Have you ever made homemade caramel? I have and believe me, it's fun but it can also cause a mess. I usually make caramel using sweetened condensed milk and keeping it in a pot of boiling water - if you use this approach - be very careful the can can explode and let's just say, it's quite a tasty mess to clean up. If you watch cooking shows, you may have seen chefs or bakers using sugar to make caramel. Another method and this is a great time in the kitchen but you need to be aware and careful. Today's activity is all about making caramel. Let me know in the comments if you have ever tried this or if you think you might try after today. You can view the full activity, with variations by age in the Curious Kitchen Classroom or click #From Sugar to Caramel to go straight to the activity. Did you know, clicking the checkmark in the upper right corner will mark the activity complete, if you are someone who likes to track what you've created. Did you know, sugar can change in surprising ways. With a little heat and careful watching, plain white sugar transforms into a rich golden caramel with a whole new color, smell, and flavor. Gather Your Gear: - 1 cup (200 g ) table sugar - 1/4 cup (60 mL) water - Small saucepan with a light-colored bottom (if possible) - Wooden spoon or heat-resistant silicone spatula - Measuring cup - Heat-safe plate or parchment paper - Apple slices, pretzels, or other foods for dipping (optional) - My Science Notebook (optional) Be sure to wash your hands thoroughly before handling food. Adult help is required. Melted sugar becomes extremely hot and can cause serious burns. Steps: 1. Pour the sugar and water into the saucepan. Stir gently until all of the sugar is wet. 2. Ask an adult to heat the mixture over medium heat. Watch carefully as the bubbles become larger and the syrup begins to change color. 3. When the syrup turns a light golden color, remove the pan from the heat immediately. Caramel continues to darken after it is removed. 4. Carefully pour a small amount onto a heat-safe plate or parchment paper. Let it cool completely. 5. Observe the cooled caramel. Look at its color, smell, texture, and how it feels when you gently break it into pieces. 6. If you made enough caramel, dip apple slices or pretzels into it and allow the coating to cool before tasting.

Welcome to Connected Through Play! We're so glad you're here! This community just got a whole lot brighter with all of you joining us. I've been a bit remiss in welcoming our new members and wow wait until you see who has joined us. Pull up a chair, explore the classrooms and Play Prompts and ideas and let us know how we can help you have more play in your day. @Jasmine Foster is searching for fresh ideas to keep her curious 15-month-old engaged and exploring the world around them. @Isabell Hie has an 18-month-old daughter she's excited to nurture as fully as she can. @Andrea Nichol is a primary teacher and mum of three looking for creative ways to connect with her neurospicy kids. @Erika Clough is navigating a high-conflict divorce and wants to open a line of connection with her 5-year-old daughter, especially through crafts. @Ágnes Molnár has a 3.5-year-old boy and a 2-month-old girl and is excited to dive into play with both of them. @Sophie Oborne is a mum of three (ages 6, 3, and 5 months) working to help her older two play better together, check out her Skool community Wonderers Club. @Bianca Evans has five children with a 2-year-old at home and knows how critical these early years are. @Kenney Purchase is here for his nephew and his own inner child, see his Skool community Imagination Station. @Andrea Neel has a beautiful niece and is always looking for ideas to challenge her mind. @Samantha Davenport has kids aged 14 and 8 and wants to encourage more play at home. @Michelle Lightly has a 5-year-old daughter and is looking for creative, nature-based ways to play with less screen time — @Samantha Davenport, @Michelle Lightly, and @Sarah Cooper (who's working to reduce her 10-year-old son's screen time after dealing with chronic health issues) could all share strategies on reclaiming play from devices. @Sarah Cooper runs The Essential Oil Circle — definitely worth checking out.

@Celia Kibler is an international speaker, family empowerment coach, parenting expert, and Mom's Choice Award® and International Impact Book Award for Parenting winning author. A pioneer in children's health and wellness, she co-founded Funfit® Family Fitness in 1987, inspiring children and families through play-based classes, camps, and parties for nearly four decades. She is also the Founder of BeABetterParent.com, the Be A Better Parent LAB Skool community, and the Day of Calm Foundation. A mother of five and grandmother of nine, Celia is passionate about creating childhoods children blossom from, not recover from. Through practical, science-backed strategies and the power of play, she empowers parents to raise calm, confident, connected children. Join the Be A Better Parent LAB at https://www.skool.com/beabetterparent. Celia is one of our speakers at the upcoming Unplug & Play Summit August 16 - 22. Watch the calendar starting August 1 for dates and times of all sessions.

More information coming your way on the Unplug & Play Summit August 16 - 22. My goal over the next few weeks is to introduce our speakers so you can ask them questions and get to know them before the summit. I'd like to take a moment to introduce my friend and Discovery Toys mentor, @Betty Jo Winters she'll be sharing a presentation on how to pick the perfect toy. Here's a bit more about her. Betty Jo brings a rare combination of lived wisdom and professional expertise to the stage. Holding a BA and Ms.Ed, she spent over twenty years as a classroom teacher across every age group from Adult Ed to first grade with 4th grade holding a special place in her heart. But her most treasured "career" has been the one she's held even longer: wife to her husband for over 54 years, and mother to 5 children who have given her 14 grandchildren to love and learn alongside. Today, Betty Jo channels decades of educational insight into her work as a Discovery Toys Play Advisor and Team Leader, a role that lets her do what she loves most, help children and families rediscover the power of hands-on play. She's passionate about the ways unplugged, imaginative play builds critical thinking, creativity, resilience, communication, and deep bonds between children and the parents and grandparents who play alongside them. It's a mission she lives out daily, whether she's on the floor with her own grandchildren or coaching families through the Discovery Toys community she loves. Betty Jo believes that when families play together, they don't just have fun in the moment, they build cherished memories that become lifelong anchors, grounding children with a balanced outlook as they grow into adulthood. Drawing on her rich life experience, from teaching thousands of students, to raising five children, to traveling the world with her husband, Betty Jo offers a warm, grounded perspective on why unplugging to play together matters more than ever.

The lineup for the Unplug & Play Summit keeps getting better as we finalize our speakers. Today, I’d like to introduce you to one of our long-time community members @Brenda Chilstrom if her introduction resonates or if you have questions don’t hesitate to leave a comment below. I come from a family of educators, so I was always drawn to being with children and interested in how they learn and develop. I also loved both science and art, and when I discovered occupational therapy, it felt like the perfect combination of the two. It gave me a way to understand the science of child development, the nervous system, sensory processing, and movement, while still using creativity, play, and connection. Over the years, I’ve worked with young children and families in many different environments, and one thing has always been true: when we slow down, become curious, and really engage with children through play, we begin to see what is happening beneath the surface. We get to see more of the true child—not just the behavior or the struggle—and the child feels seen, safe, and understood. That is a big part of what led me to create Raising Curious Eaters. Even though the name focuses on eating, the community is not only for families of children with feeding difficulties. So many feeding challenges are connected to sensory processing, emotional regulation, anxiety, rigidity, body awareness, and a child’s sense of safety. The community is really about helping parents make sense of those connections and move away from pressure and power struggles toward more curiosity, confidence, and connection. That also ties closely into my session, The Missing Piece of Emotional Regulation, because regulation is not simply about teaching children to calm down or manage their behavior. It develops through connection, co-regulation, and feeling understood by the adults around them.