Repurposed art part uno

Make envelopes part one! Being a parent of a kidlet or two genrerally guarantees you an endless supply of their artwork. From school to clubs to classes to boredom busters your kidlets probably seem to always bring another piece of artwork to you. Why not repurpose it? For the next few days I will shout out a few ideas starting with one that will help share the lurve. Turn your wee one's artwork into envelopes!

What you need:
*envelope templates or plain old envelopes
*a pencil
*glue stick
*scissors
*artwork (you can use magazines and coloring book pages also)

scrumdilly-do it:

Flip your kidlet's artwork over and trace an envelope pattern onto the back.
Cut out shape, fold, glue and you're done! Easy as pie. If you have a non-perfectionist as a wee one, have him or her cut do all the work. I would recommend this for kidlets 8 and up. Younger kidlets can do this of course but it can get frustrating with all the tracing and cutting. Make a set of envelopes to give family and friends or you can fill them up with letters and send them on their way.

You can make quick notecards with supplies from around the house. An index card & stickers make a nifty notecard. Fold, decorate, write a note, stuff it in and send!



Coming up next. Make tiny treasure envelopes using a giftcard envie as a template!
Envelope templates can be found at Paper Source. You can also download templates at Mirkwood Designs.

Art through a straw!

This project is fun for kidlets 3 1/2 and up. If your kidlet can master the distinction between blowing through the straw and not drinking then younger kidlets can do this also. It's fun, slightly messy and the end result is pretty nifty!

What you need:

*drinking straws

*2 or 3 colors of paint. Acrylic, tempera, food color or liquid watercolor will work

*water

*containers (i used ice cream dishes from our local scoop shop)

*paintbrushes

*paper

scrumdilly-do it!

Set out your supplies in a mess free zone. Two or three colors of paint are best, otherwise you will end up with brown once all the colors mix. Put some paint into your containers. You can use paper cups, silicone cupcake liners, or tupperware. My nifty trick of paper liners won't work because of the water you will be adding to your paint.

Add a tablespoon or so of water to your paint, food color, etc. and mix.

Drop a dollop of paint onto the painting surface.

Position straw over, about and around the blob of paint and blow!

Have your kidlets experiment. What happens when they blow directly over the paint? What happens when they blow to the side? Softer? Harder? The more watery your paint, the more movement you will get.

Finish up and let dry. Your kidlets can add more to their painting once it dries. Adding other colors once it dries will create a layering effect and can look quite neato-cool! You can also add glitter and/or salt for more pizazz.

Brush your teeth; Paint a picture

Paint with toothbrushes!

What you need:
*paper
*acrylic or tempera paint (watercolor works also if you like)
*a pack of toothbrushes from the dollar store

scrumdilly-do it:

Gather your supplies. I used dark paper and light paint to mix it up a little.

Squirt a couple of paint colors onto a paper plate, lid or tray.

Let your wee ones dip their toothbrushes into the paint and…well…paint!


They can use the brushes as paintbrushes and smoosh away to their hearts’ content or, if they are a little bit older and more reserved you can teach them to goop up their toothbrushes so they are super saturated, and then flick the paint onto the paper. This may be best done outside with the paper placed in a paint and mess friendly place. This would be a fun activity for a small group of kidlets and a long, long ream of butcher paper, craft paper or a solid roll of gift-wrap. I picked up a six pack of toothbrushes at the dollar store! Have fun!

June is Gay Pride month

And no, I don't have an art project for you but I DO have a list of books for kidlets 12 and up regarding this sometimes sensitive subject. Each of these books is unique and telling. From fiction to personal essays, I recommend them all. As an educator it is my duty to get the word out on books of all subject matters. Whether you support the gay community or not, there are people out there struggling with their identities and usually they begin their struggle early on. Being able to read a book where the main character holds a sliver of your true self in their pocket can be liberating. At the very least, gay and lesbian teens will know they are not alone.

Click here for the list.

