Five-Minute Writing: Fun Time Learning

We were recently aboard the Logos Hope when it was docked here in Hong Kong and went a bit crazy on the books.   There was a great collection and best of all, the prices were amazing!   Everything was priced in “units.”  I guess they had to, just to keep things easier and more standardized for them since the ship docks in different ports .  Having everything in a standardized “unit” saves the trouble of re-pricing the items to the local currency each and every time they change ports.   Every 20 units is HKD5.

Among the stash that we got was this Five-Minute Writing|Fun Time Learning pad.  This one was 100 units, so HK$20.  It is a series of short worksheets designed to be completed in five minutes or less.  It has exercises for everything –anagrams, rhymes, synonyms, antonyms, homophones, parts of speech, tenses, capitalization, punctuation, similes, etc.

While waiting for Josh (1.5 hours), Zoë went through several pages of this.  She was excited about ‘beating the clock.’  I think she gets a certain sense of satisfaction at being able to complete so many exercises in such a short time.

The answer key is right at the bottom of the page.  What I do is tear off the bottom part before handing out the sheet (torn from the pad).  Sometimes Zoë checks her own answers against the answer keys when she’s done and she gives herself a big star and a huge smiley face whenever she gets all answers correctly.

This learning pad is great for taking out with you as an activity for when you have to wait around.   The series also come in Addition, Multiplication, Handwriting, etc.

Flash Kids–Reading Comprehension

     

I love workbooks.  Yes, I am one of those moms who make her kids do worksheets.   On weekends, they do at least two double-sided pages a day.  That’s not much.  They easily finish in under 10 minutes.  If they want to earn extra computer or TV time, they do extra worksheets.

In my search for workbooks, I came across the Flash Kids series.  They have a whole host of workbooks to choose from. I will talk about the Reading Comprehension ones first.

I had originally gotten the Reading Comprehension 2 for Josh when he was in Year 2, but soon realized that they were a bit too easy for him.  Zoë, at the time 4 and not in Year 1 yet, was interested in them. I got Josh to do Reading Comprehension 3 while I worked with Zoë on Reading Comprehension 2.  She would read the words she could read by herself and I would help her with the words that she didn’t know.  Some passages she could do all by herself; some passages I would read for her.  I was not too fussed that over the reading part.  What was important for me was how much of what she/we read she was able to comprehend. Within a couple of months, we had finished the entire Reading Comprehension 2. 

The exercises after each of the passages/stories vary.  Some would be open-ended questions, others would be multiple-choice questions.  There were some that would require her to re-tell the story in the correct sequence. She would do simple crosswords for some.   She had to match cause-and-effect statements. There were True/False and fill-in-the-blanks drills.

As the levels go up, the stories and passages get more challenging –longer, more advanced vocabulary, trickier questions. For example, in Reading Comprehension 4, you get topics like Where Do Diamonds Come From?, Leonardo da Vinci, Polar Opposites, etc.   In Reading Comprehension 5, you are asked to summaries, differentiate facts from opinions, give clues to support the conclusion in a story, identify settings/conflicts/resolutions/themes, write your own story.

There are answer keys at the back of each book, as well as a “You are a reading champion!” page.  I usually staple or tape the pages of the answer keys together (haha!).

What I love about this series:

• The passages and stories are interesting, filled with fun facts and information.
• Small, not bulky.  Each workbook measures only 8.8 x 6.8 x 0.2 inches and fits easily into your purse or a child’s small backpack.  Great to keeping the kids occupied when we go out and they have to wait –say, at the doctor’s office, waiting for our orders to come in a restaurant, etc.
• For the lower levels (2 &3), there are stickers to play with at the back of the book.  The stickers relate back to some of the passages/stories in the workbook.
• The exercises are varied throughout the book, very engaging and they challenge the child to think in different ways.
• The stories and passages are illustrated in color, making the read more visually stimulating.
• They are only USD 3.95 each (and you get FREE shipping –worldwide! -when you order from The Book Depository).

