On the 8th Day of Christmas, Holden's Landing gave to me ...

a special Earth*School bundle of winter curriculum units! The winner of this giveaway will receive (in PDF form) the following Earth*School units:
Winter Wonderland
Late Winter Holidays
Winter Holidays Around the World
and, just for fun, to beat the winter blues, One Day Fun Days
AND because as winter feels like the longest month, by February we'll all be looking for some spring, Gnomes in the Garden


You can read more about Earth*School and what these particular units include here 

To enter this giveaway:
* Leave a comment telling what your favorite holiday activity is to do with your kids - mine is a toss up between making ornaments and making cookies (if you don't celebrate the holidays, what is your favorite activity to do with your kids any time?)
* Be sure to leave your email address so that you can be contacted if you win!

Giveaway open from December 14th, 7:00 AM est to December 20th, 8 AM est.  Winner will be chosen at 8:30 AM est December 21st.  Giveaways are open worldwide.  

Good luck!

Congratulations to comment #2!

Together Tuesday: I'm a Perky Turkey

“I’m A Perky Turkey” (sung to “I’m a Little Tea Pot”)
I’m a perky turkey, yes in deed
Eating corn and grains and seed
I waddle when I walk
And I gobble when I talk
But when Thanksgiving comes, I run away!


from Earth*School, We're Thankful for Thanksgiving
Copyright 2004 - 2010, Earth*School

Together Tuesday: Turkeys!

Foot and hand print turkey
Here’s another twist on that traditional handprint turkey, one that will elicit lots more giggles! You will need a large sturdy paper, paints, a brush and your child’s hand and foot.
Paint the bottom of your child’s foot brown and his/her toes orange (this will take a while … be prepared for tons of giggling!) and stamp onto a paper (hold the paper lengthwise and stamp at the bottom) with the toes facing down. This is the turkey body (brown) and feet (orange). Now paint your child’s hand and stamp all around the body in a fan shape to create the feathers. Add as many feathers/colors as desired. We always make one turkey per family member each year. They make a cute gaggle of turkeys to display!

from Earth*School, We're Thankful for Thanksgiving
Copyright 2004 - 2010, Earth*School

Together Tuesday: Harvest Time is Here!

It's November, the harvest is in and there is a cornucopia of bounty in your local produce section or farm store!

“Harvest Time Is Here” (sung to “The Farmer in the Dell”)
Harvest time is here!
Harvest time is here!
Harvest time is lots of fun.
Harvest time is here!

(Child’s name) picks the apples.
(Child’s name) picks the apples.
Apples are fun, but the harvest’s not done!
What else do we have here?

(Child’s name) picks the pears.
(Child’s name) picks the pears.
Pears are fun, but the harvest’s not done!
What else do we have here?

Repeat with corn, Indian corn, pumpkins, peaches and anything else you harvest in your area.

* This is a perfect song for a movement activity. Give each child a basket and collect silk in colors to represent the harvest time foods (or if you have the actual foods or toy foods, even better. We use our wool foods for the harvest song. Have your child play at picking the type of fruit/veggie in the song. How does picking a pumpkin look different from picking an apple?)

from Earth*School, Happy Harvest
Copyright 2004 - 2010, Earth*School

Together Tuesday: Heigh Ho Blueberry-O!

Make your own Heigh ho Blueberry-O! game. My brother had the game Heigh Ho Cherry-O as a child, and he loved to play that game. You can make your own blueberry version with craft items you probably already have around your house.

To begin, roll a supply of 60+ blueberries from your favorite clay and let them dry. Fashion 4 small basket/cup shapes from the clay as well and let dry. Be sure to make them slightly larger than the size of a hole punched with a hole puncher. To make the board, you will need some markers or crayons, good sturdy cardstock and tape, a paper fastener, scrap cardstock, and a hole punch (you will want either a long handled hole punch or an “anywhere” hole punch, the kind you place and tap with a hammer). Cut a ¼ inch slit in each corner of the cardstock (from the top going into the center of the paper). After the board is complete, you will fold down the tabs you have just created (the sides of the paper) and tape them together at the corners, so that the board is raised up off the playing surface. In each corner of the board, draw and color a blueberry bush. Use your hole punch to punch 15 holes in each bush. In the center of the board, draw a circle and partition it into 5 pieces (like you were cutting a pie). Put the following, one in each section of the circle:
Picture of 1 blueberry
Picture of 2 blueberries
Picture of 3 blueberries
Picture of a basket of spilled blueberries
Picture of an animal of your choice with a blueberry in its mouth

Cut an arrow shape from the scrap cardstock and fasten it to the center of the circle with the paper fastener/brad.

