KinderTown, Author at KinderTown

America: App Connections

Summer Camp is for parents and kids to work together, exploring the world around you with activities that will take you outside, inside, and as far as your imagination will go! Learn more by reading the Welcome to KinderTown Summer Camp! blog post.

Using the iPad to explore the Declaration of Independence, or play trivia games involving facts about the United States are great educational uses of your child’s time. Check out these apps inspired by “America.”

Geography Drive USA

Geography Drive USA tests your child’s geography knowledge of all fifty states, with a few history questions thrown in. Kids travel the highways while answering questions to unlock airports and gas stations which are essential to stay in the game. Bonus games allow them to visit the state fair to take the capital and state shape challenge and earn trophies and headlines. Overall, this is a fantastic app that encourages kids to independently study up while incorporating a dynamic game to motivate and make learning meaningful.

Britannica Kids: US Presidents

This app is great for learning facts about each US President. It presents all of the presidents in order and each one has unique facts about their presidency. The facts are read aloud to aid children in understanding the material. Your children will enjoy the quiz section after they have explored information about the presidents. Children also enjoy the “Hail to the Chief” song that plays in the song section. The app is $0.99 and appropriate for children ages 6-8.

Crayola Color Alive! Giveaway

Take photos of your family enjoying a summer/patriotic activity and upload them to social media with the hashtag #KTAmerica or upload them below to enter.

Related Blog Posts

America: Opening Ceremony (6/26)
America: Demme Learning Day (7/1)
America: Closing Campfire (7/2)

Next series: No Place Like Home.

America: Opening Ceremony

This week’s theme is America; download the weekly planner.

Learn creative ways to celebrate America with this printable from Demme Learning.

Remember there is not one right way to conduct the camp. Complete as much or as little as you can. We hope your family engages in many of the learning experiences we have laid out for the week, but the key is to do things together!

Be sure to post your accomplishments online by using the hashtag #KTAmerica. We’d love to know what you are up to! Check back on the blog each weekday to see what others have done, app connections, and additional activities.

Thanks for participating in KinderTown Summer Camp!

Discover the Sun: Closing Campfire

Thank you for participating in KinderTown Summer Camp!

We hope you found the week a valuable learning experience for your family. Please post your accomplishments on social media using the hashtag #DiscoverTheSun.

Here are some that we’ve seen already!

Here is a printable certificate that you can share with your kids!

Discover the Sun: Demme Learning Day

Activity: Make a Sundial!

Math-U-See® is a complete K-12 math curriculum produced by Demme Learning. This unique program develops by level, rather than by grade, presenting mathematical concepts incrementally. Students use manipulatives at most levels to establish an understanding of the concepts, and then move on to solving problems until they have demonstrated mastery.

For this activity, your preschool student will use her skills in telling time (taught in the Primer and Alpha levels), and your older student will investigate Roman numerals (Delta) and types of angles (Zeta).

As you create your sundial, you can refer to the accompanying activity page to review the underlying concepts.

MATERIALS:

Printout of sundial template
Paper plate or round piece of cardboard
Glue
Sharp pencil
Ruler
Drinking straw
Duct tape
Crayons, colored pencils, or markers (optional)

INSTRUCTIONS:

Print out the sundial template. In the box at the end of the line, write the number 12. The camper can decorate the template, but be sure to leave room around the outside edge to write in numbers.
Glue the template to the paper plate or cardboard.
Poke a hole in the center with a sharp pencil.
Put the straw through the hole and tape it into place.
Find a spot that gets sun for most of the day. At exactly noon, turn the paper plate so the straw’s shadow lines up with the 12. Fasten the paper plate to the ground with duct tape so it doesn’t move.
Have the camper predict what will happen an hour later. At exactly 1:00, mark the spot on the paper plate and write 1. Repeat this process every hour on the hour to make the clock. To use the sundial on subsequent days, it must be put in the same place in the same position.

EXTENSION:

Pre-K/Early Elementary: Use Math-U-See integer blocks to make the block clock shown on the activity page. As the camper marks each hour on the sundial, have him compare the time on the sundial to the corresponding time on the block clock.
Lower Elementary: Label the sundial with Roman numerals.
Upper Elementary: As the camper is marking each of the hours, ask him to identify the angle made by the straw’s shadow and the 12:00 line. (For example, at 2:00, an acute angle is made. At 7:00, an obtuse angle is created.)

