A Science Kit that Entertains and Educates

This Science Kit from DK books has taught and entertained my children and I with many scientific facts.  There are over 100 experiments inside the kit that allows us to experiment with easy to find material from around our home.  The kit also includes some material that we need to start experiments. 
Although, this kit is intended for children over 8 years my 4 year old son liked joining his sister and me to do these experiments and to be part of it.  My daughter inferred her knowledge from school when we did some of the experiments.

This type of kits and books encourage children to start liking a subject such as science and makes it a part of their lives, rather than just "school subjects".  When parents get involved with teaching and making this type of learning fun from an early age, children will not think of it as a "chore" to learn subjects like science and geography.
This Science kit has action packed experiments that teach how everyday things work, so we can see and marvel at the mysteries of science.  We don't need to be a "science whiz" to do these experiments because the instructions are step-by-step.  I just wish the book has close up pictures on some instruction that need us to cut or do things more carefully; for example when we did the spinning helicopter it didn't exactly turn out the way it is supposed to because I didn't understand on how to cut the straw correctly, but we still had fun experimenting and trying to figure it out.  After all when experiments go wrong that too is science; that is what I told my children :)

When we did this experiment of inflating a balloon without blowing on it my children were involved and looked in awe at the result :)  I felt good trying to make connections and teaching them about carbon dioxide and how gas molecules take up more space than liquid molecules.  

You will need...
a balloon
glass bottle with a narrow neck
vinegar
baking soda
funnel

1. Pour vinegar into the bottle until it fills 1/4 of the bottle.
2. Fill baking soda into the neck of a balloon through a funnel until it is half full.
3. Stretch the balloon over the mouth of the balloon and leave it to hang.
4. When you are ready for action quickly lift the balloon so that the baking soda falls into the bottle.
5. Voila the balloon will inflate.

I asked my children to record the observations of the experiment in the book that came along with the kit.  My little one drew the picture while my elder one labeled and wrote what happened in the experiment.
I like that these types of kits encourage learning while children have fun.
Contest:
DK Canada books is having a holiday contest so we can win a DK shopping spree worth $250.  The contest ends on December 17th. 

All rights reserved on photographs and written content Createwithmom © 2012. Please Ask First

Sports Illustrated magazine for kids

Sports Illustrated for kids is a magazine for boys and girls who love sports.  This magazine presents sports the way kids like to read it, which encourages even reluctant readers.  The magazine has action photos, easy to read stories about athletes, instructional tips from pros, humour, comics and lots of activities such as word search, puzzles etc.  

Both my children enjoy reading and watching sports from young days mostly because their dad plays different sports with them and talk about it so much that it has become a part of their daily activity.  So my children enjoy looking through the pictures, reading and doing the activities in the magazine.  

Sports Illustrated for kids is a magazine that has won the highest honours from the Association of Educational Publishers and the Parent's Choice Award.  When we subscribe we can get 12 magazines in print or the tablet version for about $20 a year.  

This magazine would be perfect to take while traveling and it makes a wonderful gift to give any child.  Getting a copy right to the door every month or on their tablet throughout the year will make any child that likes sports happy.

All rights reserved on photographs and written content Createwithmom © 2012. Please Ask First

The Ultimate Guide to Charlie and the Chocolate Factory Giveaway

The Ultimate Guide to Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Valarie Budayr & Roscoe Welply is a fabulous enhanced eBook for children.  The 174 pages of this eBook is entertaining and educational.  The animations, games, recipes, videos are fun for children and parents.  This interactive eBook walks us through the famous children's story Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl, although this guide is not associated with Roald Dahl's book.

The activities in the guide give us the opportunity to stop, think, make crafts, cook, laugh and learn.  This engaging guide allows us to "jump" inside the pages.  There are over 20 crafts and activities such as creating Gobstopper Gum and Chocolate Rivers, handmade Willy Wonka hats and many more.  The illustrations in the guide bring wonder and amazement through Willy Wonka's world.  My children and I enjoyed the fun activities in this interactive eBook.  We thought it was easy to follow and understand as we enjoyed reading and learning.  We like the videos in the book as it helped us see the explained activities.  My children also enjoyed the special effects on some of the pages.

