Hooray for Red, White & Blue
July is the month where we can celebrate with activities that will perk your child’s interest in all things patriotic.
Everybody loves a parade! If you have even a few children in your neighborhood, you can organize an impromptu parade. Gather some rhythm instruments, or better yet, make a few homemade ones. Create a little noise, sing some patriotic songs, and march down the street. Toddlers may prefer to ride in decorated strollers, but they’ll surely want their own instrument. Here’s how to make a few:
Noisemaker
Use a cleaned plastic water bottle. Place a handful of dried beans or plastic beads into the bottle. You can add chenille sticks and other colorful baubles inside. Run a bead of heavy-duty glue inside the bottle cap for security. Encourage the kids to “shake, shake, shake” their bottles for some joyful noise.
Musical Kazoo
Stretch a piece of cellophane or waxed paper over one end of a toilet paper tube. Secure with several rubber bands or even a band of tape. Invite the children to decorate the tube as they wish. The sounds are made when a child hums into the open end and the cellophane vibrates at the opposite end. Humming “Yankee Doodle” might be quite appropriate.
Tambourines
Take a heavy-duty paper plate (the paper kind) and punch at least three holes around the edge. Tie on jingle bells (available in craft stores) with elastic thread or string. Invite the kids to decorate the plate with paints, markers or crayons. Children can shake this tambourine or tap it against their thighs. As a variation, you can put a few dried beans between two plates, staple together, and decorate.
NOTE: Supervise young children at all times with these instruments. Small materials can become a choking hazard if swallowed.
A Little Declaration of Independence
Learning to make choices is a very important part of becoming independent. Giving a child choices from an early age lets them practice decision-making. Choosing between two different shirts or two kinds of juice can make a child feel more grown-up and in control of their world. As an activity, chart a list of choices and let your kids pick their favorites. Allowing children to select healthy snacks, places to visit, movies to see, and family chores will help them feel more responsible and bolster their self-confidence.
Talk about making choices. When children are young, you’ll want to control their options, while still giving them the power to choose. Hopefully as they get older, making smart choices will be second nature.
The Rockets’ Red Glare
Fireworks don’t have to last only a few, fleeting seconds. You can make your own in this painting project and use them as decorations. Prepare several paper cups of paint. For each color, mix two parts tempera (poster) paint, one part white school glue, and a few drops of water. Put a spoonful of each color onto a sheet of paper (black paper looks like fireworks at night). Then take a drinking straw and let the kids blow directly over the paint. For little ones, practice blowing out instead of sucking in. Add some glitter while the paint is still wet for that sparkling look.
Perfect Patriotic Picnics
There’s nothing like a summer picnic, and every picnic needs games. Arrange some old-fashioned competitions like three-legged races, pop-the-balloon, and the infamous raw egg (or water balloon) toss in which team members get further and further away from each other until the egg cracks (yuck!) or better yet, the water balloon pops. Here are some other games to try:
The Great Shoe Hunt Race — Have everyone take off their shoes and place them in a pile. Blow a whistle to signal the start of the race. The players need to run to the pile, find their shoes, put them on and tie them, and then race back to the starting point. Now if you have a large group, there will be plenty of shoes to sort through. However, if your family is small, mothers, please bring along a few extra pairs to make this game fun.
The Bell of Freedom Game — Hang a metal dinner bell or a cowbell from a tree or other high point. A wind chime can also work. Give each player six beanbags, trying to ring the “Bell of Freedom.” The player who rings the bell the most times wins.
Older children may want to play a word game. On a sheet of paper, write the words, Red, White and Blue. See how many words you can make by combining the letters in this phrase.
All-American Snacks
Looking for something different to serve? Try making these fun concoctions together.
Colonial Muffins — Use your favorite muffin mix. Fold in fresh blueberries and chopped strawberries. Bake according to directions. Serve with flag toothpick decorations.
Perky Punch —Make a tray of ice cubes using several drops of red or blue food coloring in the water. Children will love drinking juices or lemonade with colorful ice.
Star Salad — Use the fresh fruits of summer to create this fun and delicious salad. Let your child help clean lettuce and place it on a plate. Prepare watermelon slices; you will need five equal wedges. Show your children how to place the melon wedges on the lettuce with the points facing outward to make a star. Fill the hole in the center with a scoop of cottage cheese and invite the kids to sprinkle fresh blueberries on top. You now have a nutritious and patriotic red, white, and blue lunch!
Tania Cowling is a former teacher, author, and freelance writer residing in Central Florida.