101 Things To Do When There Is Nothing To Do

1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Play "Rock, Paper, Scissors" Arm wrestle Thumb wrestle Push palms together to see who can push the hardest Stack hands one atop the other, pulling out the hand at the bottom and bringing it up top 6. Stack fists, using same rules as above 7. Stack arms, similarly 8. Play with your child's hair 9. Let your child play with your hair 10. Draw a letter on your child's back with a finger and see if he or she can guess 11. Draw a letter instead on your child's arm 12. Have your child draw a letter on your arm or back, and you do the guessing 13. Take off your shoe and have your child practice shoe-tying 14. Take off your child's shoe and find a different way to lace it 15. Take off your child's shoes and sock and use the socks as puppets 16. Use your wristwatch to give a lesson in telling time 17. Use your wristwatch to time things going on around you 18. Let your child try on your wristwatch 19. Let your child try on your jewelry 20. Count by twos, threes, fives, tens 21. Count backward from 100 22. Pick a number between one and 10 23. Teach the 9 times table trick (The 9 Times Quickie

1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Hold your hands in front of you with your fingers spread out. For 9 X 3 bend your third finger down. (9 X 4 would be the fourth finger etc.) You have 2 fingers in front of the bent finger and 7 after the bent finger Thus the answer must be 27 This technique works for the 9 times tables up to 10.

The 4 Times Quickie

1. If you know how to double a number, this one is easy. 2. Simply, double a number and then double it again! The 11 Times Rule #1

1. Take any number to 10 and multiply it by 11. 2. Multiply 11 by 3 to get 33, multiply 11 by 4 to get 44. Each number to 10 is just duplicated. The 11 Times Rule #2

1. Use this strategy for two digit numbers only.

2. Multiply 11 by 18. Jot down 1 and 8 with a space between it. 1 --8. 3. Add the 8 and the 1 and put that number in the middle: 198 Deck 'Em!

1. Use a deck of playing cards for a game of Multiplication War. 2. Initially, children may need the grid (below) to become quick at the answers. 3. Flip over the cards as though you are playing Snap. 4. The first one to say the fact based on the cards turned over (a four and a five = Say "20") gets the cards. 5. The person to get all of the cards wins! 6. Children learn their facts much more quickly when playing this game on a regular basis. Seeing the Patterns 7. Use a multiplication grid or let your students/children create one. 8. Look carefully at all of the patterns, especially when the numbers correspond with the facts e.g., 7X8 and 8X7 = 56 L 9. et students/children practice the 'fast adding' which is what multiplication is. 10. When students can count by 3s, 4s, 5s 6s, etc. they will automatically know their multiplication tables.)

11. 24. Give a math equation for your child to figure mentally 25. Give a string of math equations and ask for the answer at the end 26. Make up math story problems 27. Say words to spell 28. Say words to rhyme with 29. Play "I Spy"

(#2: I Spy You know, it's the one where you: Spot something in plain sight and reveal one detail, making the other player guess what it is.

Like this: "I spy, with my little eye, something that begins with J."

Sneakily strengthens: • • •

Receptive language Expressive language Deductive reasoning

Five ways to tweak it:

1. To focus on receptive language (listening skills), have your child be the "spyer" more frequently than the guesser. 2. To focus on expressive language (oral skills), have your child be the "guesser" more frequently than the "spyer." 3. To focus on categories, choose items only by color -- "I spy something that's blue" -- or shape -- "I spy something that's square" -- or function -- "I spy something you use to write." 4. To focus on phonics, describe items by the sound they start with: "I spy something that starts with the 'f' sound. 5. To focus on vocabulary, use items from your child's reading list in your "spied" things and guesses. #1: "I Went to ..." #3: Twenty Questions #4: Tongue Twisters #5: Silly Songs)

30. Try some tongue twisters

#4: Tongue Twisters You know, it's the one where you: Say super strenuous sentences stuffed with silly speech sounds.

Like this: "How much wood would a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood?"

Sneakily strengthens: • • •

Articulation Speech speed Sense of humor

Five ways to tweak it: 1. To target articulation, select tongue twisters featuring phonemes that are particularly difficult for your child; ask his or her speech therapist for suggestions, or check the IEP.