One of the activities in the guide was to decorate marshmallows with edible paint.  To decorate different faces in the marshmallows we will need...
marshmallows
edible paint or edible gel
straws, pasta, toothpick optional

Using edible paint decorate the marshmallows.  After making the faces, children can build towers or shapes with the marshmallows using straws, pasta or toothpicks.

Building with the marshmallows and toothpicks was lots of fun as we talked about 3D shapes, structure and about building.

With this interactive book we can have fun at our own pace and experience the story.  It is beautifully written and illustrated children's book that will allow children and adults to imagine as the ebook brings art, literature and technology together.  
This eBook is available on downloadable PDF, iBooks and iTunes.  We enjoyed reading this book on the iPad.  
Follow Jump into books on Facebook, twitter, pinterest and YouTube to see about other fabulous books. 

Giveaway:
I am glad to host a giveaway of this wonderful eBook, so you can enjoy with your little ones anytime anywhere.  
2 people from US or Canada can win their choice apple enhanced eBook or downloadable pdf OR a $15 Amazon gift card by entering the giveaway through the rafflecopter below.  The giveaway ends on October 24th.
Update: Congrats Abbi and Jenna

a Rafflecopter giveaway
All rights reserved on written content and some photographs Createwithmom © 2012. Please Ask First

School struggles book review and giveaway

I had a wonderful opportunity to read and learn from the book School struggles.  This book is easy to understand as there are no jargons.  I liked the "take a way points" and tips at the end of each section in this book.  I agree with lots of things in the book and realized that we have to make changes as parents to avoid problems in the future.  Labelling children with problems, doesn't help anyone because many variables and factors contribute to the problems children may face in school.  The author Dr. Selznick has worked with families over 25 years and recognizes the complex mixture of cultural, socio-economic backgrounds and uniques of each family.  He offers guidelines based on his experience, professional practice and research.  He recognizes that these struggles that children have are because of their differences and does not label it as a disability.   

The author explains that children become shutdown learners when there are cracks in the foundation because of time + lack of understanding + strained family communications = school struggling shut down learners.

Children that will struggle in the future can be identified early as 4-5 years of age.   Even when parents feel there is something wrong and approach the educator, they are usually told not to worry.  The signs that a child is struggling in school work emerge in upper elementary grades and become more pronounced by high school, at this time it becomes overwhelming for the family.  

Timing is important, so dealing with the problem patiently before it matures is something we can do.  Some signs to look for and consider so we can intervene early will prevent children from becoming shut down learners.  

• If the child is tuning out during circle time, 
• Highly spatial and visual learners, 
• Active or over active, 
• Having trouble with language based activities i.e. reading and writing.

Here are somethings we can do to help the children

• Trust your feelings when you think something is wrong
• Know what to target and help with skills that needs more practice.
• Look for small things to boost the child's self esteem i.e. "Wow, I like the way your working without being asked to."  
• Get the child involved in creative extra curricular activities such as sports, art, cooking, music etc.
• Maintain equilibrium between fun and learning.  Don't let school problems dominate every interaction i.e. play board games or do crafts
• Support and connect with the child to let the child know you are in the same team.  
• Keep homework time calm.  Yelling and telling the child to try hard doesn't help.  Set a point system to reward the children and encourage. i.e. however try to avoid monetary compensation and reward with fun trips, going out for ice cream.
• Encourage children to read out loud.  After grade 2 children usually read independently and we might not recognize if they are have reading or comprehension problems.
• Lack of understanding that there is a skill deficiency adds up and causes frustration to the child and adults.
• Teach the basics i.e. phonic sounds.  Reading and comprehension problems can be helped by prompting and talking to the child so they can start thinking.  i.e. the author suggests programs like glassanalysis.com
• Stay organized from the start.
• Technology has changed lots of things in our daily activities and has created less interaction between families, which is why it is important to set a family time to talk and play with each other.
• Let children contribute to the guidelines and rules on what will help them do the homework and study.

Children who struggle with their school work face lots of social problems as well and get picked by peers, family, which effects their self esteem.  We can help these children by preventing the problems and taking a step back to see which basic skills need practice i.e. follow directions, play with others, identify letters, sound out the words etc.  