If you feel that your child finds a level too easy, you could always get the next level up.  Workbooks are to help kids learn new concepts, practice/reinforce concepts they have learned in school… and I believe the Flash Kids series definitely do this –in a fun and engaging way.

Read Write, Inc, Phonics Series

With Josh, there wasn’t any “Yay, he’s reading!” moment.  We would read with him every night at bedtime.  I vaguely remember trying to get him to sound out letters in a word; he was not interested.  I didn’t push it.  Then one day, it seems, he was reading and that was that.  I don’t remember doing phonics with him.

Zoë (4yo), on the other hand, had been doing letter sounds whenever she sees letters, instead of calling out the letter names.  She has been trying to sound out the words that she wants to write.  She would occasionally get a few right, but many of her words are mostly consonants. For example, Cinderella would be “Sndrla” or Jasmine would be “Jazmin.”  Anyway, because of this, we started to get her to read some of the simpler words whenever we’d read to her.

I came across the Read Write, Inc, Phonics series at the local library and decided to check out a couple of books for Zoë.   SO glad I did.  The books were simple enough for her to sound out/read all by herself.  The stories are short, with a touch of humor that the kids could easily relate to –which makes the child that much more willing to patiently sound out/read the words.  Being able to read the stories “all by myself!” definitely boosts their reading confidence and gets them all the more motivated to tackle other books in the more advanced levels.

What I really like about the books:

1. The stories are short enough, but still interesting (not dry a la "David and Jane run. David and Jane play. David and Jane sleep."); often humorous, which the kids will definitely appreciate.
2. The illustrations are fun and colorful.
3. There is a section prior to each story where you "practice" the letter sounds first to get the child familiarized with the letter sounds for when he/she attempts the words in the story.  There is also a section for Green words (words found in the story that the children could sound out) and Red words (sight words).  It really helps to do this section at the beginning of each story (no matter that some of the Red words are the same for most stories).
4. There are questions to ask the child at the end of each story to make sure they understood what they have read.  These are great “discussion starters.”
5. There are Speed Words for each story --words that appeared in the story for the child to review and practice reading (in and out of order).

Zoë has just moved on to the non-fiction series of the Read Write Inc. books (one book featured for each of the seven levels –below).

There are five books to each level.  We are currently working our way through Level 6 (blue).  I am not totally clear on how these levels are structured in the non-fiction series as some books in the lower levels have some more challenging words than some books in the higher levels.  That said, we are sticking to going through each of the levels in order, although I don’t fuss too much if Zoë sometimes chooses to read a book from a different level to the one that she’s currently working on.

It has been really wonderful going through each book with her.   Reading these books alongside Zoë has been such a joy  --seeing her aha! moments and witnessing the growing confidence in being able to read independently and best of all, being able to share in her delight as she goes through her reading journey.

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Here is a link to a video of Ruth Miskin explaining synthetic phonics and sharing some top tips on teaching your child to read:  http://www.oxfordowl.co.uk/Videos/toptips-ruth.html

Workbook | Language Arts (Spectrum)

With 60* students in Josh’s class, I don’t expect the teachers to be able to always give each child individual attention.  I am not complaining; I think his teachers are doing a fantastic job and they have my utmost respect for what do on a daily basis.

I supplement at home once in a while.   We borrow books from the library, I buy books.  I also buy workbooks.  No, I don’t make him do the workbooks every day.  Once in a while, I’ll ask that he does 2-3 pages.  Sometimes he would just do the number of pages that I asked him to;  other times, he would flip through after he’s finished the pages I wanted him to do and do a few more extra pages because he wants to.

This particular workbook, –(Spectrum) Language Arts Grade 1, – is one of Josh’s favorites.   It might or might not have something to do with the fact that the workbook uses Mercer Mayer’s Little Critter to make the exercises more fun.  This workbook covers fundamentals in grammar and structure –capitalization, punctuation marks, contractions, parts of a simple letter, nouns, verbs, homophones, antonyms, etc. 

