Your guide to activities and fun things to do with your preschoolers, toddlers and kids in kansas city, KS

Jokes for little ones to tell.

by Jenny Meade

July 28, 2009

Sometimes as adults we barely even notice if a joke is slightly "iffy" in appropriateness, we're so used to casual use of colorful words we don't even catch on. But as preschoolers get more comfortable with language and start discovering that they can amuse people with their words and jokes, they become little stalking parrots searching for something funny to say that will elicit just the right response from that audience they've found. And we find as parents we start noticing A LOT more about the joke itself, real fast.

Here's a list of good joke books for kids. You can teach them yourself, (and thus expanding their repertoire so you can tolerate the joke telling) or get a copy for your early reader and let them go to town.

• Awesome Knock Knock Jokes for kids
•  Knock, Knock, Who's There? My First Book of Knock Knock Jokes
• Kids Kookiest Riddles

Aside from books like these, take some time to introduce your little ones to riddles and silly poems, too. One of our favorites is children's poet and writer, Calef Brown, who has several books of poetry, rhymes, and silly drawings that are a hit every time. Enjoy!

Calef Brown at Amazon

Knock, knock. Who's There?

by Jenny Meade

July 27, 2009

Little ones love telling jokes to friends and family. Usually the same ones over, and over, and over, and OVER...

The favorite around our house for years was this one:

Knock, knock!

Who's There?

Banana.

Banana Who?

Knock, knock!

Who's There?

Banana.

Banana Who?

Knock, knock!

Who's There?

Orange Who?

Orange you glad I didn't say banana?

Cue fits of giggles, and mama tightening her grip on the steering wheel, pretending to giggle along after hearing that one for the umpteenth time.

Seriously, once a child learns the awesome joy that is holding an audience captive and then making them laugh hysterically, whether its at the cuteness of the joke-teller or the joke itself no longer matters. You might as well help your child polish up his repertoire of jokes to kill with.  It will help you tolerate them more in the long run, too!

Dressing Up Is Never Boring

by Rita Arens

September 17, 2008

As you're getting ready to put away the summer wardrobe, why not let the kids have at it with all your faded, torn, stained or generally disgusting clothes? It's dress-up time, baby! Break out the Bedazzler and do up your old 5k t-shirts and out-of-style shorts, then stage a fashion show on the patio. My daughter loves to play dress up with my shoes and '80s gold jewelry. If you've got  Read more...

Your Preschool Reality Television Star

by Rita Arens

August 06, 2008

Hot? Check. Bored? Check. Sunburned? Check. Time for a new game. When you're in preschooler, anything out of context is fun. Actually, now that I think about it, this works for adults, too. Which is why beer in the office is so awesome, if you can ever achieve it, even though it just makes you cranky and tired an hour later. But I digress. So if you're seriously out of energy and  Read more...

Games to Play at Worlds of Fun

by Rita Arens

July 25, 2008

We took my four-year-old daughter to Worlds of Fun for the first time earlier this summer. We did the twilight pass, and because she's less than 48 inches tall, she got in free. The twilight pass costs about half of the normal pass, and we found it to be perfect because a) not as hot after 4 p.m., b) a lot of people were leaving just as we were arriving and c) we could only handle about four  Read more...

Sprinklers, Hydrants, and Other Non-Pool Wet Things

by Rita Arens

July 09, 2008

When I was a kid growing up in Iowa, we didn't always get to the swimming pool. Sometimes the car was dead, and sometimes I think my mom was just too lazy. Those were the days she would hook up the Willy Waterbug or the Wet Banana and we'd go crazy all over the back lawn. Nothing like having those little pieces of grass stuck between your toes to signify summer. Even though we now have a  Read more...