To play, fill up the bushes with the blueberries. Each player sits by one bush and has one basket. Spin the spinner and pick the correct number of blueberries if you spin the picture of 1, 2 or 3 berries, put all your blueberries back in the bush if you spin the spilled basket, or put one berry back in the bush if you spin the picture of the animal carrying off a berry.


(From Earth*School: Summer Harvest Fun, all rights reserved. Copyright Earth*School/Bonnie Vontz 2004 - 2010)

Together Tuesday: May Flowers

It's May and all those April showers should be bringing some beautiful May flowers right about now! And with Mother's Day right around the corner, create some paper flowers with your little ones that will last forever!

You will need:

construction paper in bright colors and green
your child
a pencil
thin dowel rods or chopsticks
green paint
florists tape (or you can use regular tape)
scissors

Start off by having your child paint the chopsticks or dowel rods green for stems. Set aside to dry.
Next, trace your child's hand multiple times on brightly colored paper and cut out the hand shapes. Have your child arrange the hand shapes together to form a flower (bottoms of palms touching, fingers out for the petals). Once the stems are dry, use florists or regular tape to attach the flower to the stem. You can tape the petals together, then tape the stem to the underside of the flower, or you can tape the petals together, punch a hole and stick the stem through the hole and secure with tape.
Cut some leaf shapes from green paper and secure those to the sides of the stems.
Make lots and give a bouquet to grandma or to put in a vase for your dining room table!

Together Tuesday: Snowballs!

Last week, unexpected to me, we had a ton of snow dumped on us here in Connecticut – the kids are still making snowballs and sledding and desperately trying to make an igloo on our tiny deck. But you don't need snow to enjoy one of my favorite winter books, “Snowballs” by Lois Ehlert. After reading this story make your own multimedia snowmen using anything you can find around the house. Cut various sizes of circles out of white paper, and let your child choose 2 or 3 to glue onto a larger sheet of paper to make his/her snow person’s body. Then search your recycle bin, craft storage, kitchen, garage, etc. for wonderful found items that you can use to personalize your snow people.

Copyright Earth*School 2004-2010
Bonnie Elizabeth Vontz

Together Tuesday: UnBirthday Day!

Tomorrow is my son's 6th birthday. In honor of his birthday, this Together Tuesday post features Day 25 from our Earth*School unit "One Day Fun Days", the UnBirthday Day!

Day 25 – Un-Birthday Day!
* Birthdays only come once a year and that waiting is hard – declare it Unbirthday Day and have a party just because! Send out invitations to a few friends in advance of the date to ensure having people to celebrate with … after all, chances are it will be their unbirthday as well.

* Make an Unbirthday cake – Prepare your favorite cake with your favorite frosting, but pout on one candle for each person in attendance. Sing Happy Unbirthday to You! And have everyone blow out the candles together.

* Spread the unbirthday love – Donate a new toy to a children’s shelter to give as a birthday gift for someone there. Clean out your closets and donate unused toys and outgrown clothing to a children’s shelter to brighten someone else’s unbirthday day.

* Pin the candle on the cake – Cut out a simple cake shape as well as a candle shape for each player. Blindfold each child, one at a time, spin him or her around once or twice, then let him/her try to pin the candle on the cake.

* Plaster of paris birthday cake – For this project you will need some birthday candles, plaster of paris, a plastic container (that can be cut with scissors if need be), cooking oil or spray, paint or food coloring and a disposable butter knife. Oil the inside of the plastic container. Mix up some plaster of paris and pour it into the container. This will be your cake. Let it set. When it is almost completely set, add the candles, pushing them in to make the candle holes. Remove the candles and let the cake finish hardening. Turn over and tap to unmold. You may need to cut away the plastic container with sharp scissors. Mix up another small amount of the plaster of paris mixture, this time using only half the water suggested. This will be your frosting. Color your frosting with paint or food coloring and apply to your cake with the butter knife (be careful not to get it into the candle holes or you will not be able to add those back on again. You may want to frost it with the candles already in place). Let dry completely before using for imaginative play.


Book List:
* Happy Birthday to You
by Dr. Seuss
* Some Birthday
by Patricia Polacco
* A Little House Birthday
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
* Froggy bakes a Cake
by Jonathan London