Mrs. Fisher Cat Visits Storytime!

Miss Kathleen read The Leaf Man today at Storytime and who showed up?

None other than Mrs. Fisher Cat from the Calico Critters Fisher Cat family!

Storytime was lots of fun today. We had a nice group of kids at our Corinth store to hear Miss Kathleen read Leaf Man by Lois Ehlert.

Leaf Man, published in 2005, is a beautiful and very creative book. Ehlert collected leaves in a plastic bag and photocopied them to keep their beautiful colors. She found leaves of all shapes and sizes around the country – even in Kansas City! Then she made the leaves into colllages, creating chickens, ducks, geese, pumpkins, turtles and lots more. Ever page is a different collage of brightly colored leaves.

The story is about finding the Leaf Man that blew him away and where the wind took him. The book allows kids to use their imaginations and intelligence to spot all the animals, vegetables and plants created with the leaves.

It’s a great story and picture book for kids ages 4 to 8, published by Harcourt Inc. The Leaf Man is a Junior Library Guild selection. It sells at The Learning Tree for $16.00.

After Storytime, Miss Kathleen and the kids made leaf collages to take home. They also got to meet and talk to Mrs. Fisher Cat. And of course we have LOTS of Calico Critters for sale! Come on in to either store to take a look!

Find Your Marbles at The Learning Tree AND Learn How To Play!

Lost your marbles?

Come in to The Learning Tree at Corinth Square or Park Place and take a look at all the new marble assortments that just arrived! They’re not just pretty…they are super fun to play with!

Our selection of Mega Marbles is huge! The names of the sets are very descriptive of what the marbles look like. We have Jupiter marbles, Mars marbles, Cat’s Eye, Steely Torpedo, Fiesta, Jungle….you name it!

Each net has 24 marbles (mibs) and 1 shooter. The mibs are 5/8″ and the shooter is 1″. It also has 2 plastic display rings for showing them off.

Marble games have been around for generations…But how do you play marbles?

The most popular marble game is Ringer.

Each player (2 to 6 per game) has a shooter, which is a larger sized marble than the others.

If you’re playing outside, draw a circle on the sidewalk with chalk. (or use a stick in dirt) that’s at least 3 feet across. The bigger the circle, the harder the game will be.

To see who plays first, one at a time, each player stands behind a line drawn at the edge of the circle and tosses their shooter into the circle, trying to get as close to the opposite edge of the circle as they can. whoever gets closest, goes first. This process is called lagging. They can also “knuckle down” when they lag if they want to.

This photo shows a player knuckling down. Your knuckle must touch the ground when you shoot the marble.

13 marbles are placed in the circle in a cross formation in the middle.

The first player knuckles down and tries to knock one of the 13 marbles out of the circle. If he does, and his shooter stays in the circle, he or she gets another turn. He can shoot from inside the ring which gives him an advantage since he can get closer to the marbles.

A player can’t go inside the circle unless their shooter stayed in on their turn.

If he don’t knock another marble out of the circle and his shooter stays in the circle, the next player stays at the edge of the circle and knuckles down and shoots. She can aim at the other players shooter and try to knock it out. If she does, she wins all the marbles and the game.

Or, she can try to knock out another marble. If she misses, the next player shoots from inside the circle where the shooter landed from his previous turn.

The best strategy is to try to keep your shooter in the circle to stay closer to the marbles you are trying to knock out. Whoever knocks out the most marbles, wins the game.

You can also make up your own rules. There are tons of variations to marble games.

Also, the players need to decide up front what the rules are. Including whether to play for “fair” or for “keeps”. If you play for fair, when the game is over, everyone gets their marbles back. If you play for keeps, the winner keeps all the marbles.

Marbles is a classic, fun game that’s been played all over the world, generation after generation. You can play indoors or out, on any flat surface, with just a circle, some marbles and some friends or family.

Join the fun and start playing marbles today!

Kids Flea Market A Huge Success!

Yes, it was hot…but so were the deals!

The Learning Tree at Corinth Square was a very busy place today! Over 50 kids signed up to sell their wares on the sidewalk. Lots of bargains to be had and lots of kids were happy to part with their old stuff and find some new playthings.

Kids of all ages were shopping for kids, grandkids, sisters, brothers, and friends.

Kids Make Worms, Snow and Lava Lamps at Kidtivities!

Last Friday’s Kidtivities event, Test Tube Magic , turned kids into Mad Scientists!

They made a lava lamp in a test tube, grew instant worms, made sand underwater, created fake snow, and more.

They even took a trip out of the Rainbow Room at our Corinth Square Learning Tree into the sunlight in front of the store to see the bracelets they made turn colors in the sun…only to have them turn white again when they went back inside!

Miss Lori and Miss Hayley amazed the kids with lots of experiments and activites and gave them each a test tube to take home (with lava inside, of course, along with some magic balls that expand overnight.

This session will definitely be remembered by all the kids. And who knows, some of them may grow up to be real scientists some day!

We will be repeating Test Tube Magic on July 31st.

Here’s a link to the complete schedule.

The session is $10 and will fill up fast!

Call us now to sign up and be amazed! 913-385-1234

Kidtivities Continue at The Learning Tree!