Click here for a list of books for diverse families.

Paint with what?

Paint with curlers! Who knew there were so many kinds of curlers out there? Not only that, they are out there at the dollar store so if you somehow threw away all those pink spongy curlers you used to roll your hair in, you can pick up a small multi-pack for a buck!

What you need:
*curlers of any style, the more the merrier
*tempera or acrylic paint
*paper
*paper plate or plastic tray or cookie sheet to squirt paint on

scrumdilly-do it:

Squirt two or more colors of paint onto your paper plate or tray. Set out curlers and let the fun begin!

Have your wee ones roll or smoosh or dab their curler into the paint.

Roll, dab or smoosh paint sodden curler across paper.

Ta-da! That's it! It is super simple and super fun. The more variety of curlers you have, the more interesting textures your wee ones will produce. Dialogue with your kidlets as they go along. Ask them questions about the curlers. What do they think will happen? What kind of marks will the curler make? The best part about this type of painting is getting a feel for how your kidlets think, how they analyze cause and effect, and just how amazing their imaginations are!

Books for Dads & Grandads

And Tango Makes Three
Written by: Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell
Illustrated by: Henry Cole
Published by: Simon & Schuster, 2005

This is a great, GREAT story for Father's Day! Based on a true experience at New Yor's Central Park Zoo when two of the male penguins formed a bond and desperately tried to nest together. One of the keepers placed an egg in their nest to see what would happen and Tango was born!

Read more here.

For more books on Father's and such:
Father's Day Books
Children's GLBT Books for Gay Pride Month

Happy Father's Day!

Dollar Store Painting...

and some gift wrap for Father's Day!

I can't really help ya on what to make for the Dads out there but I can help ya with how to wrap it all up! Have your kidlet(s) make a sheet of driven gift wrap*!

What you need:
*toy cars, the more the merrier
*brightly colored paint
*large sheet of paper, the back side of a sheet of griftwrap or paper bag
*splat mat/large work space

scrumdilly-do it:

Squirt a bunch of colors three or four is nice. Any more and you may end up with brown paint from all the mixing. Have your wee ones "drive" their car(s) through the paint.


Next, all they have to do is play cars on the paper, re-dipping as they see fit. Set aside to dry and wrap, wrap, wrap away!

Using different sized cars and different types of wheels will add an interesting pattern to the paper. Driving the cars through the paint and then onto the paper helps build small motor skills and fosters creativity. Open up the dialogue with your kidlet as she or he paints. If you use different types of cars with different wheels, see if they can match which car did which line and so on. Most of all, have fun!

*Painting with cars isn't just for dads and some dads may prefer it if ya painted with something else. Is your father a chef? Paint with a potato masher. Is he a florist? Paint with flowers and plants. Does your dad like to dance? Paint your feet and dance on the paper! The possibilities are truly endless!

Dollar Store Art Fun: Paintbrushes

You can build a creative traveling art kit for your kidlets easily from the dollar store. The best part is that you can do it for under $20! That is a nifty thing. I recommend putting together a dollar store art kit for your kidlets so that they have an opportunity to enjoy the process of creating art. You are more than encouraged to purchase professional level supplies for your kidlets of any age, especially those that exhibit a true love of art. Putting together a dollar store kit will seem new and fresh and if you change out the supplies every few days the freshness just keeps coming!

Most dollar stores will carry crayons, markers, colored pencils and paintbrushes. They should also have construction paper, glue, tape, scissors and glue sticks.

Kidlets can go through a lot of brushes and a multi-pack is perfect for all their creative ideas!

As an alternative to brushes, you can pick up a multitude of household instruments that are great at moonlighting as art supplies. A large pack of sponges can be found at most any dollar store. Kidlets can paint with them as is or you can cut out different shapes and they can use them as stamps. You can also go wild with the scissors and chop up a few into little itty bits and those pieces would be great for collage work!