Discover the Sun: App Connections

The sun is easy to take for granted because it is so integral to our lives; explain to your child how it affects their days and senses. Explore all you can about the sun!

Monkey Math School Sunshine

Monkeys, sunshine and learning. This app is bursting with joy! The app covers beginning patterns, shapes, sequencing, simple addition and subtraction, tracing numbers, and number order. There are nine interactive games that include popping bubbles, and delightful jumping monkeys. The app uses tracking technology to automatically adjust to your child’s learning level. The developers are clearly attuned to what preschoolers love! KinderTown’s favorite feature is the way the app gently shows kids the incorrect answer without negative feedback, and excitedly celebrates correct answers. Children earn prizes such as fish or trinkets to include in their aquarium. Monkey Math School Sunshine app is appropriate for children ages 3-4 who are beginning to learn their numbers. The app is $1.99 and sure to become one of your preschooler’s favorites.

NASA Visualizer

Be the first to know what NASA is up to with the NASA Visualizer app. Enjoy the in-depth look at what’s happening in our solar system. Explore the captivating and fascinating pictures taken by NASA. The app is organized into stories and each story has coordinating videos, pictures and a descriptive article. Check out the solar exposures section to see a time lapse of the sun over the past 5 years. The app is appropriate for children ages 7-12. A great free app for scientists of all ages!

Sun by Kids Discover

Learn about the sun with the Kids Discover virtual Sun magazine. Enjoy a diagram of an eclipse and an interactive model of the sun. The app explores different sizes of stars in our galaxy, how a star is born, the sun’s core, solstice vs. equinox, and information about Sun Worshipers. Parents, there could be content that you do not agree with in the “how a star is born” section as well as the “Sun Worshipers.” Navigate these areas with your child and discuss your beliefs together. This is a great opportunity to show how to evaluate different opinions. Children will enjoy the interactive quizzes and fun puzzles. Also, don’t miss their free lesson plan and teacher’s guide. The app is $3.99 and appropriate for children ages 6-10.

DIY Sun Science

DIY Sun Science is funded by NASA, so the content is curated by experts. Learn about how scientists are continuing to study and learn about the sun. The app includes many short educational videos for kids. Watch a video that shows human understanding of the sun throughout history. Play in the sun observatory section of the app to see how different types of light act on the sun. Explore the hands-on, offline activities section to see how you can learn more about the sun. The app is free and appropriate for children ages 6-10.

Discover the Sun: Opening Ceremony

Summer Camp is for parents and kids to work together, exploring the world around you with activities that will take you outside, inside, and as far as your imagination will go!

This week’s theme is Discover the Sun; download the weekly planner.

Learn a creative way to tell time with this printable from Demme Learning.

Remember there is not one right way to conduct camp. Complete as much or as little as you can. We hope your family engages in many of the learning experiences we have laid out for the week, but the key is to do things together!

Be sure to post your accomplishments online by using the hashtag #DiscoverTheSun. We’d love to know what you are up to! Check back on the blog each weekday to see what others have done, app connections, and additional activities.

Thanks for participating in KinderTown Summer Camp!

Wonders of Water: Closing Campfire

Summer Camp is for parents and kids to work together, exploring the world around you with activities that will take you outside, inside, and as far as your imagination will go!

Thank you for participating in KinderTown Summer Camp!

We hope you found the week a valuable learning experience for your family. Please post your accomplishments on social media using the hashtags #KinderTownSummerCamp and #WondersofWater.

This photo was submitted by @cmarie_demme on Instagram.

Here is a printable certificate that you can share with your kids!

Wonders of Water: Demme Learning Day

Summer Camp is for parents and kids to work together, exploring the world around you with activities that will take you outside, inside, and as far as your imagination will go!

“Fill the Bucket Game”

Math-U-See® is a complete K-12 math curriculum produced by Demme Learning. This unique program develops by level, rather than by grade, presenting mathematical concepts incrementally. Students use manipulatives at most levels to establish an understanding of the concepts and then move on to solving problems until they have demonstrated mastery.

Students work with liquid measurement in the Gamma level (customary units) and the Zeta level (metric units) in the Math-U-See program. As you prepare to play this water game, you can refer to this printable to review measurement.

