Wiggle eyes and popsicle sticks as a reading treat
Author: Tanja Damhof
Webshop owner and mother
In order not to only indulge in sweets and candy, we always include a treat 'from my shop'.
After much deliberation, our trio of 7-year-olds chose the googly eyes.
My first plan is: we make a small bag for each child, with a few googly eyes in it.
But yes, that is also a bit boring and it would also look a bit strange, perhaps, as a treat.
I should actually come up with something fun to do with it!
So brainstorm, brainstorm, kids to bed and me behind the computer.
In the meantime I have an idea: I am going to print a model of a dice on paper and then add 21 eyes. (Or a few more, for safety).
The children can then do the cutting, folding and pasting themselves.
Isn't it funny, a dice with googly eyes?
I quickly found a free, exactly right print sample on the internet.
So I enthusiastically dive into the craft cupboard, but alas: no thick printing paper to be found... A round of phone calls to friends at 9 p.m. yields nothing; no one has 30 sheets of colored, sturdy craft paper for me...
The computer is still warm, so I'll sit down again. Pinterest has to fix it.
I had saved some things with googly eyes over time, spread across my gallery. Under the heading 'crafts for children' I find some, but also under 'pipe cleaners' and 'fine motor skills'. That could be more convenient, so I quickly create a new board, with the title: 'wobbly eyes, wackelaugen, googly eyes'.
pinterest: googly eyes-googly-eyes-wackelaugen
I should have realized that earlier, that those crazy eyes are called 'googly eyes' in English! That makes searching a lot easier! In no time I have 50 pins on my new board and I also know what the treat is going to be: 'googly eyes read alongs'!
Popsicle stick figures with googly eyes. You can use them to play small theatre pieces, but they can also be used as a funny reading guide! To literally keep your eyes on the words.
The idea to put the dolls in a box comes from the triplets' big sister. (Who then discovers that it is also great fun to jump around with the box in your hands: the eyes then all wobble and make a funny sound.)
I personally find it a cheerful, meaningful, funny treat, which is also very cheap and easy to make - so a complete success. Fortunately, the birthday children think so too the next morning, and proudly go to school with the box of smiley faces. 
