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J is for Job Jar

April 12th 2011 14:51
J is for Job Jar. This A to Z challenge post does not seem 'fun' at first glance. It is not an art or craft project, not a game or learning toy....but my sixteen year old daughter recently mentioned how much she loved our old job jar.

odd.

I put it together to keep sanity and keep the kids busy when they were young. My four little one would choose a slip of paper from the job jar and then complete the task. Simple, straight forward, I could have told them to sweep the back steps, or put the dishes away, set the table or gather laundry, but that wasn't as effective as that magical slip of paper.


When she mentioned it, I tried to remember why we stopped using it. Wondered what happened, but that isn't too hard. Life happened, it got pushed aside and eventually forgotten about.


Job Jar for daily routines....

This idea is great for young elementary children.
You will need large craft sticks, a marker and a jar.

Write a specific job on each, such as Make Your Bed, Get Dressed, Brush Your Teeth, Straighten Toys...Mom's Surprise Job. Put a sticker on the opposite end of the words. Place the sticks words up in the jar, once a job is done, they can put the stick back in with the word down...when you see all the sticks with stickers, the tasks for the day are complete...or at least they should be

Job Jar for extra work.....

This is what we had. The list of "things to do" in a houseful of kids was never ending, so I would just write on slips of paper individual tasks that needed to be done that day or that week. Place them in a jar and let them choose a job for the day, or whenever they are bored.


More J- Jumping Jacks- Actual Jacks- Jump rope

Easy Jump rope game....place jump rope on floor and start moving it like a snake - back and forth....and have the kids (or kid) jump over the rope as it moves.

Finally....expose your kids to Jazz music, a little ragtime music, swing or Louis Armstrong provides great "cleaning music."

PBS Kids Jazz Greats
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F is for Frogs

April 7th 2011 12:41




Frogs are fun. My A to Z blogging challenge post of the day is on fascinating, freaky favorites-Frogs. Don't limit yourself to the green paint, green paper or green crayons; frogs can be red, orange, spotted....or anything your imagination dreams up. God himself was fabulously creative, go ahead try something different!

My favorite frog project is a pinch pot frog. Use colorful polymer clay, salt dough clay or gray clay that needs to be fired.

Start by forming clay into a pinch pot and then turn the pot on its side.

Attach two round balls for the eyes to the outside top of the pot.

Form two flat pieces into webbed frog feet.

Roll out a snake-like piece of clay for the tongue.

Attach it to the inside of the mouth and curl it up.

Finish according to the type of clay chosen, either air-dried, baked or kiln-fired.

Paint and embellish as desired.


Brought to you by the letter F and the A to Z blogging challenge! Enjoy!
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E is for Eggscellent Eggs

April 6th 2011 23:30


E is for EGGS of course. The A to Z blogging challenge post for the letter E is dedicated to Easter Eggs, but not just any ol' Easter egg, no these babies are Eggcellent!

Dye-ving Dudes from Family Fun are the best Easter Egg craft I've seen.

Directions can be found on Family Fun or the April edition of the magazine.

As you can see, each egg is dyed only a third of the way up, for the swim trunks, the bendy part of a flexible straw, a rubber band, water bottle lids for the goggle and some craft foam to make flippers.

Kids can create these little fellas with white craft glue, or an adult can help with a glue gun.....when doing crafts, I will often follow up with hot glue when the kids are all done just to secure the pieces without taking away from the, "I did it myself" aspect.


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D is for Dinosaur Eggs

April 5th 2011 11:55
Do you know kids who are crazy about Dinosaurs? Dabble in discovery by making a set of dinosaur eggs. A to Z blogging challenge letter of the day is D...and the word of the day is Dinosaur.

To make Dinosaur Eggs you will need;
2 1/2 cups flour
2 1/2 cups of dirt
1 cup sand
1 1/2 cups of salt
water
small plastic toy dinosaurs
hammer

Instructions;

1. Mix all the dry ingredients together (flour, dirt, salt and sand).

2. Gradually stir in enough water so that the mix holds together .

3. Shape handfuls of dough around the small plastic dinosaurs in the form of egg shapes.

4. Let eggs dry about 4 days in a cool dry spot. Turn the eggs daily as they dry to ensure that they dry evenly.

5. Hide the eggs in the yard for kids to discover.

6. Kids can open the hard dinosaur eggs to find what is inside by cracking it with a rock, or a small hammer.



Check out Planet Dinosaur for more dinosaur information...or gather a stack of books from your local library.

