Dinosaur Themed Preschool Craft Idea: Dinosaur Reconstruction

We're studying dinosaurs this month and doing some fun crafts to go along with our theme. For this project the boys got to reconstruct a paper dinosaur skeleton. You can print out your own dinosaurs and skeletons from my free dinosaur printables available here.

Preschool (or Tot-school) Craft Idea: Dinosaur Reconstruction

• Dinosaur skeleton drawn or printed out and then cut into pieces
• A piece of paper or a dinosaur coloring page drawn or printed out
• School glue (homemade works great!) or glue sticks
• Q-tips to spread the glue if desired
• Markers or crayons if desired

1. Assemble supplies.
2. I let the boys color the dinosaur coloring pages while I cut out the skeletons, but this is optional.
3. Give the children the skeleton pieces and glue (or glue sticks), and have them glue and arrange the pieces to reconstruct the dinosaur skeleton how they think it should look.

Using plain paper makes this a more open-ended project, and using a coloring sheet to match the skeleton pieces to adds a degree of direction and complexity. My 20-month-old just enjoyed gluing the pieces wherever, but my three-year-old really liked building the dinosaur in the coloring sheet so it looked more like a real dinosaur.

Brachiosaurus skeleton cut apart

Brachiosaurus skeleton I drew

Dinosaur Themed Preschool Craft Idea: Shape-a-saurus

We're studying dinosaurs this month and doing some fun crafts to go along with our theme. The boys had fun making a Shape-a-saurus three different ways. The different ways to make a shape-a-saurus change how open ended the project is and the difficulty level of this project. You can print out your own stegosaurus and correspond shape from my free dinosaur printables available here.

Preschool (or Tot-school) Craft Idea: Shape-a-saurus

• Shapes cut out of construction paper, paper the child has already colored on, or a shape dinosaur print out printed on colored paper or on plain paper and then colored in
• A piece of paper, dinosaur coloring page, or shape dinosaur print out
• School glue (homemade works great!) or glue sticks
• Q-tips to spread the glue if desired

1. Assemble supplies.
2. For a completely open-ended, and the easiet way to do the project, have the child simply design their own dinosaur out of the precut shapes and glue them down.
3. To add a degree of complexity, and give the child some direction in their project, have them try to glue shapes that roughly match the outline of a coloring page.
4. For the most complex way to do this project, have the child match the shape cut outs exactly to a shape dinosaur print out, like a puzzle, and glue them down.
5. For any of these methods talk to your child as they make their picture, and ask them questions about the shapes and colors they are using. This is a great way to start to get a young toddler to see shapes all around them.

This is a great project to review shapes and colors for any toddler, and it can easily be adapted to the child’s individual level. You can create shape pictures for any other theme as well.

DIY Butterscotch Pudding

Butterscotch pudding has such a unique homey taste. It thankfully (and ironically) doesn't have any scotch in it, but rather gets its flavor from butter and brown sugar. Therefore, don't skimp on the butter or brown sugar, otherwise it won't really have the full butterscotch flavor.

Homemade Creamy Butterscotch Pudding Recipe

• 2 Tbsp butter
• ½ cup brown sugar
• 2 cups whole milk (divided)
• 1 egg
• 3 Tbsp cornstarch

1. In a small mixing bowl, begin by stirring together ½ cup milk, egg, and cornstarch until well combined.
2. In a medium saucepan melt butter.
3. Add brown sugar, and stir until dissolved.
4. Add 1½ cups milk, and stir well. 
5. Stir over medium heat to warm the milk.
6. Take a couple of big spoonfuls (¼ to ½ cup) of the warm milk mixture, and add it into the cornstarch and egg mixture. Don't skip this step. This tempers the egg and prevents it from becoming a scrambled egg when adding it into the hot milk.
7. Pour the cornstarch and egg mixture into the warm milk, and stir quickly to combine well.
8. Continue to stir over medium heat until the pudding thickens and begins to bubble.
9. You can serve this pudding warm (sounds good in the winter) or chill for at least 2 hours or up to 2 days and serve it cold.

Mandarin Mondays: 你好

Babies greeting each other with a universal cheek pinch.
Perhaps both boys' cheeks have been pinched too often
by Chinese Grandmas greeting them.

Greetings are usually one of the first things you learn when studying a foreign language because how are you going to have a conversation if you can't start one? While it is very good to know how to greet someone, or respond to their greeting, that doesn't always mean that greetings are the easiest thing to learn. Often they can be complicated, because how you normally start a conversation varies a lot culturally, and often there is no good direct translation for what a phrase means.

When you see someone any time of the day here you can say, "Nǐ hǎo (你好)." This literally means "you good," but culturally it means something much closer to our "hello." You are not really asking how they are doing, and they won't respond by telling you how they are doing, but will usually just say, "Nǐ hǎo (你好)," in response.

Now there is also the formal way to say hello, "Nín hǎo (您好)" and the way to say hello to more than one person, "nǐmen hǎo (你们好)," but these are rarely used in daily conversation. In fact while these phrases are the most grammatically accurate, unless you are in a very formal setting, you will likely sound out of place using them. This isn't something you can learn from a textbook, but from everyday life, or perhaps a really good Chinese teacher or friend.

