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How to make sherbet. Simple recipe that is also a great science activity for kids

How to make sherbet

July 24, 2014 by Kate 89 Comments

Learn how delicious science can be! This post shares with you how to make sherbet that’s fizzy on your tongue, delicious and creates wonderful chemical reaction that will amaze.  Kids love science and this is one activity that also provides a sensory taste sensation that some might really enjoy. Here is a basic recipe in how […]

Filed Under: 1 - 3 years, 3 - 5 years, 5 - 10 years, Making, Party, Recipes, Science, Sensory Play Tagged With: making, recipe, science

DIY fine motor activity of threading straw beads

DIY threaded straw necklace

July 21, 2014 by Kate 13 Comments

Possum (2.5 years) is very much into making things at the moment, especially things that can be worn. The weather has been very cold lately and so we have found ourselves indoors and getting creative what whatever we have on hand. For a bit of fun I thought we could make a threaded straw necklace. […]

Filed Under: 1 - 3 years, 3 - 5 years, 5 - 10 years, Art & Craft, Fine Motor, Gift Idea, Indoor play, Making, Party Tagged With: colours, fine motor, handmade, patterns, preschooler, random act of kindness, threading, toddler

mint scented play dough

How to make mint scented play dough

July 16, 2014 by Kate 12 Comments

Here are the instructions on how to make mint scented play dough. It’s simple to make and smells amazing. Such a fun play dough for kids.  Mint is such a strong and fresh scent that I thought it would be wonderful to include it in some play dough. A new batch of scented play dough […]

Filed Under: 1 - 3 years, 3 - 5 years, 5 - 10 years, Indoor play, Playdough, Recipes Tagged With: fine motor, playdough, recipe, scented

Coloured number counting tubes for kids

Coloured Counting Tubes

July 14, 2014 by Kate 6 Comments

It is absolutely true to say that before learning to count a child needs to understand ‘one to one correspondence‘, which is having the skills to be able to match an object with a number or object. Keep in mind that children may not master this skill until well after 5 years of age. Little Possum (aged 2.5 […]

Filed Under: 1 - 3 years, 3 - 5 years, 5 - 10 years, busy bag, Numeracy Tagged With: colours, matching, math, one to one correspondence

ordering, sorting and grouping magnets game

DIY magnets using puzzle pieces

July 9, 2014 by Kate 4 Comments

Take Possum (2.5 years) to someones house and if there are magnets on a fridge she is there like lightening. She loves them so much, as I’m sure many toddlers of her age do. Given this, I thought that I should try and make some for her to play with at home. This puzzle above is […]

Filed Under: 1 - 3 years, 3 - 5 years, 5 - 10 years, Craft Tagged With: make, pretend play, recycle, toddlers

Dragonflies

Dragonfly craft for kids

June 27, 2014 by Kate 9 Comments

There is something so wonderful about dragonflies, something magical and interesting. Possum (2.5 years) was interested to learn more about them when we came across a poster, which illustrated a dragonfly, amongst other things. So to tap into her curiosity I decided to make a simple dragonfly craft for kids, which also turned in to […]

Filed Under: 1 - 3 years, 3 - 5 years, 5 - 10 years, Art, Art & Craft, Craft, Fine Motor, Play Tagged With: craft, fine motor, making, painting, preschool, pretend play

diy mud kitchen for learning and fun

How to make a simple DIY mud kitchen

June 24, 2014 by Kate 68 Comments

  Mud, glorious mud! Making a super simple mud kitchen for Possum (aged 2.5 years) and her older cousins has been my dream for quite awhile. My hesitation has never been whether they would enjoy the tactile and messy experience or not, but I wasn’t sure how to set it up so it was simple, temporary […]

Filed Under: 1 - 3 years, 3 - 5 years, 5 - 10 years, Messy Play, Outdoor Activity, Sensory Play Tagged With: all ages, messy play, outdoor activity, sensory, sponsored post