Throwing children into special education is not the solution.  Medications that are available out there to control behaviour is not a solution either, these types of medication come with lots of harm.

This book will help parents and professionals help chldren take a less rocky road in school.  The book is available online and at bookstores.  I am glad to host a giveaway of the books The Shut Down Learner and School struggles to one person in US or Canada.  The giveaway ends on September 30th, please enter through the rafflecopter below. 

Update: The winner is Elaine

a Rafflecopter giveaway
All rights reserved on photographs and opinion of the written content Createwithmom © 2012. Please Ask First

Ambition’s Not An Awful Word Giveaway

Ambition’s Not An Awful Word is a funny children's book written by the author Zack Zage.  Zack uses himself as the boy in the story that is starting grade four.  
This story starts conversation of "who I want to be when I grow up" and "what I want to do".  The rhyming words add to the fun of reading this story.  My daughter liked the references of places and people in the sentences that she was able to infer and remember from other conversations.  
Ambition is one of the most important trait that we should encourage in our children, so they can explore different things they like from a young age.  As the book says, ambition is the beginning of everything we accomplish in life.

The beautiful illustrations done by Adam Watkins sparks curiosity in children and opens conversations.  Children will laugh at the pictures and even think about it.  The pictures go in hand with the written words.  
We liked the detail in the pictures and the drawings of the characters.  I got lots of questions from my 3 1/2 year old about the pictures i.e. "how come the lady looks so different with big teeth," "why is the boy's eyes so big."

Although this book is intended for children over the age of 6, my little one loved listening to this story and appreciated the pictures and flipped through the book several times.  
I like the layout of the book, in which Zack says his ambition in one side and the reality of real life on the other side.  The meanings of unusual words, people mentioned in the story are in the glossary; parents and older children will appreciate this.  Adults will enjoy reading this book as well.

The book ends beautifully as Zack's mother says the moon left a message that "It's OK to dream."
This book is available in stores and amazon.
Giveaway
If you would like to win this fabulous book, please leave a comment on this post and enter through the rafflecopter below.  Giveaway is open to people in Canada and US, ends on September 15th.
Update: The winner is Jessica Mueck

"Dream it! Believe it! Work hard for it! Achieve it!"

a Rafflecopter giveaway
All rights reserved on opinion of the written content Createwithmom © 2012. Please Ask First

Making Ginger Ale from Artisan Soda Workshop book and PC products

The Artisan Soda workshop has 70 syrup recipes to make flavourful fizzy homemade sodas.  With this book, we can make our own combination of refreshing sodas at home and avoid canned carbonations.  The step-by-step instructions are easy to follow to make fruit, herb and spiced bubbly drinks.  

I like the bit of history given in the beginning of the book about carbonated drinks.  Carbonated drinks were originally produced because of medicinal benefits.  Coca cola made in 1886, derived from coca leaves and kola nuts.  Pepsi cola came 12 years after coca cola, which is made with pepsin and kola nuts.  The cans and bottles replaced the traditional soda fountains in the 1920s.

When making sodas at home we can cut down on the amount of sugar and use fresh fruit without artificial flavour.  We can also use sugar alternatives such as coconut palm sugar.  The suggested syrups can be used in pancakes, French toasts, oatmeal, ice cream, smoothie or in a salad dressing combined with oil and vinegar. I also used the syrup to make spicy hot tea.

The taste and flavours of the carbonated drinks made at home will not be the same as the ones sold in the store and it is a little bit more work than opening a can :) but it is worth it because mass produced store-bought soda has chemicals, high fructose and corn syrup.
The appendix in the end of the book has recipes separated by seasons, which is helpful to pick one and get started.

If you have a soda stream, you can use it to make carbonated water then add syrup and flavour to it.  We can also control the amount of carbon dioxide that we put with this type of machine.     
I used the carbonated natural spring water from PC to make this ginger ale.  I made half of the ginger syrup recipe from the book.

2 cups of water
6" of fresh ginger root thinly sliced
3/4 cup sugar
1 tbsp ground ginger

Bring the water, sliced or grated fresh ginger and sugar to a boil in high heat.  Add the ginger powder to the syrup and let it simmer in medium heat for about 10 minutes until the syrup is half the amount you started with.
Strain the syrup through a fine mesh and let it cool.  Add 3 tbsp or more syrup to taste into 1 cup of cold seltzer or carbonated water and serve.  The syrup can be kept in the fridge for unto 5 days in a container.

