The Mother Goose Time theme for April is Bees and Butterflies and we dug in a bit early to celebrate spring and start a unit on bugs for Monkey to earn her Insect badge for American Heritage Girls. This theme is just perfect for spring time.
I love how many of the Mother Goose Time themes match up with the seasons and holidays. It really helps the children connect.
Spring has sprung here and we ave dove into spring cleaning head first. Opening all of the windows and letting fresh clean spring air in. We like to encourage all of the children to help in daily activities.
The youngest ones need a bit more of a cue to join in. Mother Goose time has a free printable picture based schedule for getting the younger kids involved.
For a bit of fun we made Busy Bee Headbands. This is the craft from day 3 of Mother Goose Time when the kids learn about baby bees. Originally named Queen Bee headbands we changed the name to fit our fun for the day.
After making these cute headbands we challenged the kids to be busy worker bees and help out around the “hive” (our home.) This made spring cleaning a little more exciting for our busy bees.
What you need to make Each Busy Bee Headband:
- Yellow card stock or construction paper
- Black scrap paper
- Yellow pompoms
- Black pipe cleaners
- Black crayon, marker, or paint
- Tape or stapler
- Scissors
How to make these Busy Bee Headbands with your kids
Cut the yellow paper into 2-3 inch thick strips. It will take 2 to 2.5 strips per headband. Cut long triangles from the scrap black paper for the stinger (optional.)
Have your child color a stripe of black through the center of the paper strips. Use what you have on hand in my case I could find a black crayon and a black marker. Where do all of the school supplies go?
Tape (or staple) the strips end to end and wrap around your child’s head to size. Secure into a ring that fits on your child’s head.
Have your child help thread the pipe cleaner under the tape and twist the end around the pipe cleaner. This makes the antenna a bit more secure.
Twist the pipe cleaner around the pompom to keep it in place.
Tape the stinger to the back of the headband and send you busy bees off to work.
Make spring cleaning fun for your Busy Bees
Once you have your busy bee headbands ready to go. It’s time to get to work. Talk to your kids about how bees in a hive all work together to take care of the hive and how your family will be working together today to get the house nice and clean for spring.
Give each child a chore that is fitting to their age. Make each job fun with dancing, singing and cheerful fun. With a little effort on your part, your children will remember spring cleaning time as a time of fun and cheer.
Kids love helping with jobs that bigger people have a harder time with like cleaning out bottom cabinets. Kid’s spring cleaning is a great way to come together as a family for the good of everyone in the house.
Chores kids love can include things like:
- Dusting
- Window washing
- Sweeping
- Sorting
A child size cleaning set that really cleans can help your child have even more fun helping you spring clean. You can buy a full set of real child size cleaning tools or stop by the local dollar tree for a hand broom to get you started. Other great tools for kids include microfiber rags, spray bottles full of vinegar and water, and swiffer style mops with the middle pieces of the handle.
What ways do you make spring cleaning fun for kids?
[…] Busy Bee Headband Craft // Simple at Home […]