9 butterfly centers for home or classroom

Happy Spring! We're about to read The Very Hungry Caterpillar in our classroom so I was reviewing what we did last year as I worked on next week's lesson plan. I was super happy with what we did last year so thought I would give all y'all a reminder in case you need a little inspiration! Happy planing!

*beaded caterpillars: you can set this up photos of caterpillars, beads, and pipecleaners or you can challenge your kiddos to create a caterpillar pattern!

*butterfly memory/matching game: i just finished making a pretty butterfly matching game but last year we used this one which came from a helpful blogger. you can make your own game or find one online like this or this.

*dot marker butterflies: this set-up can be enjoyed any number of ways depending on where your kiddo is developmentally. dot markers are a plus but you can use paint and sponges, crayons, or watercolors.

*butterfly magnet play: i made this last year and have no in progress photos for a diy post. i purchased butterfly stickers from Michael's, i think they came from the Martha Stewart line, and added magnet tape to the back. I then painted up some green paper a la Eric Carle and adhered it to a metal pizza pan for a happy little bit of magnet play.

*stacked wooden caterpillars: i blogged about this one last year and the children had a lot of fun making their own caterpillars. they were quite proud.

*magnetic chalkboard butterfly: another favorite from last year. maybe this year we will utilize the felt backs or maybe I'll find some neon chalk!

*The Very Hungry Caterpillar button snake: I did not make this but there are a few diys out there like this or you can find one on etsy like this.

*bubble wrap butterflies: this project works best on a wall or easel and can be used many times over before discarding. wipe down the painty goodness with a sponge or damp cloth and the next kiddo is good to go!

*chalkboard butterfly: i did not make this at all but lucked out when i found it last year at Michael's. i'm not sure if they have them this year or not. check out your local craft store or amazon (this one might work).

mini fourth of july round-up!

*patriotic french sodas

*napkin medallions

*spin art egg carton fun

*popcorn bag garland

*pom pom wreath

*sharpie tie-dye flags

*cupcake liner garland

Going on a Bear Hunt: 8 fun activities

There should have been 9 up there but I totally missed our scissors work project. But here ya go, 8 fun activities to go along with We're Going on a Bear Hunt.

1. Hands on story retelling using found photos, a cookie sheet, and a plastic toy bear. The children loved this and it is a great tool for sequencing and memorization.

2. Landscapes using paint and other elements.

3. Painting with natural elements.

4. We're Going on a Bear Hunt Discovery Bottles. Great for retelling the story, sequencing, and investigation.

5. Natural Elements for the play dough fun and for painting on.

6. Classroom Bear Hunt. Set up areas for the grass, river, mud, etc. We taped streamers to the sides of our train table and used colored carpet squares along with tactile sensory bins. Our cave was our playhouse covered in blankets with a large stuffed bear inside. During our walks to and from the playground we would recite the sounds for each element and use our bodies to act out the parts. Fun!

7. Nature walk bracelets. We did not go on a bear hunt as some of the children voiced concern over finding a real bear (we do have bears in our community) so we went on a nature walk looking for tall grass, forest sticks, mud, and flowers instead.Then we ran like silly all around the play field looking for dandelions and chasing grasshoppers.

8. Painting and washing rocks because water play is a favorite thing with many three year olds.

oh the fun that we had: our dr. seuss week

We crammed a lot into our week of Seuss. It was all Seuss all the time and I'm just about pooped remembering it all. More thorough posts to follow but here is a snapshot:

 

 

 

Eraser matching in blue sand. I found the erasers at Target in the dollar spot and the sand came from Michael's. This was a lesson in conservation. I write that a bit wryly as this fine colored sand had the tendency to stick top to things and one of the children really liked pouring it onto the floor. I decided to add restrictions to how this was played with which was a first for the children. They are used to full body exploration and with this there were limits. It was a learning curve that opened up a discussion on how some things need to be played with differently.

