Tag: kite

Let’s Go Fly A Kite

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Kites are pure magic for babies. As I watched Veronika watch a kite for the first time today, it was one of those moments where you remember how new everything is for little ones. There is magic in what might seem ho-hum to us grown-ups, and exposing babies to even the smallest bits of wonder helps us be kids again.

So if you don’t have one, its worth investing in a simple kite. The activity was as simple as this: We headed to a park with Veronika, and unfurled a butterfly shaped kite.

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Whenever it caught the wind, her face lit up.

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She was so eager to see this amazing new object that she left our picnic blanket and went trotting off through the grass on hands and knees!

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When I held her up, she loved catching the tassels of the kite’s tail.

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For a grand finale, we looped the string of the kite around her stroller bars (take care with this, and make sure your little one can never get tangled in the cord). The faster we moved, the better the kite fluttered just in front of her, and she loved it!

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Paper Plate Kite

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Let’s be honest. Kites are great but they can also be a royal pain – all that tangled string, getting enough wind to launch the kite high, etc.

This quick project gives kids the fun of a kite without the hassle. (Bonus points: there’s fine motor skill practice involved!).

Cut the center from a paper plate (or several plates, if you want multiple kites).

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We went through our craft bin and selected pretty ribbon to tie on as the kite tails.

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Now for that fine finger work! Help your child tie each ribbon around the bottom rim of the plate.

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Travis was really proud when I told him this was almost like tying shoelaces.

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No need to wait for a windy day – just run and the kite flutters with you!

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Looking for a slightly more complicated project? Try out our plastic bag kite or tissue paper kite.

Celebrating the International Kite Festival

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I love introducing Travis to international holidays and festivals, and this cute idea popped up in Little Passport’s blog to mark the International Kite Festival or Uttarayan. Celebrated January 14 and 15 in Gujarat, India, we joined in the fun with a quick homemade kite. This project wasn’t anywhere near as involved as the plastic bag kite we crafted some time back (nor did it truly fly), but it was great fun to flutter about!

To make the kite, cross two wooden skewers into an x and tie at the center with string.

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Cut a long piece of string, and wrap around the tip of one skewer. Stretch to the next tip and wrap. Continue until you’ve stretched and wrapped around all four tips, creating a square frame.

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Cut a square from tissue paper slightly larger than your frame. Fold the edges of the tissue paper over the frame and secure with tape.

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For the tail, add a long piece of string and tie on additional strips of tissue paper for bows.

As mentioned, the kite didn’t fly so great (it has no spool of string to launch it, for one thing!), but Travis loved running with it behind him and having it flutter all over the apartment.

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We watched a video about the celebration so Travis could further appreciate what we were making. Add in some friendly insect kites we had at home, and we had a nice little indoor Uttarayan of our own.

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One additional note: If you are anywhere near an actual celebration of the kite festival, please avoid using kites where the strings have been treated with glass (a common practice). This can cause serious injury to birds who fly into the strings. Have a happy and humane Uttarayan!

K Week!

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We kicked off this week in our Letter of the Week play with a game of “Keep it Up”  – balloons that is! What toddler doesn’t love helping keep a bunch of balloons bouncing in the air?

 

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From there, we found lots of fun in words that begin with K. Read on!

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Kick: Speaking of kicking things off, fit in your child’s gross motor play this week by kicking a ball. With wintry weather outdoors, we decided to kick the soccer ball through the halls of our apartment building!

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Kleenex: Every once in a while, it’s worth it to buy what I affectionately call a “sacrificial box” of Kleenex and let your child go to town, so this was one of those times. Their absolute delight is worth the “waste”. And before you consider it a waste, the Kleenex will last for quite a few games in your K week play. You can “swim” in big piles of them, send them in the air with a theatrical “achoo!”, use them to “clean” in make-believe play, then stuff back in the box and pull them out all over again.

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Kazoo: A homemade kazoo is a cinch to make, and will provide endless entertainment marching and humming along favorite songs.

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Keys: Puzzles featuring locks and keys are great for little fingers, so pull out any toys you have along this line. I also have a few sets of old keys that Travis loves to use for make-believe, testing in all the locks around the house.

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Kiss: First read the hilarious book How About a Kiss for Me? by Todd Trapley. Then demonstrate kisses by applying lipstick and laying a smack on – hey! – Kleenex! Your child may or may not be interested in trying a lipstick kiss of his or her own.

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King: We played with our castle blocks and toy king figurine…

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… dressed up in capes like a royal king, and made a homemade crown (more on that below!).

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Kite: I have a few insect-shaped kites that Travis loves fluttering over a fan, even when their isn’t enough wind outside for kite flying. If your weather cooperates, put together a plastic bag kite!

And our weekly extras:

Fine art: What better craft than a king’s crown? I cut points along two strips of construction paper for the crown’s spikes, then Travis decorated with jeweled stickers, pom poms, glue, and lots of glitter for a royally good mess. Once dry, staple the two pieces of paper together to fit your child’s head and put on for a royally good time.

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Food: Kiwi was a fun tropical treat at breakfast this week. I also put together mini “kebabs” for dinner one night, with roasted bell peppers and Gardein beef. To make kebabs safe for little ones, thread the food on coffee straws instead of a skewer!

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Books: The favorites this week were the above-mentioned How About a Kiss for Me? and Kitten’s Winter, by Eugenie Fernandes. Check your library for any books about kangaroos.

Songs: Travis enjoyed watching clips of both Kookaburra and Let’s Go Fly a Kite! Make sure to hum both on your kazoo after.

Math: The concept is a touch advanced, but we used a toy scale this week to talk about how things have weight. Because it’s K week, I discussed each item in kilograms rather than ounces. Travis thought the scale was fantastic, filling it with pennies, toting it around, and testing out numerous toys to see how far they made the arrow move. Even if he didn’t absorb the concept of kilograms, it was a nice introduction to the idea of weight and mass.

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We’ll likely take a pause in our curriculum until the holidays are over – but we’ll see you in a jiffy for J week!

Plastic Bag Kite

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We are thankful that so far the only impact from Tropical Storm Hermine has been an increase in wind speed… Was surprised when we woke up to a lovely blue-sky day, even though the winds are starting to whirl. To get us outside before clouds or rain roll in, I decided it was the perfect day for a kite!

All you need for this fantastic craft is a plastic bag, scotch tape, plastic straws, and floss. I won’t walk you through it step-by-step, as I simply copied this easy-to-follow how-to video. The assembly of the kite is for adults, but your toddler will love watching, and the materials involved (straws, floss, tape) are sure to delight.

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Kite in hand, Travis and I headed out to the courtyard, where the gusty breezes easily lifted the kite.

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The wind was still gentle enough that Travis could take a turn holding the string!

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Oh no, kite down!

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Hard to take pictures while flying one-handed, but I managed a few good shots:

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I never would have guessed a plastic bag could turn into something so whimsical.