Books and Giggles
Playful learning activities for young children
This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #KidfreshFavorites #CollectiveBias Reading is everywhere. The teacher in me can’t help but take advantage of teachable moments in our daily lives. Lately, I’ve been guiding my girls to read recipes, food labels and package directions. Liam, my oldest,…
This week we’re kicking off our summer fun learning series with 30 AWESOME sidewalk chalk games for literacy learning. Whether your kids are working on letter recognition, letter sounds, handwriting, or sight words, we’ve got you covered. Time to get outside and LEARN! Super Fun Sidewalk Chalk Games When the weather is warm, I love being outside with…
This Easter egg alphabet activity is a fun story extension for a cute book. You can set it up as an invitation to play or as a more directed activity. Disclosure: Books and Giggles is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to…
Spring is finally here in full force, and I’ve been thinking about Earth Day activities for kids. These kid-created, storybook-inspired wildflower field guides were a lot of fun for all 3 of my elementary aged children. (Disclosure: Books and Giggles is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed…
Inside: This Very Hungry Caterpillar activity for preschoolers provides fine motor skill and story retelling practice to go along with Eric Carle’s classic children’s book. (Disclosure: Books and Giggles is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising…
Spring comes early in Texas. Last week, I decided to take advantage of the perfect weather and take the kids on a nature hike with me. The twins are 7 now, and Liam is 10. They definitely have their own ideas about how to spend their time. But I had a great plan! When…
These Mardi Gras kids’ activities all use leftover Mardi Gras beads for hands on fun! We celebrate Mardi Gras here in our corner of Texas. It’s not as big as New Orleans, but oh my goodness it’s fun! For several years now, we’ve trekked down to Galveston Island for their daytime children’s parades. The kids…
If you have kids who’ve been swept up in the water bottle flipping craze, this is the Valentine card for them! My tween has been known to try his hand at bottle flipping, and so we made up these crazy straw kids Valentine cards for him to give to his classmates. Kids Valentine Cards I’ve been thinking…
These Earth Day literacy activities integrate important science and citizenship lessons with letter learning, sight word practice, writing letters, and word work such as ABC order. My kids have always been naturally interested in Earth Day. The idea behind it is easy for them to relate to and understand. We spend a lot of time teaching…
Inside: This months of the year activity includes a free printable, plus additional resources to help you teach your kids the individual months as well as the concept of 12 months in a year. I have the months of the year stuck in my head. You know that song that kids sing in preschool and kindergarten? That…
This gingerbread name activity uses our homemade gingerbread scented play dough. You’re going to love it! (Books and Giggles is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.) We’re joining in with the…
Inside: These construction theme letter crafts have a fun, interactive element. You” find a craft for the letters b, c, d, and e (there are two letter b crafts). (Disclosure: Books and Giggles is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to…
My three kids argue with each other about as much as most siblings do. Which is to say, a lot. So when we all pile in the car for a long drive to visit family, I need a plan. Keeping sibling peace in the car is critical for my sanity! We’re a road-tripping family. We…
These monster learning activities will get kids’ attention. From shape and color activities for toddlers and preschoolers, to an Monster ABC order activity for elementary kiddos, there’s something for everyone. Whether it’s Halloween or not, a monster theme is lots of fun. Monster Learning Activities This first group is bright and colorful. Don’t you love googly eyes?! Monster…
This apple theme sight word game was fun to make, and my girls were excited to play with it. I’m can’t wait to share it with you! I’ve been trying to get into an autumn frame of mind here. I keep imagining chilly mornings, hints of fall foliage, and apple picking. Instead, here in Texas, we have warm, humid…
This Brazil bingo game is a fun way to learn about or review facts about the country. UPDATE – I created this Brazil bingo activity in 2016 when the Summer Olympics were in Rio. It turns out, though, that the game is timeless. Teachers can use this with their South America geography lessons or units about…
When I think about the Olympics, one of the things I think about (besides the latest news headlines) is all the flags from countries around the world. I think about the beautiful athletes marching in with their national flags. I imagine the flags on the scoreboards and at the medal ceremonies. The Olympics seems like the…
We’ve been meaning to do a borax crystal project for a while now. I bought the borax, and it’s been staring at me from the pantry shelf ever since. Finally, we needed a fun rainy day activity, and decided to go for it! Borax Crystal Letters I was thinking we’d make geodes like I’d seen several…
Kids learn sight words best when they’re actively engaged. For some children, that can be sitting down playing a fun sight word game like this ladybug themed game I made. Other kids need to use their whole body! My son Liam was like that. He had no interest in doing any kind of worksheet, but if he…
If you have high-energy kids like I do, they’ll love this collection of summertime jumping games. You may remember some of these from your own childhood. They’re all serious outdoor fun, and they’ll all wear out your little jumping beans. When you’re done, you can try one of these ball games for kids too! Jumping Games… Ready, Set,…
We had so much fun with our ladybug theme, I decided to make a ladybug learning game. We’re going to use it to practice sight words, but you can also use it to work on math facts or ABCs. Even better, kids of differing abilities can play together. Ladybug Learning Game Materials You can print your own copy…
This post is part of the Learning with Manipulatives blog hop. This week we’re sharing ideas for pattern blocks. I started working on this post thinking I’d do something with a space theme, since Sophie is still obsessed with space. I challenged all 3 kids, even Liam, to create something. They were eager try….
We recently took the kids to a bird rookery in High Island, Texas. I know it’s a departure from my usual posts, but it was too amazing to keep to myself! Birding With Kids – Part One My kids’ excited voices broke through the chorus of nesting birds and frogs. I imagined dirty looks…
Learning basic geography can be fun for kids if you present it well. Hands-on activities like puzzles are one way to make maps interesting. Today I’m sharing 3 free continents puzzles that you can print on card stock and cut out yourself. Age 4 or 5 isn’t too early to learn the continents if you…