President Choice also has a few new products just in time for back to school.  We all need some pre-prepared options for the busy days.  Here is a highlight of some of the products.

• PC shelf stable milk packets are safe to send in the lunch bags or to take on the go.  It can also be stored in the cupboard instead of the fridge.
• Individual cheese portions made with 100% Canadian milk makes a healthy smart snack.
• Peanut free individually wrapped snacks such as carrot cakes, chocolate chip bars, brownies and decadent chocolate chip mini bar make delicious snacks for anytime of the day and to send for school snacks.  
• PC honey chipotle kettle cooked almonds is a lovely snack for those who like smoky flavour. 
• The sour jelly beans are chewy treats for everyone who enjoys sour fruit flavour.  
• PC also has pita crackers and flavoured chips that are delicious for snack time.

This picture goes to black and white event hosted at tomato blues.

All rights reserved on mentioned photographs and written content Createwithmom © 2012. Please Ask First

Calligraphy and making cards

The art of writing is fascinating and truly a blessing. I have always admired calligraphy, even as a child. My uncle does beautiful calligraphy, and I thank him for showing me the beauty of calligraphy.

I have spent some time trying to learn calligraphy and picked up a variety of books to learn this skill.  I found The Complete Idiot's guide to Calligraphy very helpful.  It is detailed and has all the information we need. This book is organized in a simple, easy to read/ understand way.  The book has lots of tips and helpful practice pages.  I like the 1,2,3 arrows that direct us to which way we should move the pen.

We can put the skills we learn from this book to make beautiful artwork, cards and use it in many other creative projects. The book shows how we can incorporate calligraphy into our projects such as making bookmarks, wedding invitations and attaching tassels with embroidery thread etc.  To learn calligraphy we don't need to have artistic talents or good handwriting, we just need practice.  

People have spent time learning and using this skill of calligraphy in ancient art of gold embossing, illumination, bookmaking, handwriting etc...  The book mentions about the art of Japanese calligraphy or Shodo and about scrolls where the calligraphers write quickly without altering or touching the letters afterwards.   The Japanese symbols are adapted from the 4th century Chinese writing Kanji, {which means characters from China} uses a brush technique.  In Japan and many other cultures calligraphy is about mind, spirit and technique.

I used the formal italic script to write in this card, which is not joined like cursive.

A few things about Calligraphy that I learned from the book

• Calligraphy comes from the Greek word Kallos, which means beautiful and Graphein meaning to write.  
• The writing in calligraphy is slightly slanted to eliminate the need to constantly lift the pen nib.
• Writing on a slanted board without hunching over helps to form this writing.
• To start off, we can use 2mm wide carpenter pencil. Keep the eye and paper 10" apart.  Sit straight with the feet on the ground.  Hold the pen normally 1/2" from the end of the pen.  The nib should point in the same direction and should be in a 50 degree angle from the writing surface.  If it comfortable for you then it is better to keep the little finger extended for stability.
• When framing calligraphy choose simple frames that have wide margin space.

Learning how to use the tools correctly is important to do this craft well. The book explains how to use the nib, the type of inks and paper.  

• Felt tip pens are not as good, but I used a pen I got from Walmart which was for calligraphy. The book suggests using flexible nibs for easy strokes and acid free paper.  
• Don't use paper that becomes yellow fast i.e. newspaper has lots of acid.  Good papers have a watermark when it is held to light.  If the paper is too slippery rub it with a soft eraser.

The books suggests for us to keep our calligraphic work simple, uncluttered and eye-catching.  There are tips on how we can make our own pens using bamboo canes, dried stem, possible sticks, foam felt, make up sponge or quill with feather.  It also explains how to make rubber stamps using plastic erasers to emboss or deboss letters. There is information on how we can cut out 3D decorations. Details about drawing with double pencils, using gold paint to fill between the lines and adding ribbons to scrolls.  