Fairy princess no sew castle for kids

DIY no sew princess castle

June 16, 2014 by Kate 17 Comments

Possum absolutely loves all forms of pretend play and one of her absolute favourite roles is being a princess. This will always see her grabbing a fluffy dress, tiara and her pair of pink sparkly shoes that seem to refuse to stay on. I always try hard as her parent to encourage and engage in her love of […]

Filed Under: 1 - 3 years, 3 - 5 years, 5 - 10 years, Pretend Play, Uncategorized Tagged With: DIY, giveaway, imaginative play, play, pretend play, sponsored post

Growing lettuce indoors from a stalk

How to grow lettuce indoors with kids

June 11, 2014 by Kate 20 Comments

You might remember that I recently shared how to grow a carrot top. It was such a success I couldn’t just stop there. I decided to give a lettuce stalk a go. Honestly, I can’t tell you how easy this was to grow. It seriously started to show signs of renewed life after the second or […]

Filed Under: 1 - 3 years, 3 - 5 years, 5 - 10 years, Growing, Science Tagged With: growing, indoor activity, science

Origin littleBIGideas competition

How to inspire little inventors

June 10, 2014 by Kate 5 Comments

This is a sponsored post by Origin Energy   As a teacher and a mother I’ve always been fascinated by the innovation and creativity that can come from children. Their gorgeous young minds are so free to explore and experiment and they don’t instantly feel the need to apply rules or guidelines to what they are doing. […]

Filed Under: 5 - 10 years Tagged With: competition, sponsored post

Simple velcro chain activity that children will love

Fine motor velcro chains for kids

May 27, 2014 by Kate 4 Comments

This has been an activity that has been swimming around in my head for awhile, fine motor velcro chains for kids. Such a simple idea that is great for building hand strength, fine motor skills and confidence with basic dressing requirements for toddlers and preschoolers. Recommended Age: 2.5/3 years + To be honest, my challenge and what has […]

Filed Under: 3 - 5 years, 5 - 10 years, Fine Motor, Making, Play, Sensory Play Tagged With: colours, fine motor, preschooler, toddler

Using a variety of coloured pasta and play dough

Invitation to play with pasta and playdough

May 19, 2014 by Kate 3 Comments

It has been over the last week or so that I brought you two instructional posts on how to colour pasta (the quick and easy way) and another where I shared my go-to playdough recipe. For a bit of fun I decided to combine both of these and create a wonderful invitation to play with […]

Filed Under: 1 - 3 years, 3 - 5 years, 5 - 10 years Tagged With: invitation to play, open-ended, pasta, playdough

quick and easy play dough recipe for kids

Play Dough recipe

May 13, 2014 by Kate 23 Comments

Don’t you love when things are just simple? I have made some really fabulous play dough recipes on this blog, such as my silky and stretchy 2 ingredient play dough and one that is deliciously strawberry scented. With those aside, I thought I’d share with you the recipe I find myself using when I just want […]

Filed Under: 1 - 3 years, 3 - 5 years, 5 - 10 years, Playdough, Recipes Tagged With: open-ended, play dough, recipe, simple

How to dye pasta in various colours

How to colour pasta for play

May 7, 2014 by Kate 16 Comments

 Keeping things simple You can find just about anything and everything to do with play on the Internet, which is fabulous but can also be quite daunting. For me, I like to keep things as simple as possible. When I’m wanting to set up a fun play idea for Possum (2.5 years), I want to get […]

Filed Under: 1 - 3 years, 3 - 5 years, 5 - 10 years Tagged With: DIY, fine motor, sensory play

DIY simple paper planes for kids on a windy day

DIY simple paper plane for kids

April 30, 2014 by Kate 1 Comment

We have been experiencing a few days of wild and windy weather where we live and they can sometimes keep us indoors. Determined to make the most of the wind, I decided to make a unique style of paper plane that your child could easily help make and have hours of fun playing with. What a […]

