JUNE 2016
Oscar’s
Birthday
1
2
Have your child make a not-so-grouchy birthday card for Oscar
on “Sesame Street.”
Birthday List
Using your regular calendar or just a sheet of paper, sit down
with your child and make a list of family members’ and friends’
birthdays. Have your child write out the names and dates if
possible, and put stars next to birthdays that deserve a special
celebration.
3
New Moon
4
National
Audiobook
Month
There’s a new moon outside tonight. At bedtime, read your child
“Goodnight Moon” by Margaret Wise Brown. It’s a classic that
can be read aloud again and again.
On car trips or even at home, have you ever tried listening to
audiobooks? They’re a great way to keep children (and the rest
of the family) entertained on long rides. Go to the library and
check out a couple from the children’s section. Ask a librarian
for suggestions.
5
Make Your
Own
Audiobook
Children love to tell stories. Have your child make up a story and
6
National YoYo Day
Practice the alphabet while yo-yo-ing. Take turns using the yo-
7
National
Trails Day
then read it aloud into a tape recorder. Later, play it back and
listen to it together.
yo with your child, and recite each letter of the alphabet as it
goes down and up. Start with the letter “A.”
Go for a hike, if there are trails nearby, or just take a nature
walk in or near your neighborhood. Carry a pencil and notepad,
and have your child point out birds, plants, flowers, bugs, and
more. Write them down in your notepad, and later that day,
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JUNE 2016
read them over again with your child and talk about what you
saw.
8
Nature Books
Visit the library together and check out a children’s book or two
on nature, like “Maisy’s Nature Walk,” “The Berenstain Bears Big
Book of Science and Nature,” or a non-fiction book
recommended by a librarian.
9
10
National
Bathroom
Read Week
Begins
Walk Around
the Block
Your child is sure to get a kick out of National Bathroom Reading
Week. Celebrate by stashing a silly book in the bathroom.
Take your toddler for a walk in your neighborhood and enjoy the
sights and sounds together. As you pass, name people and places
for your child. “Look, there’s our mail carrier!” Then add more
details. “I wonder if she will bring us a letter.”
11
More Walk
Around the
Block
12
Diary Day
After a few walks, ask your child to make simple predictions.
“Do you think we will see that big dog today?”
For Diary Day, encourage your child to start a diary if he hasn’t
already. Have your child decorate a simple, inexpensive
notebook with crayons, markers, stickers, and construction
paper to make it look special. If your child isn’t writing yet, he
can draw pictures about his day and feelings.
13
World
Juggling Day
Tomorrow is World Juggling Day. Since juggling is hard for little
hands, toss a ball or back and forth while reciting the alphabet.
Begin with “A” and advance to the next letter with each throw
(like you did for National Yo-Yo Day.)
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14
Flag Day
Go on a “red, white, and blue” scavenger hunt around the
house. Make three labels, “red,” “white,” and “blue.” Put the
labels on the floor and have your child bring back items that
match each color and put them in piles near the labels.
21
Father’s Day
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More Father’s
Day
Snuggle up with Dad and read books like “A Perfect Father’s
Day” by Eve Bunting and “Day Out with Daddy” by Stephen
Cook.
Create a “Daddy and Me” scrapbook with your child. Find
favorite photos of your child and his father (or including other
family members) and paste or tape them in a scrapbook or on
construction paper. Then have your child write captions for each
photo and decorate the pages.
17
Zoo and
Aquarium
Month
If there’s a zoo near you, make a family visit and be sure to read
18
More Zoo and
Aquarium
Month
If there’s no zoo in the area, visit the library and look at
all the signs about each animal. Carefully point out the name of
each animal so your child will know how it’s spelled.
“Zoobooks Magazine” or encyclopedias to look up pictures and
information about your child’s favorite animals. If you don’t
know where to start, try giraffes, zebras, hippopotamuses,
gorillas, and tigers.
19
More Zoo and
Aquarium
Month
Make a visit to a local aquarium or pet store to look at different
20
Ice Cream
Soda Day
Look up a recipe for ice cream sodas and make them together —
fish. Together, read the names of each fish and instructions on
how to care for them.
perfect for a summer’s day. Read the ingredients and
instructions together, and have your child help pick out the
ingredients. Experiment with different flavors.
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JUNE 2016
15
First Day of
Summer
Make a list of your favorite summer activities, like going to the
beach or the pool. What is your child most looking forward to
this summer? Have him draw a picture of a summer day and then
describe what’s happening.
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Summer List
Together, write down all the “summer" words you and your child
can think of, like “beach ball,” “sand,” “popsicles,” and “flip
flops.” Have your child draw pictures of each item next to the
word. You may need to answer his questions about what
something looks like, or show an example.
23
Sound Walk
As you walk in the neighborhood with your child you can play a
fun sound game. Look for people and things with names that
start with the same sound. Ask your child to close his eyes. Then
tell him to open his eyes and name the first thing he sees- “A
dog!” Say the sound that the letter “d” makes in the word dog.
24
More Sound
Walk
What other things can we find that start with the same sound?
Look for things like doors, dolls, donuts, and daddies. Give your
child help by saying things like “There’s a truck. Does that start
with the same sound as dog?”
25
Guessing
Game
You can sit on your steps outside and play a guessing game with
your child. Notice something, but don’t look at directly at it.
Give your child a clue and see if she can guess what you are
thinking of. For example, “I am thinking of something with
wheels. It is painted black and it makes a lot of noise.” After
your child guesses “The neighbor’s car!” let her have a turn.
26
Baseball Day
Make plans to play baseball outside. Together, make a list of
other children to invite. Then make another list of whatever
rules you decide to play by (you can modify the regular rules).
Decide on a time and place to play, and bring both lists with
you.
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27
More Baseball
Day
Find the lyrics to “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” and sit with
your child, reading the lyrics out loud so you can both learn the
words. Then sing the song together, following along with the
lyrics.
28
All Kinds of
Trees
Children are curious about trees because they are so big. You
can be scientists as you collect some information about a tree.
You can measure a tree by stretching your arms around it. “Can
you reach all the way around?” Feel the bark of the tree and use
words like smooth, soft, rough, bumpy, and hard. Look at the
leaves of the tree. Notice the veins. Ask your child to describe
the leaf’s shape.
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More All Kinds
of Trees
30
Another Kind
of Tree
Compare the shape to something familiar. “It looks like your
hand with fingers.” Compare the bark and leaves from different
trees.
Go to the library and check out “The Giving Tree” by Shel
Silverstein. Read the story aloud outside underneath a tree.
Your child wll probably want to read it again later!
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