Fun and Free Ways to Keep Kids Amused

Kids are a lot of fun, but you have to be able to keep them busy. Kids have a great imagination, and if you can tap into that imagination you can keep them laughing and having a good time for hours. Here are some ways to keep kids amused for free.

My favorite kid game is I spy, and you can play this game anywhere. It is a fun game of guessing that you do not need anything to play. All you have to do is pick the spy to start, and let the fun begin. I usually will start as the spy and let the winner be the spy afterwords. It keeps the kids guessing because if they win they can than be the spy and the leader of the game. Now the spy must pick something in the room or the area of view, and they must recite the rhyme, "I spy with my little eye something that is ..." In the blank spot they must pick a color or a shape. Then the other players must take turns guessing what the leader was talking about. This is an awesome game that you can play for a long time.

Another fun game to play is 20 questions, but remember you don't have to stick to strictly 20 questions when playing this game. Again someone starts the game by picking a person. The person can be real or fictional, but they must be recognizable, and the leader must know things about this person. The other people playing than must ask questions that will help them determine who the mystery character is. This game is a lot of fun, and it can go on for hours. The best character I have ever chosen was Santa Claus, and I ended up giving away the answer.

One of my favorite fun and free way to keep kids occupied is by building furniture forts. All you need for this is a couch or a couple of chairs, blankets, pillows, a broom, and some other household furniture. Start by setting up two chairs directly in front of a couch. Next stack pillows on the line in between the couch and the chairs this will create a third wall for your fort. After the pillows are stacked up drape a blanket across the chairs and onto the couch. You can use some heavy books to hold the blanket in place. Add some personal touches or expand your fort using ottomans and brooms. You can also make a sign for your fort out of cardboard and markers for an even more personal touch.

Kids can be a lot of fun as long as you keep them occupied; it does not have to cost you a fortune to have a good time with children. I hope these ideas have made your day a little more fun, and remember use your imagination!

Piaget's Developmental Theory and Stages of Cognitive Development

 

Understanding children, how they develop, and how they learn is one of the most important jobs of a teacher, and there are many theories based on this understanding. Jean Piaget was a "biologist who originally studied mollusks, but moved into the study of the development of children's understanding;" he studied children and their development and learning habits intensely (Atherton, 2009, pp.2). Piaget's developmental theory is still studied today by education majors in order to understand how children develop, think, and learn, and this article will discuss Piaget's developmental theory and stages of cognitive development.

Sensori-motor

This is the first stage of cognitive development in children, and this stage occurs from birth to two years old. This developmental stage is exemplified by a child's ability to "differentiate self from objects," and a child comes to the realization that "things continue to exist even when no longer present to the sense" (Atherton, 2009, pp.6). this stage in Piaget's developmental theory also suggests that a child is starting to act with purpose.

Pre-operational

The second stage of cognitive development includes children from the age of two to seven years old. This developmental stage is when a child starts using words and images to relate and symbolize objects and thoughts; during this time children will still find it hard to see from the perspectives of others (Atherton, 2009). This stage of cognitive development also signifies a child's inability to classify objects by more than one feature.

Concrete operational

This stage of Piaget's developmental theory encompasses the ages seven to eleven. During this developmental stage children learn to classify "objects according to several features and can order them in series along a single dimension;" children will also be capable to "think logically about objects and events" during this developmental stage of cognitive growth (Atherton, 2009, pp.9).

Formal operational

The final stage of cognitive development in Piaget's theory occurs from the age of eleven and up. This stage signifies a child's ability to hypothesize and test methodically. This developmental stage is also when children will become "concerned with the hypothetical, the future, and ideological problems" (Atherton, 2009, pp.11).

Piaget's developmental theory has led to many other theories on children's development, and some have argued and altered his theories, but his studies have had a very important impact on education. Piaget's cognitive development theory has played a significant role in education theory on a child's ability to learn.

Reference:

ATHERTON J S (2009) Learning and Teaching;Piaget's developmental theory[On-line] UK: Available: http://www.learningandteaching.info/learning/piaget.htmAccessed: 1 April 2010