It’s Friday night – the night my kids build forts to sleep in.

When I was a kid, I would build forts inside our house with my brothers. And now that I have kids of my own, it is fun to pass along this Friday Night Fort tradition to my own kids.

After dinner, after teeth are brushed and pajamas are on, it’s fort building time! The kids get busy gathering necessary supplies. Sometimes their forts include blankets stretched across chairs with many pillows underneath to serve as a comfortable sleeping surface. Sometimes the forts don’t have a ceiling – but instead simply have pillow walls. Old fashioned clothes pins, bungee cords, blankets, comforters, and pillows are typical indoor sleeping fort materials. Small, cozy enclosures are the norm.

However your kids design and build their fort, you can be sure this will be an activity your kids will remember the rest of their lives. And just maybe, they will pass the tradition along to their kids someday.

Our Fort Building Tips:

• Sheets and light-weight blankets work great for building forts inside. To secure a corner of the blanket, twist a marble or small stone in the corner of the blanket, open a dresser drawer, tuck a blanket wrapped stone inside, and close the drawer. This keeps the blanket secure.


• Old-fashioned clothes pins or plastic clamps will hold blankets or sheets to window ledges, bed frames, dressers, or chairs.


• Folding chairs make great fort frames! Place several folding chairs around the perimeter of your room. Drape a large blanket or sheet over the chairs and secure the blankets with tape, clothes pins, or clamps. Instant fort roofs!


• Try using adhesive backed, removable picture hanging hooks on the walls (the kind with the peelable adhesive strips for easy removal). Hang cord or string from hook to hook to create a drape line. Drape light sheets, blankets or tarps across the cord to form your fort. Instant tent!


• Fort building can be done outdoors too, when weather permits. When we build forts outside, survival from the elements is the priority; robust materials like scrap lumber, plywood, branches, ropes, and tarps serve this purpose better. Outdoor forts are designed to fend off everything from a light rain, to an attack from a T-rex – or whatever the kids imagine the fort needs to protect them from.
  

Go ahead, help your kids build a fort inside your house tonight. Sleep in it with your kids. Create memories. Have fun!

April 30, 2010 is Arbor Day – a perfect time to celebrate a tree!

Here are some activities that you can do with your kids:

Celebrate a Tree – this activity is full of creative ideas that you can do with your kids to learn more about trees. Includes free notebook pages that you can download and print to use with this activity.

Plant a Birthday Tree – this activity is a great way to honor a birthday girl or boy!

Arbor Day Educational Products:

Arbor Day Celebration Set – this set includes a great book to help learn about and identify trees in your area, an Apple tree kit so you can grow your own apple tree, and a fun pencil to use to record your observations – made from a tree!

Tree in a Box – Giant Sequoia, Tree in a Box – Red Maple, Tree in a Box – Flowering Catalpa, and Tree in a Box – American Elm – Give the gift of a tree to someone you love! These kits make perfect gifts and are fun to watch grow!

Grow Your Own Ginkgo Tree – Everything you need to grow your own tree! Ginkgo Pines have been present since the era of Dinosaurs, and were once thought to be extinct. Now you can sprout one of the few oldest known living species of plants!

Trees of the Natural World Playing Cards – Play all your favorite card games with this special deck of cards, and learn about the 54 world trees at the same time!

Tell Me, Tree – All About Trees – A bright and colorful introduction to trees, leaves, and their inner workings. Make sure to download the free Teacher’s Guide at the bottom of this product page.

Tree Blocks – This unique set of blocks was made from reclaimed trees! Fun for kids of all ages.

The Tree in the Ancient Forest – The remarkable web of plants and animals living around a single old fir tree takes on a life of its own in this stunningly illustrated story.

A Golden Guide to Trees – This Golden Guide describes and illustrates in full color more than 140 of our most common trees.

For more information about Arbor Day, please visit the Arbor Day Foundation.

Celebrate Arbor Day any day with these fun products and activities!

Join us on an educational adventure through each state in the USA! Each post in this series focuses on one state, and includes a regional recipe from that state. This is a fun way to get your kids involved in cooking, as well as learn a bit about United States geography! The post also includes a link to the featured state’s website, where you can learn more about the state. We also include free forms that you can download and print to use along the journey. Geography has never been so delicious!

Make sure to check back each week for the next post!

Did you know that North Dakota is first in the United States in growing sunflower seeds? They are also second in the country in growing wheat.

This recipe uses sunflower seeds to create a delicious treat kids love to make… and eat!

NORTH DAKOTA Sunflower Seed Cookies

What You Will Need:

• 1-1/2 cups All-Purpose Flour


• 1 teaspoon Baking Soda


• 2 very ripe Bananas, peeled and mashed


• 1/2 cup Butter, at room temperature


• 1/2 cup Granulated White Sugar


• 1/2 cup Shelled Sunflower Seeds (if you buy sunflower seeds in the shells, kids really have fun cracking them open!)


• 1/2 cup miniature Chocolate Chips or Dried Fruit Pieces


• Small Mixing Bowl


• Large Mixing Bowl


• Hand Mixer

What You Do:

• In a small mixing bowl, whisk together flour and baking soda, then set aside.


• In a large bowl, beat bananas, butter, and sugar on medium speed until thoroughly combined.


• Add half of the flour mixture to the banana mixture, and mix well. Add the other half of the flour mixture, and continue mixing until well blended.


• Fold the sunflower seeds and chocolate chips into the mixture.


• Refrigerate the cookie dough for 45 minutes. This process helps keep the cookies from spreading while baking.


• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.


• Line baking sheets with parchment paper.


• Scoop about 1 teaspoonful of cookie dough for each cookie and place the scoops about 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets.


• Bake for 12 to 15 minutes or until edges are lightly golden.


• Remove from oven, cool, and serve!


• Makes about 36 cookies.

North Dakota State Information – Click this link to learn more about North Dakota attractions, activities, and to request free brochures, maps, and so much more!

US Geography Journal Pages – Use these journal pages to create a geography journal as you collect information about each state.

North Dakota Outline Map – Use this state map to label capitals, major rivers and lakes, and other areas of interest. Draw a star on the place you would most like to visit in this state!

United States Outline Map – Use this USA map to track your journey as you “eat your way across the USA”! Color in each state that you’ve tried one of recipes for.

• The United States Cook Book – Take a Tasty Tour of America’s 50 States, and learn a lot of United States geography along the way! (PLEASE NOTE: The recipe featured above is not included in this book.)


• US History Cook Book – Serve up a heaping lesson of history with delicious recipes from our nation’s past… from the pilgrims’ first feast to today’s high-tech, low-fat fare.


• Maps of the United States – This reproducible book contains geopolitical maps of each of the fifty states; political maps of the six regions; and political, physical, and thematic maps of the United States. You’ll also find fun facts, geography bee-type questions, and review pages.


• DK State-by-State Atlas – More than an atlas, this book shows and tells young geographers who, what, when, where, and why.


• The Geography Book – From finding directions by the stars, to mapping your neighborhood, to making an earthquake in a box, you’ll have a great time learning about the world with The Geography Book.


• Professor Noggins USA Geography Game – From rural farming communities to urban cities, from snow-capped mountains to tropical islands, this game covers both the natural and political geography of the United States. Learn about the states, cities, and natural geographical wonders that make this country such an interesting place to visit.


• State by State Card Game – Learning about United States geography is made fun and memorable with this unique deck of cards!


• GeoPuzzle USA Puzzle – GeoPuzzles provide a hands-on approach to learning geography.

Make sure to check back next week for the next state in this series!

Copyright © 2007-2010 Escapade Direct LLC. All rights reserved. All content on this site is property of Escapade Direct LLC and may not be used without our written permission.

There is something fascinating about flight. Balsa gliders and rubber powered planes have fueled kids imaginations for decades.

