Activate Your Grandchild's Imagination with 5 fun Volcano-themed Playdates!
Learning about volcanoes is a great way to take a deep dive into STEAM learning as you enjoy some really fun playdates that focus on science, engineering, technology, art, and math. I want to be part of my grandchild’s education as he or she grows, and I enjoy finding ways to awaken curiosity and problem-solving skills through play, not worksheets. My goal as a grandmother is to lean into a child’s intuitive abilities to imagine and create as I let them drive age-appropriate play of their own choosing.
When my 4-year-old grandson discovered an imaginary friend he calls “Lava-Vigitor” in his backyard one day, we launched into a world where we could learn about volcanoes and lava.
The idea is to teach kids that they don’t have to be only analytical or only creative — they can be both.
What's Is a Playdatebox?
A Playdatebox is a collection of supplies you gather so that you can have intentional fun with your grandchildren (or child, or favorite niece or nephew) regardless of distance. We do the research and test out the play ideas. All you have to do is pick and choose your favorites. We assemble Playdateboxes for our long-distance grandchildren, and keep one on hand at Grandma’s house as well. That way, Grandma can get in on the fun “remotely” with long-distance grandchildren, or in-person when they come to visit.
What's Inside The Volcano Playdatebox?
The Volcano Playdatebox is a multi-day playdate that can be spread out over a long, lazy weekend. You can use it to help you create some fun distraction the next time you are gathered with your grandchildren, or just keep supplies on hand so there’s always something in the cupboard you can pull out and learn with on a whim or at a moment’s notice. You can even set up a weekly playdate with grandkids who live far away and try some of these activities with them via video chat!
Despite the great damage they can cause, volcanoes also help us to live.
TheConversation.Com
Playdate #1 - Learn all about volcanoes with a puzzle sticker book or other books about volcanoes
This clever book is part puzzle and part encyclopedia. Learn all about volcanoes, vulcanology, rocks, and the birds and animals that live near volcanoes in this colorful guide. Includes hundreds of fun re-stickable stickers.
You’ll find reviews of 3 of our favorite early childhood books about volcanoes here.
Playdate #2: Make a hands-on volcano and learn about eruptions
A model volcano is the stuff of science fairs worldwide and with good reason. They are fun to build! Younger children will enjoy getting their hands messy and older kids can dig a little deeper into the science of the chemical reactions that are at work.
The grandkids are creating a plaster model of a volcano from the National Geographic Ultimate Volcano Kit
Playdate #3 - Go on a volcano outing or rockhounding adventure
No matter where you live, it’s likely that a volcano laid down the ground under your feet. And even if you can’t get close enough to see a real volcano or it’s dormant ash cone, you can create a fun outing that will help you learn about one. Try doing some rockhounding in your area, visit a gemologist or a dinosaur museum.
If there aren’t any volcanoes within driving distance of your house. You can compensate. YouTube was invented for this kind of thing! Once you get started watching live feed of active volcanoes sending rivers of lava cascading to the ocean, or watching pyroclastic flows engulf entire towns, you aren’t going to want to stop. This stuff gets 4-year-olds excited for the same reason 60-year-olds love it. It’s just plain fascinating!
How to do this remotely: Take this “virtual” field trip to Mt. St. Helens as you share your screen via video chat: https://www.mshinstitute.org/learn/live-virtual-field-trips.html?gclid=Cj0KCQjw5-WRBhCKARIsAAId9FmTuATDBFEVPIoCFtRagSoO84fYGV9WvInqRrZE8D8_hvV5mAL6zbcaAn5GEALw_wcB
Playdate #4 - Make Volcano Play Dough
All you need is a cake mix and some simple pantry ingredients and you can make great smelling play dough to shape into volcanoes, trees, rocks, and more.
How to do this remotely: You can make a batch on both sides of your screen and shape and mold together while you talk about everything you have learned about volcanoes. You can even “teach” how to make the dough by demonstrating while your grandkids cook alongside of you. You only need 3 ingredients and 20 minutes of free time!
Playdate #5 - Play “The Floor is Lava”
We share three versions of this fun childhood game that you can play in-person or remotely!
How to do this remotely:
The grandkids will get a kick out of seeing you travel across the living room without touching the floor! You can also share your screen and sing and wiggle along with a fun YouTube video version the kids are going to love!
Legacy Moment: How to Use This Time to Create Connection
Volcanoes can seem scary, but even though they create a lot of damage, our earth depends on them. They help all of us to live. They provide volcanic ash which is an important food for the soil and helps us grow plants we can eat. In some places, the heat from volcanoes is used to make energy to power lights, refrigerators, computers, and appliances inside of people’s houses. Once we learn about volcanoes, we don’t need to be afraid of them any more. That is true of most things in the world. When we feel afraid of something, it can be really good to tell a grownup. They can help us think about our feelings and learn more about the thing that is making us feel frightened.
How to do this remotely: Is there something your child or grandchild is feeling afraid of that they haven’t shared with you? Listening for and validating your child’s feelings of fear and anxiousness is the first step to helping them develop healthy coping mechanisms for times when they feel afraid but aren’t sure who they can talk with.
Some of our Volcano Playdatebox Supplies
We’ve included affiliate links to many of the supplies we used so you can create your own Playdatebox. We’ve tested each of the items below and they have earned our approval.
The Ultimate Volcano Sticker Book includes more than 250 reusable stickers and is a really great basic introduction to volcanoes, vulcanology, and the geology of how volcanoes all over the world have formed.
The Floor is Lava game includes colorful tiles you use to protect your feet from the “lava” as you jump and move about the room. Earn different-colored silicone bracelets as you complete challenges answering educational questions about science and nature, or completing large motor tasks.
National Geographic’s Ultimate Volcano Kit includes everything you need to build your own plaster model volcano, paint it, and then test out several different eruptions. The kit includes a small educational guide and some sample volcanic rocks as well. Try this kit or make one of your own using our instructions.
The bestselling earthquake and volcano book on Amazon.com, the National Geographic Kids book, Volcanoes will be a great addition to your library.
For children who love pretending, the 30-piece Animal Zone Dinosaur Playset will create hours of fun. After you finish learning all about volcanoes, you can ease into learning about dinosaurs! We put our dinosaurs into the pool on our most recent family vacation and used them for diving practice!
Smithsonian Little Explorers Book about Volcanoes is a great intro to volcanoes for the younger scientist in your family.
I ordered this very cool volcanic lava tablecloth just because I couldn’t see how we could explode volcanoes without it! Protect surfaces during your at-home eruptions, use it as part of your volcano birthday party decor, and even make an extra slippery surface for your “the floor is lava” game.
Volcanic eruptions require some chemicals, and this set of gel food coloring is on hand in my Grandma Pantry at all times for just such a need!