Week of the Young Child-Family Friday

It’s been a fun-filled week celebrating early learning, young children, their teachers, families, and the community with hands-on collaborative activities encouraging movement and healthy lifestyles through music, food, and art. We’re so thankful for everyone who joined us!

We wrap up Week of the Young Child 2023 today with Family Friday, a day to honor families—children’s first and most important teachers. So today we encourage you to spend time with your family and we’ve put together a list of activities (based on the WOYC themes) to encourage engagement, interaction, and fun for the whole family.

Music Monday

• Make a playlist of your child’s favorite songs, or your favorite songs to share with your child.
• Play a simple game, like “Freeze Dance” or “Animal Dancing”; for Freeze Dance, simply dance until the music stops, and then freeze! For Animal Dancing, take turns choosing an animal to dance like – for example, dance like a duck!
• Create homemade drums using tin cans, yogurt containers, coffee cans, really anything! Decorate with whatever is around the house.
• Create musical shakers – you can use an empty Pringles can, a plastic Easter egg, a water bottle, etc. Fill with anything that will “shake” – rice, dried beans, popcorn kernels etc. Just be sure to secure the lid, and do not allow children to use the shaker without supervision.
• Create a tambourine with foil pie pans or two paper plates; fill with dried beans, rice, etc. Attach bells to the outside edges if you have them. Decorate with your child.
• Share music, songs, genres, etc. that are important to your family’s culture.

Tasty Tuesday

• Make your own family cookbook; you can even just put it in a notebook! If you want to get a little more involved, you can create the cookbook as a photo book. Include photos of your children enjoying the recipes.
• Try a new recipe; it doesn’t have to be fancy!
• Make your own play-dough, or grab some from the store. Let the children in your life get creative with making play dough “food” for you.

Work Together Wednesday

• Do a puzzle! Don’t have one? Make your own! You can cut a piece of paper into puzzle shapes and work together to make it whole.
• Write a thank-you note as a family.
• Tackle a chore together.

Artsy Thursday

• Create masterpieces with sidewalk chalk.
• Collect materials outside to make a collage.
• Write a poem together.
• Use recycling to create art; cardboard and some tape can go a long way with a little imagination!

Want to get outdoors?

Story Walks at the Park

Visit one of five area parks to enjoy a Story Walk at the Park. A Story Walk has pages of children’s books mounted on posts that line a path. They combine early literacy with physical activity in a natural learning environment. Each park features a different story every month.
Onslow Pines Park – 1244 Onslow Pines Rd, Jacksonville, NC 28540
Hubert By-Pass Park – 220 Hubert Blvd, Hubert, NC 28539
Deppe Park – 5472 New Bern Hwy, Maysville, NC 28555
Steed Park – 278 Francktown Rd, Richlands, NC 28574
Stump Sound – 1771 NC-172, Sneads Ferry, NC 28460

Little Free Libraries

One Place maintains more than 70 Little Free Libraries throughout the county in an effort to provide access to books to the entire community. Readers of all ages are encouraged to “Take a book, return a book.” Whether you donate a book or borrow a book, Little Free Libraries allow us all to make literacy a focus in Onslow County. Click here to find the Little Free Library closest to you.

Activity Resources and Information from The National Association for the Education of Young Children

Promoting Spatial Orientation: A Math Activity for Teachers and Families
Message in a Backpack™ Encouraging Your Child Through Risks During Play
Message in a Backpack™: Optimizing the Use of Media and Technology with Your Child
Am I Really My Child’s First Teacher?
Message in a Backpack™ Helping Your Child through Change

Play Activities by Age from Zero to Three

Birth to 12 Months
12 to 24 Months
24 to 36 Months

Check out our Parent Resources page for links to virtual activities like aquarium live streams and online Broadway shows, as well as screen-free activities and other outdoor play ideas.