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5 Olympic Track & Field STEM Activities 

5 Olympic Track & Field STEM Activities 

May 20, 2016 By Katie Chiavarone 3 Comments

5 Olympics activities for kids that are easy to do at home. Kids will connect and learn with these STEM activities while learning about the Olympics! For the parents who want to put a wager on the Olympics, they can instantly do so on platforms like bro138.   Track and

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Filed Under: Elementary, Learn Through Play, Preschool Science, Preschoolers, science, Uncategorized Tagged With: elementary, field, kids, olympics, preschool, sports, STEM, summer, track

Summer Camp at Home: Themed Crafts, Science, Snacks, Sensory and more!

Summer Camp at Home: Themed Crafts, Science, Snacks, Sensory and more!

April 26, 2016 By Katie Chiavarone Leave a Comment

It’s almost summer! Let’s be honest…are you wondering how you are going to keep your kids busy, off of electronics, and learning throughout the entire summer! It’s a bit daunting I agree…so let’s do it together! Check out this 6 week summer camp at home that you can easily accomplish with your own

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Filed Under: Elementary, Learn Through Play, Outdoors, Preschoolers, Summer, Toddlers Tagged With: activities, Arts and Crafts, elementary, preschool, science, Sensory, summer camp at home

Nebula Calm Down Jar: Sensory & Science 

Nebula Calm Down Jar: Sensory & Science 

April 18, 2016 By Katie Chiavarone 7 Comments

This nebula calm down jar is a perfect mix of calming sensory play and science, all wrapped up into a fun project! With only a few ingredients, you will have captured a little but of outer space in a jar, with a mesmerizing calming effect. We made this calm down

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Filed Under: Elementary, Learn Through Play, Mess-Free Sensory Play, Parenting, Preschoolers, Sensory, Toddlers, Uncategorized Tagged With: calm down jar, emotions, Homeschool, moms, preschoolers, psychology, sensory play, spirited kids, toddlers

Game Day Busy Bag: DIY Football Field Puzzle with FREE Printable

Game Day Busy Bag: DIY Football Field Puzzle with FREE Printable

February 2, 2016 By Katie Chiavarone 2 Comments

I’lll admit it. My kids (and I) have been completely spoiled by On Demand, DVR, Apple TV, etc. We know what we want to watch at all times, access it from somewhere, and stream it, often without commercials. Well occasionally, like during sports games, I want to watch something live!

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Filed Under: Elementary, Learn Through Play, Preschoolers, Toddlers Tagged With: busy bag, diy, football, game day, Homemade, printable, puzzle

25+ Simple Indoor Kids Activities for Rainy Day Fun

25+ Simple Indoor Kids Activities for Rainy Day Fun

January 26, 2016 By Katie Chiavarone 9 Comments

I am all for getting outside in pretty much ANY weather….with that said, we have some REALLY cold days here on the East Coast and definitely need to find some fun (and easy) ways to stay busy indoors. These indoor kids activities use simple household materials and a bit of imagination

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Filed Under: Arts & Crafts, Babies, Elementary, Learn Through Play, Mess-Free Sensory Play, Preschool Arts& Crafts, Preschool Science, Preschoolers, science, Sensory, Toddler Arts & Crafts, Toddler Science, Toddlers Tagged With: activities, indoor activities, indoors, kids, learn through play, preschoolers, rainy day, stay at home mom, toddlers

8 Ways to Play and Learn with Snow: Beyond Snowmen

8 Ways to Play and Learn with Snow: Beyond Snowmen

January 24, 2016 By Katie Chiavarone 8 Comments

Growing up in California, we very rarely got snow. When we did, it was so short-lived that we would quickly build a snowman and briefly play before running back inside and warming up with a cup of hot chocolate next to the fire. Now, living on the east coast, our

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Filed Under: Babies, Elementary, Learn Through Play, Outdoors, Preschool Science, Preschoolers, science, Toddler Science, Toddlers, Uncategorized, Winter Tagged With: fun, kids activities, learn, learn with snow, play, snow, snow day, stay at home mom

