Can you believe that we are already in the month of March? This year is going by fast! I want to thank all of my families for allowing me to spend time with their children. It is my joy to get to spend time with them and support their children on their learning journey!
Before I get into the fun stuff for the month of march, I just want to remind all of you newcomers that I provide a free assessment of needs. It allows me to learn more about your child and their needs. If you are interested in scheduling one be sure to go to my linktr.ee or my website and send me a response.
Now for the fun part! March is a season where we are moving from Winter to Spring. Many times, we are able to get outside and enjoy the outdoors. As I was doing some thinking about this newsletter, I tried to give you a variety of activities that you can do indoors and outdoors to keep the learning going.
Indoor Fun!
Let’s start with some simple cooking activities that you can do to build knowledge of fractions! Try a simple recipe. In honor of March, we can think of things that are GREEN!
Green Smoothie: (From Google Search) Blend together 1 banana, 1 cup spinach, 1/2 cup pineapple, 1/2 cup Greek yogurt, and 1 cup coconut water for a healthy and refreshing drink.
Shamrock Shakes: (From delish.com) Blend the following and top with whipped cream and cherry.
- 3 large scoops vanilla ice cream (about 1/4 c. each)
- 1/4 c. heavy cream
- 1/2 tsp. peppermint extract
- 6 drops green food coloring
- Whipped cream, for topping
- Maraschino cherry, for topping
Or, you can go all in and order a cookbook just for the kids and really get to work on those cooking and fraction/measurement skills! Here is one that I think looks amazing! It is called, The Complete Cookbook for Young Chefs. I really like the photographs, kid friendly recipes, and the visual directions. (Amazon Affiliate Link)
For those of you looking for something to do indoors that will help your child’s fine motor skills, and counting, you can make a rainbow! Give this a try! Print out the rainbow sheet I have provided. Then cut apart the squares and circles that are available. Use those shapes to fill in each color of the rainbow. You can have your child count how many shapes it took them to fill in one of their colored portions of the rainbow. Your child will be working on fine motor skills, color recognition, and counting! Be sure to hang your rainbow up somewhere in the house! Be sure to get this free printable at my resources page on midwesttutor.com!
I LOVE science activities. I used to be the science teacher for my grade level and this was one class that I would get so excited about! I have looked for a couple of really fun science activities that you can do that will support your child in math and in science. We have to remember that math and science are interrelated! Your child will be using their math skills when they are doing science. Here are a few simple, yet very fun activities you can do at home. If you want to take them outside, then go for it!
Rainbow Rain! Why yes! This is a super simple science lab. Your elementary children will love it! You will need any type of white shaving cream, a clear glass or mason jar, regular tap water, and several different colors of food coloring. Fill the glass container about ½ to ¾ full of water. (Fraction practice!) Add shaving cream to the top of the water. The shaving cream needs to rest on top of the water, so DO NOT MIX if in. Choose your colors. Decide how many drops of each color you want to add. If you choose 5 drops, then try to add 5 drops of each type. Add those drops to the tops of the shaving cream in separate sections. If you want to add some more MATH to this, then be sure to time how long it takes each of the food coloring drops to flow into the water or time how long it takes all of the colors to fully mix in the jar. Now you have worked on some counting and timing skills. If you want to add some “lab” time to this, then have your child draw and label what they observed. Then you can talk about what happened. Have your child think about one way to change this experiment, and then redo this activity with your change. Here are some ideas for changes you can make: use ice water with ice cubes instead of tap water, use a different brand of shaving cream, dilute the food coloring and see what happens. I have added this activity to my free resources page, and you can print it out and use it as a science/math activity for your kiddos. Have fun with this one!
Outdoor Fun!
If you have followed along with me at all, you will want to keep reading, because I have a fun outdoor game that you can play and adapt to any math topic your child is currently using in their learning journey. GIANT OUTDOOR MATH GAME BOARD! Yes! You can make one! Here is a simple idea that you can use and your child can help build it!
You will need: magic markers, a single die to roll or you can use an app off of your phone, paper plates or heavy card stock, flashcards with math facts or vocabulary your child may be learning (or any other skill you want them to practice), and you may potentially need some small stones to hold down your paper plates if it is windy out.
Set up directions:
Place Numbers 1-30 on the paper plates, on 5 of the paper plates put words like “Go forward 1, Go backwards 1, lose a turn, roll again, or go back to start.” Lay out the pattern for the gameboard in your backyard. If it is too windy or the weather won’t cooperate, just use the space in your house.
How to Play:
Each person becomes the playing piece in your game. Each person needs access to the pile of question cards, so you can simply give each player 10 questions, they have to answer those questions on their turn, and then they can move forward if they answer the question correctly. You can also give each person a single die to roll, or one player can be in charge of the die. If they player has answered correctly, they move, if not, they stay put. Play continues until the players have answered their questions correctly and all of their cards are used or until you have shared all of the questions and all of them are used amongst all players, or until one person reaches the end of the gameboard. Have fun with this one!
Variation of this idea: Instead of using paper plates, use sidewalk chalk and your driveway to draw out the gameboard!
I have created a really fun outdoor (or indoor if the weather doesn’t cooperate) angle scavenger hunt. If your child is just learning to read a protractor or learning about the different types of angles, you will love this activity. I provide you with a printable protractor, a reference sheet, and a recording sheet that you can print and go! Use this as an opportunity to do some outdoor learning, visit nature, observe and measure as you go! Be sure to get the entire activity at my resource page at midwesttutor.com! If you go here, it is a freebie!
I hope these resources bring joy to you and your family! Thanks for checking back to see what new and fun activities you can do with your children at home. My goal is to help support families as their children learn and grow!
For more information about Tutoring with Sheryl be sure to visit the following:
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Tutoring with Sheryl 