Posts

A Guide to Letter Writing

/in , , , , , /by

Written communication is an important skill for children to learn, and writing letters, notes and cards is a great way for kids to practice these skills.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, we think letter writing is a fantastic way for Pyjama Angels to stay in touch with their Pyjama Children. All of these activities can be done separately or together via FaceTime, as most of them just require some paper and a pencil.

We have created some examples of fun letter writing activities below that are sure to spark creativity and playfulness in your child.

 

Scrapbook Card Making

Scrapbooking is such a fun activity that can be tailored to kids of all ages. All you need is scraps of different colourful papers. Cutting up junk mail or old magazines can be useful for extra supplies, as well as any other odd crafting pieces you might have lying around the house, like glitter, pompoms, or stickers. We used double sided tape to stick our scraps together, but you can use regular tape folded over or a good old glue stick. Just rearrange your scraps until they look pretty, stick them down, write a nice message, and you’re done! A thoughtfully hand-made card is sure to delight whoever receives it.

Click here to download How to Make a Scrapbook Card

 

 

 

Formal Letter Writing

This easy-to-use format introduces children to a more structured way of writing letters. The name of the writer, date and location are at the beginning of the document, and we start the letter with dear… friend, neighbour, stranger, it’s up to you! For the body of the letter, encourage children to fill up the space. Think about who we are communicating with and what we might like to write, including questions about them and things about ourselves as well. Finish the letter with ‘sincerely’, and perhaps a signature. P.S. stands for postscript, in case there is anything that needs to be added in after the letter.

Click here to download our Formal Letter Writing Template

 

 

Hidden Origami Note

This is such a sweet way to send little love notes. Simply write your message on a square of paper, then follow the instructions to fold it in to an origami heart. Nobody will know what’s hidden inside unless they unfold the heart! These are great to pass around to family members, and can also be easily mailed to any far away friends.

Click here to view our instructional video How to Make an Origami Heart Note

 

 

Secret Writing Code

This activity involves a good old fashioned cipher. Use the code we have created as your own secret language, and write out messages that only you can understand! You can also use this inspiration to create your own cipher for your very own secret language.

Click here to download the secret code

Click here to download the secret message

 

 

 

Inspiring your little scientists: experiments for every age group

/in , , /by

We all know our special little ones are creative little geniuses. They’re always experimenting with something so we’ve found some pretty mind-blowing and hands-on science experiments that you can do on your weekly visit with them. Best of all, they all use things you probably have lying around at home.

We feel these super-easy science activities are a great way to spend quality time together where the little ones are exposed to a wide variety of scientific concepts.

Rainbow milk experiment (Ages 4–16)

Learn about surface tension with this fun experiment. This is possibly the easiest and most beautiful science experiment out there!

Elephants toothpaste (Ages 4–16)

What happens when you mix peroxide, food colouring, water, dish soap and yeast and wait for two minutes? You get elephants toothpaste!

DIY lava lamps (Ages 4-9)

Talk about a groovy project! This fun science experiment is sure to impress – make a lava lamp by pouring vegetable oil into water, then sprinkling salt on it to make the blob of oil move.

Instant cloud science experiment (Ages 7-16)

Learn how to make a cloud in a bottle, instantly! If you’ve ever wondered how real clouds work, try this experiment.

Use lemon juice to make invisible ink (Ages 5-16)

Who doesn’t like to pretend like they’re a secret agent? Write secret messages to your friends and try to get them to decode them. The trick? Holding it close to any source of heat – like a candle or incandescent light bulb.

Mixing primary colours to make secondary colours (Ages 2-7)

This is a super fun way to show the kids how primary colours mix to form secondary colours. Because water and oil don’t mix, the kids can see how the primary colours separate back after they’ve been mixed around. For this fun project, we use water which is coloured by regular food colouring and baby oil which is coloured by oil-based food colouring.

Crystal rock candy on string

Making rock candy means the little ones can actually see the shape of tiny little sugar crystals on a magnified scale. Giving them lots of time to grow means they’ll form much bigger! you can eat these pretty little things once they done or you can keep them. What a yummy and beautiful experiment!

Electromagnetic train (Ages 9–16)

We had no idea that electricity and magnetism were so closely linked! You can build your very own miniature electromagnetic train by experimenting with the two materials.

Forced perspective photos (Ages 5-8)

Thought you could never stand on top of The Big Banana or ride The Big Cassowary? Well, you can make anything look possible with forced perspective photos!

Sink or float? (Ages 2-7)

Gather some of the kids favourite toys, plus things from around the house and garden and have the kids guess whether they object will float or sink.

