Tagged with 'Playfoam'

This pandemic has touched every corner of our lives, from work to school to home – and now it’s messing with some of our most favorite holidays! Since many cities across the country may not be allowing trick-or-treating, we’re sharing some spooky ideas (six to be exact) for celebrating Halloween at home. Whether you’re gathering your small, COVID-careful pod of people together to party in your backyard or keeping the fun to family only, check out these ghoulishly great activities and make this Halloween one to remember!1. Carve A Pumpkin (or just decorate it)!Nothing says Halloween quite like carving a pumpkin. Younger kids can paint a spooky face using non-toxic tempera or acrylic paint or try a totally awesome drip design using glow-in-the-dark paint!  Older kids and grown-ups can use stencils, cookie cutters, lemon zesters, and pumpkin carving knives to carefully carve their own creepy creations. Need some inspiration? Check out these ideas for no-carve pumpkins or carving pumpkins– extra points if your pumpkin is wearing a mask!2. Bake Some Scary Snacks!Your kids may not be bringing home pillowcases of candy, but you can still make the day super sweet with Halloween-themed nummies including voodoo doll cookies, cupcake witches, Halloween candy bark, and more! We especially love these simple chocolate chip spider cookies ???? For more fun, check out these delicious Halloween spooky snack ideas on our Pinterest board.Photo credit: https://tastesbetterfromscratch.com/3. Play Some Ghoulish Games!Have an in-home scavenger hunt (find free, printable clues on PlayPartyPlan.com!), set up your own spider-and-straw races, and make a Witch Pitch out of goodies from the Dollar Store, and get gaming! Find tons of great Halloween-themed games to make and play at home, on our Pinterest board.Photo credit: onecrazyhouse.com4. Make Some Creepy Crafts!Crafts are perfect for a Halloween party! Set up a table with construction paper and paint and make handprint vampires and witches, make vanishing ghosts out of biodegradable packing peanuts, or construct your own haunted house out of toilet paper tubes. Or, for a less messy but totally tactile Halloween activity that doubles as a great guest gift, grab a 24-pack of Playfoam® Pals™ Surprise Party or a case of 64 Playfoam^® pods from educationalinsights.com. Order now and SAVE 50% for a limited time! WOW!  Each pod includes squishy, squashy Playfoam – perfect for sculpting everything from pumpkins to black cats, as well as a surprise, neon-colored Pal, and mystery party backdrop.Click to shop & SAVE 50%!5. Take It on Parade!Just because you’re not trick-or-treating doesn’t mean you can’t get out and about. Spread the word in your neighborhood that the kids are going to be on parade, dress them up as their favorite celeb or superhero (you can find some super fun DIY costume ideas on our blog and some fun make-your-own mask printables on our Pinterest board!), wait till dusk, then hit the sidewalk! Keep a socially distant six feet between families and leave an adult at home to wave and holler as the parade goes by.Photo credit: gigglesgalore.net6. Watch Some (Not-So) Scary Movies!Wrap up your Halloween-at-Home with some not-so-scary movies (and Halloween popcorn balls, of course!). Toddlers will love Room on the Broom; Toy Story of Terror and Goosebumps are good scary fun for little ones, while in-betweeners might be ready for Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark or The House With a Clock in Its Walls. Click for Good Housekeeping’s list of 40 Halloween Movies That Won’t Keep Them Up All Night.