The Guillow’s Airplane Design Studio is a “dream come true” kit for any kid that is fascinated by flight. Containing over 35 parts, including multiple fuselages, wings and propellers, the kit allows children to experiment with a variety of design configurations quickly and easily – then fly them!

There are two different main wing sizes included in the kit, as well as plastic biplane struts that allow a variety of configurations for either gliders or prop powered designs – monoplanes, biplanes or triplanes. Landing gear can also be added to the prop planes for experimenting with rolling take-offs and landings.

The balsa parts are precision die cut. The tail and pilot canopy parts remain in sheet form. Care must be taken when removing them to avoid breakage. Balsa is the perfect material for making planes, since it is very rigid, yet light weight – and is pretty durable. This allows the planes and gliders to survive less than perfect landings, and make multiple flights without needing repairs.

All the parts come unfinished. This allows kids to really get creative and decorate the parts however they want. Will they choose a traditional military scheme? Racing or sport plane design? Something else completely creative and colorful? The sky is the limit! Using markers, crayons or decals (not included in the kit), they can make symbols, letters, color schemes, and personalized designs of their own choosing.

Tips:

• Avoid flexing or bending balsa parts with the grain direction. The thin balsa can crack easily. When removing the tail parts from the die cut sheet, hold the part and scrap very close to the cut lines and flex slightly to avoid breakage.


• Some of the slots for wings, canopy and tail parts may need to be opened up slightly. If a part won’t fit in a slot, slide a thin butter knife gently back and forth in the slot to enlarge it. Don’t pry!


• Avoid getting balsa wet (e.g., flying the planes when the grass is wet from dew or rain). The balsa is unfinished, and will absorb water easily since it is a very open-grained wood. When wet balsa dries, it will tend to warp. If a part does get wet, try to dry it immediately with a towel. Then, we recommend placing the part on a flat surface and placing a flat item (like a flat bottom pan) on top of it to keep it flat until the part dries completely.


• Marking the center line on the wings and horizontal tail parts will help center them properly in the fuselage, and will assist in making flight adjustments later on.


• We recommend using colorful markers to decorate the balsa parts. Thin tip markers can be used to mark panel lines, rivets, and letters. Broad tipped markers can be used for coloring larger areas. Avoid using water-based paints, since the balsa will absorb the liquid and warp as it dries.


• Balsa is pretty easy to fix. Some parts can be glued with wood glue, or super glue designed for repairing wood. If a tail part, canopy or even a wing is broken, try using a small piece of clear packing tape to repair it. Don’t use too much – remember, weight is the enemy when it comes to flight!


• Repeated crash landings might cause dents in the edges of the wings or tail parts, where they contact the fuselage. Wrap a small piece of clear cellophane tape over the leading edge of the wood to strengthen and protect it.


• If a part is warped, try holding it over a pot of steaming water while twisting in the opposite direction of the warp. Then, hold the part flat until it dries straight

Click Guillow’s Airplane Design Studio for more information and to get your kit today!

Send us your pictures! Take a picture of your kids with their airplane designs from this kit, and we’ll post them on our website!

Make sure to visit our New Arrivals to see all the new things in store for you!

This is not your typical Earth Day coloring page!

At Escapade Direct, we like to do things differently, so when we were putting our heads together to come up with a fun and unique coloring page for kids to use in honor of Earth Day, we ran across the “Flammarion Woodcut”. There is a long history behind this interesting drawing, and we’ve provided links below, if you are interested in reading more about it.

There are many interpretations of this drawing, but we chose this drawing because we think it represents the beauty of our planet: the land, plants, trees; as well as the wonder of the universe beyond Earth: the moon, sun, and stars. We also think this drawing is a lot of fun to colorize and make uniquely your own!

Earth Day is a day to celebrate our planet – to be aware of and appreciate the Earth’s environment, and to think about caring for our planet, now and in the future.

To color your world, click Flammarion Coloring Page to download and print a copy that you can colorize.

