Category Archives: Seattle

active learning, art and crafts, children, days out, early education & play, education, imagination, learning environnments, play, pre schoolers, Seattle, sensory play, shadow and light

Ideas for Learning Environments Inspired by Children’s Museum of Tacoma

March 6, 2014 rightfromthestart Leave a comment

I’d never heard of a Children’s Museum before I moved here but as I entered the door I was greeted by a little bit of play heaven. I think I was more excited than the girls. My 9 -year-old remarked

It’s not really a museum is it?

True not in the traditional sense.

According to Wikipedia, Children’s museums are institutions that provide exhibits and programs to stimulate informal learning experiences for children. In contrast with traditional museums that typically have a hands-off policy regarding exhibits, children’s museums feature interactive exhibits that are designed to be manipulated by children. The theory behind such exhibits is that activity can be as educational as instruction, especially in early childhood.

In essence it’s like walking into a really well- resourced nursery or pre-school. I loved that many of the exhibits used simple, cheap materials that could be replicated at home, like a blackboard with a pot of water and brushes. I particularly like these; they would be a great addition to a child’s bedroom wall, garden fence or in a toddler room at nursery.

The girls loved this one and played with it for ages – even my 9-yr-old was fascinated.

The water area was a huge hit with my youngest. My favourite was a water bath with a transparent window so that you could see what was happening under water.

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Behind the glass is an area for art based activities – musical instruments, painting, movement with ribbon sticks and scarves and drawing. The metallic walls made it so easy to dry and display pictures. What a great idea for a messy play room.

There were 2 light tables in the space with very different activities, the girls chose to trace and draw.

My eldest loved den building best of all. The smaller structures were not very stable so she negotiated with the other children in the space to create a big den together.

It isn’t very good – it keeps falling down

We built one together

More building – drainpipes and gutters

I’m so glad we discovered Children’s Museums and I’m looking forward to visiting the others in the area and sharing more ideas.

art and crafts, early education & play, Life in the US, outdoor play, play, pre schoolers, Seattle, sensory play, snow

Snow Day: Ideas for Playing in the Snow

December 21, 2013 rightfromthestart 10 Comments

A snow day is always a treat but after a few days off school, enthusiasm wanes. Try some of these snow day play activities to keep your kids entertained.

Sledging

Sledging is always great fun, it was always my favourite snow activity as a kid. You could shake it up a bit with some Winter Olympic themed bobsledding. Lie on your front while being pushed down the hill shouting oy, oy, oy. You could race one another too.

Snowmen

See if you can roll a really big ball to make a body. Sometimes kids find this difficult but if you I start it off and everyone joins in to help, it is lots of fun.

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Make a baby snowman and pull it along on a sledge.

Add accessories such as buttons, hats and scarves or Mr Potato Head features.

Even without much snow you can make miniature snowmen and add an origami hat.

Snow Painting

Fill glitter sprinklers or herb containers with powder paint. Little ones enjoy sprinkling it around while older children draw pictures in the snow. You could use fingers or sticks to draw and colour them in.

Make a snow angel and colour it with paint.

Paint a snow sculpture

Build a snow sculpture and add colour with block water colours painted on with brushes. You could also paint pictures on the snow.

Winter Olympic Fun

It can be great fun to stage events from the Winter Olympics. Ice hockey, curling, skating and skiing are fun events to try even without snow but with snow on the ground they are even more fun.

Play with Ice

Visit a frozen pond, make pictures with ice, Go on an icy treasure hunt, make ice ornaments or investigate the properties of ice.

I broke this piece – look at all the lovely patterns.

Make targets and throw snowballs at them

Targets could be drawn in the snow, on a fence or a tree or throw snowballs into a tub or box.

It would be preferable if the target wasn’t your mother!

Other Snow Fun

Lie in the snow and feel it fall on your face.

