Valentine Rolling Pin Painting

We pulled out our art rolling pins, changed the sponges from animals to hearts.  Set out trays of paint and big paper and watched to see what would happen.

The children felt very comfortable using the rollers.  They looked like they were rolling out dough.

One of the pins had cord glued around it.  

 How far will it roll?

It probably would have kept going but he ran out of table.

We also hand painted the stamps to mix the colours.

 Or forget about the roller and mix with the brush.

We discovered one mistake I made when preparing one of the rolling pins.  I thought it would be good to glue cording on in rows and proceeded to glue on 4 pieces.

It wouldn't roll.  No fun and wasn't used.
A few of fi

Valentine Window Decorations

A craft that is so simple yet beautiful and unique to each person that makes one.

 Provide lots of collage materials, such as; glitter, sparkly confetti, doilies foam hearts, heart shape paper cutter, paper, thread and anything shiny.

Start with a piece of mactac (contact paper).  Place it sticky side up on the table and start placing on your materials.

I didn't get a chance to take many photos of finished projects because they all took theirs home.

Airport Dramatic Play

Recently a lot of my families have mentioned that they will be taking off on a trip somewhere warm or they have just returned.  I thought it would be great to focus awhile on air travel.

Here is our new dramatic play area - The Airport.

The Airport check in area. Computer, tickets, baggage tags and more.

Another view of the check in area.

Flight schedules and language charts (how to say hello in all the languages that are spoken by our families).

The airplane.







The airport opened this morning and was very busy.

 Our airport security check in.

After the flight we need a destination - a tropical beach?

In a couple of weeks we will go on a fieldtrip to our local airport.  We also will go on a walk at our airpark which is for small private planes and float planes.

Tunnel Fun

Another Groundhog day activity - tunnels.

I enjoyed watching the ideas the children had of how the tunnels should be set up.

I wish I had room to leave the tunnels set up all the time.

The physical energy used and the problem solving that happened was thrilling.

Plus the imaginative play was contagious.

Who's hiding in the tube?

 Ready to spring.

Waiting to take turns.

Art vs Craft

This topic is something that I've been struggling with for a while now.
I know and appreciate the value of letting children explore and experience different art mediums.  Watching them discover what they can do with the materials versus following a model.
But I've discovered this past week that a craft can have many positive and fun results.

Last Wednesday was Groundhog Day and I had found this really cute craft from Let's Go Fly a Kite
that I couldn't resist providing for my families even after much back and forth in my mind about the value of it.

Well I learned that it held alot of value.

1. Families enjoy making something they recognize at the end.

2. So much language can happen while making a craft.  Following a set of instruction is a prelude to reading.

3. The fun and excitement of playing with the craft when it's made.

4. Sharing experiences and making connections.
This little guy's grandma started to sing "All around the Mulberry Bush" and when she go to the part when "the monkey thought it was all in fun but ____" she waited and pushed the groundhog up out of the cup.  He said "pop!"  The rest of the morning he walked around playing with his groundhog and saying "Pop, Pop".

5. Extensions - I added flashlights at the table so they could try to see their groundhog's shadow.  But it was too bright in the room.  I quickly grab a big box and called it the "Groundhog Hole".

Children that didn't even make the craft crawled into the box and played with the light.

 

 

 Making the spotlight small and then big again.
                                                        

What a great morning of learning for me.