To Read More About This Drawing:

Flammarion Woodcut, Wikipedia Entry

Colorized Examples of the Flammarion Woodcut

Get active with a Dirtbag Classic 8-Panel Footbag

These hand-sewn, sand filled footbags (sometimes called a hacky sack) is what all the kids are asking for! It’s perfect for beginners and pros alike!

Because it’s filled with sand, it’s heavier and softer than a plastic pellet-filled footbag. This added softness and weight allows beginners to stall the footbag just like the pros.

We love that footbags get kids active! It’s a great way for kids to develop balance, coordination, and fine motor control. It also allows kids to be creative and make up their own footbag moves!

Play alone or with a friend. Jump, kick, pass – create your own freestyle moves!

Available in four colors:

Dirtbag Footbag, Green and White

Dirtbag Footbag, Red and White

Dirtbag Footbag, Blue and White

Dirtbag Footbag, Black and White

Make sure to visit New Arrivals to see all the new things in store for you!

Here’s a board game that is educational and fun – perfect for celebrating Earth Day everyday!

Players become caretakers of wondrous locations around the planet, then increase their property value by collecting Carbon Credits and trading them in for Clean Air. It’s all fun and games until someone gets sent to the Dump!

Choose your token (all made by nature, of course) and advance to Go Green!

This game was made from recycled materials.

Click EarthOpoly for more information, and to order your copy today!

You May Also Like:

Earth Ball – Hold the whole world in your hands with this inflatable Earth Ball! Printed with actual NASA satellite images, it’s like looking at Earth from outer space!

Planet Earth: 25 Environmental Projects You Can Build Yourself – Learn about ecology and environmental issues with the hands-on projects in this book!

Clever Catch – Green Earth – Learn more about energy conservation, recycling, global warming and other environmental issues with this fun hands-on game!

Professor Noggin’s Earth Science – This educational triva card game has three levels of play, and is a great tool for learning various earth science topics.

Power House Set (Thames & Kosmos) – Learn about alternative energy sources while you build a house and transform wind, solar, and electrochemical energy to power your house!

EcoFluxx – This unique card game is full of learning fun! Learn about ecology, nature, and other issues with this game of ever-changing rules!

Make sure to visit New Arrivals to see all the new things in store for you! And… Check out our Hot Deals This Week for extra savings!

Here’s a great family activity we like to call “Restaurant Night”.

This activity helps kids with math, reading, planning, and life skills – as well as helping them learn about good nutrition. A sort of “home-ec” lesson that’s a lot of fun! And you never know… you might just end up with a professional chef in your family!

Here’s how it works…

Restaurant Planning and Preparation:

• Schedule – One Saturday night a month, each kid gets to run his own restaurant – right at home. They become the restaurant owner, chef, host, and waiter.


• Cuisine – Provide the kids with cookbooks that they can use to plan their meal.


• Groceries – After reviewing the cookbooks, help the kids make a grocery list of the ingredients needed, and have them help you shop for the groceries.


• The Name – The restaurant “owner” chooses a name for their restaurant, and then uses an Art Board to design a sign for the restaurant. This is a great way for kids to be creative! They get to practice different lettering styles, experiment with colors and logo designs, and learn marketing skills!


• Branding – The owner also uses larger Art Boards to create custom placemats to be used by family members. TIP: Use both sides of the art boards – one side for one restaurant, and the other side for a different restaurant.


• Menu – The owner uses a sheet of paper from a Sketch Pad to create a custom menu to present to the rest of the family. Just fold the paper in half, design a cover, and write the menu on the inside.


• Ambiance – Kids might want to create additional artwork to hang on the walls or windows in your diningroom to help create the desired ambiance for their restaurant. The pages from the sketch pad work great for this! They might also like to choose music to play in the background during a meal – this can really add to the experience!

Preparing the Meal:

• Once all the above steps are done, and the scheduled date arrives, the restaurant owner becomes the chef and is ready to prepare the meal!


• Let kids experience as much of the cooking and meal preparation as possible, but because a kitchen has certain hazards, be sure to supervise this step, and assist when needed.