Use the snow for imaginative play

snow on feet — I’ll make you some ice skates

Catch the snow on your tongue

Shake snow from the trees

Christmas, days out, expat, holidays, Life in the US, outdoor play, Seattle, Uncategorized

Mount Ranier National Park and The Santa Express

December 14, 2013 rightfromthestart 3 Comments

I love the Winter holidays here. There are long bank holidays on festivals we either don’t celebrate or have a quiet time at home because there are no family visits to pack in. This gives us a lot of time to explore the area. The weather isn’t warm but there is so much to see and do here that looks beautiful in any weather.

For Thanksgiving weekend we took the family on a trip to Mount Ranier National Park and for a ride on Mount Ranier Scenic Railway ‘s Santa Express.

We entered the park at Longmire rather than the larger entrance at Paradise. At Longmire there is a restaurant, a small gift shop and a museum (this wasn’t open).

The girls were very excited to find snow, every few feet my youngest would stoop down to pick it up.

We then went for a short walk along the trail. My adventurous family hate to stick to the path, so soon we came across a river and we slid down the bank to see if we could get across.

My husband carried the little ones across but it wasn’t long before they were wading through the water themselves, just about managing to keep their clothes dry, even if their feet got a little wet. What a beautiful place it was, the wide expanse is so different from anything you get in the UK. My husband (followed by the dog) soon practised his balancing act on a tree stump closely followed by my eldest.

The twilight was drawing in so we made our way back across to the path. We walked back to the car holding hands as we felt it getting darker around us. The girls were a little scared and a little excited to walk while it was getting dark but were reassured by the road nearby with its comforting lights.

The boots and socks were dried out overnight and we headed to Elbe for our train ride. We gathered a few provisions in the local store. I loved the sign explaining the demographics of Elbe ‘population – not many’.

We soon saw the train arriving.

Once the train departed the guard informed us that we could see Santa, we made our way through the many carriages trying hard not to fall and passing the many Christmas trees. Santa was in his grotto and the girls each had a nice gift and a candy cane.

By the time we arrived back from Santa we had almost reached the mid-point of the journey. I have to admit I was a little disappointed by the views. I expected stunning mountain views but instead we saw forest, farms and rivers. The girls watched out for wildlife whilst playing with their new toys.

The train ride lasted around 2 hours which seemed to pass very quickly. A lovely start to our Christmas festivities. I’m looking forward to seeing more of Mount Ranier when the weather is warmer.

expat, Life in the US, Seattle, Uncategorized

Dear Santa – A Letter from a British Expat

Quote December 11, 2013 rightfromthestart 2 Comments

Dear Santa

I don’t usually ask for much, there isn’t a lot that I need or want so my list is very small.

I’ve just used my last drop of blackcurrant squash. While you are delivering presents to my lovely friends in the UK, do you think you could pop in to Tesco and grab me some to drop in my stocking?

Oh and while you’re at it a bottle (or 2) of Zubrovka vodka, a nice box of Waitrose mince pies, some After Eight mints and I think I’m nearly out of instant custard powder.

I’m sure somewhere in your sack you have a spare one of those giant tubes of fruit pastilles too.

Let me know what you would like me to leave for you in return.

Yours hopefully

Rachel

early education & play, expat, holidays, Life in the US, pre schoolers, Seattle

Thanksgiving – A Festival to Say Thank You for Turkeys?

November 25, 2013 rightfromthestart 2 Comments

As an outsider ‘Thanksgiving’ is a bit of a mystery. My basic understanding is that is a time to say thank you, get together with family and eat a big turkey meal and is associated with harvest festival.

However, as a young child you might be forgiven for believing that it is a celebration of turkeys. Whilst browsing Pinterest a few weeks ago, I was overwhelmed by the amount of turkey crafts. There were a few posts about ‘trees of thanks’ but every other Thanksgiving activity included turkeys. I asked my 9-year-old

You’ve learned about Thanksgiving at school. What do turkeys have to do with Thanksgiving?

I have no idea.

Did they eat turkey at the first Thanksgiving?

I think so.

