TIPS FOR TOTS TUESDAY - December 15th

We made these Santa Baby Candle Holders one year for the parent gifts at preschool and the kids and parents loved them. All you need is a clean baby jar, red tissue paper cut up into squares, a strip of black paper for Santa's belt and a tab off of a pop can for Santa's belt buckle. Cover the jar with white glue and have your child(ren) cover the jar with the red tissue paper. Run the black paper through the holes on the pop tab then glue to the middle of the jar. Cover again with a final layer of white glue and let dry. Pop a tea light in and voila!!

Here's another cute idea I found on a wonderful blog I love to visit called A Little Tipsy. I'm thinking I'm going to have to try this one out for sure. What a wonderful keepsake to be brought out each year and very symbolic since it's something the family creates together. Michelle's handprint tutorial with pictures can be found here

My Book Choices this week are Jan Brett's:

GINGERBREAD BABY- That sassy cookie! When Matti opens the oven door just a little too soon, out pops a gingerbread baby instead of the gingerbread boy he was expecting. Eluding all efforts to catch him, the flat, becandied baby is chased around the village and into the countryside. He mercilessly taunts Matti's parents, a cat, the milk and cheese man, goats, villagers, a fox, and more. In a less traumatic twist on the classic Gingerbread Boy story, this Gingerbread Baby even outfoxes the fox. Sure he's bratty, but he doesn't deserve the gruesome end the Gingerbread Boy usually comes to. Matti makes sure this naughty but appealing little one ends up right where he belongs. Amazon.com

THE MITTEN- A Ukrainian boy named Nicki wants his grandmother Baba to knit snow-white mittens for him. She warns her grandson that a white mitten will be hard to find if he loses it in the snow, but of course he promptly does just that! What happens next is the surprising part, as a mole takes refuge in the lost mitten, then a rabbit, then a hedgehog, an owl, a badger, and a fox. If you think the mitten might be a wee bit stretched out at this point, just wait: "Then a big bear sniffed at the mitten. The animals were packed in tight, but the bear didn't care. He crawled in anyway." When a tiny mouse squeezes in, her whiskers tickle the bear's nose. He sneezes, and "Aaaaa-aaaaa-ca-chew!" all the animals fly out of their crocheted cave. As the mitten sails through the air, Nicki spots it, reclaims it, and takes it home to show his smiling Baba.

Amazon.com

Be sure to check out Jan Brett's Website for free printable colouring pages, activites and more. I used this valuable resource a lot when I was teaching preschool. We even put on a play for the parents and used the free printable animal masks.