Have Fun Kids. See you at Bellaboo's
Click on each Bellaboo above for recipes, games, and crafts
Click on each image for a large, printable activity sheet
BELLABOO’S BATIVITIES
Bellaboo is a most unusual bat. While other bats sleep during the day, he is wide awake. While other bats hang upside down from the ceiling, Bellaboo walks on the floor. And, while other bats eat bugs, Bellaboo is quite a good cook. He likes to draw and climb and play. He is very good at sliding and jumping. Mother and Father Bat don’t know what to do with Bellaboo. But he makes them smile and you will too, when you visit Bellaboo’s Play and Discovery Center at Three Rivers County Park in Lake Station, Indiana.
Batty Bug Grub: Kid Friendly Snack to Make
"Coconut & Lime Sugar Scrub
Not for eating…even though you can!"
Recipe by Our Best Bites
Human skin is our largest organ. Keeping skin safe during the summertime is especially important for children. While enjoying soaking up some energizing Vitamin D – don’t forget to lather up your little ones with sunscreen.
For kids age 6 months and older, select an SPF of 30 or higher to prevent both sunburn and tanning. Choose a sunscreen that states on the label that it protects against both UVA and UVB rays. Here’s a little something sweet to give your skin a real treat. Make in kitchen. Enjoy in the tub. Rub-a-dub-dub!
Ingredients
¼ Cup of Coconut Oil
½ Cup of Granulated Sugar
Zest from 1 Lime
optional: Lime and/or coconut flavoring oils
Place oil, sugar, and lime zest* in a bowl. *If you’re not using a microplane grater to zest the lime, you may want to use a knife to chop it even more finely before adding to the mix. Stir to combine, and if desired, add additional coconut oil to reach desired consistency. Add lime and/or coconut flavoring oils to taste (or smell :))
You may store at room temperature for several weeks. Use scrub to gently exfoliate skin. Rinse skin clean with warm water and then massage in oils left on skin for a soft, silky finish.
Yield: about 3/4 cup sugar scrub.
Bellaboo’s Challenge – JUST WING IT!
"Garden & Go Seek"
Kids love to be outside and they love to get dirty. Your child would love nothing more than for you to join them in scavenging for fun garden finds. If your child can read make a list of things you can find in your yard or garden…if not – make a list out of pictures you can simply draw or print off the web. Find a shovel just their size and some garden gloves and go! Here’s a list of things to find and, for added fun, include things to do with the things you find:
A Red Tomato – pick it
A Hose – rinse your tomato and take a bite
A Worm – use your shovel to dig for a worm
A Yellow Dandelion – smear it on the sidewalk
A White Dandelion – give it a blow
A Flower – give it to your mommy
For more gardening fun – join us at our LITTLE DIGGERS program, week days at 11:00 beginning mid-May!
"Billions of Bubbles"
Let’s blow bubbles! Here are some quick and easy ways to have bubble fun utilizing things you already have in your house!
First, make some bubbles.
How to Make a Basic Bubble Solution
- 1 cup dishwashing soap
- 6 cups of water
- 1 tablespoon of glycerin (makes stronger bubbles for bubble-blowing activities)
•- Straws of all sizes
•- Open end of an empty plastic soda bottle (blowing through the thin end)
•- Fly swatters
•- Trash pan with open slats
•- Small or large funnels
Get innovative with your bubble blowers. Now, dip & blow!
For more bubble fun – join us at our BUBBLE PLAY program, Mondays at 1:30 !
"Explore the effects of natural sunlight"
How to begin: Have your little ones collect objects which have interesting shapes like flowers, twigs, yarn , and/or pinecones. Next have the children place these items on top of a colorful piece of construction paper.
Set the construction paper in direct sunlight for a couple (3-4) days. Make sure not to move the items from their resting spot.
On the fourth day, have the children remove their objects from the paper. The children will see the outline of their object. This is the effect of solar power. Our sun is so powerful it faded the colors with its bright light. The shade created by the object onto the paper protected the paper from the direct sun, keeping the color of the paper untouched by the sun.
