利用者:CillianHosford2270

Fall offers an array of opportunities to spend time together as a family. This article offers some ideas for fall family activities.

Plan a local day trip. Some farms have opened up to the public and offer a variety of activities. I searched the internet for some places that were local to us.

Visit a Local Apple Orchard - We visited one that offered a hay-ride through the apple orchard. The wagon stopped and they offered an educational apple picking demo. We were then given bags so that we could pick our own apples. Once we returned to the barn they demonstrated how to make apple cider and offered free samples. My preschoolers really enjoyed this trip.

Visit A Pumpkin Patch - These too usually offer a hay-ride, and pumpkin picking is so much more fun when you get to harvest the pumpkin of your choice!

Visit A Petting Farm - The fall is a fabulous time to visit the farm. We found one that not only had animals, but also had a hay-ride tour of the farm, with a stop in the a pumpkin patch. There was a pumpkin painting station for decorating your prize pumpkin. They had a tent set up for visitors to enjoy a story time, with a friendly scarecrow, telling about Johnny Appleseed. The children loved the corn maze.

Fall harvest offers some unique cooking opportunities for children. Assist them when necessary but encourage them to do as much as they can themselves. Cooking offers opportunities for measuring, counting and comparing!

Make Apple Sauce - I found an easy recipe for making applesauce with children at the Mister Rogers' Neighborhood site.

Make Yummy Pumpkin Seeds - materials needed: 2 cups of seeds from your pumpkin carving activities, 1/4 cup of melted butter, salt, cookie sheet, bowl, mixing spoon. Place seeds, melted butter and sprinkle of salt into bowl. Stir well to evenly coat your seeds. Pour seeds evenly over the cookie sheet. Bake at 375 degrees for about 15 minutes. Stir every couple of minutes for even baking.

A Family Hike offers a chance to collect treasures from nature. Then use these treasures to create art and craft projects.

Paper Weight - materials needed: a fist-sized smooth rock, small leaves, ferns, flower petals, decoupage, sponge brush. Paint a coat of the decoupage over the rock. Arrange leaves on rock. Add final coat of decoupage.

Leaf Rubbings - materials needed: collection of different types and sizes of leaves, thin white paper, large crayons with paper removed. Place a leaf under the paper, use side of crayon to rub over leaf.

Share A Good Book - Reading to your child is a wonderful way to share some one-on-one time together. There are many books to choose from and most libraries and book stores will showcase season related titles.

Here are a few of my favorites: Why Do Leaves Change Color? (Lets Read-and-Find Out Science, by Betsy Maestro; Fletcher and the Falling Leaves, by Julia Rawlinson; and From Seed to Pumpkin (Lets Read-and-Find-Out Science), by Wendy Pfeffer. クッキングシート