Showing posts with label Games for Kids. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Games for Kids. Show all posts

Grandma's Bag of Tricks for Entertaining Grandkids

Grandmas need a bag of tricks. Grandmas need an arsenal of ideas for entertaining grandkids and creating memories.

In a prior post, I talked about the importance of planning for creating memories.  Sometimes the plans are just not enough and you'll need to come up with some ideas for activities on the fly.

That's when you'll be turning to your bag of tricks.

Grandmas need fun and games for grandkids in their bag of tricks.


Things to Have in the Bag of Tricks

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2-3 age-appropriate games the grandkids don't play at home: Dominoes, Checkers, Scrabble

Deck of cards for age-appropriate card games: Go Fish, Crazy Eights, War, Old Maid, Slap Jack, Rummy.  Here are some suggestions for 4-8 year-olds.


Arts and crafts supplies:  This is a long list:
Craft paints: watercolors and acrylics
Papers: newsprint, sketch pads, index cards, construction paper, card stock
Pencils, pens, and markers: markers of all kinds and colors, graphite pencils and colored pencils, ink pens, glitter pens
Glues: glue sticks, Elmer's glue, ModgePodge
Tools: paintbrushes, scissors, rulers, hole punches, paper clips, tape
Miscellaneous: magazines for cutting, buttons, embellishments for gluing, yarn, string, rope, glitter, rocks, shells

Access to age-appropriate movies: Subscriptions to Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+

Suggestions for seasonal, age-appropriate activities.  This will take some preparation on your part.  I compare this to the experience I had when I was a substitute teacher for grades K-6.  I would get a call at 6:00 in the morning asking me to substitute at a specific school for a specific grade level. I never knew if I would enter the classroom with a fully prepared lesson plan for the day or an empty page staring at me.  Too often I found the empty page, so I prepared my own teacher bag of tricks with a full day of activities for each grade level.  It saved my day and sanity and it will save yours, too.

Pinterest and Google are great places to start for ideas.  Just type in Search phrases like "craft projects for six-year-olds" or "how to make a construction paper owl".  You can also follow this blog regularly by signing up for email notifications of new posts over on the top right side of the page and following our Facebook page. You'll get ideas like this fall scavenger hunt, fall tree, or backyard tic tac toe.

Use a box with file folders labeled for each month of the year.  That way you can have seasonally specific activities all ready to go.  

A library of books for kids is essential. Grandkids of all ages love being read to.  Start reading early and keep it up.  Older kids love chapter books.  Reading a chapter book is something you can start when you are together and continue on video chats until the book is finished.  

I love pop-up books when reading to babies and toddlers.  They become very engaged with the colorful surprises from page to page. Two of my granddaughter's favorites are The Very Busy Bee and The Very Clever Crocodile. This pop-up book series is fun, too.

There are so many wonderful chapter books for kids in grades 1-6.  Some of the classic ones to start with are:

It's time to get started gathering the stuff you'll need for your bag of tricks.  A well-stocked bag of fun and games makes for happy grandkids and happy grandmas.


Backyard Ladybug and Bumblebee Tic Tac Toe

 Do you want a fun outdoor project that your grandkids will love?

Make a fun tic tac toe game out of rocks you paint to look like ladybugs and bumblebees.

This is an easy-to-do, fun project that your grandkids can help make.

Ladybug and Bumblebee Tic Tac Toe


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Ladybug and Bumblebee Tic Tac Toe

First, you'll need to gather rocks.

This is where you can start to include your grandkids in the project.  They will have fun finding rocks that will be just the right size for your backyard game.  

You'll want about 12 rocks of equal size and shape.

Ladybug and Bumblebee Tic Tac Toe


My rocks came from the beach along the Atlantic Ocean.  They weren't ideally smooth.  Most are granite and have a somewhat bumpy texture. I made do.  

Did you know you can buy rocks? Well, yes you can. Go ahead and use my Amazon link if you need to buy some.

Now that you have the rocks you'll need supplies for painting.  You'll want acrylic craft paints, paintbrushes, a sealer, and maybe some acrylic paint pens. You'll need white, black, yellow, and red acrylic paint.

Now the fun begins.  Painting the rocks is so much fun.  You can follow the sample ladybugs and bumblebees you see in the picture or google for inspiration. 

Just have fun.

Let your rocks dry a few days and then spray with a sealer to preserve your beautiful paint.  

Decide where you want your game to live in your yard.  You can see I had a stump that was a perfect place for my tic tac toe game.  I used black electrical tape to create the tic tac toe grid, but you can also use some black paint.

Other Rock Painting Ideas

Let your ladybugs and bumblebees live outdoors in your garden beds for a little color and whimsy throughout the year. 

Have your grandkids paint other rocks that can be added to your "rock" garden and time goes by.

Toddlers may be too young to play tic tac toe but they will love searching for your bumblebees and ladybug when they come to visit. Hide them in different places throughout your backyard where toddlers can easily find them before the visit starts.  They can have a bug search during every visit.
How great is that?

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