3 Exciting Activities to Ring in the New Year with your Montessori Preschooler

Preschool kids are too young for staying up until midnight and many of the festivities associated with the new year, but there are ways they can participate. Let these fun activities be your starting point for ideas of how to help your little one take part in welcoming the new year.

1. Party Hats and Masks
   Construction paper, scissors, crayons, paste, glitter, and a bit of yarn are all you need to create artistic hats and party masks for preschool children to celebrate with. Start by helping your preschooler draw out the eyeglass-shaped mask and then cut it out, include openings for the eyes. The next step is for your preschool youngster to decorate the mask and a sheet of construction paper that will be converted to a party hat. When the artwork is complete, roll the construction paper so that it forms a cone and paste it together to hold the shape. Use a paperclip to hold the hat until the paste dries. Next, pierce the hat on the sides, thread yarn through the holes, and tie a small knot to keep it from sliding out. All that’s left is to party like it’s 2021.

2. Glitter Balloons
   For this activity, you will need balloons, a clothespin, and glitter. Carefully pour a small amount of glitter into a balloon, then inflate the balloon, pinching the top closed with a clip. To use, pinch the opening while removing the clip, point the opening slightly downward, and allow air to escape through the opening. Be warned, this activity can be messy and is probably best done outside.

3. Paper Plate Noise Shakers
   This simple activity requires 2 disposable plates, a popsicle stick, a little paste, some dried beans or popcorn, and crayons to decorate the plates. Begin helping your child draw his favorite ideas about the new year on the bottom side of the plates. Next, use the paste to attach the popsicle stick to one plate. Next, add a few beans or corn to the dish side of the plate and then use the paste to attach the two plates together so that the outside of the shaker is formed by the underside of the plates. Allow the artwork to dry before use.

New Year’s is celebrated around the world, and including small children gives them a sense of membership in the larger community.

Continue Reading

How to Remove Stains From Every Piece of Clothing

Stains are an unfortunate part of everyday life. Sometimes you spill soda on your white shirt. Other times your antiperspirant stains your favorite workout shirt, or your child slide-tackles an opponent and stains their shorts and socks green. Maybe you’ve accepted them as a permanent part of life, but they don’t have to stay long.

If you’re ready to erase stains, you can either use residential laundry services or roll up your sleeves and get your hands wet.

Pre Soak

Prior to any treatment, rinse your stained clothing in the sink, then soak it overnight in a large sink or container filled with water saturated with two tablespoons of detergent. Never use hot water, because that will “bake” stains into the clothing. After the soak, rinse your clothing under cold water to wash out loosened dirt and bacteria. 

Your next steps depend on the type of stain you’re treating.

Organic Stains (grass, dirt, body fluids)

You can remove organic protein stains with enzyme-based stain removers and detergents. After the pre-soak, use a soft-bristled brush or your fingers to rub the stain remover or detergent into the stain. Let the product soak into the stain for at least 15 minutes, then put it through a cool-water washing machine cycle. 

Thicker stains can be attacked with another soak, this time in warm water with oxygen bleach. Let it soak for at least an hour before machine washing with a cool-water cycle. Older stains can take longer to remove, so if you’re tight on time, consider using a laundry pick up service.

Blood Stains

Though blood is an organic stain, blood stains can use a little extra help.

If the stain is fresh, you can use hydrogen peroxide. First, pre-test your clothing’s reaction to hydrogen peroxide by dabbing it onto the inside of a hem to see if the fabric discolors. If the clothing is unmarked, you can sponge the blood stain with hydrogen peroxide, then rinse the fabric in cold water. After rinsing, use a soft-bristled brush or your fingers to rub in detergent. This time, rinse the clothing in warm water. Finish with a cool-water washing machine cycle.

If the blood stain is older, begin by washing the clothing with an all-fabric bleach. This might take several hours. If the stain remains, you can spot-treat with a mixture of 1 quart of water, 1 teaspoon of laundry detergent, and 1 tablespoon of ammonia.

Sweat Stains

These stains might be difficult to identify, but they’re often orange-yellow and located on underarms. They’re caused by deodorants and antiperspirants. If the stain is faint and doesn’t feel like it’s set deeply into the clothing, you can use regular detergent coupled with oxygen bleach in a cool-water washing machine cycle. 

If the stain is heavier with a texture like cardboard, you can soak the clothing in a sink of warm water and oxygen bleach for at least an hour before putting it through the wash. 

Adhesive Stains

Carefully remove excess adhesive from the clothing either by gently scraping with a fork or butter knife, or rubbing gently with a cotton cloth. Rub inward from the outside of the stain to prevent spreading it across the clothing. Be careful not to stress your clothing or you’ll risk damaging it.

Next, soak the clothing in cold water for at least 20 minutes. You can also saturate the water with detergent for extra soaking power. Afterward, wash the clothing in the washing machine as usual. If the stain is hard to remove, the second time you wash, you can add pre-treatment to the stain.

Leave no stain remaining with residential laundry services

Other stains can be removed by combining a pre-soak with spot treatments and regular washes, but to be safe, you’ll want to research specific treatments. If you’re limited on time and would rather leave the stain treatment to the professionals, include your stained clothes in your laundry pile for your next laundry delivery service.

Continue Reading

Exciting Ways to Learn About The Holidays This Year

Your Montessori daycare will tell you that the first 6 years are critical for childhood learning and development. Their minds are a blank slate soaking up information, and their bodies are growing and developing muscles. And through it all, they are learning to interact in an ever-growing world of social etiquette by practicing respectable and honorable behavior. The holiday season is an excellent time for development.

 

Continue Reading