Kids & Family | Blog Category Archives | Meraki Lane

11 Working Memory Games for Kids | Looking for inexpensive (and free!) working memory activities for children with developmental delays like ADHD, executive functioning disorder, and autism, as well as students with learning disabilities like ADHD? With 7 strategies and 11 activities designed to develop a child’s memory, planning, and organization skills, this collection of fun ideas will help make learning fun at home and in the classroom! #workingmemory #workingmemorygames #specialeducation

Don’t forget! 18 working memory games and strategies for kids

11 Scooter Board Activities | Looking for fun occupational therapy ideas to do at home or in the classroom to develop a child’s gross motor skills, improve focus for greater learning, reduce stress and anxiety, and help with self-regulation? From awesome ideas children can do independently, to obstacle course inspiration for teachers and therapists who have access to a gym, these heavy work activities for kids are so much fun! #scooterboard #grossmotor #grossmotoractivities

Gross Motor Play: 11 Super Fun Scooter Board Activities for Kids

14 Team Building Activities for Kids | Looking easy and fun ways to teach team work, inclusion, social skills, communication, and problem solving in the classroom? These cooperative games and activities will inspire you! We’ve included indoor and outdoor ideas, ‘getting to know you’ icebreakers for the first day of school, and activities you can enjoy with your students all year long to encourage ongoing collaboration and team work. #teambuilding #teacherresources #teaching #classroom

14 Fun and Engaging Team Building Activities for Kids

13 Indoor Recess Activities for Kids | If you’re looking for fun classroom ideas to get your kids moving on snowy and rainy days, these brain break ideas will inspire you! Perfect for kids in preschool, kindergarten, elementary school, and middle school, we’ve included a mix of gross motor activities, learning stations ideas, team building games, and other classroom games and movement activities to keep your students engaged and help them blow off steam. #indoorrecess #brainbreaks

Rain rain go away! 13 indoor recess activities for kids

31 Jewelry Crafts for Kids | If you’re looking for simple jewelry project ideas for children, this collection has it all, including how to make friendship bracelets, washer necklace crafts, and other fun DIY jewelry projects mom and dad can do with their little ones, like salt dough and polymer clay necklaces. #jewelrycraftsforkids #jewelryprojectsofrkids #DIYjewelryforkids

Jewelry Crafts for Kids: 31 DIY Jewelry Projects to Try at Home

13 Balance Activities for Kids | If you’re looking for ways to develop your child’s gross motor skills at home, in the classroom, in occupational therapy, and beyond, this collection of fun games and activities are just what you need. Perfect for parents, teachers, and therapists, these core strengthening ideas will help build your child’s static and dynamic balance, while also helping with bilateral coordination. #balanceactivities #coordinationactivities #grossmotoractivities

Gross Motor Skills: 13 Core Strengthening Balance Activities for Kids

Language Arts Games & Activities for Kids | A collection of 37 fun ways to teach language & literature to kids in kindergarten, elementary, & middle school! The ideas are perfect for independent work & literacy centers, as well as for kids working in small groups. Includes letters, beginning sounds, guided reading, grammar, parts of speech, sentence building, spelling, vocabulary, word work, writing prompts, & more! #languagearts #literacy #literacycenters #grammar #partsofspeech

Language and Literature: 37 Language Arts Games for Kids

26 Dollar Store Crafts for Kids | Buttons, popsicle sticks, pony beads, drinking straws, and pool noodles, oh my! If you’re looking for EASY crafts to do with your kids at home, these dollar store activities are for you! Whether you’re the parent of busy toddlers with short attention spans, or older children who can sit still longer, these fun projects will inspire you. Perfect for cold winter weekends, hot summer vacations, and everything in between! #dollarstorecrafts #kidscrafts #easycrafts

Crafting on a budget: 26 super fun dollar store crafts for kids

18 Spelling Activities and Games | Learning spelling has never been easier – or more fun! – than with this collection of teaching strategies, activities, and games. With ideas for first grade (and 2nd and 3rd), for middle school, and for upper elementary, these hands-on activities for kids can be used with any spelling list for meaningful learning that lasts. #teachingspelling #spellingactivities #spellinggames

Learning Made Fun: 18 Spelling Activities for Every Age and Stage

26 Montessori Science Experiments | Botany, biology, physics, astrology, and chemistry, oh my! These hands-on Montessori activities offer the perfect balance between sensory play and classroom instruction, and go above and beyond science experiments for kids that are focused on chemical reactions with baking soda and vinegar. These fun activities are just what you need to make learning about science FUN! #montessori #montessoriactivities #montessoriscience #scienceforkids

Hands On Learning: 26 Super Fun Montessori Science Experiments

27 Science Experiments for Kids | Whether you’re looking for sensory science experiments for kids to do at home, or science project ideas for kids in elementary school to teach kids about the scientific method and chemical reactions, this collection of simple, easy, and fun STEM activities and ideas will inspire you! #sensoryscience #scienceexperimentskids #scienceexperimentsforkids #stemactivities