The Learning Tree in Corinth Square has been a beehive of activity this week! We’ve dug for fossils, made paper flowers, created shiny mosaics, turned socks into puppets….and lots more with our super fun Kidtivities classes.

Below are some photos of the kids from yesterday classes, Dig Real Fossils and Sock Puppets .

Today, kids made paper flowers, created sock puppets, and painted and flew foam airplanes! Everyone had a great time.

We’re looking forward to tomorrow’s fun class…Test Tube Magic!

Did you miss a class? No worries!

Most classes will be repeated in late July.

Click here for a printable PDF of the schedule.

Kids Made Sticky Mosaics Today at Kidtivities!

We had a full house today at The Learning Tree in Corinth Square!

Our Kidtivities event brought in kids as young as 3 years old. The younger kids made sticky mosaics of pets like fish, cats and dogs.

The older kids made dragon and princess mosaics from beautiful metallic-looking stick-on pieces. The kits have numbered boards that match a certain color and shape such as squares, triangle and circles. The kids just matched the numbers and shapes and stuck the correct piece to the board.

No glue needed since all the soft foam pieces had sticky backs, making it easy to complete the mosaics.

Our Kidtivities are happening all this week and next week. Each session is $10. To register and join in all the fun, call us at 913-385-1234. Spaces are filling fast!

Here’s the full schedule of what’s going on.

Kidtivities Event this Friday and Saturday – Enchanted Garden Stone

Make an Enchanted Garden Stone!

The Learning Tree will host our first Kidtivities™ event for the summer this Friday and Saturday June 5th and 6th at 10:30am.

Friday’s classes are already full so call us ASAP at 913-385-1234 to register for the 10:30am class on Saturday the 6th!!

We know that kids’ fingers – as well as their imaginations – are simply magical, and this Kidtivity™ proves just how enchanted they really are!  A favorite activity for children of all ages, these Garden Stones give kids a chance to really dive in, make a little mess, and create something that is simply sensational.

The unique cement mixture needs their special squeezing and squishing skills in order to get it ready to decorate with colorful tiles, glass, and their handprints! And whether kids use our supplies or bring decorative elements from home, the finished stone makes a spectacular gift for Father’s Day or any other special occasion!

Call for additional time slots for the all ages Enchanted Garden Stone activity.

All Kidtivities™ events are $10 each. Ask us about doing multiple activities in one day.

Please call (913) 385-1234 to register for activities.

Kidtivities At The Learning Tree!

Kids will have a great summer with Kidtivities here at our Learning Tree stores!

Kidtivities at The Learning Tree will keep your kids active and creative all summer long!

Kid’s Flea Market June 27th at Corinth!

COME ONE, COME ALL!

It’s the First Annual

Learning Tree Corinth Square

Kid’s Flea Market!

On June 27th from 10am to 1pm , The Learning Tree is sponsoring (and marketing!) a flea market for your kids to re-sell their gently used toys, books and games. And what kid doesn’t have toys they haven’t out-grown or just gotten tired of?

The Learning Tree will provide a space for children to sell their used items at whatever price they decide. We will market the event to make sure that other kids looking to buy quality toys at a discount, will know what’s happening when.

Best of all? The cost per booth is only $5!

Here’s what you get for $5:

• One booth (approx. 8′ x 8′ of space)
• A $5 ticket you can apply as a $5 coupon on any item in The Learning Tree on that Saturday.
• A chance to get rid of all the unused toys, games and books in your house that are way too good to throw away.
• Your child gets the opportunity to run his or her own business for a few hours. From set-up to sale, they will have a great experience merchandising, selling, making change, make new friends, AND possibly learn how to negotiate and bargain.
• Your child will have extra money to spend on themselves, for a charity, or save for a rainy day.

Details:

• SIGN UP EARLY,  SHOW UP EARLY! Call us to sign-up or if you have Questions: (913) 385-1234
• Space is limited.  "Booths" will be awarded on a first-come, first-served basis on Saturday morning.
• Set-up time starts at 9am. Bring your own tables, chairs and blankets – everything you need to display and sell your items.
• All items must be clearly priced.
• All items must be in good condition and complete.
• Bring cash box with lots of small bills and change to make a sale.
• Bring water, hats, sunscreen, etc. to keep your kids and you comfortable from set-up to tear-down.
• After the flea market, any items not sold will be donated to a local children’s charity.

Note: The Learning Tree is the facilitator of the flea market and not responsible for any of the individual transactions taking place, nor the quality of the merchandise being sold.

The Learning Tree Flea Market
Corinth Square Store
4004 West 83rd St
Prairie Village KS 66208

June 27 10am to 1pm

Set-up 9am to 10am

Cost: $5 for 1 booth

Any Questions? Email Us!

Sneek Peek of Suessical at Corinth Store

Our Corinth store customers were treated to a preview of Suessical The Musical by the students of Cure’ Of Ars School last Saturday.

The school is presenting the musical at their school on Mission Road this Wednesday and Thursday.

Everyone at our store enjoyed songs and performances by the kids. After the preview, Horton read Horton Hears A Who to our little store patrons. The Cat In The Hat even took time to pose with his book.

Thanks to the kids and their director for performing for us at Corinth. They did a great job!

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