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Homemade Finger Paint Recipe: Gentle on the Skin

Homemade Finger Paint Recipe: Gentle on the Skin

July 21, 2016 By Katie Chiavarone Leave a Comment

Have you seen the new Ghostbusters movie yet? My oldest son loves the old movies and anything Ghostbuster related. So, we decided to finger paint some ghosts! This homemade finger paint was the perfect recipe for some fun, outdoor summer sensory play and art. And, easy to make and gentle

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Filed Under: Arts & Crafts, Babies, Elementary, Learn Through Play, Outdoors, Preschool Arts& Crafts, Preschoolers, Recipes, Sensory, Summer, Toddler Arts & Crafts, Toddlers, Uncategorized Tagged With: art, diy, gentle, Homemade, kids, paint, play, preschoolers, Sensory, toddler

One-Ingredient Sensory Sand!

One-Ingredient Sensory Sand!

June 27, 2016 By Katie Chiavarone 4 Comments

It’s no secret I love sensory play. If you are new to this blog, welcome, I’m Katie, and I’m obsessed with hands-on, dirty, sensory play. Given the fact that babies love to put everything in their mouths, I’m always looking for ways to make our sensory play edible. Additionally, we are were a

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Filed Under: Babies, Edible Sensory Play, Learn Through Play, Sensory, Uncategorized Tagged With: babies, busy mom, kids, preschool, sensory play, stay at home mom, toddlers

The Basics of Baby Safe Play: Babies Can Play Too!

The Basics of Baby Safe Play: Babies Can Play Too!

June 6, 2016 By Katie Chiavarone Leave a Comment

One of the comments I get the most when talking about sensory play, arts & crafts and science for kids, is “but my baby still puts everything in his/her mouth“. As our babies get older, but aren’t quite ‘big’ kids yet, it becomes increasingly difficult to keep them occupied, finding activities

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Filed Under: Babies, Learn Through Play, Sensory, Toddler Arts & Crafts, Uncategorized Tagged With: activities, babies, baby-safe, edible, Homemade, kids, play dough, Sensory, toddler

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

60+ Awesome Activities for 1 Year Olds! {Tested and Loved}

60+ Awesome Activities for 1 Year Olds! {Tested and Loved}

May 11, 2016 By Katie Chiavarone 7 Comments

Looking for activities for 1 year olds? You can find TONS of activities for toddlers and preschoolers to do from fun sensory play to fantastic busy bags. The only problem is that a lot of this awesomeness is not geared for one year olds.   Toddlers and ‘1 year olds’

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Filed Under: Arts & Crafts, Babies, Edible Sensory Play, Learn Through Play, Mess-Free Sensory Play, Sensory, Toddler Arts & Crafts, Toddlers, Uncategorized Tagged With: 1 year old, activities for 1 Year Olds, Arts and Crafts, fine motor, gross motor, Homeschool, kids, kids activities, moms, parenting, sensory play, toddlers

5 Tips for Flying with Kids

5 Tips for Flying with Kids

April 29, 2016 By Katie Chiavarone Leave a Comment

Tips for Flying with Kids Let’s face it…flying with children can be daunting at worst, and exhausting at best. It requires much preparation and attention, but can provide you with many opportunities for lasting memories and fun! A little bit of organization and confidence can make the whole process a

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Filed Under: Parenting, Uncategorized Tagged With: airplanes, anxiety, Busy Bags, family travel, flying, kids, moms, travel

How to Help an Angry Child Calm Down: 5 Tips

How to Help an Angry Child Calm Down: 5 Tips

April 10, 2016 By Katie Chiavarone 19 Comments

Here are some tips on how to help an angry child calm down gently. Plus, 8 tools they can use to calm down anywhere. Grab a printable reminder.   Regulating emotions can be difficult for any child, those with more of a natural inclination to anger can have an especially

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Filed Under: Gentle Parenting, Parenting Tagged With: aggression, attachment parenting, calm down, dads gentle parenting, kids, mad, moms, parenting

Butterfly File Folder Games: Free Printable!

Butterfly File Folder Games: Free Printable!

March 31, 2016 By Katie Chiavarone 4 Comments

File folder games are right up there with busy bags for me. I love these types of educational activities that are more about fun than learning. My kids adore them and use them often in places like waiting rooms, restaurants, and even airplanes. They butterfly file folder games are super

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Filed Under: Learn Through Play, Preschoolers, Spring, Toddlers, Uncategorized Tagged With: butterfly, kids, learn through play, play, preschoolers, printable, spring, toddlers

6 Ways to Start Seeds Indoors from Recycled Materials

6 Ways to Start Seeds Indoors from Recycled Materials

March 18, 2016 By Katie Chiavarone 3 Comments

One of my favorite parts of Spring is starting a garden! I think getting the kids involved in gardening is a great way to teach them about healthy foods, and the importance or not wasting food and knowing how your food is grown. I have started reading garden appliance reviews

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Filed Under: Learn Through Play, Outdoors, Preschool Science, Preschoolers, science, Spring, Toddler Science, Toddlers Tagged With: garden, gardening, indoors, kids, moms, outdoors, seeds

Spring Activities for Kids: Indoor and Outdoor Play Ideas

Spring Activities for Kids: Indoor and Outdoor Play Ideas

March 11, 2016 By Katie Chiavarone 8 Comments

Spring is such a welcome season to many parents. To be able to get outside and enjoy the weather with your kids after a long, cold winter is music to anyone’s ears…especially if your little ones have been cooped up more often than not. There is SO much learning that can

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Filed Under: Learn Through Play, Outdoors, Spring, Uncategorized Tagged With: kids, moms, outdoors, play based learning, preschoolers, spring, toddlers

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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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