Carnivals are all about games, prizes, food, and being together as a family.  I created that atmosphere by arranging different Educational Carnival Party stations.  At each station, I set up a simple Carnival Themed activity that enabled parents to teach and have fun with their children.

Everything needed for the activity was at a separate table or area and I placed instructions for each game on a card so the families would know how to play the game.  I also included tickets (Popsicle sticks) at each station for parents to reward their children for participation and correct answers.

 Here are some free Carnival Printables that you can customize to make your own invitations and Game Instructions.

Carnival Games for Kids

Here some awesome ideas on what games you could set up at your Carnival stations.  All these games are adjustable to different situations and subjects so you can taylor them to fit your party group.

Easy Carnival Flag Color Craft helps children practice color recognition and counting!

Buried Treasure Learning – Hide anything educational that your children can find, like flash cards, numbers, letters, or money!

Cups and Card – This activity helps children practice concentration, memory, and anything else you want them to learn!

Or check out all of my Educational Carnival Games for even more ideas!

When my guests arrived, I gave everyone a party bag to collect their tickets.  At the end of the party, we took turns choosing prizes and paying for them with our tickets.  We had all different sizes of prizes labeled with different values so the children could practice their counting skills.  Everyone had a great time!

Don’t forget about the carnival food!  I served homemade macaroni and cheese, fresh veggies, fruit and these amazing Chocolate Chip Oreo Bars!  To make these bars, I just put a layer of cookie dough on the bottom of a 8×8 square glass dish,  topped with Oreos and covered with more cookie dough.  These things are amazing!

Our Carnival Party was a huge hit!  So, if you have a preschool, elementary, or play group, this would be the perfect party to make learning fun and create lasting memories.

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The post Throw an Educational Carnival Party: Games, Printables, Food! first appeared on True Aim.

To play this exciting preschool math activity you will need something to knock down like a bowling set or canisters from the recycle bin.  Then, print off this free number printable and tape the numbers on.  Finally, grab some bean bags, soft balls, or rolled up socks and start knock’em down.

I let each child toss 3 bean bags on their turn.  If you are doing this with just one child, you could let them throw until they hit all the pins down or they run out of bean bags.

For the younger children, after they knocked as many pins down as they could, I had them identify those numbers.  Sometimes I had them count how many they hit.  For the more advanced, you could have them add the numbers together.

The older children worked on sequencing by putting the pins back into the right spot in line.  Sometimes I would ask them a subtraction or addition equation that represented how many pins they hit.

For example, if they hit 3 out of 6 pins down you could ask, “What is 6 – 3?  How many pins are left after you hit 3 pins down?”  If you want to do an addition equation, just have them add the number that they hit to the number of pins left on the table.  “What is 3 + 3? You hit 3 pins and there are 3 pins left.  How many pins are there all together?”

I rewarded them with Popsicle sticks for participation and right answers, but you could use anything.  Don’t forget to hoot, holler, and cheer to get your preschooler even more exited about math!

This activity is perfect for ages 1 – 5 and can be changed into a letter activity too!  It would make a great Educational Carnival Game!  For even more math activity ideas, check out these 9 Math Activities for kids.

What kind of math games do you like play with your preschooler?

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To make your Carnival Party Flags you’ll need:

Free Carnival Party Flag Printables

(Please do not copy without permission.)

Wood Craft Dowels, or skewers (sharp points cut off if needed)

Coloring Supplies

Glue

Optional: Colored Star Stickers

To make your carnival flag, simply cut the flag printable in half so each child gets one flag outline.  Color your flag and cut it out.  Make sure you tell your children not to cut on the middle line because you are going to fold in it half to make a triangle shape.  Put glue on the back of your flag, especially in the middle of the diamond shape.  Place a dowel in the middle so that it does not stick up above the flag and fold the flag in half around the dowel.  Set it aside to dry.

To play a color matching game, have your children match colored sticker stars to same colors on their flag, (see Audrey’s flag above).  After they are done matching, you could also have them count how many stickers of each color they have.

Repeat

Let the flag waving begin!

What colors would your children make their flags?

*Please do not leave your children unattended with their flags.  Dowels could be a hazard to young children.  Use thicker dowels to reduce the chance of injury.

If you liked this post, check out more of my Education Carnival Party Ideas:

Buried Treasure Learning

Human Board Game

Bean Bag Toss Remix

Cups and Card

For more fun learning activities and easy craft ideas, like me on facebook or follow along on Pinterest.  Thanks for your support!

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The post Educational Carnival Games: Buried Treasure first appeared on True Aim.

Find the Letter Game
Toss the shekere around while music is being played.  Stop it (like in musical chairs), and call out a letter to find as fast as possible or sing a simple rhyme such as:

Round and round and round it goes
Where it stops nobody knows
Find the letter ___!

Shake and shake the shekere
Here is what I have to say
Find the Letter ___!

Some easy variations:

Letter Seeking A-Z

Have the group sit in a circle and toss the shekere around until the rhyme or music stops.  The person holding the instrument must find the letter the group is seeking from A-Z. The whole group or class wins when they’ve completed the alphabet

The First Letter of My Name Race

Children can find the first letter of their name and then move out of the circle.  If the group or class finishes within a certain time, they win!

