January is the time when resolutions are fresh and motivations are high. You might be pumped to start doing more activities with your child(ren)… let’s plan it out with some theme ideas suitable for January.
New Year
Depending on how old your children are, you can go deep into a discussion about the system of years or simply introduce them to a calendar and tell them that a new year, 2022, has started. This is also the perfect moment to start introducing the calendar since we’re starting at the very beginning of the year. Here are three different types of first calendars that I find to be quite effective to introduce the concept to younger children:
Winter
The most relatable theme to delve into this month would be seasons, focusing on winter… or summer if you’re in the southern hemisphere. Even if you don’t have four seasons where you live, it’s still an interesting topic to introduce. I grew up in a tropical country and I remember being fascinated about the different seasons. Some great hands-on activities would be to sort clothing items according to the season, coming up with outdoor activities typical to each season, and then go out to experience the season firsthand! Some great books to read about seasons:
Snow
In relation to the season of winter, whether you’ve actually experienced snow or not, I’ve never met a single person who’s not fascinated by snow to some extent. Ideally you’d have actual snow around your area for the kids to explore, but if you don’t, you can always do activities with homemade fake snow. My favourite recipe is cornstarch mixed with white hair conditioner (just because that’s what we have handy haha), but there are many different recipes you can try (baking soda with shaving cream, baking soda with white hair conditioner, or cornflour with baking soda… just use what you have and try the combination that gives you the best consistency). Ooooooor… you can always buy these:
Penguins
I mean… who doesn’t love penguins? They are cute, uniquely remarkable and many resources are available to choose from. Here are our top 3 absolute favourite penguin-starring books:
