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Learning Invitations are one of my favorite way to invite my kids into learning. Some people call this “strewing,” but it’s a little bit more intentional. Instead of just placing items around the room for your kids to discover, you’re setting up independent activities that your kids can do.
There really isn’t any wrong way to do learning invitations, and these are just some ideas. Use these as a springboard to come up with your own learning invitations or have your kids come up with their own ideas with the supplies you give them! You can either set them out and let your kids explore and creatively figure out what to do with them, or you can give them a little direction first.
Water Play
Summer is a great time to take your water experiments and discoveries outside – keep the mess where cleanup isn’t a problem. ;)
Water words:
Supplies:
- squirt guns
- paint brushes
- sidewalk chalk
Go outside and have your kids write words or letters on the driveway or sidewalk with squirt guns and paint brushes dipped in water. They can also write with sidewalk chalk and then squirt the chalk away!
If your kids are too young to write their own letters or words, write the letters for them in chalk (or let older siblings do this with younger ones).
Float or Sink
Give your child various objects to test which will float and which will sink. Gather up some supplies and challenge them make a boat. If you have multiple kids, have a friendly competition to see whose boat can float the farthest!
Natural objects to use:
- bark
- feathers
- sticks
- twine
- pinecones
- leaves
Other objects to try:
- pool noodles
- paper
- straws
- pipe cleaners
Here’s an example tutorial of a pool noodle boat:
Water erosion:
- Put some dirt in a shallow container (or just make a pile in your yard) to watch how water makes a path.
- Try adding different things into the dirt. Does water move differently through soil, sand, and rocks? What other ways can you change the water flow or slow it down?
- What happens if the water moves slower or faster?
- Does it change when the water is poured from a lower or higher height?
Ice Discovery
Supplies:
- ice cube trays
- small plastic buckets or containers
- small objects like animals, beads, magnet letters, etc.
- hammers, butter knife, or something else to chip away at and break the ice
Freeze small objects in water. Once frozen, give the ice to your kids (outside or in a dish tub) with a hammer or something else to break the ice. Have them hunt for the treasure buried in the ice!
Here are some great ways to extend the activity (especially for older kids):
- Chose letters that will spell a word or your child’s name. Ask your child to figure out what word(s) they can build with the letters they uncover from the ice
- Put a different number of beads in each portion of the ice cube tray. Have your child count out the beads. If your kids are older, have them write down the numbers and then add or multiply them.
Wild Cooking
Supplies:
- old pots and pans
- spoons
- bowls
- baskets
Have your kids collect “wild plants” in their baskets (weeds, grass, flowers, etc.) and create pretend concoctions, soups, recipes, etc. Give them paper to write down or draw their recipes.
*Be sure to talk to your kids about safe foraging, not eating plants they can’t ID, etc.
Check out this post about foraging with kids to give you some great tips, books, and resources for foraging edible or medicinal plants with your kids.
Older kids:
Instead of pretend cooking, have your older kids create a real recipe using wild, foraged plants. Set out some of the books listed in this post for your kids to ID plants, discover their uses, and help them get ideas for a recipe. These books may also have some ideas if your kiddos aren’t comfortable creating a recipe from scratch.
Garden Center
Younger kids:
Put dirt or sand in a shallow tub or bucket along with shovels. Bury toys or plastic letters and have your child find them. With toys, have your child sort them by color, size, etc. With letters have your child build words, identify letters, etc. depending on their reading ability.
Have your child use sticks (or their fingers!) to write words, letters, or numbers in the dirt.
Older kids:
Set up a potting station with soil, seeds, and pots. Let your kids plant the seeds themselves. Give them paper and art supplies to make a garden journal to take notes/track progress of their plants as they grow.
In this post, you can find a big list of picture books about gardening to set out with this learning invitation or read with your kids.