What I like about this workbook:

• It introduces concepts in simple terms, in terms that children could relate to –e.g. Use a period to end a sentence that tells something.  A period is like a stop sign. 
• Practically every single page has colorful Little Critter illustrations to help put the lesson in context or even only to liven up the lesson.
• Proofreader’s Toolbox – Occasionally there are passages to proofread (capitalization, proper punctuation) and the Proofreader’s Toolbox introduces different proofreader’s marks  --e.g.

Set in CAPITALS      Insert a missing comma    Insert a missing period

Using these marks make Josh feel like he’s a teacher and I think he likes that.

• Handwriting Check and other checklists – There are certain exercises that require Josh to write a few statements.  At the bottom of some of these exercises, there is either a Handwriting Check (see questions below) or questions that help him review his work himself, instead of having to rely solely on me to check his answers for him.  These checklists encourage him to give his work another look-through to spot if there is anything that he might have missed:
• Did you take your time?
• Are your letters sitting on the line?
• Did you put spaces between your words? 
• Do your tall letters touch the top lone and your small letters fit between the dotted line and the lower line?
• How did you do? (I did great!       I did o.k.        I will do better next time.)
• Each workbook page is perforated so that it could be torn out easily in case you’d prefer to have your child work on single pages.

Spectrum has a range of other workbooks designed for different areas, different grade levels.  I will definitely be checking those out.

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*Two classes of around 30 students each have been “merged” and share one huge classroom.  There are two class teachers and three education assistants between the two classes, not counting the parents who help out in the classroom each day.

The Encyclopedia Brown Series by Donald Sobol

I remember loving the Encyclopedia Brown series when I was small.  I was impressed with how smart he was, how he could so easily pick out inconsistencies and solve the mysteries.  Why, he even helped his dad, the chief of police, solve some of his cases!  I remember dreaming of setting up my own detective agency, just like Encyclopedia Brown did.   I don’t remember why I suddenly remembered the Encylopedia Brown books, but I’d thought (and hoped) that Josh might probably enjoy them as much as I did.

So, for Christmas last year, I had ordered  the Encyclopedia Brown Box Set from The Book Depository.  It contains the first four books in the series.  I was thinking that I’ll see whether or not Josh would love them before I invest further in more Encyclopedia Brown books.  Each book has about 10 separate ‘mysteries’ that the boy detective would solve.  I figured that each story would be short enough for Josh to go through in one sitting.  Just right.



Because he got so many Christmas presents, –among which was a Star Wars Complete Visual Dictionary that he’d asked Santa for,—Josh didn’t really show any interest at all in the Encyclopedia Brown books.  About a month later, I oh-so-casually asked him if he’d read any of the books yet.  He started on the first story and I could tell he was not very into it.  I think it might have been a little out of his depth.  (I definitely was not 6 when I read the books –more like 8 or 9, I think.)   I didn’t want to push him, so I didn’t bring it up again.

Then one night, Chris decided that he would read one Encyclopedia Brown story together with Josh, because he wanted to check out for himself what I was raving about.  So together they read, with Chris helping to explain the bits that Josh didn’t quite understand.  They then tried to answer the question at the end of the story:  How did Encyclopedia Brown know? / How did he solve the case?  before turning to the back of the book to check out the answer/explanation.

Each story ends with a question and the answers are found at the back of the book.  The answers refer you back to sections within the story where the inconsistencies occurred and explain the why’s and the how’s.

After a couple more sessions of reading the stories with Chris, Josh started to take a renewed interest in the books. I think he really benefited from Chris guiding him along with the first few stories that he got the hang of how the stories work.  Josh started devouring them the way he did with the My Weird School series.  No, he didn’t laugh out loud or giggle or roll over with laughter when reading Encyclopedia Brown, but rather he’d be very quiet and serious in his little corner, with a look of concentration on his face.   Occasionally, he would flip back pages to reread passages.  Sometimes he would ask me what certain words meant.