Other alternative brushes are toothbrushes, toy cars and trucks, hair combs, curlers and funky household cleaning implements.



These are just a few ideas and I am sure there are many, many more! Set aside a couple of bucks for your next dollar store trip and see what you can put together! I would love to hear about what you think and do....drop me a google line at scrumdillydo.

More dollar store art tomorow!

Apologies

Due to technical diffiuclties I have not been able to upload since the weekend. Stay tuned for some scrumdilly-do fun soon!

scrumdilly-doers!

Thank you to Dani, Mommy extraordinaire for sending me these pics of her kidlets frosting donuts! Check it out!

The doers:
*Elliot 15 months
*Ashley 11
*Jereb 9 years

The last of the donut hurrahs...

More crafty less foodie coming soon, I promise!

It's the classic donut party game! Throwing a party and not sure what to do? Have a room full of active kidelts and about to lose your marbles? Is it super hot out and you have some stale donuts on hand? Why not tie them up?

What you need:
*donuts
*string
*scissors to cut string
*a place to hang your dinuts, a tree would be nifty
*blindfold (for older kidlets)
*a camera...pictures are a must!


scrumdilly-do it!

Tie a lenght of string around each donut. The length depends on the height of your kidlets and the height of the hanging location.

Assemble all your donuts into a bowl for easier transport andtake a pciture because when else are you going to have a bowl full of string tied donuts?

Hang them up and let your kidlets at 'em! You can trun this into a piñata game by suing a blindfold and spinning your wee ones around or you can hold a contest to see who can finish one first, no hands allowed!


This is a most ridiculous activity and you may even want to to this at a late night barbecue after you've had a mojito or two...don't forget to take pictures!

Early Education Philospohy

When you take a lot of Child Development classes you have to write a lot of philosophies. After doing this for a few years, here is my final and favorite:

I believe in the child and that all children have value and integrity. All children regardless of their ethnicity, socio-economic background and physical abilities are creative individuals with a desire to learn. Children learn best through their actions and self guided exploration. As an educator I feel less a teacher, more a facilitator or person of guidance, learning more from the children than I "teach". My goal is to instill in each child a sense of harmony with the environment, healthy interactions with others and most importantly a strong sense of self. Enabling children with the above qualities will result in high self-esteem which in turn will build confident and happy children who will grow into strong confident, joyful adults.

I fully believe this and am still impressed that I wrote this. Go me! Happy tuesday everyone!

Donut Design

Let’s overdose on donuts!

For a nifty party activity or perhaps rainy day snack, have your kidlets decorate plain cake donuts picked up from a local bakery or even the evil junk food aisle of the grocery store. It’s almost like decorating cupcakes but a little more challenging!

What you need:

*cake or plain donuts
*powdered (confectioner’s) sugar
*at least 1 tablespoon of water
*food color
*spoons dull knives (plastic work well)
*cake decorations like jimmies and sprinkles
*clean work surface
*cold beverage of your choice (milk, soy milk, rice milk…etc.)


scrumdilly-do it!

Toss about a cup of powdered sugar into a bowl, have your wee one add a teaspoon or so of water and mix. (I put the water into a shot glass or other small vessel for easier manipulation.)

Next drop one single drop of food color into the mixture. This takes precision an of course your kidlet can add more but one drop will add enough color for a dozen donuts!

Mix and mix and mix and mix! Add more sugar or more water until you get the consistency you like.

Now it is time for your wee one(s) to “frost” the donuts. Depending on the consistency of the frosting, they can spread it on using knives or pour it on. You can also do this with a small group of kidlets. Give each one a snack sized sealable plastic bag. Add a tablespoon of sugar and a tiny bit of water or juice, a drop of food color and seal. The children can manipulate the baggie and watch all the color mix in. Once mixed, you can snip of a small corner of the baggie and they can squirt their frosting onto their donut (or graham cracker or cookie or cupcake).

Add sprinkles and jimmies and voila’, instant donut excitement!


