Materials
Paper and pen
Copy machine
Instructions
1. Give each child a shoebox and encourage him to decorate it.
2. Ask parents to send in a small toy, book, or quiet activity. Put the item into
the child's decorated shoeboxes and store it in the child's cubby until rest
time.
3. Since some children don't nap or begin to outgrow the nap as they approach
the age of four, the little box of "stuff" gives them something to do during the
quiet time.
More to do
More Rest or Nap: Instead of playing typical lullaby tapes, try playing
environmental sounds such as summer rain, ocean sounds, or sounds of the
forest. The Homedic machines that are available at bed and bath stores are great!
You can set the machine to play for a certain length of time automatically. (The
children in my class particularly enjoyed the cricket sound, and after we read The
Very Quiet Cricket by Eric Carle, they felt like they KNEW the cricket! One little
boy would ask for me to "play the crickets" when he got sleepy. He went to
sleep every time!)
