WELCOME TO YOUR KIDS NIGHT IN BOX Warmest Greetings, We hope you are enjoying your summer! We are so glad you are using this Kids Night In Box to spend some meaningful time with your little one(s). Thank you for trusting us to plan this time for you; we love helping loved ones build memories with one another. We have some fun, engaging and educational activities planned! There is something magical about this time of year with little one(s). We can’t wait for you to share your experiences with us! As we continue to grow, we appreciate you sharing our boxes on social media, which not only helps us spread the word but also allows us to see them come to life. So, thank you! We are hosting a contest this month, and one lucky subscriber will win a kids picnic folding table and bench with umbrella for their little one(s)! To enter the contest, post a picture with your Kids Night In Box visible and upload it to either Facebook and/or Instagram using hashtags #KidsNightInBox and #KNIStarsAndStripes. Lastly, if you and your little one(s) received this box as a gift, then we would love for you to continue this journey with us! To become a subscriber, visit us at www.KidsNightInBox.com. You will find various subscription plans to choose from. If you have any comments or suggestions, then please feel free to message us on Facebook or email us at customerservice@nightinboxes.com. We value any and all feedback! Enjoy your adventure,
Megan Pruitt Founder of Kids Night In Box
Stars and Stripes Adventure P IS FOR POPSICLE Prepare your delicious, patriotic popsicles. L IS FOR LIBERTY Explore history together while reading L is for Liberty by Wendy Lewison. C IS FOR CRAFTING Draw Lady Liberty and color your own baseball cap. A IS FOR APPRECIATION Show your appreciation for our armed forces. G IS FOR GET UP & GO Get moving with some brilliant balloon games. S IS FOR SCAVENGER HUNT Go on a scavenger hunt and see how many items you can locate from the list. K IS FOR KEEPSAKE Make a keepsake necklace as a symbol of your patriotism. M IS FOR MEMORY Play a memory card game while learning facts about Lady Liberty. B IS FOR BEYOND THE BOX We want to provide you with items that go beyond your box experience. W IS FOR WAYS TO CONTINUE Keep your little one(s) engaged and interested in patriotism even after you have completed your Kids Night In Box activities.
Remember to visit kidsnightinbox.com/StarsAndStripes to listen to your custom-made playlist! Visit us at kidsnightinbox.com/blog to find theme-related activities each month!
Grab your recipe card! Each month we include custom recipes provided by Marina from Marina Makes (marinamakesblog.com). We hope that you’ll be able to use this recipe card in the future! MEET MARINA Hi, friends! I’m Marina from Marina Makes (marinamakesblog.com). Growing up, we focused on celebrating the Fourth of July the day of, but as I’ve grown older, I think we have reason to celebrate all month long. This month’s menu was put together to help you celebrate the best parts of July-Independence Day, summer fruit and refreshing flavors. I hope you have fun creating a patriotic design on your watermelon pizza! As always, I encourage you to involve your little one(s) in the process of cooking, whether you have them cut fruit, assemble the watermelon pizza or just taste test. The directions section includes specific ways that your little one(s) can help out. I hope you have fun cooking together! I’d love to see how your food turns out, so please feel free to share pictures on social media. Don’t forget to use the hashtag #marinamakeseats. Happy eating!
P is for Popsicle Prepare your delicious, patriotic popsicles. Find your included Zipzicle® pouches and Kool-Aid® packets. Follow the instructions on the back of your Kool-Aid® packets to create your popsicle mixture. Then, pour the red mixture into one Zipzicle® pouch and the blue mixture in the other. If you have a funnel on hand, see if your little one(s) wants to help pour the mixture into the pouches. Finally, seal the pouches and place in the freezer for about two hours.
ITEMS NEEDED: •
Zipzicle® pouches (2)
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Kool-Aid® packets (2)
L is For Liberty Expl ore his to ry to g e t h e r w h i l e r e a d i n g “L is for Lib e rty” b y W en d y L ew i so n . BOOK SUMMARY L is for Liberty is an educational children’s book that teaches us what the Statue of Liberty is and what it stands for. Discover its history and find out why it is one of America’s most-loved landmarks. Get your little one’s minds ready to learn by discussing the following questions with them before jumping into the book together: Pre-reading questions for the little ones (Pre-K to second grade): 1. Have you ever seen the green statue on the front cover of the book? What do you know about it? 2. Can you find the American flag on the front cover of the book? 3. Look at the picture on the back cover of the book. Do you know what is happening around the statue? Can you remember a time you have seen this in real life? Pre-reading questions for the older ones (third–sixth grades): 1. What do you already know about the Statue of Liberty? 2. What do you think the word “liberty” means? 3. Can you find another American symbol besides the Statue of Liberty on the front cover of the book? After reading L is for Liberty, help your little one(s) think beyond the book by asking them the following questions: Post-reading questions for the little ones (Pre-K to 2nd grade): 1. What do you think it means to have liberty or to be “free”? 2. What kind of present was the Statue of Liberty? 3. When is the United States’ birthday? What do people do to celebrate it? Post-reading questions for the older ones (3rd–6th grade): 1. Where is the Statue of Liberty located? 2. Who gave America the Statue of Liberty? 3. Why do many people want to make America their home?
