Send Dad a Stellar Message with Our Father’s Day Cards!

MB-Fathers-day-b“Max here! I know that Father’s Day is coming up and the Crew at the I.S.P. wanted to make sure you sent your dad the perfect transmission from Spaceport to planet Earth. We put together some special Father’s Day cards that include a special page for you to write a letter to the galaxy’s greatest dad. After getting some help to download and print these cards, think about a message your dad will truly appreciate, then write it down on a separate sheet of paper for an adult to look it over! Once you have checked for spelling and grammar errors, use your BEST penmanship and write down your message! Hope you and your family has an excellent Father’s Day!”

Add Some Math to Your Valentine’s Day Festivities

Valentine’s Day is a holiday that involves expressing feelings from your heart, but that does not mean you cannot integrate some mental math into your activities while you’re at it. With all the cards, candy, and heart-shaped items, you have plenty to work from to make your Valentine’s Day filled with math and science! Here are some ideas you can work on to make your February 14th a day filled with some extra love for arithmetic:

Photo by Johntex, ©2007 Some rights reserved. Licensed by Creative Commons Public Works License

Photo by Johntex, ©2007 Some rights reserved. Licensed by Creative Commons Public Works License

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DIY Gift Exchange Ideas

The holidays often provide ample opportunities for you and your Blasters to celebrate with friends and exchange gifts as tokens of appreciate and a means of marking this very special time of year. And while the act of exchanging gifts can have all kinds of different meanings to each person involved, have you ever thought to explore the role of learning and the development of new skills through DIY holiday gift exchanges? Start by cutting the costs and looking for how you might create a homemade present instead!

DIY Holiday
Not sure where to start? Head to our DIY Holiday Gift page on Pinterest for a number of exciting craft ideas that not only promote learning and developmental skills but that also make for memorable and cherished holiday presents. From edible treats to holiday décor and so much more, the possibilities are seemingly endless when it comes to creating unique holiday gifts that your friends and family will love.

And the best part is that no matter the project that you choose these are tools for learning in almost all crafts. Remember to highlight the following elements of crafting with your kids if they’re lending a helping hand this holiday season -

  • Counting / Measuring Quantities - How many gifts will you be making? How much of each material will you need to complete your crafting project?
  • Developmental Skills - Crafts can help children approach problem solving, motor skills, creative thinking and more.

Fall Activities: Leaf Rubbing

Photo by Emma Craig, ©2013 Some rights reserved. Licensed by Creative Commons Public Works License.

Photo by Emma Craig, ©2013 Some rights reserved. Licensed by Creative Commons Public Works License.

Make the most of your leaf strewn lawn by incorporating Fall foliage into this fun activity with your kids! It’s simple and uses supplies that you probably already have at home, plus it creates instant seasonal artwork for your home! This is a great opportunity to teach your child about the different types of trees in your neighborhood!

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Build Your Own Planet

What is a simply DIY craft project that you and your space-crazed kid can complete together? Try making this easy, mess-free solar system to hang in your Blaster’s room!

Materials

The materials you need to complete this galactic task are as follow:

  • Color paper
  • Scissors
  • Compass or several circular objects (mugs, bowls, plates, etc.)
  • Pencil
  • Fishing line
  • Stapler
  • Glue
  • Star-shaped stickers (optional)

StackedStapledFishing Line

Steps:

  1. To create our hometown, Earth, you will need blue, green, brown, and white colored paper.
  2. To be precise, you can set your compass’ width to be 7 cm, which means the diameter of your circles will be 14 cm in total. Or you can use a large mug instead, and trace the outline onto the colored paper by using your pencil.
  3. Using your scissors, cut out the circles. Then, fold them in half.
  4. As shown in the image, stack the paper and staple across the crease that you just folded to keep the paper intact
  5. Then, fold the paper backwards to create a 3-dimensional shape.
  6. Tie the fishing line around the center seem.
  7. Tie a knot and your Earth is completed!
  8. Optional: You can purchase star-shaped stickers and use it as a label for the planet and to cover up the knot you tied in step 7.
  9. Repeat steps 1 to 8 to create Saturn, but this time, use orange, yellow, brown, and white colored paper instead, and set your compass’ width to 10 cm, or find a bigger circular object.
  10. To create the ring, simply create two circles in white and brown respectively that are just a tiny bit smaller than the ones you did to create the spherical shape of Saturn.
  11. Glue them together by slightly overlapping them, and slide it over the 3D Saturn.
  12. Repeat steps 1 to 8 to create the other planets, but make sure you alter the measurement of your compass slightly to show the scale between the different planets.

Complete

Note:

  • The more circles you cut out, the more detailed your planets will look, but it will also be harder to staple all the paper together.
  • Assist your kid when using the compass – the sharp tip can be hazardous.

Teach Math with Thanksgiving Turkey Hand Craft!

How are you going to celebrate this year’s Thanksgiving holiday? Creating DIY decorations is all part of boosting the festivity in your home. Freshen up your crafts-making session with your Blaster by integrating some math learning activities into it!

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You will need a few simple materials:

  • Colored paper (orange, red, pink/yellow, brown/beige, black, and white)
  • Scissors
  • Glue/tape

Start by asking your kid to trace the outline of their hands on the colored papers. Make about 6 hand shapes and cut them out with a pair of scissors. To add a little learning into the activity, ask your kid to do the 5 times table by using the cutout hand shapes. Afterwards, overlap the hand shapes to make a loose fan shape that resembles turkeys’ feathers.

20131108_105539 20131108_110331

Then, trace your kid’s feet on beige or brown colored paper and cut them out. Overlap the two feet shape to create a pear shape that resembles the body of a turkey. Decorate the turkey’s body with round oval eyes, a sharp beak, and feet with shapes cut out from colored paper. While you are drawing these shapes and cutting them out, quiz your kid on the names of these shapes.

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This simple and hassle-free craft can both liberate your kid’s creativity while practicing some basic math concepts. Let us know what your thoughts are on this unique genre of learning and comment below!

Solar System Crafts for Kids

Are you looking for some exciting and educational science projects to enjoy with your young Blaster? Teach them a little more about our very own galaxy by creating a beautiful solar system project for your home. As your kids might already know, our solar system consists of the Sun and eight surrounding planets, including Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune, neighbored by the dwarf planet, Pluto. You can share the wonders of our universe and the science behind the orbiting circuit with your family by building one of our favorite crafts that gravitates toward children’s natural curiosity.

Planets_Lunar and Planetary Institute

Photo By: Lunar and Planetary Institute

Physical Models
Building a physical model of the solar system with your kid can improve their visual development and hand-eye coordination. Please note that the relative sizes of the planets and the Sun is as follow (starting from the largest to smallest): Sun, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Earth, Venus, Mars, Mercury, and lastly, Pluto. To create a more accurate depiction of the solar system, try using the following materials and methods:
Click here for more craft ideas!

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