All rights reserved on photographs and written content Createwithmom © 2012. Please Ask First

Golden Domes and Silver Lanterns

Golden Domes and Silver Lanterns is a colourfully illustrated book for children.  The vibrant pictures and beautifully written rhyming sentences will keep children entertained as they learn about colours, culture and common words of objects used by Muslims.  This book will keep children inquisitive as they learn about familiar things they may have seen, heard or have i.e. hijab (head scarf worn by Muslim women), dates, henna etc...

The glossary in the end of the book elaborates and explains the terms used in the book, so it is easy for us to explain to our children.  
i.e.  Ramadan is a holy month where Muslims fast, give prescribed charity, do extra prayers.  
Eid is an Islamic holiday that comes after Ramadan or happens in the month of pilgrimage to Mecca.

This colourful book is a wonderful addition to the home, school or community library that all children from all faiths will enjoy.  It is available online, amazon and at bookstores.  Here is a preview of the book on google.

Children are more curious than adults and like learning about different things.  As parents, it is our duty to broaden our children's knowledge, give them educated answers so judgemental ideas aren't passed to future generations.

Although the world is full of different cultures, there are lots of stereotypes, ignorance and racial/cultural/religious discrimination.  Yes this still exists even in a place like Canada that has become a nation made mostly by immigrants.
Teaching our children about other cultures and making them aware is a social responsibility.

All rights reserved on photographs and written content Createwithmom © 2012. Please Ask First

Lemon preserve and jam jar kit

Lemons are cheaper in the summer, so it is a good time to take advantage of this and make lemon preserve to use off-season.

This lemon preserve will come handy in cooking i.e. chicken or to add into other pickles.  For this basic lemon preserve recipe you will  need...

unbruised clean Meyer lemons

coarse sea salt or kosher salt (not table salt)

Trim the top and bottom of the lemon to keep it flat.  Then cut the lemons into quarters vertically up to 3/4 way (the lemon should not split so don't slice it all the way).

Stuff the lemon with salt and pack it into a clean jar.  Cover the lemons with its own juice, when you press the lemons into the jar it will produce its own juice.  You might have to add fresh juice of 1/2 lemon if need be.

Let it sit for 3 weeks or more in a cool dark place.  I usually keep them for longer before opening the container.  Over time the lemons will reduce and become soft. 

As soon as the lemons are soft it is ready to be used.  Once you open the container store in the fridge for up to 6 months or more.  

If the lemons are not fully submerged in its own juice then a white film will appear.  If this happens just remove it with a spoon or lightly wash it off and use.

If you wish when packing the lemons to preserve you can add whole spices like bay leaf, cinnamon stick, peppercorns or cloves.

Disclosure:  I am part of the Life Made Delicious Blogger program and receive special perks as part of this.  All rights reserved on opinion, written content and photographs Createwithmom © 2012. Please Ask First

I used the creative Jam Jar kit from Cath Kidston Ltd to decorate preserve containers.  
This kit has 20 jar toppers in 5 different patterns, 8 sticker sheets, elastic strings and 6 easy delicious recipes.  
The kit is useful in decorating our homemade preserves, before giving it as gifts to family and friends.
The Cath Kidston Jam Jar kit is available online, bookstores and amazon.

The Natural Soap Chef

I have always wondered how soap is made from scratch.  I haven't made or seen anyone making soap at home, so when I got the opportunity to review The Natural Soap Chef I became really curious and thought this would be my chance to test making soap at home.  
From the time I had got this book, I have been trying to get the main ingredient Lye, also known as sodium hydroxide.  I looked for it at Michaels, which doesn't carry it.  Every time I went to the hardware store I forgot about buying Lye, so I went ahead and read the whole book to prepare myself before making soap.  

The author of the book has done lots of research and made a variety of soap before she wrote this detailed book.  
There are different ways to make soap, such as buying a pre-made soap base, shredding it and then adding our own colour, fragrance and exfoliant before remaking it.  The book doesn't cover this method as the author uses the cold-processed approach to make soap.  