Exchanging greetings at English corner

Similarly, while English speakers usually ask "How are you," after saying hello, the direct translation of "how are you" (Nǐ hǎo ma, 你好吗) is almost never used here. Actually, I think outside of a Chinese lesson, I have only heard it spoken by foreigners here. It is much more common to use the phrase "Nǐ zěnme yàng? (你怎么样?)." This means something like our phrase "how are you doing," while the literal translation comes out quite strange: "You how way?"

The Chinese people here have trouble with our greetings too. Most of the children here have learned the following greeting (even if it is all of the English they know): "Hi, how are you? I am fine, sanks." They do not have the th sound in Mandarin, so most people cannot pronounce it correctly, much like we have trouble with the multitude of sounds in Mandarin that English does not possess.

At least we are not alone in our language difficulties. Hopefully, the Chinese people will give us grace as we work continually on improving our Mandarin.

DIY Vanilla Pudding

Vanilla pudding is great by itself or as a base for other desserts, like banana pudding. This easy, homemade vanilla pudding is so much tastier than the boxed version.

Homemade Creamy Vanilla Pudding Recipe

• ½ cup sugar
• 2 cups whole milk (divided)
• 1 egg
• 3 Tbsp cornstarch
• 1 tsp vanilla

1. In a small mixing bowl, begin by stirring together ½ cup milk, egg, and cornstarch until well combined.
2. In a medium saucepan, combine 1½ cups milk, sugar, and vanilla. 
3. Stir over medium heat to warm the milk.
4. Take a couple of big spoonfuls (¼ to ½ cup) of the warm milk mixture, and add it into the cornstarch and egg mixture. Don't skip this step. This tempers the egg and prevents it from becoming a scrambled egg when adding it into the hot milk.
5. Pour the cornstarch and egg mixture into the warm milk, and stir quickly to combine well.
6. Continue to stir over medium heat until the pudding thickens and begins to bubble.
7. You can serve this pudding warm (sounds good in the winter) or chill for at least 2 hours or up to 2 days and serve it cold.

Family Fridays: Family Fun

Nate's summer break has flown by. Both Nate and I had important projects that we had to work on for part of it, and finished those early this week. We've done lots of fun things with the kids over the summer too, but wanted to make these last few days of our summer break family fun days. Some grandparents wanted to still be able to spoil the boys from afar and sent some extra fun money too, so we used a little of that for some special fun things for the boys too.

Thursday we went to KFC and got ice cream and chicken nuggets. Sadly, the play place was out of commision because they were cleaning the floor that day and the mats hadn't been put back together, but I think the boys had almost as much fun playing with the automatic sink and hand dryer. We also let the boys ride some of the little play vehicles behind Walmart and play a game of wack-a-mole. They both really like these rides and this game, although Andrew would rather play with the moles than wack them. After that, we had to do some grocery shopping, but we got a small set of lego-like toys at Walmart. The boys have been having lots of fun building towers and cars with their new blocks.

On Friday, I made pizza for lunch and sloppy joes for dinner. Nate wanted to eat all of the coleslaw by himself in one sitting, but managed to restrain himself. We also got some popcorn and popped it on the stove for our family movie night. We had lots of fun watching Piglet's Big Movie together. We like that it weaves in some of the original stories by A. A. Milne that Aaron loves to read to over and over.

We've also just spent lots of time playing and reading together around the house. We'll see what other fun things we are able to do as a family before Nate has to go back to class on Monday.

Mandarin Mondays: 学校

Today is the first day of school (xuéxiào, 学校) for kids here, so I thought I'd write a little of what I know about the kids (hái zi men, 孩子们) and schooling on this side of the world. Like everything else, it is quite different from the West.

Generally speaking here new momthers (māmā, 妈妈) stay in bed for one month after giving birth.  In fact, they are not supposed to do anything, even shower or read books.  After one month, they usually give their new baby (bǎo bǎo, 宝宝) over to the paternal grandparents (zǔ fù mǔ, 祖父母). Usually the baby lives (zhù zài, 住在) with the grandparents for the first few years of their life, even if they are in a different province from the parents, and the parents may visit as they have time. There are of course exceptions to this, but this is a widely accepted practice here.

At about 3 years old (sān suì, 三岁) kids begin a sort of preschool or kindergarten. This first step in formal schooling is usually about 9 hours a day. The toddler will usually still live with grandparents and/or parents and have the evenings free to spend with family (jiā rén, 家人). Usually, these schools are nearby, although they may commute an hour or so to attend a better school. Getting into a good school is a big deal here, even for preschool. Sometimes getting into a really good school requires special "gifts" that can cost thousands of dollars (USD). This may seem strange, but the preschool they attended could help determine what primary (elementary) schools the child may be allowed to attend and ultimately what colleges they are allowed to go to.

Next comes primary school. I think most children start at about age 6. Primary schools are also usually about 9 hours a day, but the children have a lot of homework (zuò yè, 作业) for the evenings also. These schools are still local and the children continue to live with the grandparents or other relatives.