Wash it all down with a cold glass of milk.

Gluten-free donuts and more

Make your own Arnie!

Or make your own anthropomorphic donut*...

So...you've read Arnie a couple dozen times and your kidlets noticed all the other nifty players in the background. Why not hold a donut making party and make your own Arnie or version of him? I'm all for creating whatever you like so bear in mind this example is by no means directions to be followed EXACTLY. I made Arnie because he makes me laugh and I have to admit this one has tickled me so much that I believe he will remain a permanent fixture in my kitchen. Now onto the Arnie making:

What you need:

*styrofoam rings from your craft store, the smaller, the better

*acrylic paint in colors of your choosing

*felt for mouth and eyes or buttons and other doodads

*sequins, beads or actual cupcakes sprinkles

*white glue and perhaps a stronger glue for the felt bits

*pipe cleaners for arms and legs

*paintbrushes or sponges

scrumdilly-do it:

 

 

Have your kidlet paint the the "top" of their shape one color.


Let dry and then paint inside and outside and back of their ring another color (this is only suggestion, let them paint it however they want!) and set aside to dry. Now is the time to dialogue with your kidlets about what kind of donut she or he is going to make. Ask questions about the look and personality of their donut. Is their donut an indoor one or outdoor one. Is he or she allergic to cats? Can their donut dance? Get their creative juices flowing, write it down if you can and they can make their own book to go along with their donut.

 

Now it is time for the facial features. Add your eyes and mouth and then decorate with sprinkles and such. I used felt and real cupcake sprinkles. Unfortunately my camera decided not to share those steps so all I have for you are the pictures for the eyes...fascinating, I know!

Next, pop pipecleaners into the sides for arms and the bottom for legs. Sorry, no pictures, and you are done! You may want to poke a hole with your pipecleaner first then squirt some glue nside then pop the pipecleaner back in. Ta-da! Your very own anthropomorphic donut!


And now it is time for a non-donut-ty snack and puppet show with the new gang!

*you can also do this using salt dough. Have your wee ones create their donuts and then bake them in the oven. Once cooled your kidlets can paint and decorate and make their donuts as flashy as they please.

Either way you do it, have fun and I would LOVE, LOVE, LOVE to see pictures of your creations! Contact me with questions, suggestions, comments and/or pictures at gmail! scrumdillydo

Happy Donut Day!

What is it with al the foodie days here in the states...yikes! In honor of Donut Day I have a few fdoguh-nutty ideas up my sleeve but for starters I will share with you a nifty fun donutty read for kidlets four and up...methinks kidlets in second and thrid grade would really enjoy this book!

Arnie the Doughnut

Written and Illustrated by: Laurie Keller

Published by: Henry Holt and Company 2003

This adorable and wickedly funny book is the story of Arnie, a freshly made doughnut, who naively believes he has been purchased to be Mr. Bing's new best friend. He only comes to the cruel realization that he is a delightful treat when he is mere inches from Mr. Bing's wide open mouth.

Arnie has a freak out and demands to use the telephone. He calls the bakery to warn the other doughnuts that they are all going to be eaten and is met with disbelief when they tell him they already know and they are actually HAPPY about it.

Arnie and Mr. Bing make an agreement. Mr. Bing will not eat him but he needs to prove useful so that Mr. Bing's money is not wasted. Both make a long list of possible uses for Arnie but soon realize that Arnie is a doughnut and only a doughnut. They bid adieu and Arnie tearfully leaves. But something makes Mr. Bing rethink his postion and he decides that perhaps, Arnie could be his friend...THE END.

The humor in this book shines through the illustrations by Ms. Keller. Little quips and sidebars add to the fun reading and kidlets can join in as they too think of ideas for what else Arnie could do. Other books by Laurie Keller can be found here.

More donutty fun:
*the history of donuts
*cool memory game*make your own clay donuts
*tiny edible donuts
*toy donut maker
*plush donuts from my paper crane
*organic vegan donuts