2. To bolster confidence, select tongue twisters featuring phonemes your child is particularly good at ... or you're particularly bad at. 3. To make a game of it, print out a bunch of tongue twisters, cut them into individual strips, put the strips in a basket, have each player draw one, and award points based on how few repetitions are needed to master it. 4. To work on speed, add a stopwatch to the game and make the player who can recite the twister correctly in the shortest time the winner of each round. 5. To motivate your child, use tongue twisters as "Get Out of Time-Out Free" cards; if your child can recite one correctly, he's sprung.

31. Play "I Went to ..."

#1: "I Went to ..." You know, it's the one where you: Recite a long list of items and then add one, alphabetically, for the next player to remember.

Like this: "I went to the zoo and I saw an anteater, a bear, a crocodile, a deer, an elephant and ... a ferret!"

Sneakily strengthens: • • •

Vocabulary Phonics Memory

Five ways to tweak it: 1. To focus on vocabulary, do the reciting yourself and just have your child add a word each time.

2. To focus on memory, have the child recite the long string of items while you provide the next selection. 3. To focus on phonics, have the destination and every one of the items endlessly added all start with the same sound: "I went to Kansas and I brought candy, Christmas cards, kittens, catalogs ..." 4. To focus on articulation, pick a sound to target and then make the destination and every one of the items endlessly added all start with that sound: "I went to the supermarket, and I bought soda, celery, sandwiches, steak, strawberries ..." 5. To focus on alphabet, change the destination each round and come up with a place and three items that start with the same letter; next player has to come up with the same for the next letter: "I went to Alaska and brought an ax, an atlas and an anteater." "I went to Boston and I brought books, bottles and band-aids." "I went to Cancun and I brought carrots, cupcakes and cola."

32. Sing some silly songs (softly)

#5: Silly Songs You know, it's the one where you: Sing the same lyrics over and over and over, with minor variations and changes in volume.

Like this: "B-I-N-G-O! B-I-N-G-O! B-I-N-G-O! And Bingo was its name-O!"

Sneakily strengthens: • • •

Memory Volume Phonics

Five ways to tweak it: 1. To focus on alphabet awarness, set other five-letter words to the tune of the "BINGO" song.

2. To focus on speech volume, use songs like the camp classic "I'm a Little Striped Skunk" that get louder with every verse, or lead your kids in singing their own silly favorite with loud and quiet verses. 3. To focus on memorization, try songs like "Do Your Ears Hang Low?" that have long strings of words and actions. 4. To focus on categorization, sing songs like "Old MacDonald" or "The Wheels on the Bus" that focus on many things that happen in one place, then adapt those melodies and word-patterns to other places and groups of things. 5. To focus on number concepts, subject yourself to "99 Bottles of Beer on the Wall" -- or "22 Bottles of Juice in the Fridge," or "10 Bottles of Paint on the Shelf," or whatever other silly combination your kids can think up and count to.

33. Do songs with hand motions, with and without the words 34. Play "20 Questions"

#3: Twenty Questions You know, it's the one where you: Pick a person, place, or thing and give the other player 20 yes-or-no tries at guessing what it is.

Like this: "I'm thinking of something." "Is it a person?" "No." "Is it a place?" "Yes."

Sneakily strengthens: • • •

Receptive language Expressive language Deductive reasoning

Five ways to tweak it: 1. To focus on observation, limit the person, place, or thing to something in plain sight.

2. To focus on deduction, use a chalkboard or write-erase board to jot down all the "clues" as they come, so your child can remember and use them to figure out the answer. 3. To focus on conversational skills, have your child answer the "yes" or "no" questions in a complete sentence: "No, it isn't a book." 4. To focus on expressive language, allow questions that are not "yes" or "no" and have your child answer in complete sentences: "What color is the thing?" "The thing I am thinking of is red." 5. To focus attention, have all persons, places and things chosen pertain to a subject your child is intensely interested in; for example, if your child loves cars, you could make him guess makes and models of cars, people who work with cars, places you take a car, or other car-related terms, and have him think of the same for you: "I'm thinking of something that has to do with cars."

