STUMP ART

I brought a stump inside for the children at my Nest. I didn't have a real purpose in mind, but I thought perhaps they would use it  to *cook* on or use with the assorted animals. 


Instead, they had other plans.
It became a canvas for colored chalk.

I was taken by surprise when I first saw it and gasped inwardly. But what's the big deal! It's only chalk. And the stump IS for the children.


It reminds us all to *look to the Children. . they know what to do*. 
We just need to be there to provide the environment, love them, and keep them free from harm.


happy day!

PLAYING WITH POKEWEED

Do you have Pokeweed growing at your house? 


 The plant is poisonous to humans, from its roots to the leaves and berries.
Did you know it is only in the very early spring, that the very young shoots are edible? 
But you need to know exactly where the pokeweed grew to be able to identify the new growth. You will notice the hollow dried stalks turned white and bent over from the winter and the new shoots will be emerging right there. If you are not 100% sure, never never eat it.

We love watching the transformation of this perennial plant. It can reach 10 feet tall and leaves can be 12 inches long. The stems starts out green and turns a gorgeous magenta color, 
The berry cluster starts as white flowers then green to dark purple berries.

Pokeweed (Phytolacca americana)

Even though the plant is poisonous, with awareness and caution, children CAN come in contact with this plant. Tell them all about the plant and why they shouldn't touch it. When children know the reasons why, it all makes sense to them.

Pokeweed is a value to wildlife and quite attractive in the landscape. It would be a shame to rip it out in fear of its poisonous aspect. 

Pokeweed berries are an important food source for wild life. American Robin, Northern Mockingbird, Mourning Dove, Gray Catbird, Eastern Bluebird, Northern Cardinal, Great-crested Flycatcher, Eastern Kingbird, Eastern Phoebe, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, European Starling, Brown Thrasher, Cedar Waxwing, Red Fox, Virginia Opossum, Raccoon, and White-footed Mouse all eat the berries.

We drew the plant in our nature journals. It was fun coloring the bright colors of the stems and leaves.


Then . . .we donned disposable gloves, picked the leaves, scrunched them and made designs on paper. The berries were the best part, we squished them and drew with them noticing which berries made the brightest color.

                    

Some other fun activities with Pokeweed: 

• make dye from the berries and dye wool roving, yarn or muslin
• make ink from the dye and write with a quill pen. It is said they wrote the Declaration of Independence with Pokeweed ink. 

happy day!

DUCT TAPE CREATIVITY

This is her newest duct tape creation. 

She knew what she wanted to make and went to work on it, without a pattern.

There are so many things to make using duct tape.  
Do a search and you will find directions and videos.

.

She also make a glove, but it was too small

perhaps it could be a sculpture on her shelf, titled

"talk to the hand"

Duct tape comes in a multitude of colors and designs.

And there's even a Duck Tape Club ! 

What are you going to make?

happy day!

SPRING SUNCATCHERS

Show the children how to make

spring sun catchers 

to add color to their days

before the flowers bloom.

Even the smallest child is quite capable.

Supplies:

• waxed paper
• colored tissue paper
• glue/water mixture or mod podge
• brushes
• newspaper
• paper
• scissors
• marker

-Cover table with newspaper to protect the area.
-Lay out a large sheet of waxed paper horizontally.

-Brush glue mixture onto waxed paper. Do about a fist sized area at a time so the glue doesn't dry .

-Rip pieces of tissue paper and stick onto the glued areas of the waxed paper. It's ok to overlap colors.

-When the waxed paper is all covered with tissue paper, brush the whole thing with the glue mixture. It will dry clear. 


-Be sure to spread out any big globs of glue.

-Let dry.

-In the meantime, cut out spring shapes from paper. Some ideas: butterfly, flowers, bird. 


You can draw the outline of the shapes, freehand, or here's a hint : Find a picture or clip art on google images and hold computer paper up to the monitor and lightly trace with a felt marker.


-Lay your shape on the dry colorful waxed paper

-Trace it

-Cut it out

-Put it in your window to enJOY

A birdie pair

You can string some together to make a mobile too.
Be sure to use all the leftover scraps. You can cut free form flowers or geometric shapes or anything else you can think of.

Spring IS on its way! 

happy day!

COLOR PLAY

Provide the three primary colors. Let them PLAY and CREATE and see what happens!


Supplies:

•  Tray, or foil with edges turned up, to catch the drips
•  White coffee filters ( the basket type)
•  Droppers (ours came in a pkg of two at CVS for 2.99)
•  Small jars or mugs (paper cups will tip over)
•  Food coloring or food coloring gel. Mix with water and 1 tsp vinegar. If you want the color deeper, add more coloring.

Set everything out for the children. 
Show then how the dropper works 

and then STAND ASIDE. They will do the rest.


Don't be afraid of a drippy mess! The tray will catch the spills and the filter will absorb the liquid. 
Let the colors merge and watch the new colors form . 

Making designs with the colors is fun too ! 

They are working on fine motor skills using the dropper.  And they are learning colors and what happens when they mix them.


And remember:
 The process is always more important then the product!


happy day!

CREATE WITH A BOX OF STUFF

Do you save odds and ends, thinking there might be some use for them? As a mixed media artist I can't help but save most everything, but I also save especially for the children. What we see as "junk", they can envision all kinds of things. 

All the stuff needs a home though, or it can become unruly very quickly, so I designated a box and when I came across something I toss it in. 
But the real fun is when the box is brought out to the children! 


Just provide colored duct tape and masking tape and they will do the rest! 

This is a terrific Winter project when those cold winds keep children inside for longer hours and they are looking for something to do. ( read about boredom here)

What kinds of things do I save? 
Most anything that catches my eye. All kinds of lids, bottle caps, paper towel rolls, tags from clothes,bubble wrap, packing peanuts, baling twine, ice cream containers, yarn, broken pieces of toys or household objects (with safety in mind , of course!), cardboard, small boxes, buttons, and the list goes on and on.


Perhaps you could start a Box of Stuff at your house and see what the children come up with.
When they are finished, ask them about it. No doubt there's a name for their creation and a whole story behind it. 
To preserve the memory, take a picture and write out their story. They will love reading it in the years to come. 
And remember the process is always more important than the product .


  happy day!