C is For Crafting Draw Lady Liberty and color your own baseball cap.
ITEMS NEEDED: •
Drawing paper
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Markers
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Baseball cap
As you just read in L is For Liberty, July is the month we celebrate America’s birthday. On July 4th, 1776, America adopted the Declaration of Independence and became its own country! France gave us the Statue of Liberty as a birthday present. Today, Lady Liberty represents freedom and liberty. Now that we have brushed up on our history, let’s jump into arts and crafts! Use your included markers to color your USA baseball cap exactly how you want it! Once you are all done with your cap, you can head over to kidsnightinbox.com/ StarsAndStripes to watch an instructional step-by-step video on how to make your Lady Liberty masterpiece!
A is For Appreciation Show your appreciation for our armed forces. As we take the time to show thanks for the Declaration of Independence that made the United States of America a free country many years ago, we should also be thankful for our armed forces who continue to protect its freedom today. The armed forces include the Air Force, Navy, Marines, Army and Coast Guard. The men and women who make up these branches of the
ITEMS NEEDED: •
Armed forces letter template
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USA pen
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Sticker sheet
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Envelope
Thank you
ed ul for my fre I am gra tef
u
United States military risk their lives to protect America’s freedom. It is important that we take time to thank service members for all they do for us. Using your included letter template, USA pen and sticker sheet, fill out the letter and share why you are grateful for the freedom that you have been given. You can write, draw or do both. Take your time and make it meaningful! Once you are done, you can put your letter in your included envelope and mail it back to us at Night In Boxes, LLC; 1908 Richland Ave E, Aiken, SC 29801. We will make sure your letter is given to a member of the armed forces. They will be so happy to hear from you! GO ABOVE & BEYOND: If you are feeling extra thankful for your freedom, you can create a care package to send to soldiers as well! Listed below are a few items the soldiers stationed overseas can always use and would be extremely grateful to receive. Make sure the items you include are new or unused! If you create a care package, you can send it right back to us with your letter and we will send it off to a member of our armed forces for you! •
B at te ri e s
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Ch a p Sti c k
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Dis p o s a b l e ra zor s
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Su ns c re e n
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Sn a c k s /c a nd y tha t w o n’ t m e l t
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P la y i ng c a rd s
rv ic e. fo r yo ur se
se. .. do m be cau
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H yg i e ne it em s (d en t al flos s , b o d y w as h , t oot h p a s t e, d e o d o r a n t , et c .)
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Books
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S k e t ch pad s / p en s or p en c ils
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M a g a z in es
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C r o ssw ord pu zzles
M is For Movement
ITEMS NEEDED: •
Punch ball balloon
Get moving w ith s o me br i l l i a n t ba l l o o n g a m es. It’s time to have fun with some patriotic balloon games! First, blow up your balloon and tie the end in a knot. Once you are all set, jump into the games listed below! BALLOON BOUNCE: Use the rubber band connected to the balloon to bounce the balloon, using the same motion as playing with a yo-yo. Count how many times you can bounce it. Try counting by ones at first, then start over and try counting by 2s, 5s or even 10s! Test yourself to see how high you can count.
BALLOON TENNIS: Two players stand a few feet away from one another. One player throws the balloon up in the air and uses their hand to hit the balloon to the other player. The second player then hits the balloon back to the first player. Continue hitting the balloon back and forth until it falls to the ground, then start over! Challenge yourself to see how long you can keep it up. Try hitting it 13 times for the original 13 colonies; then try hitting it 50 times for the 50 states that make up the United States of America!
S is for Scavenger Hunt
ITEMS NEEDED: •
Scavenger sheet
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USA pen
G o on a s cav e ng e r hun t a n d se e h o w m a n y i t em s y ou can l ocat e from the lis t. Find your scavenger sheet and USA pen and get to hunting! We suggest taking this scavenger hunt outside, but it can be done indoors as well. Read the items on the list provided and use your USA pen to check them off once you find them! Keep trying until you find as many items as you can.