I know that turkey is eaten at Thanksgiving but then we eat turkey at Christmas and we would think it a little weird if everyone started making turkey crafts for Christmas.

I did a bit if searching on the internet. The origins of Thanksgiving come from the arrival of the pilgrim fathers to America from Plymouth, England. The journey across the ocean on the Mayflower was dangerous and many lives were lost. Coinciding with the European Harvest Festival the pilgrims decided to hold a feast to thank God for their safe arrival and invited the native Americans to join them. It is suggested that 4 turkeys (a native American bird) were killed for the feast (though it is likely they ate many other local fowl, game and seafood too). The turkey came to be known as a symbol of affluence (even in Victorian times only the very richest Europeans could afford to eat turkey at Christmas) . I assume therefore, that the turkey at thanksgiving symbolises a way expressing thanks for prosperity.

I was interested to find out if my-5-year old knew what Thanksgiving was.

I know what it is. It’s when we give lots of stuff.

She remembers her friend across the road bringing her pretzels last year.

Why do we give stuff?

To say Thank You

I wondered if she knew anything about the first Thanksgiving. I told them about the first settlers here from Europe.

How do you think they got here?

On a boat.

I think it would make a lot of sense to help their understanding of Thanksgiving if they could understand how difficult it is to travel on a boat without an engine for thousands of miles across the ocean. I looked for a book from the Library to help explain. None of them seemed quite right until we found this one, a simple description of the pilgrims journey from the point of view of the children.

I decided to take the idea to a free build play session where we began by reading the book.

The children were very interested in the fact that the pilgrims could only eat certain foods on the boat like hard biscuits.

“But I like hard biscuits” said one child.

“Yes but not if you ate them all the time.”

” How did they manage the journey without getting scurvy?” asked another.

“A good question, many of them didn’t”

We brainstormed some of the reasons the pilgrims celebrated the first Thanksgiving

A parent had donated large cardboard boxes for us to make a replica of the Mayflower. Fourteen children worked collaboratively to build the boat. They added a mast and sail, lifeboats, steering, roof, a plank and loaded the boat up with food from the play kitchen.

It has been left up for the children to continue to play with and develop their own stories.

I think that makes more sense than making a turkey out of a pine cone.

early education & play, Life in the US, music education, outdoor play, review, Seattle

Tots & Bubble Friday at Dr Maze’s Farm

July 11, 2013 rightfromthestart 6 Comments

In a bid to meet new people the girls and I sometimes join groups of other mums and their kids through meet up groups. Our latest venture was to Dr Maze’s Farm.

Dr Maze’s Farm is a family run working farm that grows seasonal crops. What I loved about it was that it was a no frills day of outdoor fun. It was lovely to visit a farm that didn’t have rides, softplay or large playgrounds, no café or extras to pay for; a place that encouraged exploration and being at one with nature.

Dr Maze’s farm is open during the Summer months on a Friday and Saturday from 10am till 2pm. Opening hours are extended during their special events such as Lavender Festival in July and Pumpkin Patch during October.

On a Friday morning Tots Friday is included in the admission price ($6 increasing to $9 from 12th July) and runs from 10.30 to 11.30. Tots Friday is aimed at the under 5’s but my 9-year-old was welcomed and enjoyed herself too. Each week they have a different theme with activities set up under cover. The theme when we attended was goats, which included goats for the children to pet. There was also a large mud pit for the children to dig and find worms, various sensory bins containing grain and a cut and stick caterpillar activity.

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Towards the end of the session they took the children out to pick crops from the field. They picked kale, sugar snap peas and chard and were encouraged to fill a bag to take home with them. This was a great opportunity for the children to see how crops grow, how to harvest them and experience some new plants.

sugar snap peas

Kale

Once we had filled our bags the girls enjoyed petting and feeding the animals before going on a tractor ride around the farm.