Egg heads (Ages 2-9)

How cute are these eggheads? Plant grass seeds in an empty eggshell and watch their hair grow! You should see sprouts in a few days that you can style any way you want.

 

For more ideas on how to incorporate fun in your visits, check out our arts & crafts and fun food blog posts!

 

Free holiday fun for all ages

/in , /by

The two-week September school holidays are here! This is a good time for you and your Pyjama child to get crafty, creative and learn outdoors without homework hindering your visit.

The holidays is an awesome opportunity to extend your visits and perhaps have a change of scenery. This is a wonderful way to build your relationship with your Pyjama Child but please remember the restrictions and key policies which you would have learnt about in your Pyjama Angel training.

Here are some free events happening in our regions during the September school holidays. This may provide some inspiration for potential activities or a fun day out. You may even be able to assist your carer in taking the whole family out for a free and fun-filled day!

The State Library of Queensland is hosting a one-day event these school holidays, to celebrate art, science, learning, play and adventure. The day offers children with an interest in scientific mysteries and art, to participate in experiments and games. This would be a perfect opportunity for Pyjama children to explore their interests or even show off their science skills!

For: Any age

Where: The Edge, State Library of Queensland

When: 10:00am to 3:00pm | Saturday 6 October 2018

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Mackay Regional Botanic Gardens has designed a self-guided scavenger hunt, for those children interested in exploring nature. The Gardens provides an activity sheet to guide children around the gardens, encouraging them to find locate and explore the local flora and fauna. This scavenger hunt gives our Pyjama children the opportunity to explore nature!

Find the Botanic Gardens Scavenger Hunt Map here or collect from the Gardens Administration.

Mackay Regional Botanic Gardens are also providing 20 other free self-guided activities in the Gardens. There is an online passport that can be downloaded from here or collected from the Gardens Administration.

For: Any age

Where: Mackay Regional Botanic Gardens

When: 22-29 September

 

 

Has your Pyjama child expressed the interest in learning a new skill? The Pier is running 45-minute how-to knit sessions for children. These free lessons are designed to expand their creativity, concentration and coordination skills.

For: Any age

Where: The Pier

When: 10:00am – 1:30pm | 25 – 28th September, 2 – 5 October

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The National Gallery of Victoria is currently running an interactive exhibit for children, to explore the sights and sounds of New York! The exhibit is a great opportunity for our Pyjama children to learn about New York, through interactive displays, multimedia projections and hands-on activities.

For: All Ages

Where: National Gallery of Victoria

When: 10:30am – 12:30pm | 2nd October

 

The Gladstone Regional Libraries is holding a range of educational activities at libraries across the region these September holidays. If your Pyjama child has a special interest in technology or robotics, the libraries are holding sessions for children to learn the basics of coding and robot play. They are also providing craft activities, including tie dying.

For: Children 10 and over (Tie Dye Fun & Coding), All ages (Craft & Robot Play)

Where: Gladstone City Library

When: 24th September – 4th October

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As a part of their KRANK program, The Logan City Council are holding many school holiday events, including a cooking class. This free event will let you and your Pyjama child master a new skill in the kitchen, while preparing and cooking new foods together. The Logan City council are also offering other events, such as Zumba and hip-hop classes.

For: 5 – 11 years

Where: Kingston East Neighbourhood Centre

When: 10am – 11am | 4th October

 

The State Library of New South Wales has recently opened their new Learning Centre and are holding a range of activities for children. These activities focus on building and construction giving children the opportunity to help the library create a cardboard city. Children can build and create a pop-up house!

For: All Ages

Where: State Library of New South Wales

When: 10am – 3pm | 8 October – 12 October

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Surfers Paradise is holding their annual Kids Week. This year the event is dinosaur themed and will showcase daily live shows from 1pm.  This event also gives our Pyjama children the opportunity to meet rangers and their animatronic dinosaurs, as well as learn all there is to know about dinosaurs!

For: All Ages

Where: State Library of New South Wales

When: 29th September – 5th October

 

The City of Townsville is holding two different Lego activities during the school holidays. These activities will give our creative Pyjama children the opportunity to construct a building with Lego and turn it into a robot! Through technology, the children will be able to program their robot to do exactly what they tell it to do.

For: 7+ years

Where: CityLibraries Thuringowa Central

When: 2pm – 4:30pm | 25th September & 4th October

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ipswich Art Gallery is running a workshop for children to create shadow puppets. The workshop let’s children transform their puppet design into a moveable creation made of pipe cleaners, paper, ribbon and a range of craft materials.

For: 4+ years

Where: Ipswich Art Gallery

When: 10am – 5pm | 11nd September – 11th October