Babies Weekly Challenges

Week 6-In the Air

Complete 2 of the following activities to achieve your Week 6 activity badge in Beanstack.

Sing

(Sing to the tune of Skip to My Lou) Owl in the tree goes, “Hoo, hoo hoo,” (Bounce Baby) Owl in the tree goes, “Hoo, hoo hoo,” Owl in the tree goes, “Hoo, hoo hoo,” Skip to my lou, my darling. Other Verses: Robin in the nest goes, “Tweet, tweet, tweet…” Duck in the pond goes, “Quack, quack, quack…” Rooster in the yard goes, “Cock a doodle doo…”

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Play

Have fun playing with feathers. Let your child manipulate them as they wish and blow on them. You can tickle your child with the feathers or let them tickle you. Let them toss feathers up in the air. Encourage them to try to catch the feathers and toss them even higher in the air. Play fast-paced music to get children moving and calm music (dim the lights) to help them relax. You can also listen to bird sounds.

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Write

Print and tape the bird claw template to your wall so your baby can reach it (if baby can't reach the wall, tape it to the floor). Encourage baby to high five the claw. With toddlers, print out multiple claws and number them 1-10 or color them different colors. Then call out a number (or color) and encourage the toddler to give that claw a high five.

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Bird Claw Template

Bird Claw Template

Talk

Two little blackbrids sitting on a hill, (bend index fingers) One named jack and one named Jill. (raise one index finger, then the other) Fly away Jack, fly away Jill. (One at a time, hid hands behind back) Come back jack, come back Jill. (one at a time, bring hands to front) Other verses: Singing on a cloud...quiet and loud (make voice quiet and then loud) Picking up a stick...slow and quick (talk slow and then quick) Flying through the sky...low and high (bring fingers down low and up high)

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Week 5-Under the Sea

Complete 2 of the following activities to achieve your Week 5 activity badge in Beanstack.

Sing

(Sing to the tune of The Wheels on the Bus) The waves on the sea go up and down, up and down, up and down (Lift baby up and down) The waves on the sea go up and down all day long. Other Verses: The shark in the sea goes snap, snap, snap… (Snap your hands or the baby's hands together) The fish in the sea goes swish, swish, swish… (Move your hands or the baby's hands like a fish) The boats on the sea go toot, toot, toot… (Pull arm down like you're honking a horn)

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Play

Put blue hair gel OR water with blue food coloring into a heavy-duty freezer bag. Add flat ocean toys (fish, sharks, starfish, etc.) or ocean shapes cut out of a flat kitchen sponge. You can also add glass gems and rocks. Duct tape to reinforce the zippered seal. Don't have ocean toys? You can make a sensory bag out of any objects you can find at home using the method described above.

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Write

Try finger painting with your baby! This recipe is totally edible (though not that delicious!), completely non-toxic, easy to make, and will last! Try this with babies as young as 6 months. Recipe: 2 cups of cornstarch 1 cup of cold water 4.5 cups of boiling water Liquid food coloring Mix the corn starch with the cold water and stir together. Pour in the boiling water and stir between each cup. It starts out like goop, but keep stirring and it will “melt” into a wonderful, custard-like consistency. Separate into individual jars before adding food coloring. If the paint doesn't thicken: . Try adding up to 1 more cup of cornstarch and see if that helps thicken it. Or try mixing the paint in a pan on a medium heat instead of just in a bowl.

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Talk

Blow bubbles for your baby. While baby is watching the bubbles rise and pop say “pop pop pop” and encourage your little one to copy you. You can also say "bubbles" and "blow." After blowing bubbles, ask them: “more?” and wait a few seconds to see if they copy you before blowing more bubbles. Waiting for a response teaches baby how conversations work. Don't worry if your baby is not repeating the words you are saying. They are learning words from hearing you repeat the words over and over. Your baby will start saying the words aloud when they are ready.

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Week 4-Pets

Complete 2 of the following activities to achieve your Week 4 activity badge in Beanstack.