Josh has gone through all the four books in the box set plus another one that I’d borrowed from the library.  He managed to ‘solve’ at least one case and I remember that he was quite proud that he did so, without checking the answer first.  I might have to go order some more online, as the local library doesn’t carry the complete set.  {I didn’t realize that the Encyclopedia Brown series were started by Donald Sobol in the early 60’s (!) and that it was an HBO TV series in 1989.}

My Weird School Series by Dan Gutman

With kooky titles like Miss Daisy Is Crazy!  and Mr. Klutz Is Nuts!, how could Josh resist?
I chanced upon this series at the library and decided that Josh might enjoy reading them over the holidays.  From a stack of books that I’d picked up, he just zoomed in on Miss Daisy Is Crazy! and started reading it on the drive home, chuckling and laughing out loud at certain parts.  I had to ask him to put down the book during the drive.  He’d pick it up again as soon as we stop for a light and I’d had to remind him to put it down again.  In the end, I gave up.  He finished the book shortly after we got home.

Then he started on the next one, Mrs. Roopy Is Loopy!, and finished it that night.  To say that he loves the books would be an understatement.  He just devours them and I’d see and hear him laughing out loud, exclaiming, “This is so funny!”

I read through one (Miss Daisy Is Crazy!) just to see what it is that he finds so funny in them and I’ll have to admit that I thoroughly enjoyed it, too.  The story is told from A.J.’s point of view.  A.J. is a boy who hates school.  A.J.’s voice rings true and you could almost picture A.J. as you read through his accounts of events.  I guess it’s easy for Josh to relate to another little boy who’s telling about stuff that go on at his school. 

The My Weird School series by Dan Gutman are chapter books (about 100 pages per book) set at Ella Mentry School. (You just gotta love the names!)  Weird things seem to happen at that school.  All the grown-ups are, well, weird.  Check out some of the titles above. Weird = Funny in Josh’s world.

I think part of what Josh loves about this series, too, is that the main characters (A.J. and know-it-all Andrea and their friends) are featured throughout the series and the setting is the same, so there is some sort of continuity to it.  I asked him why he loves the each of the My Weird School books that he’s read and every time he’d say, “Because it’s funny!”  I guess if you’re 5 and you read chapter titles like “Have Your Cake and Eat It, Too” (Mr. Louie Is Screwy!), “Indoor Recess Is No Fun” (Ms. Todd Is Odd!), and “The Amazing World of Poop” (Ms. Krup Cracks Me Up!), you’d be totally drawn in, too!
Here is the complete My Weird School series:

1. Miss Daisy Is Crazy!
2. Mr. Klutz Is Nuts!
3. Mrs. Roopy Is Loopy!
4. Ms. Hannah Is Bananas!
5. Miss Small Is Off the Wall!
6. Mr. Hynde Is Out of His Mind!
7. Mrs. Cooney Is Loony!
8. Ms. LaGrange Is Strange!
9. Miss Lazar Is Bizarre!
10. Mr. Docker Is Off His Rocker!
11. Mrs. Kormel Is Not Normal!
12. Ms. Todd Is Odd!
13. Mrs. Patty Is Batty!
14. Miss Holly Is Too Jolly!
15. Mr. Macky Is Wacky!
16. Ms. Coco Is Loco!
17. Miss Suki Is Kooky!
18. Mrs. Yonkers Is Bonkers!
19. Dr. Carbles Is Losing His Marbles!
20. Mr. Louie Is Screwy!
21. Ms. Krup Cracks Me Up!

