First I must say thank you so very, very much for the warm wishes and thoughts you all sent our way last week. I was truly overwhelmed by the fact that so many of you cared enough to comment and email me about our happy news. I kept saying to my husband, "My gosh, there are so many good people out there!". Honestly, I feel so lucky to be a part of such a warm community. Big hugs to you all!
Ok, now before I get too sappy, let's move on to the discovery tray... :)
It'd been a while since I put together a discovery tray for James and after some thought I realized I could easily create a weather-themed tray that appealed to nearly all the senses. James absolutely loves this tray and pulls it out nearly every school day!
Here's what you see:
:: CD with thunderstorm sounds.
:: A prism (leaning against the CD) - to represent a rainbow.
:: Hand held fan - to represent wind. This is James' favorite!
:: A bowl of ice cubes - to represent hail and/or the change in temperature within a cloud as the ice melts into water.
:: Our homemade rainstick.
:: Spray bottle with water inside - to represent a light rain.
:: A tornado bottle. My husband purchased this on Amazon.com. It's SO cool! As you gently swirl the bottle, it creates a tornado effect. This one is my favorite! :)
A couple of items we added later...
:: An inflated balloon which we rubbed against our heads to create static electricity - to represent lightening.
:: A flashlight - to represent the sun.
I should note that even though many of these items do not provide accurate scientific representations, they've provided LOTS of learning fun! And, in my opinion, that's what it's all about!
Ok, now before I get too sappy, let's move on to the discovery tray... :)
It'd been a while since I put together a discovery tray for James and after some thought I realized I could easily create a weather-themed tray that appealed to nearly all the senses. James absolutely loves this tray and pulls it out nearly every school day!Here's what you see:
:: CD with thunderstorm sounds.
:: A prism (leaning against the CD) - to represent a rainbow.
:: Hand held fan - to represent wind. This is James' favorite!
:: A bowl of ice cubes - to represent hail and/or the change in temperature within a cloud as the ice melts into water.
:: Our homemade rainstick.
:: Spray bottle with water inside - to represent a light rain.
:: A tornado bottle. My husband purchased this on Amazon.com. It's SO cool! As you gently swirl the bottle, it creates a tornado effect. This one is my favorite! :)
A couple of items we added later...
:: An inflated balloon which we rubbed against our heads to create static electricity - to represent lightening.
:: A flashlight - to represent the sun.
I should note that even though many of these items do not provide accurate scientific representations, they've provided LOTS of learning fun! And, in my opinion, that's what it's all about!
~Thank you for your comments!~
9 comments:
Very very cute idea! I am going to try this with my son! :)
What a fun discovery tray! I bet James has been having a blast with it!
thanks this is great , we are doing weather right now so this might be fun to pass around . Thanks for great ideas
http://abcsofjesshouse.blogspot.com/
I love the idea of the Weather Discovery Tray!
I love your tray idea! That is so much fun! I am working on having a nature tray swap. If you are interested, stop on by and let me know what you think! :) Congrats again on Baby!
http://discoverydaysandmontessorimoments.blogspot.com/2011/03/nature-tray-swap-idea.html
What a great idea! We have that tornado in a bottle also...got it for my son for his bday at Hobby Lobby.
I do agree with you Mari-Ann. The opportunity for discovery you offered James is so vast. Great project. Love.
Ewa
Fantastic tray idea! I bet James is loving it!
Kerri
Congratulations on your baby! That's great news! I love the idea of the weather discovery tray. Some of the items are creative and I'd have never thought of using them. I've linked up to your post on my weekly favorites here: http://play2grow.blogspot.com/2011/04/weekly-favorites-for-april-3-2011.html I've also linked up to your April sensory tub as well.
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