Fun with Science: 27 Sensory Science Experiments for Kids

41 STEM Projects for Kids of All Ages | Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math, oh my! From elementary school to middle school to high school, we've rounded up 41 simple and easy to re-create STEM activities, experiments, and projects for kids and for teens! #stemeducation #stemactivities #steamactivities #steameducation"

Hands On Fun: 41 STEM Projects for Kids of All Ages

27 Play-Doh Games or Kids | Play-doh mats are a great way to teach kids their numbers, letters, and shapes, and there are so many free printables for different themes, like the weather, the seasons, and various holidays like Christmas, Valentine’s Day and Easter. They also help develop a child’s fine motor skills! Check out our favorite play-doh activities for fun in the classroom and at home. #playdoh #playdohactivities #playdough #playdoughrecipe #playdoughactivities #finemotoractivities

27 Play-Doh Games & Activities to Develop Fine Motor Skills [& More!]

Best Family Board Games | If you’re the mom (or dad) of young kids and need family game night ideas to help you spend quality time together on weekends and holidays, this collection of educational ideas are equal parts awesome and hilarious. Perfect for children (and teens!) of all ages, these ideas make great gifts the whole family will love and double as fantastic party ideas for any occasion. #familygamenight #boardgames #boardgamesforkids #kidsgames #educationaltoys

Family Game Night! 16 Best Family Board Games to Invest In

8 Ways to Keep Kids Active this Winter | If you want to know how to keep kids active during the winter months, we’re sharing 8 family-friendly ideas they’ll love. From scavenger hunts and snow painting, to winter science experiments and the perfect recipe for frozen bubbles, these ideas are the perfect way to beat cabin fever! #WinterActivities #SnowActivities #KidsActivities #OutdoorActivities #OutdoorActivitiesForKids

Baby It’s Cold Outside: 8 Ways to Keep Kids Active this Winter

18 Grammar Games for Kids | Looking for grammar lessons to use in elementary school, middle school, and/or high school students to help improve their vocabulary and language skills? This collection of simple yet fun ideas for 3rd grade and beyond will take the yawn out of teaching verbs, nouns, pronouns, and adjectives, verb tenses, and the different parts of speech. Who said language arts has to be boring?! #grammargames #partsofspeech #languagearts #vocabularyactivities #teachinggrammar

18 Grammar Games for Kids to Improve Vocabulary and Language Skills

Best Christmas Gifts for Kids | Whether you’re shopping on a budget and need inexpensive gift ideas, or want creative and unique ideas for kids who have everything, this list has it all! With 33 of the best Christmas toys for boys and girls, this list has the most popular kids toys of the season for super cool Christmas gifts kids want to see under the tree! #christmastoys #toyguide #besttoys2018 #giftguideforkids #giftguideforgirls #giftguideforboys #besttoysforboys #besttoysforgirls

33 Best Christmas Gifts for Kids: What Your Child Really Wants This Year!

How to Teach Kids About Germs | If you’re looking for FUN ideas to teach your students and/or children about the different kinds of germs and why proper handwashing is so important during cold and flu season (and beyond), this collection of germ activities for kids will not disappoint. From classroom lesson plans, to hands-on learning activities, to super cool science experiments, teaching has never been so fun! #germs #coldandflu #immunesystem #kidsactivities #healthyhabits #scienceexperiments

How to Teach Kids About Germs: 11 Super Fun Activities We Love!

How to Develop a Growth Mindset for Kids | If you’re looking tips to change your child’s fixed mindset or need growth mindset activities for kids to use in the classroom, we’ve got 7 learning tips, 9 fun activities, and 4 growth mindset books to help your children and/or students. Perfect for parents and teachers, these learning ideas are simple yet powerful! #growthmindset #education #teacher #teaching #parenting #education #learning #mindset #backtoschool #teacherspayteachers #homeschooling

How to Foster a Growth Mindset for Kids: 20 Tips and Activities

30 Journal Prompts for Kids | Looking for daily creative writing ideas for kids in first grade and beyond? Perfect for students in a classroom setting, as part of ongoing therapy, or as an after school or summer activity, these ideas will help teach kids gratitude, boost your child’s self-esteem, and teach them how to work through their feelings and emotions in a positive way.

Creative Writing for Children: 30 Journal Prompts for Kids

Mindfulness Activities for Kids | 17 simple and fun ways to teach kids the art of mindfulness to help them focus on classroom assignments, calm down and manage feelings of anxiety, exercise proper anger management, and regulate their emotions. These ideas are great on their own or as part of other therapy and treatment options for ADHD, anxiety, depression, and autism.

Mindfulness Activities for Kids: 17 Ways to Raise Mindful Children