Feeding the goat

A bumpy tractor ride

We explored the grounds further. There was plenty for them to do from giant Jenga, mazes, a chicken show, a giant spider web and various things to ride on. My personal favourite was the music garden. They had perfectly utilised household objects to make a great little sound garden that would be an inspiration to any pre-school or someone like me who now wants to build one in the garden.

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Next came the girls favourite part of the day ‘Bubble Friday’. A station was arranged with all kinds of bubble wands and trays of bubble mixture. The girls started with familiar ones and then learned how to use more elaborate methods to make giant bubbles. They had an amazing time experimenting with the different types, supported by 2 very friendly ladies. They were so proud of their huge bubbles.

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When it was time to go, they didn’t want to leave but I promised we would go back. We are going to sample the Lavender Festival tomorrow armed with a picnic and with extended opening hours I’m sure we will have a very busy day.

It feels like you are visiting the farmer’s family, who give the impression that they are people who love children, being outdoors and sharing their farm with the public. They even gave us a freshly laid egg to take home with us.

There is a small shop in the entrance selling plants, lavender products, honey and drinks but I would recommend taking a picnic or at least snacks if you intend to stay until closing time.

This is a personal recommendation, no payment of any kind was received for writing this post.

expat, Life in the US, recipes, Seattle

Huckleberries and How to Make Huckleberry Muffins

July 10, 2013 rightfromthestart 2 Comments

This time last year we were playing in the local park. A group of children were picking small red berries from the bushes and eating them. I was a little alarmed, I’d always told the kids not to eat red berries because they were ‘bird berries’, that would make children sick.

The children’s grandmother told us that they were huckleberries . I’d heard of Huckleberry Finn and Huckleberry Hound but had no idea a huckleberry was a fruit. ‘They are quite sharp’ she told us ‘but they are really good in muffins’. We tasted them, they are a little like a sharp blackberry, perhaps not to everyone’s taste but I liked them in small quantities.

We headed back a few days later to collect huckleberries to make muffins.

As you can see from the picture the berries are quite small so it takes quite a long time to pick any substantial quantity. The berries have a strong flavour however, so you don’t need many to make muffins.

We followed this recipe and they were absolutely delicious. If you can’t get huckleberries then you can substitute blueberries, I would use a little less sugar if using blueberries.

The muffins were such a success that as soon as we spotted the bushes beginning to ripen this year, we collected as many as we could. Huckleberries can be frozen but you need to be quite dedicated to collect large quantities.

The bushes have small waxy leaves.

We took them home to bake into muffins. A delicious seasonal treat.

We mixed all the ingredients together.

Filled up the muffin cases

All ready for the oven

The finished product

expat, Life in the US, outdoor play, Seattle

What Exactly is a Field Day?

June 15, 2013 rightfromthestart 3 Comments

Today was Field Day at my daughter’s school. In the usual fashion, we had a letter that said we could come along or volunteer if we wanted but no explanation as to exactly what a Field Day is.

I asked a friend in the playground.

So what exactly is a Field Day? Is it the same as a Sports Day?

No not really, they set up lots of activities around the school grounds and the children can join in with what they want to. Some are sports but others are fun games and things.

Slightly better informed I decided to give it a go.

So What is a Field Day?

A number of physical activities are set up around the school grounds with an adult manning each one.

The children have a checklist that they hang around their neck. They move around the various activities and when they complete them (successfully of not) they have the activity crossed off their checklist. Once they have completed 10 they can get a popsicle (ice lolly). If you complete all the activities your name is added to ‘the ball of fame’.

What Sort of Activities?

Frog's for catching, field day activities

Playing Catch with a frog

Ground hockey

Hoopla

Pig toss (Try to throw the pig into the tub)

Throw the ball at the trampoline and see if you can bounce it into the tub.

Space hopper race

Their favourite activity was playing catch with water bombs.