Sing

One, two, three (count with fingers) Doggie's got a flea, doggies got a flea And now it's on me! (point to self with both hands) (Repeat 1x) It's on my nose, it's on my toes (point to body parts) It's on my ear, it's over here (point over there) It's on my tum, it's on my thumb (point to body parts) One, two, three (count with fingers) Doggie's got a flea, doggies got a flea And now it's on me! (point to self with both hands) (Repeat 1x)

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Play

Create a stack (or row) of cardboard boxes with holes cut out of the sides. Hide stuffed kitties (or any stuffed animal pets) inside. Babies (or you!) can reach inside or turn over the boxes to find the hiding pets. This is a good time to practice opposite words such as inside/outside and above/below.

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Write

Set bowls in front of stuffed animal pets, and let your baby fill the bowls with plastic balls, large pom-poms, cotton balls, or other items you find around your house. With younger babies, set the bowls on tables so baby can drop the balls into the bowls while you carry them.

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Talk

Ride away, ride away (Bounce baby on lap) Johnny will ride He shall have a pussycat Tied to one side (Slip baby to one side) He shall have a puppy dog Tied to the other (Slip baby to the other side) And Johnny will ride to see his grandmother (Bounce)

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Week 3-On the Farm

Complete 2 of the following activities to achieve your Week 3 activity badge in Beanstack.

Sing

SING: The Horses are Walking A great song for babies of all ages. For young babies bounce them on your knee or carry baby and walk in a circle. Toddlers can trot by themselves in a circle. The horses are walking, they're walking along, (Bounce baby slowly) Walking along, walking along The horses are walking, they're walking along. Woah, whoa, WOAH! (Dip baby backwards) Other Verses: Trotting (Bounce faster) Galloping (Bounce even faster) The horses are walking, they're walking back home, (Bounce baby slowly) Walking back home, walking back home The horses are walking, they're walking back home. Woah, whoa, WOAH! (Dip baby backwards)

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Play

PLAY: Egg Carton Fun Give your child a stack of egg cartons (Or just one or two). Let your baby discover the cartons. They many open and close them or stack them on top of each other. Give your baby other objects from around the house that they can use to fill up the egg cartons. Don't worry if your child spends more time emptying the cartons than filling them. Let your child explore the egg cartons without too much interference. This is a great open ended activity for your baby that will help them learn independent play and thinking skills.

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Write

WRITE:Mother Hen Object Permanence Box Make an object permanence box. Your baby can drop plastic eggs (or other materials you find at home) in a top hole and retrieve them from the open side. This activity refines babies' motor control and practices object permanence, which is the idea that an object still exists even when it is out of sight. To make the box, cut an egg-sized hole in the bottom of a shoebox; tape around the perimeter of the hole to smooth the edges. Cut a large square hole in the short side of the box. Flip the box over so the lid is on the bottom (and the egg hole on top), and tape the lid to the box.

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Talk

TALK: Animal Sounds Using stuffed animals or pictures of animals, play with your baby by making animal sounds. You can hide the animals under a rug, towel, or box for babies to find. Ask open ended questions during play. For example, where is the animal? What is it doing? What does it say?

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Week 2-In the Wild

Complete 2 of the following activities to achieve your Week 2 activity badge in Beanstack.

Sing

A hip, a hip, a hippopatamus Got on, got on, got on a city bus And all, and all, and all the people said, "You're squishing us!" (hug baby) A sheep, a sheep, a sheep got on the bus And all, and all, and all the people said, "Baaaack up!" (tilt baby back) A cow, a cow, a cow got on a bus And all, and all, and all the poeple said, "Mooooove over!" (lean baby to the side)

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Play

Print out the Bear Peek-a-Boo Mask template (alternately, draw a picture of a bear or other animal on a piece of paper). Color the mask and add a popsicle stick as a handle. Play peek-a-boo with your baby using your Bear Mask.

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Write

Create a Treasure Basket for your baby to explore. Find a selection of objects from around the house and put them in a basket. Then sit back and allow your child to play and explore, without interrupting or showing them what to do with the objects. Present the basket to your child just a few times a week to keep it interesting and exciting. You can also regularly change and update what goes into the basket.

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Talk

Wiggle, waggle went the bear Catching bees in his underwear One bee out, one bee in One bee bit him on his big bearskin! Bzzzzzzz! (Tickle Baby on belly)

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Week 1-Creepy Crawly

Complete 2 of the following activities to achieve your Week 1 activity badge in Beanstack.

Sing

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Play

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Write

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Talk

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