I’ve started using a fun new activity for my preschooler. Confessions has a magnet page for each letter of the alphabet. I knew this last year, but failed to see the potential since I really didn’t want to invest in the power magnets that she uses for the pages and wasn’t really sure what I’d use to make any kind of magnets stick.
Then, suddenly the Lord gave me an epiphany. I have magnets that I made for the little one this summer, to keep her out of major trouble while I worked with her brother’s school. It was a simple project. I hot-glued pom poms to some cheap circle magnets that I’d picked up at Wal-mart. And the inside of our chalkboard opens up to reveal a magnetic whiteboard. All summer long I’ve had her play with her pom pom magnets, making worms and caterpillars and pictures.
And yes, it finally dawned on me that she could use these for Erica’s magnet pages (probably after reading one of her posts that suggests this…I’m really slow sometimes). The magnet board isn’t a perfect fit, but it’s much better than my discolored baking sheets. And the activity itself? What a hit!
Personally, I gauge the success of an activity by how long it holds her attention. This one kept her busy for 15-20 minutes for two days in a row. That, my friend, is a definite “10” on my scale of success. We’ll be printing off more of those darling magnet pages in the future. Thank you, Erica!
A word of caution, however. If your child insists on picking up the magnets by the pom pom, you will need to keep the hot-glue gun handy. As for me and my house, we are trying to remember to pick them up by the magnet, not by the floofy part.
