Activity Village News

29th August 2008

A Message From Lindsay

Well, it seems that the summer is nearly over - although here in England I think we would be forgiven for wondering whether it had even got started this year! Our satchels are packed up ready for next week, and our pencil cases are full. I've always found that September feels more like "New Year" to me than 1st January, and I'm sure that many parents and educators feel the same. What can we do to make it a great new school year? We have lots of ideas on our Back to School pages.

We are very excited about our latest section at Activity Village: AV Baby. AV Baby will take you right through pregnancy to the end of your baby's first year, and will pull together information, advice, reading, photos, crafts - and of course some brand new Activity Village printables! We've made a start (find details in the What's New section below) and we'll be adding to this section steadily over the next few months, so if you are planning to add to your family please subscribe to the newsletter and keep checking back. And if you know any expectant mums, please point them in our direction!

What's New At Activity Village?

We have some great new Back to School crafts, including this cheerful school bus...
Back to School Crafts

If your children have been inspired by Wall-E into a new passion for robots, they will love our new Robots theme. Sarah, Jack and Sam have had great fun exploring robots in many forms and you will find some great crafts, coloring pages and other printables to enjoy.
Robots Theme

Halloween isn't too far round the corner and we have already started on some new Halloween activities for you. These three new posters are a great way to decorate your house or classroom - or perhaps to welcome trick-or-treaters to your front door?
Halloween posters

If you are at all crafty you might enjoy our gingham scrapbook paper sets to print and use in all your scrapbook and craft projects. We used to charge for these but decided to make them free. There are 24 different colors - in fact, 48 if you use the draft setting on your printer) and they come in useful for origami, wrapping up little parcels, making cards and tags... we're sure you can think of lots of ways to use them!

We've started AV Baby off with some gorgeous room decorations to print, and we'll be adding lots more of these in different themes over the next few weeks. These are not just for babies, of course - younger children will love the cute illustrations too. This week we have mobiles, room signs, door hangers and photo frames of "African Animals" and "Pink Animals" - get the printer and scissors busy!
Room decorations to print

What to expect from a newborn baby, how to cope with the influx of visitors, tips on snatching enough sleep, and much more!
Newborn Babies

Read our Diary Of A New Mum and discover what happens when Jessica-Ann comes home from the hospital and during her first year at home. Our diarist, Monica, keeps us amused and enthralled and this fun read is perfect for new mums and experienced mums alike! We are on Week 18 already (so make yourself a cup of coffee and catch up!) and will have new episodes weekly.
Diary Of A New Mum

Although perfect for Back to School (the kids can have their own special place to display their best school work) this is also a cute gift that the kids can make themselves .. perhaps for Grandparent's Day?
Family bulletin board

More Gifts Kids Can Make here

Reader Tip...

This tip comes from Alison in Portsmouth, UK.

"Roll your children's clothes before putting them into drawers, rather than stacking them in piles. It makes it much easier for kids to recognise what they have and they make much less mess when taking them out and putting them back! Plus packing is a breeze - just take the rolled articles out of the draw and stack them into the suitcase."

Do you have any child-related “Reader Tips” to make life easier for other parents, teachers and grandparents? Send them to us (suggestions@...) - and we may publish them in a future edition of the newsletter.

Have You Seen?

We all know how difficult it can be to come up with different, healthy and fun lunch box ideas - and that's why we end up packing up the same lunches over and over again! To help you (and your kids) avoid packed lunch boredom, we have collected some simple ideas to spice up your child's lunch box.
Lunch Box Ideas for Kids

A Giggle!

"Do not, on a rainy day, ask your child what he feels like doing, because I assure you that what he feels like doing, you won't feel like watching."
Fran Lebowitz

Something To Cook With Your Kids This Weekend..

These are a firm family favourite in our house  - and a very useful quick meal to teach your teenagers to cook for themselves and their friends! Children of all ages enjoy putting these together, and of course you can tailor them to suit the likes and dislikes of the different members of the family.
Easy Quesadillas

Something To Think About..

"There's no point in being grown up if you can't be childish sometimes."
Dr. Who

A Poem To Enjoy

Just for Today

Smile at a stranger.
Listen to someone's heart.
Drop a coin where a child can find it.
Learn something new and then teach it to someone.
Tell someone that you're thinking of them.
Hug a loved one.
Don't hold a grudge.
Don't be afraid to say "I'm sorry".
Look a child in the eye and tell him or her how great they are.
Don't kill that spider in your house; he's just lost. Show him the way out.
Look beyond the face of a person and into their heart.
Make a promise, and keep it.
Call someone, for no other reason other than to say, "Hi."
Show kindness to an animal.
Stand up for what you believe in.
Smell the rain, feel the breeze, listen to the wind.
Author Unknown

Back to Newsletter Archives

	Don't miss...
	Thanksgiving
	St Andrew's Day
	Advent
	Hanukkah
	Christmas
	Kwanzaa
	Winter
	Shidonni

Christmas is coming!
Need help? Free inspiration, crafts, decorating ideas, planning sheets, recipes, printables and more!
Click here!

A Small Publishing Website    Contact Us    Sudoku for Kids   Privacy Policy

These pages are property of Activity Village and are for personal, classroom and library use only