Art Camp Wrap-up

So much for posting every day. Turns out my art camp aspirations were a little high, but we did get two more projects in:

Sock Beanies

Materials:
Small Socks
Glue
Sharpee Marker
Beans or Lentils
Googly Eyes

1. Fill a small sock with beans or lentils (used a funnel from a magazine).
2. Tie a knot in the end
3. Glue on eyes and color in face
4. Done!

Rock Pets

1. Paint rock
2. Dry
3. Decorate! We used pom poms, googly eyes, rick rack, flower lace, & cross stitch floss (made excellent hair and a mustache).

Art Camp - Day 1

So, I looked really hard for shrinky dinks (actually, I just went to one store) and could not find them. Perhaps they are not as popular as they were in the 80's. Anyways, I found these instead:

I found them at JoAnn's in the dollar section. The kits came with a metal frame, crystals that melt in the oven, and a suction cup. The kiddies loved them, but I used the tweezers a bit more than I care to.

We also made creature collages, cutting out random heads, legs, and arms from magazines.

Art camp has already been declared a success! So far, so good.

Summer Camp

I took a long break, but I'm ready to go again! This summer, to entertain and educate the kiddies, I am setting up camp. Each week will have a different camp theme:

Week 1: Art Camp
Week 2: Camp Wild Things
Week 3: Scout Camp (a suggestion from my not-yet-old-enough-for-scouts child)
Week 4: Sports Camp
Week 5: Cooking/Science Camp
Week 6: Pioneer Camp

The plan is to have 2 activities (one for morning & one for afternoon). I will start posting results next week. Wish me luck!

If you want a little preview, this is the master list for Art Camp:

Twig name plate
Watercolor in nature
Collage of creatures
Friendship bracelets
Apple heads
Crayon scratching
Log cabins
Rock buddies
Sock beanies
Shrinky dinks

Word Games

My preschooler has recently taken to sounding out words. I have found a few effective teaching tools for this reading stage:

1. Word Wheels

2. Upwords

3. And for the more advanced readers, my first grader loves this one.

Chore Charts

Chores are a bit of a struggle around here, even I struggle with my chores - every day in fact. I often change my routine, just to keep myself motivated, and one day I realized that my children probably need a change of pace as well. Here are a few ideas to keep everyone moving:

Chore Dice

Chore Chart

To Do List Jars

A House of Cardboard

I'm a big fan of cardboard, and the creativity involved with it. The possibilities are endless! I have made a castle from scratch before (inspired by this, but in a much more simple form). This time around, I took the lazy approach and bought a pre-made cardboard house. The house had white walls, so we took the opportunity to add a few decorative touches, namely a flower and vegetable garden.

Want to make your own? Try this: Makebabystuff.com.

Truck Obsession?

My little one has a truck obsession, just like his older brother. I remember driving to construction sites just for a half hour of sweet silence. Now I don't have to leave the comforts of home. This website has it all - truck pictures with labeling for all the parts (handy to have for those of with little construction vehicle knowledge). And the best part, short videos with the trucks in action.