Practical Life A Salad Made from Fruit? At this time of the year, lots of fresh fruit is available. This is a great time to teach your child how to prepare a fruit salad with local produce. Your child can learn how to wash the fruit, slice or peel the fruit and then prepare the…
Practical Life I’m a Little Teapot This week, the fascination with water continues. Summer is a great time to practice pouring water, as it can be done either outside or inside. Pouring exercises are some of the foundational exercises in the Practical Life area. Mastering pouring helps a child to become incredibly independent- they can…
Practical Life Drip, Drop, Drip, Drop . . . Water is such an interesting substance to work with. In this activity, we’ll use the cohesive ability of water to create ‘bubbles’ that sit on top of suction cups in a soap dish. This is a great activity to develop your child’s fine motor skills! For…
Practical Life If I Had a Hammer Last week, we encouraged you to teach your child how to use a hammer by using a wooden mallet or toy hammer. This week, we encourage you to help your child to work with the real thing. If you don’t have a child-sized hammer, you can pick one…
Practical Life If I Had a Hammer Children love to work with tools. It gives them a real sense of accomplishment to be able to understand the function and use of each tool. This week, we’ll focus on using a hammer. While an adult-sized hammer is too heavy for a child to use, a small…
Practical Life Nuts & Bolts This activity is great for developing your child’s fine motor skills. You’ll need to find a variety of nut and bolt pairs. A great place to look for them is in your ‘odds n’ sods’ jar in the garage! Or, take a trip to your local hardware store. You’ll need…
Practical Life Sewing Cards Sewing cards are a great way to help your child learn the process of sewing. You can easily make sewing cards at home. You’ll need a single hole punch (1/4 inch is the best, but a regular single punch is fine), some colourful yarn and either cardstock or cardboard (cereal box…
Practical Life Homemade Fruit Popsicles As our weather is beginning to show signs of summer, we are spending lots more time outside. This would be a wonderful time to cook some ‘cool’ treats with your child. As a Practical Life skill, we suggest you read the recipe aloud to your child and have them help…
Practical Life Plant Potatoes Gardening is a very important Practical Life skill to develop. This week, plant a pot of potatoes! You don’t need garden space. You just need a very large pot, and a space outside to put it. For this activity you will need: one or two potatoes, a very large pot that…
Practical Life Sewing Buttons A favourite activity of older students is learning how to sew a button! For this activity, you will need: a small square of fabric or felt, a needle, thread, a variety of buttons, and, if possible, an embroidery hoop. Show your child how to use the embroidery hoop, and help them…