35. Look for things out the window 36. Play paddycake 37. Teach your child some clapping games 38. Have your child teach you some clapping games 39. Whisper secrets, silly and serious 40. Say "Tell you tell me three things you did today" 41. Tell a story, taking turns one sentence at a time 42. Write a poem, taking turns one sentence at a time 43. Hide something (even just your thumb) in one fist -- guess which hand? 44. Count your change 45. Count your currency 46. Make a stack or a snake with loose change 47. Fold or roll up currency 48. Make a pattern, train, or house out of credit cards. 49. Show your child the pictures in your wallet (yes, even your driver's license) 50. Try to remember one of your child's favorite storybooks; let your child correct your mistakes. 51. See how your child looks in your glasses 52. Give an invisible manicure 53. Give an invisible pedicure 54. Get an invisible manicure or pedicure 55. Have your child name all his or her classmates 56. See how many people your child can name in your extended family 57. See how many birthdates of friends and family your child can recall

58. Name a relative's birth year and have your child figure out how old; invent relatives if necessary 59. Guess what the people around you do for a living 60. Make a Christmas or birthday wish list 61. Count how many words you can spot -- on signs, posters, clothes 62. Make faces 63. Play Straight Face SIMPLE WORD GAMES The Sound Game Look out the window of the car, (or use a picture book on an airplane.) Have your child name items he sees, and then figure out what the first sound is. The Alliteration Game This one can be funny. Find alliteration words for their name, or a friend's name. Make them as funny as possible. Or use names of animals. For example, "loud little Louie" or "silly Sammy Snodgrass" or "leaping Larry lizard." When your child gets the hang of it, they will take off on their own. Straight Face This one can be veryfunny. One child is "it" and the others pick a phrase for him. Try "the cat's tail." The others ask him questions, and he must answer with "the cat's tail." Other children ask him questions like, • • • •

What do you brush your teeth with? What is your favorite breakfast food? What would you write with? What do you comb your hair with?

When he laughs, it is someone else's turn to be "it." And you pick another phrase. Some phrases • • • •

My monkey's moustache Six smelly sneakers The cat's tail Humpty Dumpty's hat

64. Try to make each other laugh -- last one wins 65. Have a staring contest 66. Have your child narrate a favorite movie 67. Interview your child for a TV news show 68. Speak Pig Latin 69. Play "Truth or Dare" 70. Make up your own secret code

71. Think of rhyming words for items around you 72. Take turns naming words for a letter of the alphabet; last one to think of a word wins, and you move to the next letter 73. Same as above, but with rhymes 74. Same as above, but with entries in categories 75. Explain the meaning of various figures of speech 76. Make up silly similes 77. Make a puppet face with your fist, with your thumb as the lower jaw 78. Flip a coin 79. Do "This little piggy" on feet or hands 80. Give a backrub 81. Get a backrub 82. Crawl fingers up your child's back or arm like a spider 83. Make up an acronym for your child's name, and the names of other family members 84. Ask for favorites: TV show, movie, book, color, game, animal, friend 85. Play peek-a-boo 86. Give your child the name of an object and ask what color it is, what letter it starts with, what shape it is, if it's heavy or light 87. Go on a "hike" with your two fingers walking over your child's arms, shoulders and head 88. Break an egg over your child's head by rapping it gently with your fist and then opening your hand to make the egg roll down the face 89. Do charades 90. Be mirror images 91. Play "Simon Says" on a smale scale. 92. Throw an imaginary ball 93. Blow imaginary bubbles 94. Blow a raspberry on your child's arm 95. "Steal" your child's nose 96. Be a little goldfish

Goldfish Fingerplay Learn this fun rhyme submitted by Bear. My darling little goldfish (Wiggle one finger) Hasn't any toes (Point in your toes) He swims around without a sound (Pretend one finger is swimming) And bumps his hungry nose (Point to nose)

He can't get out to play with me (Point to yourself) Nor I get in to him (Point to children) Although I say, "Come out and play." (Motion finger to come out) He says. "Come in and Swim." (Pretend you are swimming)

97. Do "Here is the church, here is the steeple," or make your own version for another building C! given by: Junkill

A finger rhyme for young children. Widspread throughout the English-speaking world. Fold hands together so that fingers are hidden inside, with thumbs pressed together and pointing straight up. Here is the church, Raise index fingers and put tips together to form a tall triangle. Here is the steeple! Separate thumbs. Open the doors, Turn figure 'inside out', to reveal ten fingers interlaced and wriggling. And there's all the people! Variation:

Begin with fingers on the outside of clasped hands instead of the inside. Repeat first three steps and verses. For final verse, turn figure inside out to reveal an 'empty church'. Act very surprised, and say: But where's all the people? Oh, wait. It's Saturday!

98. Try guided relaxation Search

Guided Relaxation for Children with Special Needs From Terri Mauro, Your Guide to Parenting Special Needs. FREE Newsletter. Sign Up Now!

by Patti Teel Continued from previous page

Heavy and Relaxed Excerpt from The Floppy Sleep Game Book Directions: •

Lie down on your back. Wiggle or move your body to make it comfortable. Now be still and close your eyes. Allow your feet to fall slightly apart and turn your palms upward.

