So I decided that we weren't going to watch any TV today... so now what? I was tired of cleaning up paint and glitter, and the kids were tired of crayons. I remembered that Robby had given me a great book by Disney's FamilyFun (see the link on the left) called Best of FamilyFun Crafts & Boredom Busters a long time ago, so I ran upstairs to get it. Within just a few pages, I found this easy Go Fish game that kept the kids' attention for at least half an hour, including the minimal creation stage (which you could really draw out if your kids are older and understand the concept of cutting out shapes and drawing). And they had fun showing Daddy how they did it when he came home.
The second step is to attach a paper clip onto each fish's nose. I did it this way, and they stayed on fairly well, but you can poke them through so they dangle from the fish's mouth if your kids play vigorously.
All you need is:
4 sheets of construction paper of different colors for your fish
4 sheets of blue construction paper for the sea
12 paper clips
string and magnets for the "fishing rods"
First, cut out the fish. I made three
from each sheet of construction paper. Depending on your kids' abilities, they can cut, color and/or decorate them. I thought about using the scraps from these to make fins, but decided it wasn't worth it since the kids will end up destroying them pretty quickly. And I wanted to let them do as much as possible, regardless of how they turned out. In that spirit, I let Ian have a pair of scissors, and here is his fish. :)
The second step is to attach a paper clip onto each fish's nose. I did it this way, and they stayed on fairly well, but you can poke them through so they dangle from the fish's mouth if your kids play vigorously.Third, tape the four sheets of blue construction paper together to make your sea, and put the whole thing on the floor.
Attach the magnets to the string and let your little fishermen loose! My magnets were the little round/flat ones and they kept falling out of the string. Finally, I figured out the trick at left for keeping them together without compromising the strength of the magnet. It's just a scrap of cloth I had lying around.
Lily had a special
technique she used to catch
the fish...not exactly regulation. :) And please excuse Ian's diaper--my kids are solidly anti-clothing (Lily makes occasional exceptions for her princess dresses and her Disney Princess swimsuit).
