Tummy time with a Swiss ball

Transcription

1 Tummy time with a Swiss ball Playing with babies on an exercise ball is a fun way to help them strengthen postural muscles necessary for the development of motor skills. Overall Developmental Benefits: Vestibular stimulation; balance; spatial orientation; depth perception; hand eye coordination; neck strength and midriff strength Tummy Time: An extra benefit of much of this ball play is it can be a more engaging (fun!) and comfortable way for some babies to spend time on their tummy. Start With Rocking: You can do this with a younger baby just use less range of movement with the ball for rocking with a younger baby Lay baby on their tummy on top of the ball facing you (you should be sitting on the floor) Holding baby at their waist securely the entire time Rock baby back and forth; smile and make eye contact so she feels secure When baby gets older and has more control of their head and neck you can roll baby and encourage them to grasp objects and pick them up. Don t enhance or interfere with the baby s efforts; let them naturally try to lift their head more as you rock them forward. And if they are not lifting their head yet, the rocking motion alone is a great workout for their vestibular system and balance development. Do for as long as baby is comfortable and tolerant with the time on their tummy. Links to Te Wharaiki Exploration Goal 2 Children experience an environment where they gain confidence and control of their bodies.

2 Balloon Rockets What you will need Piece of yarn Balloon Drinking straw Tape Scissors What to do: Start by tying one end of the string to the back of a chair Thread a drinking straw onto the other end of the string, and then tie the string to the second chair Attach 2 pieces of tape (about 2 inches in length) to the centre of the straw Next, inflate a balloon (Don t tie the end!) Holding onto the opening of the balloon (so the air doesn t escape), attach it to the straw using the tape Pull the balloon to one end of the string (so that the opening of the balloon is touching one of the chairs), and let go Observe what happens. The balloon should start to move as soon as you let go of it. Action and reaction is a fairly simple concept To make an object move one way, a force has to work in the opposite direction. In this case, the balloon is full of air. When you let go of the balloon, causing the air to rush out of the opening, it creates a pushing force in the opposite direction. This makes the balloon move. Real rockets work in a similar way. A rocket engine works by exploding fuel inside a chamber that is open at the bottom. The force of the explosion creates an opposite force that pushes the rocket up and into space. Exploration goal 4- Children experience an environment where they develop working theories for making sense of the natural, social, physical and material worlds.

3 Hungry Caterpillar Sandwiches Ingredients: - 2 loaves white bread, sliced vertically - butter - 3 slices ham - 3 slices chicken - 4 slices cheese - 1 small tomato - 1 green onion stalk Directions Step 1. Lay two slices of bread out on a cutting board. Butter both pieces. Place ham on one slice, and then cover with the other buttered slice. Repeat to make a chicken sandwich and then a cheese one. Step 2. Cut out circles from each sandwich using a mini cookie cutter. Step 3. Place on a platter in a wiggly shape to form the caterpillar's body - you can alternate each sandwich flavour if you like. Step 4, Position a tomato at the start of the body to become the caterpillar's head. Next, cut out two very small ovals of cheese for the eyes. Dab with butter to act as a 'glue', then stick onto the tomato to start forming the caterpillar's face. Slice small pieces of green onion for the pupils (again, using butter to 'glue' them to the eyes). Cut two long strands from the onion stalk to act as the caterpillar's feelers and fix onto the tomato using toothpicks. When finished, cover your sandwich caterpillar with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to serve. Communication Goal Four: Children experience an environment where they discover and develop different ways to be creative and expressive. Belonging Goal Two: Children experience an environment where they know that they have a place (helping others with self-care skills)

4 Rolling Pin Yarn Prints What you will need Rolling pins Glue/ hot glue Yarn Plate Paint How to do it 1. Dip the yarn in glue and wrap it around the rolling pin, allow to dry. Alternatively: hot glue one side of the yarn and wrap tightly around the rolling pin, hot glue the end and for extra security add a little hot glue to the middle if desired 2. Pour some paint onto a plate. Roll the rolling pin in the paint and use this to paint directly onto the paper on a flat surface 3. You can use rolling pins of various sizes to create different effects Extension: Use the left over coloured yarn once it dries as another art activity Children will develop: Skill and confidence with the processes of painting and print-making.

5 Chinese Dragons You will need: Dragon printout (see next page) Coloured paper Colouring pens, crayons or paints Ice cream sticks Scissors Sticky tape Instructions: Colour in the dragon then cut out. Fold the colour paper for the body (as indicated in picture above) Sticky tape the dragon pieces to the body. Tape the ice cream sticks to the body to act has handles Belonging Children and their families experience an environment where connecting links with the family and the wider world are affirmed and extended. Communication experience the stories and symbols of their own and other cultures.

6

7