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Shape Books Encourage Reluctant Readers

November 10th 2011 02:11
Reluctant writers can be encouraged to put the pen to the page with the help of a pair of scissors. Making shape books can turn writing into a crafty project, perfect for visual learners or kinetic, hands-on learners. The process of making a book in a particular shape can also provide the framework for a story.





Choose the shape
The easiest way to get your child writing, is to create a book in a familiar, well-loved shape. My daughter loves baby dolls, so her first book was in the shape of a baby doll. A baby bottle followed, then a rattle and a cradle. This series of books was easy for her come up with stories which helped her handwriting immensely. Other children may love cars and trucks or kittens, horses or balls.

Make the book
Draw a very simple outline of the desired object. Use a thick line coloring page image or enlarged silhouette from a clip art program to make a cardboard stencil.
Cut this shape out and then trace on a stack of five pieces of white paper. Trace it again on two sheets of construction paper. Once all the pieces of paper are cut out, sandwich the white paper between the construction paper and staple in a straight line down one side.

Read more, including...
Ask Questions
Illustrate and Write
Read
Store Proudly
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Encourage Creativity

November 3rd 2011 00:55
9 Ways to Encourage Creativity


Creativity is not a frivolous trait. Children raised to be creative thinkers are also often excellent problem solvers and have an innate trust in their abilities. Your child may not write a Pulitzer Prize winning novel or star on Broadway, but then again, you very well may have a budding creative genius underfoot. Regardless, the benefits of creativity are wide-spread. Here are 9 ways to encourage creativity.

1. Ask lots of questions. Let your child ask questions. Indulge your child's curiosity by letting them pursue tangents and explore new subjects.


2. Tell stories. Encourage your child to come up with alternate endings to favorite stories or movies. Before finishing a storybook, see if your child wants to guess the ending. Imagine new characters or put the same characters in a different setting. Retell these stories at bedtime, while cooking dinner or driving.

3. Allow time and space to create. Exploring takes time. Resist the urge to give short cuts, or exclaim that an idea won't work, let your child try. Unless of course their idea is dangerous to herself or others. If you can designate a corner for art work that can be left out, great.

4. Be silly. Singing and dancing along to the radio or making up your own silly tune is the best way to encourage the same freedom for your child. Even if you are not a natural extrovert, you can let your silly side show every so often.



Read more here - 9 Ways to Encourage Creativity
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Make a Fort - Fort making kits

October 28th 2011 04:16
Forts are FUN.

Forts can also be an inexpensive gift that encourages imaginative play. You do not even have to wait for a special occasion to present this amazing indoor gift, but it does make a wonderful present to bring along to one of the seemingly hundreds of birthday parties your children are invited to over the years.

Pack one for your own children to take along on overnight trips to grandparents, both your child and parents will thank you. If you have the room and temperament, a more permanent solution is described below.

FORT MAKING KITS
What is it?
What do you need?

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Kids Art Show

August 2nd 2011 13:28
Better than a lemonade stand, a kids art show can be a fun way to promote creativity, earn money and build a sense of community.

Host your own with the following tips for a One Dolla Holla, Fifty Cent Center or Quarter Show Tips

Invite participates. You probably have a basic group in mind. It could be simply your own children or expand it to their close friends, a street in your neighborhood or make it a club event. Scouts or sports teams can pull off an effective quarter show.

Suggest sale items. Compile a list of items that are acceptable for the show. This can be decided upon as a group, or set in place ahead of time. Baked goods such as cookies should be wrapped ahead of time and ready to go. Handfuls of trail mix in baggies were just as popular as brownies at our show. Sun catchers, dream catchers, home made note cards and bookmarks were some of the offerings. Simple crafts, home made jewelry and little bouquets of flowers kept the show pretty, while they were there. We had a table for gently used toys and a place to buy hot dogs, lemonade and chips, for a quarter of course.

Read on for more information...and why a single set price is best.

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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.

Hundreds of people signed up, literally 1037 people. Go ahead, Sign up here, if you dare.

This mini adventure is fairly mundane, but with 1000 bloggers jumping in, stalking each other, chatting away everyday, something good is bound to happen.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Always is my word of the day, in honor of ALWAYS learning. Life is too ....oh wait, I'll just quote Henry Miller, he said it best.....


"develop interest in life as you see it; in people, things, literature, music, the world is simply throbbing with rich treasures, beautiful souls and interesting people. Forget yourself." ~Henry Miller

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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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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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Fun with Five Little Monkeys

December 20th 2010 04:23
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Winnie the Pooh Math Fun

July 26th 2010 04:03
Winnie the Pooh Bear is a well-loved children's classic storybook character.

Use this sweet, honey-obsessed bear to gain your preschooler's attention when introducing math facts. Relate cooking, time, counting and sorting to Winnie the Pooh and his antics from his stories


[ Click here to read more ]
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Science....and Father's Day

June 15th 2010 14:09
Incorporate science lessons into your summer fun. Using art materials to teach science is a sneaky way to slip abstract ideas into your child, making them easier to grasp. Let these ideas double as Father's Day gifts or activities for dad to do with their kids.

Read More
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Caps For Sale

February 25th 2010 17:42
Caps For Sale by Esphyr Slobodkina is such a wonderful and timeless tale which I can recall reading when I was a young child. I have passed on this fun tale to my daughter however we have purchased the updated book and CD version which also includes some fun tunes to go along with the story.

To get into a monkey mood we are going to bake some banana bread cookies and read some other monkey stories including Five Little Monkeys Sitting On A Bed and Curious George


[ Click here to read more ]
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Play With Me

January 25th 2010 18:34
Following on from our animal theme we have been reading the charming book, Play With Me written by Marie Hall Ets. It features a little girl who ventures outside to play with the wild animals only to discover that at first they are too frightened to go near her. The text and pictures are charming in this book and is one of my daughter's favourites.

Homeschool Share provided us with some book related suggestions, the favourite one of my daughter being the Guess Who Animal game


[ Click here to read more ]
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Katy No Pocket

December 26th 2009 19:37
We are going to have some fun with Katy No Pocket over the next week or so. Katy is a kangaroo, born without a pocket and is struggling to carry her baby like all the other animals in the countryside. Katy, desperate for a pocket, goes to the city in search of one and meets up with a kindly construction worker who helps her out.


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Coraline

November 20th 2009 01:26
My daughter loves the animated movie Coraline so loudly announced that it is Coraline week in our house giving me about five minutes notice to organise some activities for us to do.

Thankfully Coraline.com came to our aid and we were able to button eye images of both myself and my daughter as well as create online button flowers. There was also a fun print image in which the circus mice could also spell out my daughter's name


[ Click here to read more ]
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