Development:
• Concentration
• Science awareness
• Molecule exploration
• Coordination
• Imagination
• Creativity

Material:
• Running glue (craft glue, wood glue)
• Paper (if possible, use cardboard or any hardened paper)
• Salt
• Paint (diluted: 1 part paint to 5 parts water)
• Paint brush

Method:
1. Prepare all the materials
2. Draw a shape on the paper (this can be done with the glue only or you may encourage the child to draw with a pencil first and then using the glue)
3. Pour salt all over the glue. Making sure that there is enough salt covering all the glue parts
4. Remove the lose salt
5. Now using the paint and brush, dunk the brush into the watery paint, and press lightly onto the salt. The paint will flow freely to all the salt particles until there is no more paint.
6. Let the child explore with different colours and note how the paint flows freely to cover all parts of the salt.

Tips:
You do not have to wait for the glue to dry

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🎥:

Lockdown activity:

Pe***ng: while you are busy with the washing, keep your child busy by allowing them to experience pegs and how it works. It wil develop a correct pencil grip for future writing as well as strengthening the fingers.

Development:
• Concentration
• Fine motor grip
• Pencil grip
• Muscle strength
• Coordination

Material:
• Pegs
• Containers

Method:
1. Encourage the chil to experiment how pegs open an close.
2. Let the child explore with the pegs
3. Encourage the child to place the pegs on the edge of the containers and also to remove it again.



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🎥:

Lockdown activity:

Shape puzzles

Material:
3 different shapes (2 of each) printed or drawn on paper
Scissors
Pencil
Ruler

Method:
1. Prepare all the materials.
2. Cut out the shapes.
3. Now cut one of each shape in different segments
4. Now lay the uncut shapes in front of the child.
5. Explain to the child that the other small pieces will be used to build a shape similar to the complete shapes.
6. Demonstrate to the child.
7. Allow the child to have a turn and explore with the cut pieces.
8. When the child has completed all the shapes, you can cut the pieces into smaller sections. This can be repeated until the child does not want to no more.

Tips:
Start with regular shapes, then irregular shapes
Encourage the shape names as the child identifies the completed shapes

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🎥:

Lockdown activity:

Counting: 1-10 using Astros

Material:
Paper
Scissors
Marker pen
Small objects(Astros, raisins, uncooked beans)
Cup/bowl

Method:
1. Prepare all the material for the child to use.

2. Making the number cards. Write numbers 1 to 10 on a paper with a marker and cut it out.

3. Place the cards(1-10) and bowl with Astros in front.

4. Explain to the child that we will count out Astros for each number card.

5. Take number card 1 and place one Astro underneath the card. Then say one.

6. Ask the child to take another card and place the correct amout of Astros underneath the number card. Repeat this step until all the cards have the number Astros the cards indicate.

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Lockdown activity:

Arts and crafts: peg puppets

Material:
6 x Small pictures of any animals
6 x Wooden pegs
Glue
1 pair of Scissors
Colouring pencils

Method:

1. Prepare all the materials. Make sure the pictures you get are side view pictures so that the mouth can move.

2. Colour in all the pictures

3. Cut out each picture

4. Cut straight through the mouth of the picture (see in video)

5. Put glue onto the one side of the peg (top and bottom part)

6. Paste the top part of the picture onto the top side of the peg

7. Paste the bottom part of the picture onto the bottom side of the peg

8. Make sure the glue did not spread. This will disable the function of opening and closing the peg.

9. Enjoy a dialogue with the different picture puppet pegs

Tips:
- ask your child to chose the pictures
- use paint instead of pencils
- do not use too much glue
- encourage siblings to join in dialogue and make a puppet show

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Lockdown activity:

SCIENCE DAY: Chemical reaction

Material:
White spirit vinegar
Bicarbonate of soda
1 x bottle
1 x spoon
1 x balloon

Method:

1. Prepare all the materials

2. Place a little bit of vinegar into the empty bottle

3. Fill the balloon with 3-4 spoons of bicarbonate of soda

4. Pull the balloon over the top of the bottle

5. Turn the balloon over so that the bicarbonate of soda falls into the vinegar

6. Explore how the balloon inflates

Science behind everything:
It is seriously impressive how the balloon inflates, but why does that happen? When the baking soda meets the vinegar, there is a chemical reaction as carbon dioxide gas is created and fills the balloon causing it to inflate.

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Lockdown activity:

Material:
1 big bowl (can be glass or plastic)
1 spoon (any spoon works)
10 bottle caps (any bottles laying around the house)
2 smaller bowls
1 jug with water inside

With this activity it is crucial that the child does most (all) of the work him/herself. Provide all the material and place in such position that the child is able to do the activity independently.

Method: (you can do the activity first so that the child knows what to do)

1. Pour the water from the jug into the bowl

2. Place all the caps into the bowl (one at a time

3. Scoop the caps out with the spoon into the smaller bowls. Make sure that if the right hand is used to scoop the cap out, it must be placed into the left small bowl (This develops the midline crossover movement). Ensure to alternate hands as a turn passes.

4. When all the caps are devided into the small bowls, push to the side the big bowl with water.

5. Now, remove the bottle caps from the small bowl and place it on the counter top in a line. Do this for both small bowls until all caps are on the counter.

6. Count both rows of caps and ensure they have equal amount of caps. If not, redo the activity or encourage the child to make a plan in order to get the caps equal (Add one from the left side to the right). Use phrases like: "which row has more caps" or "does the left side has more caps than the right side".

7. You can ensure the child understands which hand represents which side, but if the child has not yet grasped that you can still do the activity.

This activity can be done over and over as it develops and refine Coordination, Crossing the midline, Laterality, Quantity comprehension, Left and right sides, Comprehension of Equal, more than and less than.

Hope your child enjoys this!

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