Turn Stone Soup into Science

Over the course of several years, my daughter’s classes have read the book Stone Soup and made their own versions. It’s a lovely story to do in a classroom environment, because it highlights the idea that everyone brings something different to add to the pot (or the classroom), but everything/everyone together makes it special/delicious.

Books and Giggles had another fun idea for making Stone Soup into a science investigation: do stones in the soup make it taste different? Check out the site for the scoop and a printable science investigation sheet.

Of course, making soup is already science because you are measuring things, adding heat, following directions and all the great things we learn in the kitchen. And it’s just fun to cook together, whether with your own child or in a group at school.

Do you make stone soup with your kids at home or in a classroom? I’d love to hear about it!

[Photo via Books and Giggles.]

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Summer Reading Printables and Tips for Parents

There are so many fun things to do with fall leaves, which is a good thing because they are everywhere. We have more than a dozen trees in our yard so I would always try to do some leaf crafts when my daughter was younger. We made rubbings and preserved leaves and did a ton of jumping in leaf piles, but if you’re looking for more activities to do with leaves, read on.

If you have a lot of different kinds of trees in your yard, on the playground or at the park, you can make leaf mandalas like these from Red Ted Art. They’re inspired by Andy Goldsworthy, who makes temporary art with natural materials (learn more about him at the link).

Leaves are art all by themselves, but you can make them an even lovelier display by combining leaves with other natural materials in a collage. Or make a little natural weaving loom like this one from Woodlark to hold a bunch of leaves and other fall pretties in a way that can continuously be changed.

Another way to turn leaves into art is by using markers or pens to trace the veins on a leaf. This idea is from Go Science Kids, and it’s a simple thing that makes really pretty leaves to display while also giving you can chance to talk about why leaves have veins and what is happening when leaves change colors.

Kids Craft Room has a great idea for making leaf luminaries, which would be fun to decorate the table from now through Thanksgiving. The best thing about these is that you don’t have to use any glue, so it’s easy for kids to make (with some supervision since cutting is involved).

This one does use glue, but it’s so cute it’s probably worth the potential mess. Our Kid Things shows you how to make an adorable hedgehog with fall leaves using their printable template and a paper plate.

I also love this fall in a bottle project from The Crazy Outdoor Mama. It’s like a snow globe with leaves and has the added cuteness of a kid’s photo inside. This would be a fun one to make at school to give to parents or grandparents, and it’s so easy and cute!

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