Activities and Questions for the Week of May 11-15

Kacey the Quality Koala and Maryland EXCELS have been sharing daily fun and educational activities and mealtime discussion questions for families and child care programs.

You’ll find past activities and questions below. To see the latest activities and questions, visit this page or social media each day!

The Maryland State Department of Education’s Division of Early Childhood understands that activities described on this page and in website links are not suitable for all ages. Ultimately, all activities require adult supervision and are not endorsed by the Maryland State Department of Education or Johns Hopkins University.

Monday

Have your child cut several strips of paper from old magazines, wrapping paper, or other paper. Draw the outline of an animal on cardboard or paper. Glue the strips side-by-side on the backside of the drawing. Once the glue dries, help your child cut out the animal shape.

Mealtime discussion question: If you had a pet dragon, what would you name it?

Tuesday

Make your own indoor bowling alley using recycled water or beverage bottles. Paint, draw, or tape numbers on the bottles. Children can trace or write down the numbers they knock over. You can also fill the bottles with water to see if they can be toppled. 

 Mealtime discussion question: What is your favorite sport to play and why?

 

Wednesday

Use an empty shoebox to create a unique house. Cut doors and windows and then let your child decorate the box using other recycled materials. Cars, animals,  or dolls can be used to play with the box house. 

Bigger boxes work great too! Toddlers may enjoy painting the box or coloring the box with crayons.

 

Make a discovery box for babies. Put items in a tissue (or similar sized) box and let your baby pull them out. Ensure the items are large enough to avoid choking hazards. 

To make a discovery box for infants, cut a large box and hang colored ribbon or yarn from the box. 

 

Thursday

Find a stuffed animal bear. Read the story We’re Going on a Bear Hunt! by Michael Rosen if you have it, or listen to the author read the story on YouTube. For toddlers or older children, hide the stuffed bear in your house. After the story, go on your own bear hunt! Provide your child with clues, stomp through the kitchen, and crawl through the family room as you search for the stuffed bear. An extension of this activity is to make your own bear using empty toilet paper rolls, markers, crayons, glue, or other materials you find around your home. 

 

Mealtime discussion question: What is your favorite activity to do with your family?

 

 

Friday

Using colored pieces of paper or paint swatches, collect objects from around the house for your children to match to the colors. Older children can search for objects on their own. This activity can be fun indoors or outdoors. An extension of the activity is to read the story Brown Bear, Brown Bear What Do You See? Use this free, online version of the story if you don’t have a copy of the book.

 

Mealtime discussion question: What is your favorite color and why?

 

 

Share your activities on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram using the hashtags #MarylandEXCELS and #KaceyEXCELS.

See more activities from past weeks:

• Week of April 21-24
• Week of April 27-May 1
• Week of May 4-8: Child Care Provider Appreciation Week