Happy 2012!

 Can it really be the eve of a new year?!  2011 was so full and busy.  I am hoping to slow down a wee bit for 2012 and only bite off what I can chew.  We'll see how well that goes for me.

Here's wishing you a 2012 full of craft and good surprises!

MakeShop

On our very long road trip, we visited the Children's Museum of Pittsburgh.  I raved about it 2 years ago and it still holds up.  This time, we were all excited about MakeShop - I mean, the entrance sign alone - "What do you want to make today?" got me going.

giant community loom

making plastic fusible collages

 Inside there are so many different kinds of materials.  There was a whole section on electronics and woodworking, but you know I focused on the fiber arts and crafts. 

beginning sewing - love these materials!

I began to dream of a classroom space that was this open and free.  The volunteers were wonderful and as helpful as you wanted them to be.  Everything was beautifully organized and thoughtfully laid out.

I am jealous of these fabric bins

I wonder what we'll discover the next time we visit.

Merry Merry to You!

We are on our way to Pennsylvania to celebrate Christmas with family and friends. 

Hope your holiday is merry and bright!  I'll see you when we get back.

For the Birds

 Last week was "gift week"  we worked like little elves to make gifts for others.  As you know, young children can have a hard time getting their minds off of what they want and focus on others.  I think it's so important to give them opportunities to make and give to others. 

One of our activities was making little bird feeders.  I love the classic pine cone/peanut butter bird feeder, but with a peanut allergy in the room, we moved on to plan B inspired by this breakfast bird feeder.

Our bird food was stale bread, craisens and cheerios.   We used our sewing skills by stringing with plastic needles.  They slid right through the ingredients.

I started them off with yarn anchored with a cheerio and they threaded the needles and designed their own feeders.  If time allowed, they wrote the "recipe" of how they were made.

 Later, we walked around campus and strung them up.  To our delight, we noticed that many had been nibbled the next day!

Everyone felt good about their accomplishment.  To get us in the bird feeding spirit, we read Stranger in the Woods and Counting to Christmas found in our school library. 

Apple Tree Christmas

One of the best parts of working with someone new is sharing ideas and traditions.  This year, my lovely co-teacher Jill introduced me to Apple Tree Christmas.  Such a sweet, Little House on the Prairie type of book.  In the story, they talk about a favorite apple tree and all the useful things they get from the tree.  After a winter snowstorm, the tree falls down, but their father makes them wonderful presents from the tree's branches. 

After reading the story, we all made mini apple pies.  So easy!  We used biscuits for the crust and apple pie filling.

Here's Jill's recipe:
Pat out 1 biscuit (the butter honey ones are the best).
Spoon some apple pie filling on 1/2 the biscuit.
Fold over and pinch tight.
Brush on melted butter and sprinkle with cinnamon-sugar.
Bake on 400 for 8-10 minutes. 

Yum!  You can make big pies by using 2 biscuits - one on top and one on the bottom and fill with the apples.  Pinch tight around the edges before baking.  Jill and her 3 girls make these every Christmas morning.  Such a nice holiday tradition.

A Scarf for Joe

 Joe is our Ginkgo tree that we pass by daily, talk to, and follow throughout kindergarten.  He's a nice little tree.  It's been getting chilly here in Memphis and my class was a little concerned that he might be getting cold.  I mean, he's practically naked with no leaves and all.

So, we wove him a Christmas scarf!  Using our giant loom, the kids each wove for about 5 minutes each.  The loom comes with a giant wooden needle that was perfect for fabric strips.

I cut holiday fabric into 1-2 inch strips about a yard in length.  The kids did a great job weaving.  At the end, we wove in any loose ends and added a long strip at each end to tie the scarf around Joe's trunk.

It fit perfectly!  Plus, for my enjoyment, we have a little bit of yarn bombing on our campus!

Hands and Foot Reindeer

 A holiday classic!

I put basic directions on the pocket chart and the kids had fun creating their own reindeer.  We had lots of Rudolphs in the class.  This would be a fun project for a party or during class.

Materials:  brown paper (about 2 pieces per reindeer), red or black paper scraps, google eyes (although several of my students wanted to draw them on with black marker), glue, and scissors. 

1. Trace 1 foot & 2 hands.
2.  Cut them out.
3.  Glue the hands to the toes of the foot.
4.  Add a red or black nose.  Glue nose to the heel of the foot.
5.  Add eyes.

I love how they all turned out!

Christmas is Magic

Rosemary Wreath

These little rosemary wreaths are so perfect.  I made a few for some friends and then thought the kids might like to make some too.  I put a basket of rosemary from the school garden and everyone got excited.  Bonus, our classroom smelled great!

If you have a rosemary bush, you should make some too.  Here's how:

 1.  Cut 1 or 2 long sprigs about the same length.

 2.  Twist the 2 sprigs together.  Note, we only used 1 sprig in the classroom, they turned out just fine and were easier for little hands.

 3.  Now, bring the ends together into a wreath shape.  Overlap the ends slightly and secure.  We used my favorite binder, a piece of pipecleaner, but string or twist ties would work as well.

 4.  Cover up the pipecleaner with a bow.  Tie on a bow using ribbon or a strip of holiday fabric.

If you want, you can add a little string to hang it with or just slip the wreath over a door knob.

My co-teacher made a bunch and gave to friends along with a recipe that used rosemary - such a clever girl she is!