High school dorm
(housing about 10 girls)

Children typically leave their family home for the first time, when they begin middle school. Most middle and high schools are boarding schools, and children live there, sometimes all year round. A lot of schools have a middle and high school on the same campus. Generally for these grades have classes morning (shàng wǔ, 上午), afternoon (xià wǔ, 下午), and evening (wǎn shàng, 晚上) during the week, and just morning and evening classes on weekends (yes, both Saturday and Sunday). They have about a two hour break for lunch and dinner, as well as many other shorter breaks throughout the day, but the children's time is quite scheduled.

Students in a classroom
(in Lanshan, Hunan)

The middle school and high school children attend is a really big deal, as there is often a limit of the number of students from each school that can get into a university (dà xué, 大学). The better the high school, the more students will be allowed to attend, and the better each students chance at getting into a good university. Geographic location also plays a big part in this since schools usually take more students from their area as well as from bigger cities. Because of this, students may go to middle or high school quite far from their parents or grandparents, if financially possible. They might travel home for holidays or stay with another relative who lives a little closer.

Boys playing with a friend at English Corner

English (yīng wén, 英文) plays a large role in getting into a good university. The university entrance exams (gāo kǎo, 高考) have large English sections, so students are often interested in improving their English through private schools or other means. Here, where there are a lot of foreigners, there are often "English corners" in public parks where people go at a certain time each week to practice speaking English. We all have fun going to these sometimes.

DIY Yogurt Pops

Summer is a great time to relax and enjoy some simple pleasures, like these yogurt popsicles. They are fruity and refreshing and an even healthier alternative to these pudding pops. They are simple enough that an older child could help or even make them by themselves.

Homemade Yogurt Popsicles

• Yogurt (homemade yogurt flavored any way you like or using one of these frozen yogurt recipes works great!)
• Popsicle molds or cups and popsicle sticks (or even sturdy straws will work)
• Baking pans or cookie sheets (This makes transporting them to the freezer easier.)

1. Spoon the yogurt into popsicle molds or cups. (I usually make each popsicle about 1/4 cup (or 2 oz.), but you can make them any size you like.) Put the cups or molds on a pan or cookie sheet. If using molds, you can insert the sticks now.
2. If using cups, place in the freezer for an hour or two to allow them to freeze part way, and then insert the sticks. They will stand up much straighter than if you are impatient or in a hurry (like I am sometimes) and stick them in too soon.
3. Return to the freezer for a few more hours to freeze solid.
4. Running the cups or molds under warm water for a couple of minutes  makes it easier to get them out.
5. Enjoy!

DIY Pudding Pops

Summer is a great time to relax and enjoy some simple pleasures, like these pudding popsicles. They are creamy and rich but small enough that they make a great after lunch treat, afternoon snack, or they can satisfy a chocolate or caramel craving for mom! They are simple enough that an older child could help or even make them by themselves.

Homemade Pudding Popsicles

• 1 batch of pudding (homemade works great!)
• Popsicle molds or cups and popsicle sticks (or even sturdy straws will work)
• Baking pans or cookie sheets (This makes transporting them to the freezer easier.)

1. Make the pudding (see other posts for instructions), and allow it to chill in the fridge for at least an hour.
2. Spoon the pudding into popsicle molds or cups. (I usually make each popsicle about 1/4 cup (or 2 oz.), but you can make them any size you like. This way I can get about 8 pudding popsicles from one full batch of pudding.) Put the cups or molds on a pan or cookie sheet. If using molds, you can insert the sticks now.
3. If using cups, place in the freezer for an hour or two to allow them to freeze part way, and then insert the sticks. They will stand up much straighter than if you are impatient or in a hurry (like I am sometimes) and stick them in too soon.
4. Return to the freezer for a few more hours to freeze solid.
5. Running the cups or molds under warm water for a couple of minutes  makes it easier to get them out.
6. Enjoy!

DIY Chocolate Pudding

Caramel and Chocolate Pudding

Chocolate pudding seems like just about the perfect comfort food. This simple recipe for chocolate pudding tastes so much better than pudding from a box, and it is really easy to make. It is great when combined with caramel pudding!

Homemade Creamy Chocolate Pudding Recipe

• ½ cup sugar
• ¼ cup cocoa
• 2 cups whole milk (divided)
• 1 egg
• 3 Tbsp cornstarch

1. In a small mixing bowl, begin by stirring together ½ cup milk, egg, and cornstarch until well combined.
2. In a medium saucepan, combine 1½ cups milk, sugar, and cocoa. 
3. Stir over medium heat to warm the milk.
4. Take a couple of big spoonfuls (¼ to ½ cup) of the warm milk mixture, and add it into the cornstarch and egg mixture. Don't skip this step. This tempers the egg and prevents it from becoming a scrambled egg when adding it into the hot milk.
5. Pour the cornstarch and egg mixture into the warm milk, and stir quickly to combine well.
6. Continue to stir over medium heat until the pudding thickens and begins to bubble.
7. You can serve this pudding warm (sounds good in the winter) or chill for at least 2 hours or up to 2 days and serve it cold.

This is really good when combined with caramel pudding!