The recipes to make soap are given in small batches to prevent waste and for us to use extreme caution when making soap.  
Her instructions are detailed, which will definitely be helpful in the process of making soap at home.  If you are interested in this craft, I recommend that you read the whole book before making the soap from scratch.  
The book is written in a personal friendly manner.  The recipes in the book are separated into beginners, coffee tea & stout, goat's milk coconut milk & puree and recipes to impress.  Some recipes for the soap include rosemary olive oil soap, almond cookie soap etc...  The presentation and packaging chapter has neat ways to package homemade soaps.  The pictures in the book make it very inviting for us to try our hands at making soap.

As much as soap making sounds exiting and fun, the main ingredient Lye is a dangerous hazardous substance to work with.  This chemical can cause burns, scarring and blindness.  It is also fatal if swallowed, so it must be used with extreme caution.  After reading the hazard part I have made up my mind to pass on making my own soap, despite the creative aspect involved in making soap at home.  It would be very hard for me to use gloves, goggles and work in a safe area as I tend to always put things in my hands and my children will want to participate (because it sounds fun).  To have this type of ingredient at home will cause a lot of stress :)
Reading this book has made me become more aware of the ingredients that go into soaps and a whole new respect to soap makers :) 

If you would like to take a look at this book it is available at bookstores, online and amazon.  If you have any questions ask the author here. 
All rights reserved opinion of the written content Createwithmom © 2012. Please Ask First

It's raining fish and spiders

It's Raining Fish and Spiders is a fun, informative exploration of the wonderful world of weather by meteorologist Bill Evans.  The book is good for children over 7 years, although I found it is helpful to answer all the curious questions of younger children.  The collection of facts, stories, experiments and explanations in the book is a good teaching tool for the kids.  

This video will give a good insight to the book. The book covers everything from tornadoes, hurricanes, lightning, kinds of snowflakes and many more. 
I liked reading the weather myths, stories and facts to my kids, and learned a lot of interesting things I didn't know before.  
The book includes some experiments and links to websites that have cool experiments, so we can try at home without expensive equipment. The author has used entertaining funny titles that will make everyone want to read. 
I liked the research, facts, charts, tables, illustrations and photographs (not coloured).  The author has given precautions on what we should do in a situation i.e. when there is an earthquake, tsunami, tornado etc (God forbid). 


Did you know...

• that no two snowflakes look a like, each one is unique.  Snowflakes are made from pure simple ice crystals.  In cold weather or winter when it rains it is called sleet not hail.  
• The lowest temperature recorded on the planet was -89.2C in Antarctica.  It gets slightly more rainfall than the Sahara desert.  Despite the snow and ice, Antarctica is the largest desert on Earth.
• When a tornado passes over a lake or small body of water it can sweep up objects of all shapes and sizes and drop it off some distance away; that is the reason the book was named It's raining fish and spiders.

This educational entertaining book is sold on amazon and bookstores.
All rights reserved on opinion of the written content Createwithmom © 2012. Please Ask First

My Art book Animals and artwork with foil

My Art book: Animals is full of special, easy to follow art projects.  The projects are inspired by a variety of famous masterpieces.  Animals were the inspiration of the artwork that was done by these artists. 

The step-by-step instructions in the book help us to make our own artwork.  We can add our own creative flair, discuss, discover and interpret the techniques the artists have used.

Here is a project from the book that we added our own creativity to.  The book has a project on tin tortoise, which is inspired by the wooden rhino.

Making an engraved painting with tin foil

foil tray preferably one without any markings

masking tape

scissors

tracing paper

pens

wooden skewers

paint

brush

Find an image you like and trace the outline of it.

Cut the foil tray to a slightly bigger size than the traced image.

Tape the tracing paper over the cut foil.

Using a different colour pen press firmly and draw over the outline of the picture.  

Then using another colour pen draw details.  Check every now and again without moving the foil out of place to see if the prints are visible on the foil.

Once the drawing part is done.  Colour the outside with paint.  I painted a smooth thick layer in black.  My daughter painted the background with the paintbrush in a sponge painting technique using green.

The finished artwork can be displayed or can be placed has a shiny cover for a binder or notebook.

There were instructions on how to draw animals with charcoal, making stencils with household goods, paper collage using different tones of colour, making wire sculptures using garden wires and pliers and many more projects.  The glossary in the book explains the meanings of art techniques and art media.  

All rights reserved on photographs and written content Createwithmom © 2012. Please Ask First