9 Ways to Complete Worksheets WITHOUT a Pencil! FREE Christmas Printables

9 Ways to Complete Worksheets WITHOUT a Pencil! FREE Christmas Printables

November 10, 2015 By Katie Chiavarone 4 Comments

   Are you anti-worksheets for preschoolers? I am a HUGE believer in learning through play and tend to stay away from traditional worksheets. That said, I like to take their content and use the worksheets in a number of creative ways without a pencil! I attempt to find ways that

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Filed Under: Arts & Crafts, Christmas, Elementary, Holidays, Learn Through Play, Preschoolers, Uncategorized Tagged With: arts, christmas, crafts, fine motor, Homeschool, matching, pre-writing, preschool, printable, toddlers, worksheets

5 Ways to Encourage Unstructured Play in Kids

5 Ways to Encourage Unstructured Play in Kids

October 31, 2015 By Katie Chiavarone 8 Comments

Play is SO important. We often appreciate how much enjoyment kids receive from playing with their peers or their favorite toy, however, we often overlook the power of play. While kids are playing, there is so much social, emotional and mental growth occurring. These ways to encourage unstructured play in kids

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Filed Under: Babies, Elementary, Learn Through Play, Parenting, Preschoolers, Toddlers Tagged With: kids, play, preschool, sponsored, unstructured play

STEM Education at Home with the StikBot: Review

STEM Education at Home with the StikBot: Review

October 23, 2015 By Katie Chiavarone Leave a Comment

I’ve said it before in previous articles, but I’m going to say it again…I’m obsessed with STEM education. I don’t know if it’s because I’m SO left-brained or if it’s my admittedly nerdy fascination with math OR my disdain for writing (wait, what?!), but I just think it makes sense.

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Filed Under: Elementary, Learn Through Play, Sponsored Work Tagged With: animation, Blogging, creativity, imagination, review, sharing, social media, Toys, video

Fall Sensory Bin With The Schleich Chicken Coop

Fall Sensory Bin With The Schleich Chicken Coop

September 30, 2015 By Katie Chiavarone 6 Comments

I like to keep a sensory bin handy each month for the kids to explore, usually corresponding to a theme or a holiday. It provides us with a wonderful opportunity to begin the dialogue for what kinds of activities we will be focusing on. We had the opportunity to review

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Filed Under: Elementary, Fall, Learn Through Play, Preschoolers, Sensory, Sponsored Work, Toddlers, Uncategorized Tagged With: chickens, creativity, Dramatic Play, fall, imagination, play, review

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Welcome to Views From a Step Stool!

Welcome to Views From a Step Stool!

I am a mom to three little ones and love to create and explore every day with them! We have open minds and messy hands, come join in our adventures!

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What’s New

  • 12 Snowman Crafts for Kids
  • 10 Elf on the Shelf Printables to Download
  • 12 Elf on the Shelf Ideas
  • Candy Corn Sensory Bin
  • Emotions Sensory Bag
  • 10 Thanksgiving Handprint Crafts

What’s New:

  • 12 Snowman Crafts for Kids
  • 10 Elf on the Shelf Printables to Download
  • 12 Elf on the Shelf Ideas
  • Candy Corn Sensory Bin
  • Emotions Sensory Bag
  • 10 Thanksgiving Handprint Crafts
  • Build a Jack-o-Lantern Sensory Craft
  • Breakfast Smoothies for Kids with BlendJet Portable Blender
  • 12 Outdoor Painting Ideas for Kids
  • Educational Sensory Bin Ideas
  • 12 Animal Sensory Bin Ideas for Kids
  • 10 Insect Themed Sensory Bins
  • 12 Bee Crafts for Kids
  • 15 Easter Chick Crafts for Kids
  • 15+ Earth Day Crafts for Kids
  • St. Patrick’s Day Emotion Cut and Paste Printable Activity
  • Valentine’s Day Charades Words
  • Printable Color by Number Valentine’s Day Cards for Kids
  • Valentine’s Day Kindness Countdown Calendar: Free Printable
  • Valentine’s Day Pixel Art Color by Number: Free Printables

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