Marshmallow Rice Crispy Treats (Acts of Kindness)

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Welcome today, to a joint post from Rosemond and myself. Rosemond loves books and stories.. and shares a wonderful story book with us – Somebody Loves You Mr Hatch – a story about how you can change someone’s life, by a very simple act of kindness and thoughtfulness. We share a couple of ideas and activities to go with this book.

  • Italics by Red Ted Art
  • Non Italics by Rosemond

Marshmallow Rice Crispies

Hi, y’all!!  I’m Rosemond Cates and I’m absolutely thrilled to join Red Ted Art in its 31 Days of Love series!  I must say, I’m a bit intimidated by all of these amazingly crafty bloggers sharing in this series!  when I’m not busy wrangling my hubby and 3 children, I write over at Big Hair and Books. I have the absolute pleasure of reading and discussing the best in kid’s literature.  I would love for you to join me sometime!

someone loves you mr hatchYou might not know it, but Valentine’s Day is also International Book Giving Day!  And what better way to show your love than by sitting down with a little one and reading a great book?!  I have so many favorite Valentine books, but Somebody Loves You, Mr. Hatch (affiliate link) will always hold a special place in my heart!  So I dedicated a day to reading it with my babies and coming up with fun activities from the book! If you’ve never read it, the book is about the power of one small kindness bringing a man to life.  I highly recommend it for kids and grown-ups alike!

Mr. Hatch is a sad man with no friends.  He eats cheese and mustard sandwiches every day.  (So we tried them out, too!  The celebratory brownies were met with much more appreciation…).

His only other stops are at the news stand for a paper and at the grocery store for a turkey wing.

someone loves you mr hatch book & activity

Mr Hatch is a man who never smiles. He wears serious, boring clothes. One day, he comes home to find a parcel waiting for him – a great big heart shaped box of chocolates…. he is puzzled… but then he starts laughing and smiling as he realises that SOMEONE LOVES him. From that moment on… all things change. 

Marshmallow Rice Crispy Treats

This is a story about how making a small unexpected gift, can make a HUGE change in someone’s life and have a knock on effect.  We decided it would be a fun opportunity to make some simple treats and bring them to a friend (maybe even leave them with a secret note? Let them puzzle and feel loved?!). A treat my kids LOVE making and is super easy to do – are Marshmallow Rice Crispy Treats. Mmmmh.

Marshmallow Rice Crispy Treats – Ingredients

Marshmallow Rice Crispy Treats - ingredients

  • 100g of chocolate
  • 125g of mini marshmallows
  • 4 cups of rice crispies
  • 100g of darker chocolate as covering

Makes half a tray full

 Marshmallow Rice Crispy Treats – Method

1) Melt your first bar of lighter chocolate in a glass bowl over hot water (you can microwave it too, but personally, we ALWAYS end up burning it that way).

2) Throw in your marshmallows and let them melt a little.

rice crispy treats with marshmallows

3) Add your rice crispies and give it a good stir until they are all covered. You can add more if need be. (*cough*, yes, I cheated a bit, this is a photo from our choc Easter nests…. we were so busy making, I forgot!! Ooops).

4) Press into a tray – make them firm and close together.

5) Melt the darker chocolate and pour over the top – smooth with a knife. 

Marshmallow Rice Crispy Treats - acts of kindness this valentine's Day

6) Let cool in the fridge and then cut with a sharp knife. Pack in a little box and give to a loved friend or someone in need of cheering up!

Marshmallow Rice Crispy Treats - acts of kindness

Remind the kids WHO these are for!!!

We combined Mr. Hatch’s two stops and painted turkey legs on our newspaper (because frankly they looked cuter than my attempts at turkey wings!)  For the boys, I drew the outline and let them paint…but my big girl wanted to freehand hers.

Anytime we paint, we have fun!  My boys are learning about mixing colors and figuring out what combinations make what color.  Learning and having fun is the name of the game, am I right?!

someone loves you mr hatch activity

When we finished painting, we started thinking of acts of kindness to show others how much we love them.  I have to say the 4 year old answers were pretty cute!  I love this little book (and craft) because it is both fun for kids and makes them think about others and how the smallest kindness can make someone’s day!

What other great Valentine books have your read with your kids?

Read more from Rosemond’s blog here:

10 Cootie Free Valentine’s Day Books

50 Movies based on Children

Blue Bonnet Book Club