I recycled a stack of those pesky magazine subscription post cards to make this little practice book.  

Each morning the kindergartner-to-be gets to fill out a new postcard to get a bit of ADDRESS PRACTICE!  

 Maybe I’ll send one in and he’ll get a surprise magazine at the end of the summer!   

Visual Poetry: A Creative Guide for Making Engaging Digital Photographs.

If you are interested in photography, at all, this book will absolutely ROCK your creative world.

Chris Orwig will invigorate and challenge your creative spirit to the core!

I found my copy while browsing Barnes N Noble a couple months ago and have been meaning to share it with you ever since!

WARNING: do not sit down with this book unless you have at least one pack of sticky notes! 

{TEASERS}

“The point of creative photography is that we all get to choose our own way.” [page 57]

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“And finding photographs depends on realizing how distinct we actually are.  If you an tap into what makes you different, what sets you apart, you can begin to find photographs that will be completely your own.”  [page 212] 

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“People will tell you it is all about capturing the essence.  I say capture the essence of what captivates you most.” [page 186]

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“…pursue your vision again and again. In a sense, you will need to let yourself go and become a beginner with each frame you take.”  [page 53]

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“Don’t examine what type of photography sells.  Rather, ask yourself what makes you come alive.”  [page 259]

5 x 7 Photographs + Spiral Bind = Little Counting Book

You could substitute miniature toys, blocks, treats for the crayons… Mason’s book focuses on numbers 10-20 and Blaise’s book is all about COLORS!

And some leftovers from our crayon week…

I still have bits of crayon under my finger nails!

One Christmas gift DONE! Only 20 or 30 more to go!?

Matching ABC style!

Supplies:

1. Cardboard covered with cardstock and ABC squares
2. Recycled poker chips
3. Old magazines
   
4. Circle & square punches
5. Modge-podge
6. Small pastry bags to hold letters

Older kids can do a speed match— turn over the polker chips and see how fast they can fill the board.  Toddlers can use the colors to help them find matching letters.  A search and find twist— use old magazines (Kid Craft has a cool version) to hunt for pictures and letters to put on the board!!

Check out Playful Learning for some magnificent ABC inspiration!!!!

This accordion style coin book is really just eight (front + back) paint samples taped together.  I used cheapy double stick tape to adhere the coins to the sticks and paint chips.

  Object of game?  Match the popsicle stick to the correct coin. 

 I’m really diggin these recycled craft projects.  Why on earth did I ever pay money for mainstream toys and games?  While I was working on this Mason made a house with paint chip siding.  Emerson used ‘dots’ on chip samples.  I’m out of paint chips now… maybe that means I need to start another home improvement project! Naaaa, I’d rather do art!

To make these little matching monsters you will need:

1. Clothespins
2. Googly eyes
3. Crayola paint chips (2 of each color)
   
4. Double sided tape

Simply adhere a strip of ‘color chip’ to the clothes pin and add eyes.

 To make this more challenging for older pre-schoolers— have them spell the color as they as they find the matching paint sample.

Match on!

xoxoxoxoxo

Supplies:

-thirty buttons in various sizes

-three recycled tins (at least one with a lid for game piece storage)

-modge podge

-paper for game cards & tin wrap

-roll of self adhesive magnet tape

Project takes about thirty minutes… while I was whipping up Robby, Emerson made some button art and Mason made a guitar from an egg box.  Adhere paper to tins with a thin coat of modge podge and add a small slice of magnetic tape to the back of each button. 

Game Cards:

Count by 10s

Count by 5s (shown above left)

Count by 2s

Add (Example 5+2=___ child would put 5 buttons on top tin, 2 on middle & 7 on bottom)

Free Time (create your own robot)

Small, Medium, Large (organize buttons by size)

The coffee tin is the perfect size for storing the smaller game pieces. Robby says go make a recycled art project for Earth Day!!!!

We took a recycled Play Mobile Box and punches out various sizes of rectangles, squares, stars, circles & triangles.

Note of caution:

 This activity is not the faint at heart.

  YOU WILL make a colorful mess… easy clean-up at least!

  This is one of those projects that is as fun to set up as it is to use.

I used my favorite adhesive—modge podge— to personalize the front of box.  Big brother K helped me add a inspiration template that sits underneath the shapes—sketches for collage themes: trains, buses, houses, castles…

  Now we can go shape {collage} crazy!!!

Shape collage art is such a fantastic rainy-anyday art activity.

 It works great for us because almost ANY age can enjoy, create and participate.  

  Thank so much for the idea— LETS EXPLORE!

Here’s our Little Writers {and Illistrators} Center!! I really wanted a place where the kids could easily access the tools they need to write, draw & create.

I dressed up this old shelf by adding a fresh coat of blue paint, curtains and a chalk board.

Our center includes:

1. Jars of chalk, crayons, pens & pencils
2. Collection of vintage chalkboards
3. Lined  &  construction paper
4. Box o mini notes books
5. Box o letters (from old boardgames…)
6. Top secret words (Rolodex)
   

My inspiration for this project: Playful Learning and The Write Start —- both of whom have magnificent writing centers for their kiddos!!