The girls had fun and it was nice to have something that the little ones could be involved in so they weren’t left standing around watching. Somehow though, I felt it lacked the atmosphere of a traditional sports day with races and cheering crowds. Where were the prizes for the child who completed the obstacle course in the shortest time, or a little prize if you knocked all the cans down? It somehow felt a little flat without any competitive edge. It was a cross between a Summer Fete, a P.E lesson and a traditional sports day – I’m not really sure I understand the point of it but the girls enjoyed it. It’s probably just a little structured to be my idea of fun.

days out, early education & play, families, Life in the US, outdoor play, parenting, play, pre schoolers, Seattle, toddlers

8 Things a Child Can Learn From Playing Golf.

April 26, 2013 rightfromthestart Leave a comment

Today I met with a group of mums and their toddlers to play golf at the pitch and put, Willows Road Golf Course. All of the children were new to golf and most of the children were below the age of 2. My girls had a brilliant time – my 4-year-old even asked if she could come back tomorrow.

Before 11am under 12’s can play the 18 hole pitch and put for $5. The beautiful setting meant that my 2-year-old, who lost interest after a few holes had plenty to keep her occupied.

There were lots of opportunities for learning too:

Number recognition as we moved around the holes
Recognising colours – who has the red ball? What colour flag do we have this time?
Reading signs – Please rake your footprints, keep on the path.
Gross motor skills – how do you hold the club? You need to hit it hard to get it up hill. What is the best way to get it in the hole?
Counting – how many shots did you take that time?
Writing – filling out a score card.
Vocabulary – What is the stick called again? I’m in the bunker.
Turn- taking and awareness of others.

We’ll definitely be doing it again, a great way to spend a sunny morning.

Hmm, how should I play this shot?

I’m getting the hang of this now.

I’m going to take 3 hits this time.

Go on, you can do it.

You need to hit it really hard to get it up the hill.

the sand in the bunker was lots of fun, especially when they raked away their footprints.

When you’ve had enough of golf, climbing and jumping is fun.

The course is built around waterfalls, lakes and bridges – beautiful.

The 18th hole

expat, Life in the US, Seattle

Easter in the US: Easter Bunnies, Egg Hunts and No Hot Cross Buns

March 30, 2013 rightfromthestart Leave a comment

When does the Easter Bunny come, is it tonight or tomorrow?

Easter Bunny? *slightly panicking. I have no idea I’m not sure how it works here, we didn’t have the Easter Bunny in England.

Yes we did.

Okay, so I bought them all an Easter Egg, but I don’t remember saying it came from the Easter Bunny….. now what? They don’t have large Easter eggs here like we do at home, the odd chocolate rabbit or two, other than that everything is small to fill up little plastic eggs. I’ve just filled all our plastic eggs with Cadbury Mini Eggs and miniature Cream Eggs for our Easter Egg hunt tomorrow. She saw me do it so I can’t say the Easter Bunny brought those. I have a pack of Cream Eggs, that will have to do. Perhaps the American Easter Bunny is a meany…… or maybe he left some in England for when we go visiting…….. or maybe he left them outside and the bears ate them….(okay that one’s a little cruel).

As with every other festival Easter is different. The first shock is that we don’t have a bank holiday or any time off school (we have another week of school before Spring Break). Good Friday is a something or nothing day, you can’t even find hot cross buns (my neighbour tells me she has never had one and is not really sure what they are). This year I had to make my own, a long job but worth it.

Easter Egg hunts are really popular. The kids hunt for little plastic eggs with goodies inside but are told in advance how many they are allowed to collect so it isn’t as excessive as Hallowe’en. Decorating real eggs is also popular. My neighbour had painted eggs and decorated them with stickers and the children were going to hunt for real eggs. We went on a local Easter Egg hunt this morning and one at pre-school yesterday. In school Easter wasn’t celebrated at all, not even by giving out eggs. They are very careful to be equal to all cultures here.

The best thing about Easter weekend is that we have sunshine. I don’t think I’ve ever had my shorts on during March in the UK (although I think it’s unusual here too). Spring is in the air.

Hopefully the sunshine and the egg hunt tomorrow will compensate for the skinflint American Easter Bunny.