 

 

The sock sort was a lot of fun. The children counted and sorted the socks all on their own. They would pile up the blue socks or the orange socks. They would hide socks from each other and ask Who has this sock? in a game they made up. I purchased three packs of three socks from the dollar store for a total of $3. Perfect and we can bring it out again next year. I may add a timer to the fun as well, or a bell.

 

 

 

 

 

I printed out these sock coloring sheets thinking I would send them home with the children to extend their Dr. Seuss week. Instead, I covered two sheets in contact paper and set them out as play dough mats. One youngster surprised me by spending a good thirty minutes press, rolling, and shaping the dough into a Seuss-shaped sock. There were beads and textured rollers set out as well.

 

 For one of our math projects we went on a star hunt. I used post-it note stars found on sale at an office supply store and stuck them all over the room. Masking tape was used to create our graph into two sections. One for orange stars and one for yellow stars. The children hunted and sorted then practiced their one-to-one correspondence as they counted the stars. The next class day the children found that the star were hiding again and off they went to search, graph, and count on their own. The quantity of stars was different and they were excited to tell me all about it.

dr. seuss fun

We're in the throes of our week of Seuss and I wanted to share with you what we are doing. The children are having a blast and I am loving most every moment of it! There will be even more later in the week but here is what I set up the classroom with so far.

*cotton ball art for truffula trees via In Lieu of Preschool (the lorax)
*straw cutting 
*pool noodle sculptures (this was one of those would this work ideas that I am quite pleased with)
*felt egg sorting; which I thought of forever ago but then discovered it all lover the place. I like Pink and Green Mama's post (green eggs and ham)
*Seuss eraser matching & sorting in blue sand (found the erasers at Target $1 spot and sand came from Michael's)
*Cat in the Hat Memory Game (found ours at Target this year)
*cork and button building via No Time For Flashcards
*crazy play dough fun
*magnetic fishing (one fish, two fish)
*sock sorting (fox in socks)
*cup stacking via Mom on Time Out (cat hats minus their stripes)
*the cotton ball set up
*star hunting and graphing using star shaped post-it notes (sneetches)

from the archives: july 4th round-up

 

*newspaper pom-poms

*repurposed art mobile

*spin art fireworks

*fireworks bunting

*fireworks painting

 

from the archives: mother's day

Here are seven fun and easy projects for your kiddos to make for Mother's Day!

*wallet-sized watercolors

*woven pendants

*thumbprint brooch

*beaded garden bling

*yarn wrapped planter

*gluten-free clay pendant

*washi taped vases

monday round up

*For the grown-ups: Importance of Old Fashioned Play

*A favorite post: Atelierista: language of string..

*Read: The Dark (not as spooky as you might think)

*Make: gorgeous circle art for kids

*Create: love stones for Mother's Day

twelve upcycled projects in observation of earth day!

yarn wrapped bottles

yarn wrapped nature

cookie box camera 

painted newspaper 

gardens to go

newspaper pom-poms

paper tube kazoos 

junk mail garland

recycled wall hanging

plant pumpkins

strawberry basket pin

juice box jukebox

monday's round up

Happy April! Did you know that April is often celebrated as Poetry Month? In honor of it being April and all, this week's round-up is all things poetry. 

*fun poetry for children pinterest board

*games, printables, and downloads from the books of Shel Silverstein

*scrumdilly poetry from the archives

*a sweet video for I Haiku You

*a sweet little book to go with the video

five hanukkah projects for you

from the scrumdilly-do! archives.

*clothespin menorah

*diy gift bags

*eight days of hanukkah

*tinfoil pretty cards

*sweet treat memory game

paint some newspaper today

for craft making tomorrow...
*paper hats
*bunting

*wreaths
*collages

and stay tuned for newspaper pom-poms (my paper is still drying)!

Valentine Nine!

Here are nine fabulous Valentine's Day projects you can do with your kiddos. Clockwise from the top left, click on the link to the tutorial and keep us posted if you make any of them. We would love to see and hear from you!

*fingerprint love trees
*potion
*straw & paper garland
*lacing cards garland
*valentine scarves
*pink drink
*sugar buns
*stuck on you
*puzzle love