•

Feel your right hand. It is heavy and relaxed. Relax your thumb, first finger, second finger, third finger, fourth finger, the palm and the back of your hand. Take a deep breath in and as you breathe out, relax your whole right hand. (With younger children add, Good-night hand.)

•

Feel your right arm. It is heavy and relaxed. Relax your wrist, lower arm, elbow, upper arm and shoulder. Take a deep breath in and as your breathe out, relax your whole right arm. (With younger children add, Good-night arm.)

•

Feel your left hand. It is heavy and relaxed. Relax your thumb, first finger, second finger, third finger, fourth finger, the palm and the back of your hand. Take a deep breath in and as your breathe out, relax your whole left hand. (With younger children add, Good-night hand.)

•

Feel your left arm. It is heavy and relaxed. Relax your wrist, lower arm, elbow, upper arm and shoulder. Take a deep breath in and as your

breathe out, relax your whole left arm. (With younger children add, Good-night arm.) •

Feel your right foot. It is heavy and relaxed. Relax the big toe, second toe, third toe, fourth toe, fifth toe, bottom of your foot, top of the foot and heel. Take a deep breath in and as you breathe out, relax your whole right foot. (With younger children add, Good-night foot.)

•

Feel your right leg. It is heavy and relaxed. (With younger children add, Good-night leg.)

•

Feel your left foot. It is heavy and relaxed. Relax the big toe, second toe, third toe, fourth toe, fifth toe, bottom of your foot, top of the foot and heel. Take a deep breath in and as you breathe out, relax your whole left foot. (With younger children add, Good-night foot.)

•

Feel your left leg. It is heavy and relaxed. Relax your ankle, calf, shin, knee, thigh, and hip. Take a deep breath in and as you breathe out, relax your whole left leg. (With younger children add, Good-night leg.)

•

Take another breath in and as you breathe out, relax your right buttock and your left buttock. Feel your lower back. It is heavy and relaxed. Take a deep breath in and as your breathe out, relax your whole lower back. (With younger children add, Good-night back.)

•

Feel your shoulders. They are heavy and relaxed. Take a deep breath in and as you breathe out, relax your shoulders. (With younger children add, Good-night shoulders.)

•

Feel your neck. It is heavy and relaxed. Take a deep breath in and as you breathe out, relax your neck. (With younger children add, Good-night neck.)[

•

Feel your head. It is heavy and relaxed. Relax the back of your head, the top of your head, your forehead, right eyebrow, left eyebrow, right eye, left eye, right ear, left ear, right cheek, left cheek, right nostril, left nostril, upper lip, lower lip, and chin. Take a deep breath in and as you breathe out, relax your whole head. (With younger children add, Good-night head.)

•

Feel the front of your body. It is heavy and relaxed. Relax your throat, right collar bone, left collar bone, right side of chest, left side of chest, the belly, the right groin, left groin. Breathe in and as your breathe out, relax the

front of your whole body. (With younger children add, Good-night body.) •

Feel your arms and legs. I feel my arms and legs and they are heavy and relaxed. Relax your whole right leg, your whole left leg, your whole right arm, your whole left arm. Breathe in and as you breathe out, relax your arms and legs completely.

99. Practice breathing techniques

Elevator Breathing Begin by having your children observe the natural inhalation and exhalation of their breath without changing anything, then proceed with the directions. Directions: Your breath is an elevator taking a ride through your body. Breathe in through your nose and start the elevator ride. Breathe out and feel your breath go all the way to the basement, down to your toes. Breathe in and take your elevator breath up to your belly. Hold it. Now, breathe out all your air. (Pause) This time, breathe in and take your elevator breath up to your chest. Hold it. Now breathe out all your air. (Pause) Now breathe in and take your elevator breath up to the top floor, up through your throat and into your face and forehead. Feel your head fill with breath. Hold it. Now breathe out and feel your elevator breath take all your troubles and worries down through your chest, your belly, your legs, and out through the elevator doors in your feet. (Repeat) Day time Follow up: Blow up a real balloon. Show children how it fills up, from the bottom, the middle and finally the top. Let out some air. Watch the balloon deflate from the top, the middle, and the bottom. Explain that they can inflate and deflate the air of their imaginary balloon (in their bellies and chest) in the same way.

100.Repeat what the other person says; repeat what the other person says. 101.See who can go the longest without talking.