Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, July 8, 1993 TAG: 9307070459
SECTION: PARENT'S GUIDE PAGE: PG-12 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: By JOANNE ANDERSON
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
On the contrary, it can be an interesting time of discovery and a great opportunity to get up close and personal with the kids. It is the adult's outlook that can influence the moods of children and set the tone for the whole day.
Baking and cooking is as educational as it is fun, because it involves reading, measuring and following directions, in addition to timing and cleaning up.
On a rainy day, little friends could be invited over for hot chocolate or a tea party which can be a picnic somewhere in the house or a formal event in the dining room. When the cookies are done, you could don slickers and galoshes and deliver some to an elderly neighbor or nearby shopkeeper.
Susan Jones, program director at Mount Tabor Nursery School and Day Care Center in Blacksburg, says rainy days are great for puppet shows and drama activities.
"And we have music and movement tapes for getting the wiggles out on rainy days. Sometimes we get out a large tub and fill it with water, sand or even macaroni. It provides great entertainment and teaches about textures and shapes. And of course, kids can string macaroni pieces into necklaces and glue them on cardboard or paper plates in interesting ways.
Depending on the age of your children, a plethora of craft projects can be started. These include making a dollhouse out of cardboard, fabric and carpet scraps, or creating a small playhouse with a big box and sheets or blankets. Children have great fun dressing up; they could present a fashion show with grown-up clothes, old neckties and costume jewelry.
There are a lot of interesting things around the house to be seen with a magnifying glass. Fabrics, skin, hair, table tops, pet fur - almost everything is more fascinating when magnified. Kids can record a cassette tape of reading stories, singing songs and talking, or videotape a fashion show or skit to mail to a special relative out of town.
A rainy day at home is a good time to look through toys and separate them into categories such as no-longer-wanted and works, no-longer-wanted and doesn't work, still wanted but needs fixing and still wanted and works. Sorting and organizing photographs, clothes, basements, attics and garages can involve children. Everyone can contribute to a box of garage sale items.
There are places to go on a rainy day starting with an important stop, like the donut shop. Ellie Gilmore, mother of four, says, "After the donut shop, we go to the library. The children watch and listen to books on the sound filmstrip machines, while I relax with the new magazines." Two children can listen with headphones on the same machine.
The Montgomery-Floyd County libraries have more than 500 books for the sound filmstrip equipment which circulate among the Christiansburg, Blacksburg and Floyd branches. There are how-to books, biographies, science and nature books and stories for pre-schoolers through teen-agers.
There are several art galleries and museums in the New River Valley. The Museum of Geological Sciences at Virginia Tech, Montgomery Museum and Lewis Miller Regional Art Center in Christiansburg and the Wilderness Road Museum in Newbern offer glimpses into interesting rock phenomena and local history.
Kids can start an herb or window garden or help separate and re-pot plants, planting one of their own. Starting a 1,000- or 2,000-piece puzzle is always a challenge for teen-agers. King Video carries video tapes on cooking, worm fishing, baseball tips, flying helicopters, horseback riding, helping visually impaired people - including children and teens, tennis and how to play the harmonica among other things. Even if you don't intend to fly helicopters, it might be interesting to learn about them.
Travel videos can take you on armchair journeys to faraway lands such as Japan, Egypt, Hong King or Australia. If that seems too far, stay in the U.S. and tour Houston or San Francisco by video.
Half of a rainy day can be spent creating something for the other half, like a haunted house or scavenger or treasure hunt. Kids from two families can get together and plan and prepare dinner for both families, including the menu, selecting food at the grocery store, cooking, table setting and serving.
Youngsters can organize a "This is My Life" scrapbook. Old greeting cards may be cut and recycled into new ones. And, of course, rainy days are great for curling up in sock feet with some chocolates and a good book.
Warm, gentle, rainy days do not even have to be spent indoors. Let some raindrops fall on your head by taking a walk and feeding some ducks. Getting wet is no big deal to kids, and it wouldn't hurt a few adults either.
So let the elements have their way, but don't let the rain dampen your attitude on what can be a perfectly excellent day.
by CNB