Filed Under: 0 - 12 months, 1 - 3 years, 3 - 5 years, 5 - 10 years, Craft Tagged With: DIY, outdoor activity, paper, preschooler, school aged, toddler

learning about emotions

Tool for teaching emotions in kids

April 15, 2014 by Kate 49 Comments

I believe this is a tool that parents, teachers and therapists could use to potentially help their children learn more about emotions in a fun and interesting way. Emotions are a tricky thing and there is rarely a time in our lives that we are not dealing with them, be it our own or those […]

Filed Under: 3 - 5 years, 5 - 10 years Tagged With: language, social skills

Easter Activities for Kids

Easter activities for kids 2014

April 14, 2014 by Kate 2 Comments

I have looked all over the internet with a fine tooth comb to bring you a wonderful collection of Easter activities for kids 2014. My focus was to find activities that you could do with your children at home that would be fun, flexible and use materials commonly found at this time of year. Wishing […]

Filed Under: 1 - 3 years, 3 - 5 years, 5 - 10 years, Art & Craft, Celebrate, Making, Uncategorized Tagged With: easter

Water beads

Water Beads

April 7, 2014 by Kate 6 Comments

Have you ever heard of water beads? It recently found out how wonderful they are for sensory play. After finding a packet in a local craft store  I began posting a few images of Possum playing with them on the Laughing Kids Learn Facebook page, I became inundated with emails and messages from people wanting to […]

Filed Under: 3 - 5 years, 5 - 10 years, Sensory Play, Uncategorized Tagged With: play, sensory

Easter Decoration made by toddler

Easter Egg Suncatcher

April 4, 2014 by Kate 6 Comments

Easter is just around the corner and Possum and I have been having fun making this Easter egg suncatcher! It was so much fun for her to make and right now it’s hanging proudly on our window at home receiving lots of comments from visitors.  Recommended Age: 3+ years To make an Easter egg suncatcher […]

Filed Under: 3 - 5 years, 5 - 10 years, Art & Craft, Celebrate, Uncategorized Tagged With: colours, easter, fine motor, sensory

Patting the moon sand

Moon Sand

March 31, 2014 by Kate 29 Comments

Brace yourselves because this is an awesome activity that your kids will love to play with. It’s called moon sand and it’s wonderful for sensory learning. What I also love is that it is super quick to make, you can even get the kids involved. Recommended age – 3 years + (always provide active supervision during play) Moon […]

Filed Under: 3 - 5 years, 5 - 10 years, Making, Play, Recipes, Sensory Play, Uncategorized

Growing a Carrot Top for kids

How to grow a carrot top

March 12, 2014 by Kate 48 Comments

Here are the instructions on how to grow a carrot top at home. This is a fabulous introduction to growing for children as it provides them with a basic form of responsibility to look after and help it grow. So much can be observed over the days it sprouts and grows up tall. Changes can also […]

Filed Under: 1 - 3 years, 3 - 5 years, 5 - 10 years, Science Tagged With: growing, science

Bath Paints using 2 ingredients

Bath Paints using 2 ingredients

March 7, 2014 by Kate 35 Comments

Children love painting, especially on the smooth surfaces found in a bathroom. With this in mind I present to you a fabulous recipe for bath paints using only 2 ingredients. It’s quite amazing to me that I’ve not yet shared an activity that is for the bath! Well the time has come for me to […]

Filed Under: 0 - 12 months, 1 - 3 years, 3 - 5 years, 5 - 10 years, Art, Paint, Recipes Tagged With: creating, paint, recipe

How to dye corn kernels for play

How to dye corn kernels for play

February 27, 2014 by Kate 13 Comments

Sensory learn is such an important part of play for children. Providing them with opportunities to explore sand, water and rice are great ways to help them develop their senses. How about corn kernels! Here are instructions on how to dye corn kernels for play. Using corn kernels for play Corn kernels are great for […]

Filed Under: 1 - 3 years, 3 - 5 years, 5 - 10 years, Fine Motor Tagged With: colour, how to

