Kid's Art Calendar - not handprints




Hello Friends,
We have been making handprint calendars as a gift for the parents of our kiddos for many years. They are really, really cute.... BUT....... painting the hands of an ENTIRE classroom takes a ton of time.... So...... I decided to come up with a way to still do the calendar, but in a way that my students can do independently with no paint.....

Now..... there is no way AT ALL that my kiddos could have done these pages independently even a month ago. But, they have been following step-by-step directions since school started and have become pretty confident at following them by themselves. So........ this is what I came up with.... they are doing pretty good, so far..... ☺

The background paper is 8 1/2" x 11" construction paper. I gave my students card stock "tracers" to ensure that the shapes were large enough to fill the paper. They used oil crayons to add details (for every month but January.)  All months were made from construction paper.













Until next time,

Blessings,





Native American Homes and crafts for Kids




Hello Friends,
I really like to discuss Native Americans of the past at this time of year. In my class, we study Native American homes and crafts. We talk about the differences in the tribes throughout the country. We discuss how not all Native Americans gathered their food, hunted, or wore clothes in the same way.

We make 3 different Native American homes - the pueblo, the plank home, and the tipi.

To make the pueblo, we used a square box of tissues and covered it with brown paper squares to show the bricks that were used.






A messy project, but worth the end product!


We made plank homes in much the same way, but used a regular sized tissue box. The children covered the sides with long strips of paper to simulate the logs used to build the house. Craft sticks were glued to the front and a black construction paper door glued to the front. They colored a totem pole sheet which was wrapped and secured around a paper towel roll.




The third home was the tipi. We used a round tortilla shell doubled up. The kids used markers to draw Native American symbols on the outside. I foldes it into a cone shape and secured with a toothpick. When it was dry, it was glued onto a green painted paper plate.



They also made clay horses. We used a horse shaped cookie cutter to cut a horse upon Crayola modeling clay. We stuck toothpicks into the bottom for legs. The next day, the kids painted their horse. When the paint was dry, they used white glue to add details. Before doing this activity, we read "The Mud Pony" by Caren Lee Cohen








A few crafts that we make...

Native American masks - Paint a sturdy paper plate. I tell my students to paint a face, but sometimes they simply paint colors. Let dry. When dry, add features with paper, feathers, or beads.





Sand art is a fun craft to do! I print Native American symbols onto cardstock paper. Students paint it with watercolors. Let dry. Using a glue stick, spread the glue onto sections of the picture. Sprinkle colored sand upon the sections. This makes a very pretty painting.






The templates for the sand paintings and totem pole are found in my Native American packet. You can find it by clicking the photo below.

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Native-American-Crafts-and-Activities-for-Young-Children-165447


Until next time!

Blessings,



Veteran's Day Craft and Book for Kids




Hello Friends,
It will soon be November 11 and in the United States, that means Veteran's Day. In my school, we do not take the day off. Instead, we honor our local veterans with a special program and each class is asked to do something specific to Veteran's Day. I like to make this Veteran's Day craft and book with my kiddos. The inner pages are simply coloring pages that are stapled inside the cover.


As with most of our paper and cutting projects, our tables are a mess during the creative process!




Each book cover turns out a little differently.




 I like doing simple projects like these every so often. They can be finished in a day, taken home, and shared with families. Some of my past students have learned about uncles, aunts, or grandparents who are veterans simply by bringing home this craft. What a great way to open up a family discussion!

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Veterans-Day-Veterans-are-Heroes-950920


Until next time, my friends...

Blessings,