Whether your kiddo is spending their school day sitting at a desk at home, or they’re back in the classroom, masked, working hard to follow social distancing, hand washing, and no-contact play rules, they are going to be ready for a break once the school day is done. But that doesn’t have to mean screen time! Below are some of our favorite screen-free, take-a-break activities designed to spark curiosity, creativity, and imagination through good old-fashioned PLAY!1. Get the Wiggles Out!Little ones weren’t built to sit still for extended periods of time. Turn on some tunes and throw a crazy dance party or get those Kindergarten crazies out with the Magic Moves® Electronic Wand! This amazing electronic wand features 90 fun, physical commands, twinkling light shows, and 26 different musical tunes. Your kids will be stomping like dinosaurs, soaring like eagles, and so much more, all the while building their vocabularies and practicing following directions.2. Set Up a Scavenger Hunt!Make a list of 10 things to find in your home or your backyard and let your little one loose! Early readers can practice sounding out the items they’re searching for – then let them make a list of things for you to find, to practice their writing and spelling skills. Take a twist on traditional scavenger hunts by having your kiddos search for items that are specific colors (check out the smarties at iheartcraftythings.com), or for objects that start with each letter of the alphabet.Photo credit: iheartcraftythings.com3. Go Creepy Crawly!Speaking of outdoor activities, kids can soak up a little vitamin D – and some serious science skills! – with the GeoSafari^® Jr. Bugnoculars. Little scientists can catch and observe critters, leaves, flowers, and more in this bug-friendly, kid-cool, transparent container. It's perfect for STEM learning! Bonus points if kids sketch their finds in a notebook, give their friends names, or write silly stories about them![caption id="attachment_6915" align="alignnone" width="840"] GeoSafari® Jr. Bugnoculars[/caption]4. Rock On!Rock painting does double activity duty – first a walk to search for your “canvasses”, followed by an arts and crafts session to paint them! Use acrylic paints to create free form designs, seasonal objects (think pumpkins, turkeys, or snowflakes), or quotes. We love the kind and crafty ideas on the Curious Doodle blog! In addition to bolstering creativity, painting is also a great way to build those fine motor skills.Photo credit: curiousdoodle.com5. Get Strategic!If your sweetie just needs some space after a long day of schooling, settle them down with Kanoodle®! This best-selling, award-winning solo play game is a great way to lose yourself for a little while. Place the puzzle pieces as shown, then figure out how to fit the remaining pieces to solve the puzzle, building strategic thinking and problem-solving skills as they do. And with 200 puzzles to solve, your kids will be busy for hours. As you know, educational toys and games are our specialty. Check our more brain teasers and brain games here.[caption id="attachment_6888" align="alignnone" width="840"] EI Strategy Games & Brain Teasers[/caption]6. Chalk It Up!Chalk art had a moment during the pandemic – you may have seen the trendy designs around your own neighborhood. Your kids can make their own chalk masterpieces – and get some hands-on practice with shapes and colors – following the super simple instructions at TheIdeaRoom.net.Photo credit: TheIdeaRoom.net7. Squish the Stress Away!Squishy, squashy Playfoam® is perfect for sculpting! Squish it into shape, smash it down, and start again – this non-toxic substance never dries out so kids can use it again and again. Sculpt cats, dogs, snowmen, or butterflies, or use it to create letters and spell your child’s name! Playfoam also offers endless ways to learn through play! You'll love these learning activity ideas for solo play and even more creative fun![caption id="attachment_6856" align="alignnone" width="595"] Photo credit: @mayra_valdez[/caption]8. Go Fly a Kite!Flying a kite is a science lesson unto itself – and so is making one! Follow the simple instructions on this video from EasyArtyCrafty to create your own flying machine, then take it for a test spin. If your kids love being outside, you can find other great outdoor activity ideas on our blog!Relaxing time doesn’t have to mean screen time. Give these ideas a go, then find other fun ideas for screen-free learning activities here!

Although it may manifest in different ways, many kids will be carrying some serious stress when they return to the classroom. From concerns about COVID and a new set of rules to follow to social anxiety and worries about getting back into the school schedule after months of being away, this will by no means be a typical school year. And that’s just the kids! Teachers have their own set of stressors.While we can’t solve all these problems, we do have some great ideas to help create a calm, cool, collected classroom during these crazy times, like:1. Sometimes we all just need a moment. Visit our friends at Teachstarter.com for some amazing mindfulness activities and meditation moment ideas. Breathing is about as easy as it gets, with great, calming results. Have students place their hands on their bellies, close their eyes, and take a deep breath in, then out. See if they can move their hands using only their breath.[caption id="attachment_6810" align="alignnone" width="843"] Photo credit: https://fit.sanfordhealth.org/[/caption]2. Lavender has been shown to reduce anxiety, increase relaxation, quiet anger, and soothe restlessness. So, spritz your classroom with a spray, keep lavender-scented lotion at your desk, and opt for lavender scented hand sanitizer at your hand washing station. Or, better yet, put all of these things on your classroom wish list!3. Sensory play has also been proven to help kids stay calm and sit still and is particularly important for students with Sensory Processing Disorder. Providing breaks for sensory stimulation is a great way to create a more soothing space and there are so many ways to do it! Find some great sensory play ideas including bean boxes, colored rice, and more on our Pinterest board, Sensory Activities for babies, toddlers and preschoolers. And, of course, Playfoam^® is the perfect mess-free sensory play substance – kids can squish, squash, and sculpt – then stash the Playfoam away for next time. It never dries out, so the sensory fun never ends! Check out tons more ideas for Playfoam activities here.[video width="1080" height="1080" mp4="https://www.educationalinsights.com/media/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/PF_pinterest_5.mp4"][/video] 4. Sometimes we need more than a moment! Help calm a completely crazy classroom with “heads down in the dark.” Turn off the lights, turn on some soft, classical music, and have students place their cheeks down on their cool desks. Breathe in and out, listening to the music and the sound of your breath, until everyone seems ready to resume the day.[caption id="attachment_6818" align="alignnone" width="839"] Photo credit: Washington Post[/caption]5. Speaking of lights, flickering, glaring fluorescent lighting can cause eyestrain, headaches, and tension for all. Cover it up and create a soothing atmosphere in the classroom with calming Classroom Light Filters! Available in a variety of colors, patterns, and sizes, Classroom Light Filters are designed to fit over standard fluorescent ceiling lights, attaching securely to their metal frames with sewn-in magnets.Parents! Show your thanks for teachers who are going above and beyond to keep your kids safe and smart. Many of these ideas also make great teacher gifts! Check out more cute ideas on our Teacher Appreciation Pinterest Board! 