• While the meal is cooking, the restaurant owner decorates the restaurant with their signs, placements, posters, and menu. Depending on the meal, this step might need to be done before the meal preparation begins.


• When the meal is finished, the owner/chef becomes the host and can seat family members in the diningroom restaurant. Then the host becomes the waiter and serves the meal. Bon appetit!

Tips:

• Our family likes to have Restaurant Night on a Saturday night. We find this allows for greater flexibility because Saturday evenings are usually the least hectic. Pick a night that is relaxing and fun for your family!


• Take pictures! Make sure to capture your kids restaurant experience on camera. It’s fun to look back on how they decorated their restaurants.


• Remember to give your kids lots of praise throughout this activity, even if the meal doesn’t turn out to be 5-star restaurant quality! They’ll take great pride in their restaurant endeavor, if you support their efforts.


• If your children are too young to do this activity on their own, it’s a lot of fun to help your kids and work along side them, giving them opportunities to mix, measure, stir, etc.


• If preparing a dinner seems intimidating to your kids, try this activity with breakfast or lunch, as these are generally simpler meals.


• Use this opportunity to help your kids learn about safety in the kitchen. Show them the proper way to use kitchen tools and utensils.

Adult supervision with this activity is a MUST – stay safe!

You May Also Like:

Real Slate Chalkboard and Chalk Board Holder – Use this chalk board and holder to write your weekly menu on.

DIY Drinking Strawz – These unique straws making any meal more fun!

Cool Jewels – Make a batch of diamond-shaped ice cubes to serve in your favorite mealtime beverage!

United States Cook Book – A fun cookbook with recipes from every state in the USA.

US History Cook Book – A cookbook with recipes from various historical places and events.

Healthy Body Cook Book – A cookbook full of healthy recipes that are easy for kids to make.

Cook it in a Cup – This activity set provides a fun way to introduce your kids to cooking!

Join us on an educational adventure through each state in the USA! Each post in this series focuses on one state, and includes a regional recipe from that state. This is a fun way to get your kids involved in cooking, as well as learn a bit about United States geography! The post also includes a link to the featured state’s website, where you can learn more about the state. We also include free forms that you can download and print to use along the journey. Geography has never been so delicious!

Make sure to check back each week for the next post!

Did you know that North Carolina raises more turkeys than any other state in the USA? North Carolina is also well known for producing pork.

This recipe uses turkey to make a delicious sandwich that kids will go crazy for!

NORTH CAROLINA Turkey Roll-Ups

What You Will Need:

• Italian Herb Flatout Bread (flour tortillas will also work)


• Seasoned Cheese Spread (we like to use Boursin cheese)


• Precooked Bacon Pieces


• Baby Spinach Leaves


• Sliced Turkey Lunchmeat

What You Do:

• Spread each piece of flatout bread or tortilla with a thin layer of seasoned cheese spread.


• Place slices of turkey on top of the cheese spread so that the entire cheese surface is covered.


• Top the turkey slices with precooked bacon bits.


• Layer baby spinach leaves on top of the bacon, then roll the bread tightly to form a roll-up sandwich.


• Slice the roll-up into 1 inch slices, then serve the bite-sized sandwiches and enjoy!

North Carolina State Information – Click this link to learn more about North Caronlina attractions, activities, and to request free brochures, maps, and so much more!

US Geography Journal Pages – Use these journal pages to create a geography journal as you collect information about each state.

North Carolina Outline Map – Use this state map to label capitals, major rivers and lakes, and other areas of interest. Draw a star on the place you would most like to visit in this state!

United States Outline Map – Use this USA map to track your journey as you “eat your way across the USA”! Color in each state that you’ve tried one of recipes for.

• The United States Cook Book – Take a Tasty Tour of America’s 50 States, and learn a lot of United States geography along the way! (PLEASE NOTE: The recipe featured above is not included in this book.)


