Little Duck Family Child Care

The leaves are falling like crazy all over town and it is always nice to try and enjoy some of what nature has to offer! There are a huge number of leaf crafts you can do with the kids the year and we had the most fun making leaf stamps this year. We simply went out on a nature walk and spotted as many leaves as we could and looked at the difference between the trees that lose their leaves and the ones that do not. Teaching the small things in nature is always a great idea when exploring. Small pieces of information like: Some trees stay green year round and that is the mystery of nature, these are the ones we use as Christmas trees! The kids grabbed their favourite leaves and we brought them inside to dry off.  We picked out some lovely fall colours and painted the side of the leaves with the veins. These are some great  tempura paints  that easily wash off tiny hands.  Begin stamping your leaves on either blank paper, a canvas, or card stock.  These would make great gifts from your l

We love to get crafty here in our daycare and getting creative with items we have on hand is one of our best talents. I always try to use the items I have in my home before buying anything new, not only does it help to save money on craft supplies but it helps to declutter and spark creativity.  This week we made jack o lantern necklaces using ping pong balls and they turned out super cute. The ping pong balls are big enough that even the little ones can wear them while being supervised without worrying about whether or not they are going to choke.  I used a drill to create a hole on either side and then strung it through the ball. I helped he little ones create a face on their necklace but if you have bigger kids you can definitely allow them to colour their own or use stickers to decorate. You could also slip in a small glow stick before putting it on the string to create a glow necklace as well.  Some other great fall crafts we absolutely love creating are:  Super Easy Fall Crafts F

Trying t on get my kids to read books is nearly impossible now that they are older and have cell phones and tablets. I have been fighting a losing battle and it seems I will never raise avid readers. I kept trying to encourage it and continue to encourage it as I run my daycare, it only works for so long but I will not give up. I use special tricks to encourage the kids to read and they absolutely love it, so try some of these to encourage reading more often! Themed books (Here is a list of The Best Halloween Kids Books ) Comfy reading spaces, blankets, jammie days! Look and find books are always popular with little ones  Give books as gifts and take the time to read with them Setup a designated time to read together before bed Bring books on trips and adventures Use books for researching people and places you visit Always encourage kids to pick up a book and read, if they ever find a series they like try to nourish it and help the love grow by making it a big deal. Reading is becoming