MATERIALS:

Tools for measuring liquids– measuring cups, pint jars or plastic containers, quart jugs, half-gallon jugs, gallon jugs; may also want to include liter bottles, 2-liter bottles, milliliter droppers or teaspoons (5 ml)
2-3 identical buckets
Large container for holding water (kiddie pool, large washtub, ice chest) or access to outdoor faucet
3 x 5 notecards

INSTRUCTIONS:

On the notecards, write at least two instructions related to the measuring tools you have, such as “Add 1 cup” or “Subtract 1 pint.” You can tailor the instructions to your students as follows:
- PK/Early Elementary: measures in whole units, using the tools you have
- Lower Elementary: measures that require substitution (ex., “Add 1 pint” but have no pint containers or “Subtract 1 gallon” but only have half-gallon containers)
- Upper Elementary: include metric measures

There should be a minimum of 10 cards for each level, with more “adds” than “subtracts”.

Divide the children into teams, or allow them to compete individually, each one getting a bucket. Put instruction cards into piles.
Children take turns drawing a card from the appropriate pile and following the instructions. The team or person who fills the bucket first wins.

Wonders of Water: Grab Bag

Summer Camp is for parents and kids to work together, exploring the world around you with activities that will take you outside, inside, and as far as your imagination will go!

As we continue our camp week focused on the Wonders of Water, I want to share one of my family’s favorite water activities. It’s playing in the creek. The concept is simple: water shoes, old clothes, and lots of cool water in a shady location. We take a few buckets and shovels to discover new treasures and creatures and play in the water. My children love enjoying the outdoors and there’s always something to be learned along the way. No fancy pools or beaches, just the creek in the neighborhood. Here’s an app to enjoy alongside your exploration at the creek.

Meet the Insects: Water and Grass Edition

If you discover an insect near the water, use this app to help you learn more about the insect. Meet the Insect apps are packed with information, videos, pictures and an observation journal. The app includes an Insect Story section which provides diagrams and narration in a storybook format with interactive areas for kids to learn about insects. The See Insects section provides detailed information regarding each type of bug. The scientific name is used and real pictures and facts are read aloud to children. The quiz section offers two different types of interactive quizzes. KinderTown’s favorite section is the observation journal. This would be a great tool to study insects around your home environment, at the park or over a period of time. Children can add their own photos of the insect and record the location, weather and notes about the insect. There are three different editions of Meet the Insects: Forest Edition, Village Edition, and Water and Grass Edition. These apps would be an excellent addition to a study on insects or a resource for writing a report on insects. Each individual Meet the Insects App is $4.99 or you can purchase the app bundle for $9.99. Meet the Insects apps are appropriate for children ages 5-8.

Wonders of Water: App Connections

Summer Camp is for parents and kids to work together, exploring the world around you with activities that will take you outside, inside, and as far as your imagination will go!

Explore these great apps about water for virtual water fun as we continue through Wonders of Water.

Tiggly Submarine

Tiggly Submarine works with Tiggly’s new hands-on product Tiggly Words. Tiggly Words includes hands-on vowel letters that interact with the iPad screen to make a multimedia experience for early learners. Travel through the underwater scene and select the correct vowel to complete words such as crab, fox, hen, and sun. Tiggly Words does a wonderful job of introducing the vowels to children in the context of beginning words. Understanding the vowels and their coordinating sound is an important pre-reading skill. Tiggly Submarine is appropriate for children who are beginning to learn to read, ages 4-7.

Science Museum Splash

Science Museum Splash is all the fun and splashing of tub time for your preschooler, without mopping up your bathroom afterward. Does an item sink or float? Test it and find out! Tip your iPad side to side to see the water move, and wipe away the virtual steam. Change the temperature of the water. Want to start over again? Pull the plug and watch the water disappear down the drain. If you are feeling brave try out each of the items in your own bathtub! Science Museum Splash is free and appropriate for children ages 3-5.

Sprinkle Jr.

Have fun with the virtual water, and your child will develop problem-solving skills in the process. Children must spray water to unlock or solve the problem presented. Each scene includes movable items in the scenery that help you extinguish flames or achieve a goal such as picking the fruit from a tree and feeding it to the animals. There are 30 fun levels included. Sprinkle Jr. is $1.99 and appropriate for children ages 3-5.