BALLOON BALANCE: Try balancing the balloon on your hand, then on three fingers, then on two fingers, and lastly on one finger! Challenge yourself and see if you can balance the balloon on your head! If there are two players, take turns trying to balance the balloon. Count how long you can keep it balanced before it falls. Have some friendly competition and see who can balance the balloon the longest! You can even take it a step further and try to walk around while balancing the balloon!
BALLOON BASEBALL: *WARNING* This game requires more space than the first three, so we suggest playing it outdoors! To set up this game, you will need to create a baseball diamond, designating spots for first, second, third, and home bases. Player one will start on the home plate, holding the balloon. The goal is to make it all the way around the diamond and back to home plate, while keeping the balloon in the air and without letting the balloon touch the ground. You may use your hands or other body parts to keep the balloon up. If the balloon touches the ground, you must go back to home plate and start over. You can time yourself to see how fast you can make it around all of the bases. You can even take turns timing each other and see who can get around the bases the fastest! Get creative and have fun!
sheet
nd? How many items can you fi SOMETH ING RED
STRIPES
SOMETH ING BLUE
AN AMERIC AN FLAG
SOMETH ING WHITE
A COIN OR BILL WITH A PRESID ENT ON IT
SOMETH ING GREEN (FOR LADY LIBERTY )
SOMETH ING HISTOR ICAL
STARS
SOMETH ING MADE IN AMERIC A
K is for Keepsake
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Necklace kit
Make a ne cklace as a r e m i n d er o f y o ur p a t r i o t is m . *WARNING: Choking hazard; this toy has small beads and is not for children under 3 years old.* A keepsake is a reminder of something important. Patriotism is a love for or devotion to one’s country. You are going to make your own USA necklace to keep as a reminder of the things America has gone through to become the country it is today. Use the beads and string that were included in your necklace kit to create your own necklace. You can decide which beads to use and the order to put them in. Make it your own so you can take pride in it!
NOTE: Although the necklace can serve as a great reminder for you, you may also choose to donate the necklace and send it back with your letter for the troops! This is an extra way to GIVE a little bit more.
While you are making your necklace, check the freezer to see if your popsicles are ready to eat!
M is for Memory Play a memory card game while learning facts about Lady Liberty.
ITEMS NEEDED: •
Lady Liberty matching game cards
Find your included Lady Liberty matching game cards and the perfect table or surface to play on and shuffle away! Spread the cards out and make sure they are face down. Take turns flipping over two cards at a time and read the facts on each card. If the two cards match, keep them and go again! If they do not match, turn them both back over in their spots and let your opponent take their turn. Try to remember what each card has on it and where it is. The game is over when all the matches have been made. The player with the most matches wins!
dy
Li
La
dy an Lib d ert 1 y
La
B is for Beyond the Box We want to provide you with items that go beyond your Kids Night In Box adventure. We included a few gifts in your Kids Night In Box that can extend beyond the activities enjoyed today! The first item is a patriotic bookmark with the U.S. presidents, states and capitals listed on it. The second gift is a music sheet with patriotic songs on it! Teach your little one(s) the lyrics by singing them to the different tunes given. Go the extra mile and create dance moves to go with each song. The final gift is an inflatable globe beach ball! This ball features a map of the world. This has been included as a reminder that even though the United States of America is a great country, it is not the only country. There are 195 countries in the world we live in, and each of them is just as important as the next! No matter where you are from, you can love your country and your culture. This may also help your little one(s) remember that everyone deserves respect, no matter where they are from. We are one world and we must stick together!
W is for Ways to Continue Keep your little one(s) engaged and interested in patriotism even after you have completed your Kids Night In Box activities. •
Check out these movies: Paul Revere: Midnight Ride, The Sandlot, and An American Tail.
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Go to your local library and check out books about your country’s history.
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Find a bed sheet and dress up as Lady Liberty! You could even create a play about her.
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Learn the words to the national anthem of your country OR other countries.
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Re-enact the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
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Visit a local historical monument or history museum.
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Learn how to fold a flag like the soldiers do.
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Interview a friend or family member who is an active military service person or a veteran.
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Hang an American flag in your front yard.
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Learn how to properly care for the American flag.
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Write a letter to the President of the United States of America.
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Remember, you can always visit our blog at www.kidsnightinbox.com/blog to find more themed activities throughout the month!
#KNIStarsAndStripes #KidsNightInBox