And then there’s the My Weird School Daze series, when A.J. and Andrea move on to third grade and get a new teacher…

1. Mrs. Dole Is Out of Control!
2. Mr. Sunny Is Funny!
3. Mr. Granite Is from Another Planet!
4. Coach Hyatt Is a Riot!
5. Officer Spence Makes No Sense!
6. Mrs. Jafee Is Daffy!
7. Dr. Brad Has Gone Mad!
8. Miss Laney Is Zany!
9. Mrs. Lizzy Is Dizzy!
10. Miss Mary Is Scary!
11. Mr. Tony Is Full of Baloney!

The Book Depository

Why haven’t I heard of The Book Depository until just recently?  This surely has to be one of the best-kept secrets.  Free shipping on books –to practically all countries worldwide!

The Book Depository was recommended to me by Josh’s school librarian when I asked where I could order certain sets of books that I’d been told were not available on Amazon.  She mentioned that that’s from where they get most of the school library books and that delivery time is usually around one week, certainly no more than two.

I decided to check it out and now that I’d received all the books from my first order with them, I know that I will be using them again and again.  They definitely do come out cheaper compared to Amazon (unless you live in the US and can avail of Amazon’s free shipping on certain products) and even to Paddyfield.  Here’s a quick comparison I did on a couple of books:

	Book Depository	Amazon.com	Paddyfield.com
Encyclopedia Brown 4-Volume Boxed Set	GBP 10.51 (HKD 127.22)*	USD 9.98 + 9.98 (shipping) (HKD 160.95)	HKD 160 + 15 (shipping) (HKD 175.00)
The Giving Tree	GBP 10.18 (HKD 123.22)*	USD 9.93 +  9.98 (shipping) (HKD 160.55)	HKD 169 + 15 (shipping) (HKD 194.00)

*Conversion done with help from xe.com

The above table was put together under the assumption that all books are to be delivered to a Hong Kong address.  Paddyfield.com does offer free shipping for orders over HKD 180, but even taking only the price of each item alone, it is still more expensive compared to The Book Depository.

I had ordered a total of 13 books from The Book Depository and I had received all 13 within two weeks of my ordering;  some I had received in just one week’s time.  The only beef I have is that each one of the books was packed and mailed separately.  It doesn’t matter to me that each was mailed separately as shipping was free, but the books were individually packed either in a bubble envelope or in corrugated cartons, --which, to me, was a bit of a waste.   I don’t understand why they could not have packed the books together to save on packing materials.

That said, they are the most cost-efficient in terms of ordering books online that I’ve come across so far.

Aussie Nibbles and Aussie Bites | Age-Appropriate Content for Proficient Early Readers

What do you do when you have a child who has learned to read early and who has gone beyond the “Look at Timmy. See Timmy. See Timmy run.” books?  Josh loves Star Wars and would devour any material related to Star Wars.  I am okay with that, even though I find the material a tad violent. Josh assures me that “It’s all just pretend, Mommy!”  My problem with the Star Wars books is that they are meant for older readers, readers with more understanding and with more life experiences from which they could draw to be able to put what they read in context.

One time, Josh asked me what an assassin was.  I told him.  He then followed up by asking if there are assassins in Hong Kong.  Umm, I don’t want to be talking about assassins with my 5-year old.

At a recent parent-teacher conference, his teacher suggested Aussie Nibbles and Aussie Bites.  She voiced out exactly what I was concerned about –i.e., that there’s a dearth of materials that are age-appropriate and suitable for very young proficient readers out there.  She then recommended Aussie Nibbles and Aussie Bites.

The series of short chapter books are written by different Australian authors.  Aussie Nibbles books are for readers just beginning and Aussie Bites cater to the 7-10 age group.  The books have “bites” on them –a smaller bite for Nibbles and a slightly bigger bite for Bites.  And then you progress on to Chomps for more advanced readers.  There is larger print on the Nibbles and the print gets smaller on the Bites.

The Aussie Nibbles were quick reads for Josh.  He really loves them and could finish two in one afternoon (yes, reading through dinner!).  Once he starts on one, he’s deaf to the world.  The house could be on fire 

and he wouldn’t even notice.

