The Children’s — BUSY BOOK Trish Kuffner eee Press Distribui toby y Sim & Schuster YorkLibrary of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Kuffner, Trish. The children’s busy book / Trish Kuffner; [illustrations, Laurel Aiello). p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0-88166-405-7 (Meadowbrook) ISBN 0-7432-2344-6 (Simon & Schuster) 1. Creative activities and seat work. 2. Education, Primary—Activity pro- grams. I. Title. LB1537 .K94 2001 372.1321 Editorial Director: Christine Zuchora-Walske Copyeditor: Kathleen Martin-James Proofreader: Megan McGinnis Desktop Publishing: Danielle White Production Manager: Paul Woods Cover Art: Dorothy Stott Illustrations: Laurel Aiello © 2001 by Patricia Kuffner All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, record- ing, or using any information storage and retrieval system, without written per- mission from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. Published by Meadowbrook Press, 5451 Smetana Drive, Minnetonka, Minnesota 55343 2001044047 www.meadowbrookpress.com BOOK TRADE DISTRIBUTION by Simon and Schuster, a division of Simon and Schuster, Inc., 1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020 06 05 04 03 109876543 Printed in the United States of AmericaAcknowledgments Years ago I had no idea that writing books would become a regular part of my life. Now that it has, I know it wouldn’t be possible without the support of a very special group of people. God is awesome, and I know that without His love, grace, mercy, and guidance I couldn’t accomplish all that'He’s set out for me to do in this life. My family is amazing. Their sacrifice makes it; possible for me to write. Thank you for going out of your way many times and in many ways to help when help was needed. Thave a great group of friends with whom I can laugh, cry, hope, dream, whine, complain, and otherwise share the adventure of parenting. My heartfelt thanks to all of you. I couldn’t have made it through the tough times without your wisdom, encouragement, and comfort. My family was blessed for a time with the help of a cheer- ful, dependable, capable young woman named Corine Opliger. Her desire to see Canada and improve her English became our good fortune when she traveled from Switzerland to stay with us for several months. I couldn’t have met my writing deadline without her. Thanks, Corine; we miss you. Iam very fortunate to have the Meadowbrook Press pub- lishing team behind me: Bruce Lansky; my excellent editor, Christine Zuchora-Walske; and everyone else who's helped get this book from my head to the store shelves. I sincerely appre- ciate all your contributions—seen and unseen—that have made The Children’s Busy Book a reality.Dedication This book is dedicated to'the people with whom I spent my childhood: my parents, Jack and Irene McGeorge; and my three sisters, Linda Young, Carol Hannah, and Marlene Ciaburri. Here’s to memories of riding bikes, flying kites, baseball games, the neighborhood gang, snow forts, water fights, skip- ping, pet mice, Whiskers and Angel, Betsy, long road trips, summers on the farm, the red-coated vulture, Peep and Willie, and much, much more. Bishop Desmond Tutu said, “You don’t choose your family. They are God's gift to you, as you are to them.” I love you all.Contents Introduction ........ eee Vii Chapter 1: The Basics ........+.1 Planning Your Activities ....3 Stocking Up on Supplies ....5 “But There's Nothing to Do!” ..8 What about TV? ..........13 A Word of Encouragement .. 14 Chapter 2: Rainy Day Play ......17 All by Myself ......0206+4+20 Another Kind of Alphabet ......5++..+++32 Card Games for One Player . Card Games for Two or More Players ......... Indoor Gardening ... Collector’s Corner . . Indoor Olympics woeee ess 66 Indoor Games for Two or More ...... seceneeee TS Chapter 3: Kids in the Kitchen .. . 87 Main Course ...........5- 89 Cookies, Muffins, and More ........e000 101 No Cooking Required ..... 115 Chapter 4: Fun Outdoors ......123) Out and About . 215 Bubble, Bubble . 132 Fair-Weather Games . 139 Hopscotch Games 147 Marble Games . 152 Jump Rope .. 159 Gardening .... ooees 164 Fun in the Snow ........171 Chapter 5: Qn the Move ......177 ’ Pencil-and-Paper Games ..178 ++ 186 wooo 192 No Props Required .. Games with PropsChapter 6: Homework Helpers . . 199 Fun with Words ..... 200 Reading and Writing . 208 Math..... 217 Science... ++ 228 Geography . 239 Fine Arts .... + 245 Chapter 7: My Family and Me .. 251 Harmony Builders . . Memory Lane ..... Tomorrow's Memori Chapter 8: Arts and Crafts .....277 Drawing ...........++ +278 Painting and Printmaking . 285 Modeling and Sculpting .. . 294 Gifts to Make 303 Paper Crafts 311 Other Crafts .... +320 Chapter 9: Holiday Fun ....... 333 Valentine’s Day .. Saint Patrick's Day Easter .... Canada Day 357 Independence Day ....... Halloween Thanksgiving . 372 Hanukkah ... 377 Christmas . . 383 Kwanzaa... 393 Appendixes .......399 Appendix A: Basic Craft Recipes .... Paint .... Play Dough . Clay ....seeeeee Glue and Paste . Other Craft Recipes ... Appendix B: Crazy Can Activities ........... 410 Appendix C: Making Books with Children .... Appendix D: Best Books for Children .......... 413 * Appendix E: Resources for Parents .......... 418 Index .....000004.425Introduction Children are the hands by which we take hold of heaven. —Henry Ward Beecher I'm not a person who likes change, or at least not too much change. When things are going smoothly, when all my kids are in stages I like, I sometimes wish that time would just freeze and I could hold on to the golden moments forever. The first time I experienced that feeling was the day I came home from the hospital with my first-born daughter. I knew I would never again experience that special joy of becoming a mother for the first time. Never again would I feel the same surge of pride and happiness I felt when my parents held their first grandchild for the very first time. But to be truly alive is to change. As Natalie Babbitt writes in Tuck Everlasting, ‘You can't pick out the pieces you like and leave the rest.” Without change, Babbitt writes, “We just are, we just be, like rocks beside the road.” Life with children is certainly about change. When your first child was born, your life changed. When he first slept through the night, your life changed. When he began walking and talk- ing, your-life changed. When your needy toddler grew into an autonomous preschooler, your life:changed. And when your child entered school for the first time, your life changed again. vilDid you think it would ever happen? After years of sticky fingers, runny noses, diapers, spilled milk, teething, endless days, sleepless nights, and all the other joys of life with babies and toddlers, did you think your child would ever turn into the independent little person who now boards the school bus or walks to school with the neighborhood gang each morn- ing? Perhaps now you're able to return to work or have some time to pursue your own hobbies or interests. Or perhaps you still have little ones at home, and it seems like it'll take for- ever before they'll all be in school! Or maybe your family, like ours, has chosen to home-school, and school is no farther than the kitchen table. Whatever your situation, the arrival of the school years means change of one form or another. Many people breathe a sigh of relief when their children begin school. Finally, they think, they'll have some time to themselves. (And after five or more years with babies, toddlers, and preschoolers, this can be a very pleasant thought.) Others, like Marguerite Kelly and Elia Parsons, weep when their chil- dren begin school, “not because of the child we’re losing, but because of the chances we've lost. So much is left undone.” Like Kelly and Parsons, you may have a lot left undone, but life isn’t over yet! Although your school-age child may have a full schedule and a busy little social life, he'll still have sonie free time. And what will you encourage him to do in that free time? Watch TV? Play computer games? Or is there something better for him to do? Something that will encour- age him to think, be creative, or interact with others? vill