• US History Cook Book – Serve up a heaping lesson of history with delicious recipes from our nation’s past… from the pilgrims’ first feast to today’s high-tech, low-fat fare.


• Maps of the United States – This reproducible book contains geopolitical maps of each of the fifty states; political maps of the six regions; and political, physical, and thematic maps of the United States. You’ll also find fun facts, geography bee-type questions, and review pages.


• DK State-by-State Atlas – More than an atlas, this book shows and tells young geographers who, what, when, where, and why.


• The Geography Book – From finding directions by the stars, to mapping your neighborhood, to making an earthquake in a box, you’ll have a great time learning about the world with The Geography Book.


• Professor Noggins USA Geography Game – From rural farming communities to urban cities, from snow-capped mountains to tropical islands, this game covers both the natural and political geography of the United States. Learn about the states, cities, and natural geographical wonders that make this country such an interesting place to visit.


• State by State Card Game – Learning about United States geography is made fun and memorable with this unique deck of cards!


• GeoPuzzle USA Puzzle – GeoPuzzles provide a hands-on approach to learning geography.

Make sure to check back next week for the next state in this series!

Copyright © 2007-2010 Escapade Direct LLC. All rights reserved. All content on this site is property of Escapade Direct LLC and may not be used without our written permission.

Recycle your old magazines and turn them into works of art!

This project shows you how to create unique paper “rods” using colorful pages from magazines, and then how to use these rods to decorate storage boxes, tin cans (to be used as vases or pencil holders), or plastic bottles (to be used as vases).

This project is easy to do and is perfect for children as young as 7 through adults. It’s also a great way to recycle!

What You Need:

• Magazines to Recycle


• Small Bamboo Skewer


• Glue Stick


• Scissors


• Small Boxes, Cardboard, Tin Cans, or Glass Vases


• Mod Podge


• Paint Brush

What You Do to Make the Rods:

• Carefully remove a page from a magazine that has the colors you like. You may want to choose pages that don’t have a lot of text on them, so you will have more colors.


• Fold the magazine page in half lengthwise, as shown in Figure 2.


• Cut the folded page in half along the fold line, as shown in Figure 3.


• Place the cut page on a table with the side you want to see facing down.


• Position the skewer on one of the corners of the page that you want rolled first. Make sure to position the skewer at slightly more than a 45 degree angle, as shown in Figure 4.


• Roll the corner of the magazine page around the skewer, then continue rolling tightly until the last inch of the page remains unrolled.


• Use a glue stick to apply glue all along the top edge of the page, as shown in Figure 4, then continue rolling the page around the skewer, pressing the glued edge down as you roll.


• Carefully remove the skewer from the rolled rod. You might have to wiggle the skewer slightly to remove it from the roll.


• Set the rod aside, and repeat these steps until you have an assortment of rods completed.

What You Do to Finish the Project:

• Once you have the number of rods you need for your project, you can begin laying them out to form the color pattern you like.


• Use a glue stick or a tacky glue to apply a layer of glue onto the object that you want to attach the rods to. For example, if you are covering a tin can, apply a layer of glue in a strip from the top of the can to the bottom of the can, then place the first rod into position. Continue adding glue as necessary and add one rod at a time to form your pattern.


• When all the rods are in place, allow the glue to dry before trimming the rods to fit the object.


• If desired, apply a coat of Mod Podge over your completed project to seal the rods in place.

Variations:

• Use your magazine rods to cover old picture frames – a fun way to make the frames more colorful!


• Cover a square of recycled cardboard to form a coaster or a placemat.


• The rods can easily be bent to form unique patterns when covering boxes, coasters, or vases. Be creative!


• Make paper rods of various sizes by rolling paper around a pencil or large knitting needle.

You May Also Like:

Blank Craft Box – This sturdy cigar-style box is perfect for storing found treasures.

All Purpose Art Boards – This pack of art boards and hangers has so many creative uses!

Copyright © 2007-2009 Escapade Direct LLC. All rights reserved. All content on this site is property of Escapade Direct LLC and may not be used without our written permission.