Building Castles
Episode # 157. Bucket & Spade
In a long, rectangle-shaped box, the children give the Storypeople a bucket and spade. Sister starts shoveling with the spade but it goes slowly, so the children provide a larger spade. Brother shovels with that spade, but it still isn't big enough. Finally, a very large spade and the bucket help Brother and Sister build a very fine sand castle. To top it off, the children provide a very big flag. It is too big for the sandcastle, so the children make the sandcastle bigger - big enough for Sister and Brother to go inside and play.

Directions
Next trip to the beach or the sandbox, take along a variety of plastic containers and buckets and a couple of shovels. Together with your child, build a sand castle. Show your child what kinds of shape each container creates when filled with sand and flipped over. Adding a bit of water to the sand will help it hold its shape.

If you aren't near any sand, you can build a castle in your home or yard by helping children stack boxes to create a building. You can show them how to tape or glue the boxes together to create a structure that won't easily topple over.

When the castle is finished, invite your child to invent stories about the people and creatures that live in the castle.

Talk About It
While viewing the Bucket & Spade episode, you might start a conversation by asking your child: "What should Grandpappa do to start the machine?" or "If you were Grandpappa, how would you stop the machine?"

As you talk about the things on screen, you can help expand your child's vocabulary by alternating the words you use with their synonyms. In the Bucket & Spade episode you might call the gifts a bucket and spade or a pail and shovel.