Play Along with a Song from Africa

You can play your shekere along with any type of music.  It will sound especially good with music from Africa, like this South African song that I recorded.  The lyrics are in Zulu and English.  The song is about a special day when the mothers from a village go to town to sell what they have grown.  When they return, they are bringing special treats to share with their children.  The song shares what the children are seeing as their mothers are coming home.  

What other ways can you explore your new instrument? Can you come up with your own games or even write a new song to sing and play along with? When it comes to music, the possibilities for both fun and learning are endless!

Fun Resources

Hear a shekere sample or shekere song here:
http://www.dariamusic.com/shekere.php 

Award-winning children’s performer DARIA (Daria Marmaluk-Hajioannou) has seven cd’s that have won national honors.  She has the most awesome job of traveling the world to sing for kids and peace.  Her website; located at dariamusic.com, was given a 2009 Parents Choice Award for its rich variety of music and cultural content. 

The post Guest Post: Learning Letters with an Alphabet Shekere first appeared on True Aim.

The best thing about this game is its limitless applications.  We also get fresh air and some exercise while learning math concepts like one-to-one correspondence and real number values. You can make your board game as complicated as you think your kids can handle by adding more elements like letter sounds or words.

Here is how we played…

First, draw your board with chalk.  You could make a fun shape or do a spiral.  I put red Xs in some of the boxes as “lose-a-turn” spots.  You could put a +1 or -1 in some of the boxes for “move ahead” or “move back” – spots to include addition and subtraction into the game.  Next, choose your counter.  We made a die from a box, construction paper, and tape. The object of the game is simple; first one to the end Wins!

Now, lets PLAY!

Roll the Die.

Move.

Count one-by-one.

Win!

Celebrate, because learning is fun!

To make this an indoor human board game, simply use rubber place markers or masking tape to draw your board.  You could even add an extra educational element and only allow people to roll after they answer a question correctly.  One more tip to make this your children’s favorite game, add a reward for the winner!  It could be a Popsicle Stick, treat, or position of authority (like choosing the next activity or a book for story time).  Whatever it is, that reward will make the game even more exciting!

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Do your kids need to get their wiggles out?

Put a new twist on an old game.  Help your children learn and burn off some energy by playing Flash Card Musical Chairs.  This game is so simple, but the kids love it.  I watch a 1st grader sometimes and he begs me to play this game.

Just like in the regular musical chairs I start the music and the kids run around the chairs. Sometimes I have them jump like a bunny or take big Goliath steps.  Occasionally I really get them going by reaching out and pretending to grab them.  When the music stops everyone sits down as fast as they can.  The first person who sits down gets to do a flash card first.  I like to give everyone a turn to do a card and then I reward them with a Popsicle Stick.

You could adjust play so whoever sits down last doesn’t get to do a card, but I like to give everyone a chance as long as they are playing the game right.  I don’t use one less chair and I don’t take away chairs.  Obviously, you can play any way you want.

I love this game because kids of all ages can play, but I can still challenge them individually by selecting flash cards according to their individual abilities.  Plus, the game helps the blood flow and makes it easier for them to remember the material.  I know that they will never forget playing this flash card game!

Next time your kids need to burn off some energy, don’t just make them drop and give you 20.  Wear them out and teach them something at the same time.

Have Fun!

And try my other great Flash Card Games

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What you need:

Chalk

ABC Bean Bags (anything you can throw)

2 Ways to Play:

1. Draw circles for your kids with different point values in them.  Use bigger circles for younger children and draw them closer to the throwing line.

2. Then have your children throw bean bags into the circles to score points.

3. If they can sound out the letter on their bean bag, they get the points.  You could also try sight words!

4. Keep score by writing their names in chalk and tallying the points.

5. Reward the winner.  We use Popsicle Sticks!

Alternative Version:

1. Draw Letters, or whatever you want them to learn in the circles.

2. The children try to throw their bean bag on a letter.

3. If your children say the sound of the letter they hit, they get a reward.

4. For indoor play, use hula hoops and letter mats, or simply have the children throw a bean bag in a bin.  If they get it in the bin they can answer a question and win!

The post Educational Carnival Games: Bean Bag Toss Remix first appeared on True Aim.

Teach your child anything with this Carnival Game!

Although I don’t like to encourage gambling, the old Shell game is a very fun carnival game for kids!  Just add flashcards and you can teach almost anything!

Instead of taking your child’s money, you will be improving their memory, concentration, and general knowledge.  Once you turn plain old flash cards into this exciting new carnival game, you will be amazed at how eager your children are for learning time.

You will need: 3 large cups, flash cards that fit in the cups, and a reward like Popsicle sticks.

How to play this Carnival Game

Place the 3 cups in a row in front of your child.  Tell your child to watch carefully because you are going to hide one of the flash cards in a cup. Start shuffling the cups around, being careful not to let the card fall out.  Encourage your child to keep track of the cup that he thinks the card is in.  You will want to adjust the speed at which you shuffle the cups depending on the age and ability of your child.

Next, have your little one choose the cup he thinks has the card.  If he gets it wrong show him where the card is and then try to shuffle the cups again to see if he can find it.  If he finds the card, have him tell you what is on the flash card to get a reward.  If your child is having trouble finding the card you can use 2 cups instead of 3.  If it is too easy for your child, add more cups.

Have Fun!

Click here to see more Educational Carnival Games for Kids

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