If dinosaurs aren't their thing...fill small handfuls of this dough with play coins and hide these in a sand box. Kids can search for buried treasure.
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C is for Cooties

April 4th 2011 14:30
......er, Cootie Catchers. Remember those?

The A to Z blogging challenge letter of the day is C

and my C-word of the day - Cootie Catchers
also known as Fortune Tellers for the P.C. crowd, these are quick and fun for kids...of all ages.

If you have forgotten how to fold one of these toys, the instructions follow. You can also print out a pre-made cootie catcher from the Billy Bear website.


What you need:
Scissors
Rectangular sheet of plain paper
Pen or Markers

Follow these step by step instructions to create your very own Cootie Catcher.

1. Fold the bottom of the paper to the side of the page to make a triangle. Use scissors to cut off the flap at the top. Open the triangle and you will have a square.

2. Fold one corner of the paper diagonally to the other corner. Open your paper. You will now have a center point marked on the paper. Fold each corner of the paper towards the center.

3. When all four corners have been folded, your Cootie Catcher should look like this. Turn the paper over so that the folded sides are face down. Then fold all the corners to the center diagonally

4. Once you have folded in the four corners, write the numbers one through 8 on each of the triangles. Hold the paper in front of you as shown and fold it into a square. Now unfold and fold the square in half horizontally.

5. Open each flap and write something on each triangle. What you write depends on the type of Cootie catcher you have made. Flip the Cootie Catcher over and write the name of a color, animal, person or place on the flap. Flip the Cootie Catcher over so that the numbers are face up. Fold the square in half and slip your thumbs and pointer finger under the four flaps.

How to play with the Cootie Catcher;
* Ask a friend to pick a color, animal, person or place that you have written on one of the flaps.
* Moving the flaps in and out and side to side in time with the letters, spell out the word they have chosen.
* Open the Cootie Catcher to reveal the numbers and ask them to pick one. Count out the number they have chosen by moving the flaps in and out and side to side. Ask them to pick another number and count it out in the same manner.
* This time ask them to pick a third number and reveal the answer you have written on the inside flap.

That is their fortune. Enjoy!
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B is for Bubble Wrap

April 2nd 2011 18:54
Who doesn't get a silly grin on their face when popping bubble wrap? This clever invention is typically used to ship fragile packages....but my word of the day is also great for making fun art projects.

B is for Bubble Wrap
[ Click here to read more ]
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A is for Always

April 2nd 2011 12:52
For 26 days in April (minus Sundays) I will be posting a blog for each letter of the alphabet.
"Sylvie's word of the day"
I am all for challenges, so when this was dangled in front of me in my writers group, I grabbed it


[ Click here to read more ]
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Sky Art Projects

March 20th 2011 02:19
Sky Science Art Lessons
Art encourages students to look closer at a subject. Recreate comets, stars, constellations and clouds using art supplies. This will enhance sky science lessons or provide an interesting subject to base your art projects. Students from preschool through high school can benefit from the combination of art and science.

[ Click here to read more ]
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Edible Earth Science Projects

March 5th 2011 01:23
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Stages of Art Development

March 3rd 2011 01:13
Every child, rich or poor, goes through the same basic sequence when starting to draw. Make the most of the different steps by offering a variety of interesting materials to explore...

Art Development through the stages
[ Click here to read more ]
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Mola Art

January 3rd 2011 03:20
Learn how to teach Mola Art

Molas are brightly colored appliques made by the Kuna Indians in the San Blas region of Panama that often depict animals, birds or plant shapes


[ Click here to read more ]
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Princess Party Idea-Build a Castle

January 3rd 2011 03:09
Princess birthday party...Build a Castle
shhhhh...this is what I am doing for my daughter's upcoming party and it's a surprise!

[ Click here to read more ]
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Giving gifts, or even cards to all my neighbors would be an impossible task without this inexpensive, fun tradition. Delegating this task to the kids is a nice way to keep the little ones occupied while attending to other Christmas activities nearby. Like baking, wrapping presents, or simply sipping tea and regrouping.

Recipes for Magical Reindeer Food
[ Click here to read more ]
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Use up all that scrap paper in your classroom. While cleaning, discover how to create some unique projects. Paper fibers are broken apart when torn, which add a dimensional effect to collages and allows a hands on approach to learning lines, colors and shapes.
Papier mache birds are my favorite thing to do with paper scraps...but there are several other, less messy, options!
Papier Mache
aside from papier mache...see what you can do with torn paper scraps

[ Click here to read more ]
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