Homemade puzzles using paper plates

Homemade puzzles for toddlers using paper plates

February 17, 2014 by Kate 20 Comments

Here are some terrific homemade puzzles for toddlers using paper plates! They are so easy to make and their level of difficulty can be easily adjusted to suit the individual needs of the child. Possum (aged 2.2 years) has shown a keen interest lately in learning about colours. Maybe it’s a toddler thing. Whilst she […]

Filed Under: 1 - 3 years, 3 - 5 years, 5 - 10 years, Art, Making, Paint, Uncategorized Tagged With: colours, DIY, homemade, matching, puzzles, shapes, sorting

handmade DIY string bowl craft for kids

How to make a string bowl with kids

February 15, 2014 by Kate 22 Comments

Here are the instructions on how to make a string bowl with kids. It’s a great craft activity that is great for developing fine motor skills, especially in older children. I find it really rewarding to transform simple items into something useful. My husband has almost stopped rolling his eyes at the moments his found […]

Filed Under: 5 - 10 years, Art, Art & Craft, Craft, Gift Idea, Making, Paint, Uncategorized Tagged With: children, craft, fine motor, how to, kids, make, painting

Soft and silky play dough for kids using 2 ingredients

Silky and stretchy playdough

February 11, 2014 by Kate 173 Comments

I’m very excited to share with you how to make silky and stretchy playdough. It’s wonderfully soft, much like touching a cloud, and can be super stretchy for added fun for the kids. You also only need to use 2 ingredients to make it so it’s really easy.   Possum (aged 2.2 years) loves playdough and will often request […]

Filed Under: 1 - 3 years, 3 - 5 years, 5 - 10 years, featured, Fine Motor, Making, Recipes, Uncategorized Tagged With: fine motor, play dough, playdough, recipe

Invitation to play, create and learn

Invitation to Play and Create

February 7, 2014 by Kate 34 Comments

Here is an invitation for children to play and create. You can use common household items, various pieces purchased at a discount store and include some wonderful homemade play dough. Setting up an invitation to play and create for kids is a fabulous way to engage them in creative play and experimentation.   Suggested age : 6 […]

Filed Under: 0 - 12 months, 1 - 3 years, 3 - 5 years, 5 - 10 years, Fine Motor, Making, Playdough

How to weave paper craft

How to make paper weaving placemats

January 29, 2014 by Kate 33 Comments

I have such great memories of weaving paper placemats when I was young at school. Making them again for this blog post reminded me how fabulous they are as an indoor activity and how few materials it requires. It is also great for developing fine motor skills and creativity. Age – 3+ (This activity is open to […]

Filed Under: 3 - 5 years, 5 - 10 years, Art & Craft, Fine Motor, Making, Party, Uncategorized Tagged With: activity, children, craft, fine motor, kids, paper, party, placemats, threading, weaving

Toddler activity decorating fans for Chinese New Year.

Decorating Fans for Chinese New Year

January 23, 2014 by Kate 7 Comments

Craft activity for kids in decorating fans for Chinese New Year. Chinese New Year is an important Chinese holiday the begins on January 31st and runs over many days. I’m sad to say that I’ve never experienced the traditional Chinese New Year celebrations, although it is on my list of things to do. Splashes of […]

Filed Under: 1 - 3 years, 3 - 5 years, 5 - 10 years, Art, Celebrate, Paint, Uncategorized Tagged With: 2014, art, chinese new year, fans

Learning about States and Territories

Learning about States & Territories of Australia

January 21, 2014 by Kate 3 Comments

Australia Day is approaching and so I thought I’d take the opportunity to share a fun (and edible) way of learning the Australian states and territories. Great mapping lesson for kids! I was never very good at geography at school. It’s still something that I know I should be better at, however,  I’m sure if […]

Filed Under: 3 - 5 years, 5 - 10 years, Cook, Uncategorized Tagged With: Aussie, australia, Australia Day, kids, learning, lesson, mapping, state, teaching, territories

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Welcome
Hello and welcome!
My name is Kate and I am a mum to two little girls, Possum and Boo. We have lots of fun together learning with play at home and are pleased to share some of what we do with you.
Read my about page to find out more.

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