Pirates are big around here right now and if my son’s friends are any indication they might just be a big deal at your house too! I think when you use projects that really interest your child the learning will happen naturally, making something fun is much more memorable then sitting down and doing worksheets ! If this letter of the week theme doesn’t strike your fancy here are our other T projects, you can make them as upper or lowercase.
- Gather your materials. You will need 2 pieces of construction paper, some plastic gold and/or silver coins, plastic jewels, markers, scissors and glitter.
- Start by drawing a lowercase t , I was using up scrap paper today.
- Hand it to your child, have them decorate it however they want. I offered up markers and glitter. It was up to him what colors he wanted to use and if he wanted to use both or just one. My son is almost 3 now so even with more structured crafts I am starting to give him more choices. Of course the bulk of what we do day to day is open ended and there is no mom instruction at all, just creation.
- He chose glitter
- And a red marker.
- Add the glue. Try to add less than my son did, it’s midnight and still not dry!
- Add your coins and jewels.
- Let dry… it may take a while !
Books !
“Class Three at Sea” by Julia Jarman is a great book . A class field trip is almost ruined when the boat is taken over by pirates! Luckily some quick thinking and a repaid favor is enough to save the class. The plot is simple but the way that story is told is fun. The rhymes are hilarious, the pirates names are perfectly gross and your kids will love that it’s not a parent or even a superhero that saves the day, it’s just a kid! I like that there is a message of helping others, among the pirate shenanigans too! I read this to my son while he was eating and we had to stop because he was giggling so much I was afraid he’d choke!
“Pirate Pete’s :Talk Like A Pirate” by Kim Kennedy is a fantastic vocabulary lesson hidden in a fun book that will make you laugh. See Pirate Pete is looking for a crew but just anyone won’t do. Readers follow along as he interviews potential crew members and rejects each one. The problem is that they don’t speak “Pirate” instead they use funny big words which are awesome and wonderful to share with your children , words like misappropriated. How awesome is it to read a children’s book with a word like that in it? This book offers so many possibilities for learning and teaching about new words.
“Pirates Son’t Change Diapers” By Melinda Long is a sweet tale about taking care of a baby sister, while dealing with rowdy friends , who happen to be pirates. Luckily the pirates help out and in the end things are even better than you’d imagined. Maybe I am just looking at this book through mom glasses but the pirates put off finding their treasure because they have to take care of the baby, they delay their own gratification because someone needs them. It’s a nice lesson about responsibility, and caring for those who can’t care for themselves. Of course there are diapers on cats, dogs and head enough to make it funny to your little one too. My son is just now getting into this book, at almost 3. It’s a bit long for toddlers but preschoolers will love it.
chris says
very interesting.. by the way, i have something just for you here please check it out!
BookChook says
Lovely that you are having your own piratical adventures! And I really appreciate the point you made about delayed gratification – I was reading recently that it’s a huge predictor of academic success.
admin says
Yes I have read a few articles in the past year about that too! It’s one of the reasons I think pretend play is so crucial- it gives children a chance to practice these skills.