  

I plan to get Josh to read as many of the Aussie Nibbles as I could get from the library before introducing Aussie Bites to him.

As far as I could tell, the books are not available in the local bookstores, but I was able to borrow quite a number of them from the public library.  The Hong Kong Central Library (in Causeway Bay) has a very good collection.  If you want to order online, you’d find a better collection through Puffin Books Australia.

 

Image: Stephen Michael King, Illustrator.

CSN Winner!

 

Congratulations to Casey from Bumpin’ Along the Road Less Travelled for winning the US$40 CSN Giveaway!

Caseybumpinalong said...

I voted for you on Top Mommy Blogger

 

Please email me at buckeroomama (at) gmail (dot) com so that I could email you the promo code.  Congratulations again!

A big thank you to all who entered the giveaway. I hope to have more for you soon!

Our Very First Giveaway - US$40 CSN Promo Code!

CSN Stores is sponsoring a giveaway on Kiddie Treasures –yay!  It’s fun doing giveaways and it’s doubly fun when it’s sponsored by CSN Stores.  I’ve done a number of giveaways with CSN on my other blog, Mamahood, Among Other Things… and each time it’s been really fun.  It’s just so exciting to browse through CSN site and go through their many online stores (they have over 200!).  You can find pretty much everything there –

from a pretty briefcase like this one, Who says briefcases need to be boring?

to arts and crafts materials, Just look at that --arts and crafts heaven!

to Dr. Seuss 3-piece storage bin sets! How cute are these?!

One lucky reader gets to win a US$40 promo code to apply to his/her shopping spree at CSN Stores!  Here’s how to earn chances to win:

Mandatory entry:
Visit CSN Stores and leave a comment with the link to the item/s that you would get if you win the US$40 promo code.

Extra entries (separate comment for each, please):

• One extra entry if you are a public Google Friends Connect (GFC) follower. 
• Tweet about this giveaway and leave me the link. You could simply copy and paste this:  Win $40 CSN promo code at Kiddie Treasures @Buckeroomama #Giveaway http://bit.ly/ddwSWU– 1 extra entry.
• You can get an 1 extra entry per day if you vote for Buckeroomama by clicking on the Top Mommy Blogger button below –and then click their “Click Here to Enter” button at the top of their page.  Easy-peasy!  Leave me a separate comment each time you do (you can do it only once every 24 hours). 

One winner with a valid entry will be selected on 16th November using random.org. The winner will be announced and must respond with a current email address within 48 hours to claim. Otherwise, another eligible entry will be chosen.

Have fun and good luck!

*Giveaway open to readers with US and Canada addresses only.
Note: I have not received anything from CSN Stores for this post other than the opportunity to do a giveaway for the readers of Kiddie Treasures…

The Red Book

 
                                           The front cover      /      The inside page

Josh had received The Red Book (a 2005 Caldecott Honor book by Barbara Lehman) as a birthday present.  As a mom, I think books make perfect gifts.  Whether to give or to receive.

Do you notice anything about the front cover of this wonderful book?  No words, no title.  Yup.  Well, apart from the inside page which carries the book title, the author’s name and the publishing company, the rest of the pages are WORDLESS, too!  Which is what makes this book so interesting.

What I love about this is that you and your child can interpret the pictures any way you want.  Especially for children as young as Zoë (3yo) or even younger, the book presents a fantastic opportunity to engage your child by asking them questions, getting them to tell you what they think is happening based on what they see.  You’ll just be pleasantly surprised at how eagerly they will take over the reins from you and start to spin their own yarn, using the pictures as guides.  Best of all, there is no wrong interpretation.  For older children like Josh (5yo), this book presents opportunities to talk about faraway lands and what-might-be scenarios.  Just super for letting their imagination run wild.

On the Night You Were Born

On the Night You Were Born by Nancy Tillman is a must-have for your child's library.

It's one of those books that I'd bought and had forgotten about... Josh asked me for a "surprise" book one night when he was 2.5 years old and I dug this out.

