Sound Shakers

What You Need:

• Five fillable clear plastic holiday ornaments (available at craft stores)
• Buttons
• Sand
• Sequins
• Paper clips
• Small corks
• Tape

What You Do:

1. Put the buttons in one ornament, the sand in another, the sequins in the third, the small corks in the fourth, and paper clips in the last. Or, feel free to fill the ornaments with other items of your choice.
2. Attach the two pieces of each ornament back together and carefully secure it with tape. This is especially important when working with young children.
3. Invite your child to shake each one, comparing the differences between sounds. Comparing sounds helps prepare preschool brains for more complex science experiments once kids start kindergarten.
4. Use one shaker to make a beat and encourage your child to imitate you. Then invite him to come up with his own rhythms! This will improve his math skills as he learns to recognize the different patterns hidden in beats.