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Valentine’s Day Treasure Blocks

February 22, 2022 by Annette Kaminsky Leave a Comment

These Valentine's Day treasure blocks offer a host of learning opportunities paired with loose parts and other blocks.
These Valentine's Day treasure blocks offer a host of learning opportunities paired with loose parts and other blocks.

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To add interest to block play activities, treasure blocks are always a good choice. Their contents can be changed to match the current theme you are doing as well as your child’s interests. Since we are in the month of February, Valentine’s Day treasure blocks blend in perfectly and can be used in a variety of creative ways.

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Follow me on Pinterest for more early learning ideas.

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Supplies To Collect

There’s no shortage of items to gather for valentine treasure blocks. You can go entirely with recycled loose parts or use economical purchased items. Or you can use a few of both.

The supplies I feature are red, pink, purple, and white – traditional Valentine’s Day colors. Gathered and added to the blocks are:

  • cut straws
  • beads cut from garland and necklaces
  • buttons
  • heart and rainbow erasers
  • acrylic hearts
  • gem craft hearts
  • hair ties

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Valentine’s Day Treasure Block Activities

At first, the filled treasure blocks can be set out on their own on a table or in a carpeted area for children to explore.

The blocks can be used as musical shakers, and children can be challenged to order them from quietest to loudest. With my blocks, the one with the hair ties hardly makes a sound, and the ones with bead garland balls and acrylic hearts tie for making the loudest sound.

These Valentine's Day treasure block shakers can be ordered by softest to loudest sounds.

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Another day, introduce new items to the treasure block play area. Featured here are little monsters, inspired by the endearingly illustrated storybook “Love Monster” by Rachel Bright, and Valentine’s Day loose parts. The monsters are actually repurposed dog toys, so they stand up superbly to block play! And they are squeaky, adding another element of sound to the play experience. Pairing the blocks, monster figurines, and loose parts together encourages children to think creatively in new ways.

These Valentine's Day treasure blocks offer a host of learning opportunities paired with monsters and loose parts.

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Asking the question “What can you build for the monsters?” will foster even more creativity. When I asked my preschoolers this question some of the answers were:

  • “I’m building a monster lair.”
  • “I am going to make a monster hiding place.”
  • “I made a house for the monsters.”

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More Block Play Possibilities

Pairing treasure blocks with mirror blocks is always a hit. The blocks are similar in size and shape and combine well for building large structures.

Pair Valentine's Day treasure blocks with mirror blocks and monsters for creative and imaginative play.

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And counting monster teeth and eyes, and discussing block shapes are ways to incorporate math into the play.

On their own, or combined with loose parts and other blocks, Valentine’s Day treasure blocks offer many opportunities for learning.

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[Read more…] about Valentine’s Day Treasure Blocks

Filed Under: block play, Math, music, preschool, pretend play, sensory, Valentine's Day Tagged With: block play, monsters, musical instruments, Valentine's Day

Toilet Paper Roll Monsters

October 21, 2020 by Annette Kaminsky Leave a Comment

Toilet paper roll monster craft and activities. Easy to make watercolor painted monsters to use with stacking blocks or a red split lentil-based sensory bin.
Toilet paper roll monster craft and activities. Easy to make watercolor painted monsters to use with stacking blocks or a red split lentil-based sensory bin.

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For most of the year, there has been a plethora of recycled crafts and activities posted on blogs and social media, and toilet paper rolls have been a “hot” material for craft and sensory projects. Debuting in this post are spunky toilet paper roll monsters. They are so simple to make and can be used with toys or in sensory bins for imaginative play.

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Supplies To Collect

  • toilet paper rolls
  • black permanent felt pen
  • liquid watercolors or food coloring
  • paintbrush
  • napkin or paper towel
  • googly eyes in various sizes
  • scissors
  • glue stick
  • hot glue gun

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Making The Toilet Paper Roll Monsters

Invite your early learner to add a mouth and teeth to toilet paper rolls with a black permanent felt pen.

Toilet paper rolls ready for crafting.

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Mouths and teeth drawing on paper roll monsters.

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Set out watercolor paints along with a paintbrush and napkin.

Liquid watercolors for painting toilet paper roll monsters.

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Encourage your little one to paint the cardboard rolls, dabbing the paintbrush on the napkin in between hues to remove excess water. The inside of the paper roll tops could be painted as well.

If a paper roll starts to come apart because of wetness, attach large paper clips to the loose parts. After the paint dries, use a glue gun to reassemble the tube.

Paper clips attached to a toilet paper roll that has come apart after being painted.

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When the toilet paper rolls are dry, ask your little learner to add googly eyes. Adhesive wiggle eyes are the easiest to attach. A glue stick or glue gun can be used to add non-adhesive eyes.

Toilet paper roll monsters ready to get their hair snipped and fashioned.

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Eyes can be drawn on the monsters with the permanent felt pen if craft eyes aren’t available to use.

Offer your early learner scissors to snip and style the top part of the paper rolls into “monster hair.”

Snipped top paper roll monster.

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Toilet Paper Roll Monster Imaginative Play

These peppy monsters can be set out with a construction toy such as stacking blocks for your little learner to use in imaginative play.

Toilet paper roll monsters with stacking blocks ready for imaginative play.

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The monsters are the highlight of this red split lentil-based sensory bin your early learner will love sifting through. Included are loose parts and stacking blocks that double up as scoops.

Toilet paper roll monsters in a red split lentil-based sensory bin perfect for imaginary play.

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Which of these toilet paper roll monsters is your favorite? Share in the comments section below.

Toilet paper roll monsters on display on stacking blocks.

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Related: Monster-Themed Snacks

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[Read more…] about Toilet Paper Roll Monsters

Filed Under: art, preschool, pretend play, sensory Tagged With: block play, monsters, sensory bin

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Hi, I'm Annette Kaminsky. I am a preschool teacher who loves to share easy and fun early learning activities. Thanks for visiting my blog. Feel free to stay awhile!

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