We sat down to read and it was such a 'magical' session for both of us. I won't ruin the surprise for you, but suffice it to say that it is a very wonderful book and both you and your child will be touched by the beauty and magic of this book. The smile on Josh's face as we read was priceless. I could tell that reading this book together made him feel very special.

I’d read On the Night You Were Born to Josh so many times when he was younger and each time we’d read it together, it still held the same magic as the first time I’d read it to him.  Last night, when we were choosing books for bedtime, I’d offered to read this book to Zoë.  She had the same quiet wonder on her face that Josh would have whenever we’d read the book.  And I found myself transported again by the magic, by the celebration as I read the book to her.

This book would make a wonderful gift for a new mother (regardless of the number of babies that she has already had before).  It is a most lovely read for parent/child.  Perfect for bedtime reading, as your child sits snugly on your lap with your arms around him/her as you read in awe-filled hushed tones about the night your child was born…

Face-Painting : Creative Expression for Mommy and Kidlets

If you have been over to my other blog, you would know that we have been doing plenty of face-painting lately. I kind of got into it because my friend was having a party for her daughter and I’d sort of promised that I would help out. I did tell her that I’ve never really done face-painting before, but she was kind enough to bring along a kit and we both practiced on her daughter and on Josh and Zoë first.

We started with small flowers and butterflies, balloons and spiders, small details around the eyes.

It was so much fun! For both of us and for the kids. They kept asking us to paint more and before we knew it, we had painted small drawings on their cheeks, all up and down their arms. and we even started working on their legs!

I decided to get my own set and I got braver and decided to try full-face jobs. They’re not as hard as I’d thought they might be. You just need to be VERY patient, though. Especially if your tikesters are any like mine, who can hardly sit still throughout the session. You’ll probably be gritting your teeth and threatening not to complete the job if they won’t sit still. (No? I wish I have your patience.) BUT, the look on their face after you’ve finished and they’ve checked out your work for themselves in the mirror? Is SO worth it. Seriously.

Face-painting has been such a lot of fun. I got to let my creative juices flow. There are tons of face-paint designs online to copy from and the face-paint kit that I got came with a guide. But even without these, it was fun to come up with my own designs. You’d be surprised at how easily inspired you could be! For the kiddies, it was great seeing them get into the character of whatever face paint design they got. There was plenty of pretend play happening after each session and I so enjoyed watching them walking around, proudly showing off their face art, and engaging each other in various pretend scenarios centered around their face-paint characters.

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The face paint kit I use is by Snazaroo. In Hong Kong, you can get it from Bumps to Babes for HK$150. It comes with a brush, a cosmetic sponge, a step-by-step guide with a selection of designs to copy, and 8x 2ml colors (red, blue, white, black, green, pink, yellow, and purple). The paints are hypoallergenic, non-toxic, and water-based. They wash off very easily.

I’ve tried to use face-painting crayons before, but I find the Snazaroo face paints a lot easier to use. For one, these face paints are easier to apply, especially if you have to paint over a big area (with the sponge). I had bought extra face paints in select colors for those colors that I know I will use often. Bumps to Babes carry the 18ml ones (HK$50 each).

And the glitters? I just got some from the local stationery store. Just make sure that you get the glitters that are labeled "good for body, nail, hair," as opposed to glitter that you normally use for arts and crafts.

I got a couple of these glitters from the stationery store at Stanley (where the old Pepperoni's used to be) for HK$15 each and then I found the exact same ones in another stationery store near where we live for only HK$6. (Yes, a whopping difference of HK$9! The Stanley stationery store was 2.5x more expensive! For HK$30 for just two from the Stanley shop, I could have gotten FIVE from the other store!) Glitters add a lot of oomph to the face-paints. Go get some.

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Image credits: Snazaroo product shots from Snazaroo website; glitters from Fan Hung Enterprise Co., Ltd.