ROY G BIV, a very cool guy...

Summer is Art Camp time - a whole week of messy fun, not just an afternoon like we have when school is in session! Our little Art Campers learned all about color - starting with the order of the colors in the rainbow (spectrum.) We created a Roy G Biv puppet to help us remember what comes after red...and that blue and indigo are different in the spectrum, etc.  Roy is a very cool, fun and colorful guy!! I have made Roy G Biv projects in a variety of ways through the years but turning him into a puppet was a lot of fun  (this was inspired by a picture I saw on Pinterest but didn't pin .) Love the black and white polka dotted ties!

 

All of these "Roy's" were made by four year olds. They are drying overnight and then the finishing touch will go on before they go home - we have a "Hello My Name Is Roy G Biv" nametag just like you see at meetings.

This next batch of "Roy" puppets was created by our 3's class ands I told my staff that these are how Picasso would have represented Roy G Biv!!  They are fun and creative!

Don't miss the one with one yellow strip of hair and the bow tie as the nose!! Very Picasso :)

Now that we understand color we can get on with more colorful projects! Stay tuned!!



It All Started at Wal Mart...

I found  adorable heart shaped paper plates at Wal Mart. In a package of 6 for 97 cents.
 Irresistible!!
Then, at Hobby Lobby I found a bottle of glitter named Bubble Gum. It was pink and crystal mixed together. No passing that up. It was $1.47. ( You could use what you have on hand and I'm actually going to do some with red glitter dots on the red. Just as cute!) I used a Spouncer ( remember those from a previous post??) dipped in Mod Podge to make my glittery polka dots.

 I painted the back of the plate red to make it look a little nicer.

Then I spray painted a General Foods International Coffee can with black chalkboard paint. I did give it a light coat of Kilz primer first because it was sitting on the table where I was painting. I don't think it's a necessity if you don't have any primer. This is one of the older metal cans. You could use a clay pot, a paper cup, a little bucket from Target's Dollar Spot,etc. Whatever you have.

Next I painted some paintsticks green.

 

Can't leave them plain- so stripes and dots are next. Just  get creative.

Then I used a little Plaster of Paris to "plant" my paintstick in the coffee can. I added some Easter grass to cover the P of P and tied on a scrap of polka dotted green ribbon. You could add leaves with fun foam or small wooden hearts painted green would be cute.

You can write a message or the name of the person who is going to receive this on the chalkboard painted can. I added some Hershey Kisses on top of the Easter grass.
 What's a Valentine with out chocolate??

And then, because we all know that once I get a theme I can't get stopped (remember Candy Corn and Candy Canes and then the Snowman overload???) I made a small version. I still have some of those little galvanized buckets left so I used that, a green jumbo craft stick, two of those ice cream spoon shaped wooden pieces and a red glitter fun foam heart cut out. I stuck some air dry clay in the bucket to hold it all together and added some Easter grass. So cute and it's just big enough to hold about 3 Hershey kisses. A cute little Valentine for someone or a great "place card" at a Valentine's meal.

A fun little valentine's day project for all ages. You don't even have to cut out a heart shape!! Start with the plates and a little Tacky Glue will hold it all together!

Can you have too many Snowmen???

Not really! And certainly not if they are cute and easy to make from free materials!!

Here's a Snow Guy who has been hanging around a long time! In fact, he's a little crumpled because he travels with me when I go to conferences and teacher trainings but he's still fun!

He's a 'freebie', too. You've got most of this "stuff' hanging around. I used 2 sizes of white paper plates, scraps of fabric, recycled supposedly "disposable" forks, wiggle eyes, scrap fabric, fun foam, etc. Whatever you have hanging around - just throw it on a table and see what the kiddos create. Theirs are always so much better anyway :)

I punched holes in the top and bottoms of the paper plates and strung them together with strips of fabric or yarn so he twirls a little bit. The hat is a black plastic container from Chic-Fil-A. Salad and brownies come in the same type container - here's hoping I had the healthy choice!!

 

Give him a cute, happy face.

Glue on some forks or twigs for arms - or maybe popsicle sticks. Whatever you have on hand.

Scrap fabric was all we needed for a long, long scarf.

We glued on buttons on the middle circle. ( You can talk about big and little circles, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, middle, etc. along with snowman stories, recycling or Winter facts - versatile craft in the classroom setting!)

And the best part of this guy?? The bottom circle is a "snowglobe"! I cut out the center of the plate to make a big opening. Then put some glitter and fun foam snowflakes in a baggie. Add a couple of good squirts of clear hand sanitizer and seal it up.

It's hard to see in this picture but you just tape the baggie to the back of your circle and you have a squishy, sparkly snowglobe for your snowman. Nice sensory touch and the sanitizer makes it fun to squish the snowflakes around and it doesn't leak out. If it does then just "wash your hands" and it's all good!!

Easy, Peasy Snowmen

This guy is easy, peasy and basically free!
Take a plain white paper plate - the cheaper and thinner, the better.

Fold in half.

Tear a scrap of fabric into a one or two inch wide strip. Any fabric will do. I usually do lots of black and white or bright colors on our snow projects in January so they don't look too Christmas-y. Tie it around the fold.

Make a knot and you have a cozy scarf.

Punch a hole in the center of both layers of the plate and tie together with some ribbon.

Add some rosy cheeks with pink chalk and make a carrot nose. I used a scrap of peel and stick fun foam because I had it but you could sponge paint it, use magic marker or construction paper. Whatever you have on hand.

Then, the eyes... maybe wiggle eyes...

... or buttons...

... or recycled bottle caps... ( or paint or magic marker or fun foam... you get it!)

Whatever you choose, he will be super cute.

You can stop there or if you are in the classroom setting you can have children write snow facts on the back or words that rhyme with the word snow or something to tie in with your snow unit!!


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What to do with those other Candy Canes...

I am a traditionalist when it comes to Candy Canes at Christmastime. I like them peppermint flavored and red and white. But someone usually drops off boxes of leftover candy canes in my office this time of year and often they are not red and white :)
So this is what we do with them. We make parasols - sometimes for April Showers, sometimes for Mother's Day. You get the idea. I just wanted to show you now in case you want to search out some of these pastel candy canes for a Spring project. They are usually about 25 cents a box now :)
It's just half of a paper plate. Older children could draw off the scallops at the bottom to make it even cuter and allow for extra cutting practice! I have seen teachers of two year olds do this project with the simple half plate. Still cute! Just spatter paint the umbrella and tape the candy cane on the back.