Week 7, July 24-28
The Un-Birthday Party: Think Alice in Wonderland, let's have a party for no reason at all! Bake (or buy) a cake, blow up some balloons, and play party games (pin the tail on the donkey, musical chairs, etc). An un-birthday doesn't have to have presents but a few little goodies from a dollar store might be a nice touch. Happy Un-Birthday to you!
Make Strawberry Jam: Making your own jam is much easier than you would think. All you need is fruit, sugar, and powdered pectin (available in the canning aisle of your grocery store). You don't need all the fancy canning equipment as the freezer version isn't "preserved." Another short cut: use bagged frozen fruit, all the hulling and cleaning has already been done for you. You'll never want to buy pre-made jam ever again!
Camp Out! If you aren't the outdoorsy type, camp in your living room instead. Play flashlight tag after the sun goes down, then pull out the sleeping bags, tell ghost stories and make smores in your microwave. The upside of camping indoors, no bugs!
Be an Artist: At art school, it's common for all the students to draw the same object in their own way. Create a "Bowl of Fruit" still life, go to cool statue somewhere nearby, or find a sleeping pet. Hand the kids an artist sketch book and coloring utensils and let them "interpret" the object in their own way. Then stage an art gallery in a room in your house. Who knows, you may have the next Picasso on your hands!
Learn About Another Country: There are about 193 countries in the world, let's learn about another besides your own! You can pick some place super easy like your next door neighbor country or one a little more out of the way like Estonia. Google the country, find a map, what's the capital city, how many people live there, what's the climate like, and what language do they speak. If you want to take it a step further, create a traditional meal from the country and try to dress like a citizen there would. To be all politically correct, talk about the similarities and differences and the fact that we are all human beings no matter where we live on this crazy little planet.
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