* Harvey Potter is a farmer who doesn't grow tomatoes, beans and okra like
normal farmers.  Harvey Potter grows balloons.....in a magical kind of
way!!!!!!  The story is told from a little girl's point of view.  She learns
all about how Harvey Potter grows his balloons and uses her own balloon
farming methods as she grows older.  My kids love it!!!  As a matter of fact,
whenever a child wears overalls to school, we comment that they look just
like Harvey Potter!!  What fun!!  
Harvey Potter's Balloon Farm is written by Jerdine Nolen
ISBN 0688078877
I got the book (and audio tape) from a Scholastic book club.  The story,
taking place in the summer of 1959,  is told by a woman about when she was a
young girl and had a neighbor Harvey Potter who grew  balloons on a
farm-"there were real actual balloons growing out of the plain ole ground!".
  A grouchy neighbor calls the government about the odd situation and men
show up with white hats, coats, and gloves to investigate; Harvey Potter gets
government approval to grow his balloons.  The girl who tells the story spies
on Harvey Potter at night to find out how he grows the balloons (it involves
a dance with a conjure stick). Later, Potter grows the girl an enormous
balloon which she rides like a hot air balloon to explore the world.  In the
end, she is shown as a grown woman farming her own balloons.


* 
Balloon activities
Jet balloons
While blowing up balloons, let a few of them go
before tying them closed and watch them fly
around the room.  Have the children try to guess
why this happens.  What makes the balloons go? 
How far will they go before they stop?  How can
you make them go again?

Magic balloons
Blow up several balloons.  Let the children rub
the balloons on their clothes or their hair and
place them on a wall.  Have the children try
guessing what causes the balloons to stay up (static
electricity).

Singing balloon
blow up a balloon and demonstrate how it "sings"
by stretching the opening as you let out the air. 
Ask the children to tell you whether the air is
coming out quickly or slowly.  Experiment with
different rates of escaping air.  Let the children
feel the air escaping by placing their hands over
the balloon opening.

Balloon Lotto
Make a balloon lotto game by dividing a piece of
heavy white paper into six sections and drawing a
different colored balloon in each square.  cut
matching c0l0red squares out of construction
paper.  To play the game, have the children take
turns placing the construction paper squares on
top of the matching colored balloons.

Balloon fish
Partially blow up ten small balloons.  Place them
in a dishpan full of water.  Set the pan on the
floor and let the children take turns fishing for
balloon fish with a wire food strainer.  Help each
child count his or her catch before putting the fish
back in the pan.

Balloon Art
Finger print balloons
Glue Five bottle caps (open ends up) in a semicircle
n a piece of heavy cardboard and fill each cap with
a different color of tempera paint.  Have each child
in turn dip all five fingers of one hand into the
paint in the bottle caps and then press them on a
sheet of white construction paper to make prints. 
When the paint has dried, let the children drew
line down from their fingerprints, turning them
into balloons with strings.

Printing with balloons
Pour three or four different colors of tempera
paint into separate aluminum pie tins.  Partially blow
up a small balloon that matches each paint color. 
Then have the children dip the balloons into the
matching colored paints and press them on sheets
of white construction paper to create balloon
prints.

Balloon Puppets
For each child blow up a balloon until it is about
the size of a large cantaloupe.  Tie several strands
of curled ribbon around the knot to represent
hair and attach a loop of ribbon large enough to
slip over the child's hand.  Then let the children
make faces on their balloons by sticking on
gummed reinforcement circles.  When they have
finished, let them wear their balloon puppets on
their wrists.

Balloon Large Motor activities
Balloon Jump
Blow up balloons and tie them with long strings. 
Then hang the balloons from the ceiling at a
height that will tempt the children to stretch, jump
and bat the balloons around.

Popping balloons
Let the children help you pretend to blow up
balloons and fill the room with them.  Then have
them pretend to tape sharp pins on their knees
and elbows so that they can "pop" the balloons. 
Encourage them to reach their knees and elbows
way up high and way down low until all of the
balloons have popped.

Balloon in the air
Stand in a group with the children and tap up a
balloon.  (Use two or three balloons for a large
group.)  Have the child closest to where the
balloon starts to come down tap it up again with his
or her hand.  The object of the game is to see
how long the group can keep the balloon in the
air.

Creative Movement fun
Let the children watch you blow up a balloon and
then slowly deflate it.  Have them pretend that
they are limp balloons, expanding as they breathe
air in and whistling as they let air out.  Let the
children spin and dash around like balloons that
have been inflated and released.  Or let them
pretend to be inflated balloons floating lazily
about the room while gently bumping into things.

Balloons songs and fingerplays
Bounce the balloons
( Sung to: "The mulberry bush")

This is the way we 
bounce the balloons
bounce the balloons, 
bounce the balloons.
This is the way we 
bounce the balloons
Gently in the air.

Balloon song
(Sung to:  "Ten Little Indians)
One little, two little, 
three little balloons,
four little, five little, 
six little balloons.
Seven little, eight little 
nine little balloons, 
floating up so high.

Red balloons
(Sung to: "Frere Jacques")

Red balloons, 
red balloons,
Floating up, Floating up.
Never let them touch the ground,
Never let them touch the ground.
Keep them up.
Keep them up.

(Repeat, letting the children suggest other balloon colors)

Balloon Treats

Write each child's name on a balloon and tie it to
the back of his or her chair before snacktime.  For
balloon snacks, serve such foods as round
crackers, carrot slices, banana slices, orange
slices, egg slices or cucumber slices.



* Balloons  tune:  "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star"

Flying high, pretty big balloon,
Big balloon, please come back soon.
Up above the house and trees,
Take me with you if you please.
Flying high, pretty big balloon,
Big balloon, please come back soon.


*  Put a balloon on a chair and let the children take turns trying to
break it by sitting on it.

*  Toss a balloon in the air and have the children try to keep it from
falling to the floor.


* 
This week at Playgroup we had a great morning using the theme of 
"Balloons".

We did balloon prints: This was done by having partially inflated balloons 
and dipping them in a thick paint then printing with them on paper.

Bubble prints: We filled small containers with bubble solution coloured 
with food colouring. The children each had their own straw and blew bubbles 
in the container. Then a piece of paper was put on top to make a print . 
This was done a few times on the paper.

Balloon People: This was done by an adult blowing up a balloon and the 
child drawing on it and using collage materials and glue to make the 
balloon into a person.

We blew bubbles with little bubble blowers and also used bubble wands.

We had a story about a balloon.

We had easel painting on balloon shaped paper.

We had colouring in of different types of balloon pictures.

The last thing we had out for the children was a set of balloon puzzles for 
the children to do.


* 
•Balloon Spiders 
Materials
•2 round black balloons •Black construction paper •Clear tape •Black 
String or yarn •Large white sticky labels •Scissors, markers, stickers, 
hole reinforcements 

Instructions
Blow up both balloons. One should be larger for the body. Tie off with 
string, and attach two balloons together at tied ends.
Cut 8 strips of construction paper for legs. Fold in accordion style if 
you wish. Tape to body of spider at sides. Once taped to balloon do not 
remove, this may pop the balloon.
Using labels, stickers, scissors and markers make eyes for your spider 
and affix to head. Decorate your spiders back with any stickers you 
choose.
You may tie a long piece of string at the body/head joint for hanging 
your spider or having him walk with you.