[caption id="attachment_6158" align="alignnone" width="1024"] 5 Tips to Help Your Child Make New Friends - Scholastic.com[/caption]In part one of our friendship series we shared the many and compelling ways that making and playing with friends supports your child’s social, emotional, and cognitive development, along with some simple things you can do at home to help your child learn to be a good friend.Now it’s time to talk about helping your child make a new friend! For some kids, making new friends is as easy to sitting down next to a small stranger in the sandbox. For others, making friends is a little bit harder. Whether your little one is outgoing or reserved, the suggestions below will help make their first forays into friendship a smashing success!1. Provide Limited Options – Having a friend over? Put your child’s special toys away, leaving just two choices out – say Playfoam® and Legos – and let the kids choose what to do. If they can’t agree, you may need to intervene with “Let’s let our guest pick first this time, and you’ll choose first next time.” (Talking about how we treat guests in our home before a friend comes over can make this solution go smoother.) Or let them each play what they want, side by side. They may choose to engage as they play or not – either way is okay![caption id="attachment_6150" align="alignnone" width="600"] Playfoam® - photo credit: @playingwithchanel[/caption]2. Keep It Short – Limit the amount of time the toddlers and preschoolers play with one activity to roughly 10 minutes. Unless they both seem really engaged, offer another set of activities to choose from, checking in on that one after another 10 minutes. And keep the play date short, too. Better to end it while the kids are having fun than to wait until someone melts down! An hour together is a good goal for toddlers and two hours is plenty of time for preschoolers.3. Serve Snacks – If the fun starts to stall or things start to get sticky, offer a snack! Snack time is a good distraction and gives the kids a chance to regroup and start fresh when they’re done. Check out our School Lunches and Snacks for Kids Pinterest boards for some super snack and awesome meal ideas! Odds are your child’s friend’s caregiver will stay while the kids play, but if not be sure to ask about any food allergies when they drop off.[caption id="attachment_6151" align="alignnone" width="486"] Photo credit: Kristine's Kitchen[/caption]4. Go Outside – The park, playground, or backyard are perfect places to play – and to burn off some of that endless kid energy! Pack buckets and shovels for sandbox time. When the kids are ready to move on from that, offer outdoor exploration tools like the GeoSafari® Jr. Kidnoculars®, Walkie Talkies, or My First Telescope.5. Stay Close – In some cases you may need to join in the fun to keep things rolling. Play a game like 1-2-3 Froggies™ or My First Game: Bears in Pairs with your kiddo and their pal or doodle along side them as they color in some of their favorite EI characters and scenes using free, downloadable EI coloring pages. Even if you don’t engage directly, stay within earshot so you can quickly intervene if the kids hit a speed bump.[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="680"] Unicorn Magic, Sprinkle & Twinkle Coloring Sheet[/caption][caption id="attachment_6156" align="alignnone" width="680"] Dino-mite Crown Activity[/caption]Like anything, making friends takes a bit of practice, but with a little prep and guidance, your kiddo will find just the right friends to share in their adventures! Looking for a bit more perspective? Check out some friendship reflections from the mom of a 10-year-old, in our past blog!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=1&v=HhFjZMqeZIE&feature=emb_logo Home's Cool! While we're all working from home, the parents, former teachers, and play experts at EI are sharing some of their favorite educational activities to help keep your family learning and growing. Check out this idea from Sahad Rivera Sonda, one of our Product Managers!Ages: 3-5Supplies:• Playfoam• Construction Paper• Tape• Scissors• Marker• Googly EyesProcedure:1. Cut out a head shape, use a marker to draw a nose, mouth, and ears, and add googly eyes.2. Secure the face to the table with tape.3. Start sculpting! Use Playfoam to create silly hairdos. Try pony tails, a perm, or even a mohawk!Sahad Rivera Sonda has dreamed of being a toy designer since she was a child in Mexico! Her passion for miniatures and other playful oddities (her collection includes everything from a plush churro to a miniature French fry) eventually led her to Otis College of Art and Design in California, where she obtained a degree in Toy Design. Sahad’s dreams came true when she landed a job with EI, designing the look and feel for many of our toys and games, including Playfoam Pals, Design & Drill and our plush line.