This is an easy to make crafting table using bookcases and hollow core doors. Simple and inexpensive! http://theivycottageblog.blogspot.com/2011/10/diy-large-…

Draw the missing half of an insect to complete the picture! These drawing prompts are good for studying symmetry and entomology with kids at the same time.

We have another fun project for your kids (or you) to do during the hot summer months, this time we are sharing a fun summer agamograph template with you. Making an agamograph is really, really

There are certain simple experiments which really impress children. They might not entirely understand the explanation which lies behind them, but they’ll remember them for their whole life, and they could very well help them understand something in science class when the time comes.

I’m teaming up with my friends at The Elementary Entourage blog for a fun filled Back to School Bash! We are bringing you tips, ideas, lessons, and most importantly, FREEBIES for this back to school season! One thing that I think is so important at the beginning of the school year is to build a […]

Many people see art as something with many barriers to entry – maybe the materials are expensive, maybe you don't have the space, or maybe you think it's difficult, requiring many specialized tools. Sometimes that's true, but the artists here have created incredible works using almost nothing but paper and scissors or knives.

Follow this detailed guide on how to create a colorful rainbow DIY crane curtain that can transform your interior in an unspeakable manner!

Teach your kids how to make their very own marshmallow catapult using common household supplies. How to construct a marshmallow launcher.

Earlier this year, my co-worker Jayne found the idea to make a collaborative school-wide paper mural based on the artwork of Thank YouX. The idea for a student mural originally came from Jenell No…

Get our best Easter crafts for kids, from easy, kid-friendly egg decorating ideas to basket stuffers. These fun ideas will keep children of all ages happy on the holiday.

“Elephant’s toothpaste” is a wonderful illustration of the power of a catalyst to speed up a reaction. It’s also very cool, and anything that shows kids how cool science is …

Teach your kids a little engineering history with this fun fountain project.

Lots of kids struggle with worries or anxiety, especially around the start of the new school year. These Worry Pets are small enough to fit in a pocket. The cuddle fabric is snuggly soft. The poly-pellets inside provide comforting sensory input and something to rub between worried fingers, and the eyes make them oh, so cute. These are not just for worriers, though! The whole family will want one.

Keep kids busy at your Easter lunch/dinner table with this fun activity sheet craft. Create a bunny crayon holder and a placemat for them to color and complete!

Looking for some fun and unique summer crafts to do with the kiddos? Me too! School is almost over and I've got summer crafts on my mind! Today I'm sharing this fun twist on a God's Eye weaving craft. (Remember collecting sticks and making those in summer camp?) But, instead of making the traditional 2 stick version, we recently made a fun 3 stick version.... that also happens to look like a tiny baby turtle! (Aww, aren't they cute? My preschooler was in looove with these.) Weaving Cute Baby Turtles Using God's Eye Weaving Pattern This post contains affiliate links. Thank you for your support! For my full disclosure policy, click here. Usually I have a ton of related picture books to share.... but apparently we don't read very many turtle-themed books! (Know of any good ones?) The only ones that I can remember us reading (and liking) are the Franklin books. But, if you're looking for some great inspirational art books to get the creative juices flowing, here are Our current 20+ favorite art books: Colorful Dreamer The Iridescence of Birds Modern Art Adventures Mix it Up Press Here Any Ed Emberley Book The Day the Crayons Quit Beautiful Oops Dog's Colorful Day Too Much Glue Harold and the Purple Crayon Day with No Crayons Artist to Artist Artist Ted The House Baba Built A Blue Butterfly: A Story of Claude Monet Sandy's Circus A is for Art The Artful Parent This Bridge Will Not Be Grey Art Workshops for Children Ok. Let's get to weaving some baby turtles! Let's Weave Some Baby Turtles! First we painted 3 mini popsicle sticks with quick dry solid tempera paint. (I LOOOVE these paints because we can paint quickly and if the baby starts crying and we have to stop crafting... it's not a big deal. There's not much cleanup or setup needed!) Once our paint dried (ours dried in a couple of minutes) we drew on a face and some toes. Then, we hot glued the turtle together. Now we grabbed our colorful yarn and got weaving. First I tied on a piece of long yarn. (I made sure to leave a bit of excess yarn so that I could tie my last piece of yarn with my first piece of yarn at the end.) Then, we wrapped the yarn around our turtle (across the center), making sure to cover the middle portion. (I think I wrapped it around 2-3 times each time.) Ok. Then, we began weaving just like you would with a normal two stick God's eye pattern. We placed our yarn over a popsicle stick, wrapped it around once, and then placed our yarn over the next popsicle stick, and wrapped it around... and kept repeating that over and around process. And to change colors, we simply tied on another piece of yarn. Once we finished, we tied our last piece of yarn to our first piece of yarn. And that's it! I really hope you try this activity with your kiddos too. It's such a fun and easy craft that's sure to please kids of all ages. (When my 4 year old saw me making these, he immediately wanted to make some too. I got the first steps started for him, but he quickly caught onto the "over and around" weaving pattern!) And if you liked this activity, you can find more weaving crafts and more popsicle stick crafts on the blog! Let's Keep in Contact! Check out my Pinterest, Facebook, or Instagram accounts for more creative ideas! Happy making, friends!

I had a few egg cartons left over from all of our egg dyeing festivities from Easter, so we decided to make some fun Spring themed crafts with them. I'm going to show you how

Learn how to make both a basic homopolar motor and a tiny dancing motor! Great science fair project for older kids!

Play, learn, eat, repeat.

We Love Valentine Day because it's the perfect time to go lovey dovey arty Here are 7 Charming Ideas for Valentine Crafts for Kids that we picked for you. What's not to love!

We've gotten hooked onto Pokemon Go. I kept holding off on the app, but once my husband showed my son.... he fell in love with the little critters, especially Pikachu. Pikachu was always my favorite too, so it was neat to share that with him. We recently made this super easy origami pikachu together. (Oh yes! Another paper folding craft!) It was such a fun kids craft that I'm sharing the step-by-step folding directions over here! How to Fold an Origami Pikachu This post contains affiliate links. Thank you so much for the grocery money! For my full disclosure policy, please click here. (And yes. These instructions are so easy that even an almost 5 year old can make it!) Four disclaimers before we start: 1) I found these directions over here for Pikachu's face. I added my own spin by adding a set of directions for the body. Both sets of directions are super simple! 2) I don't use yellow paper in the directions. Why? Well... because I also made an Origami Yoda! 3) If you would prefer to see video instructions, check out my friend Maggy over at Red Ted Art. She's got a great video Pikachu Origami tutorial. 4) Don't stop with this craft! Check out this adorably awesome 3D Perler Bead Pikachu and Squirtle Craft. Our Current Favorite Pokemon Finds: Pokemon Deluxe Handbook - This is our go-to reference manual. It shares stats on 700 pokemon. Yup. Pretty impressive! 50 Pokemon Assorted Cards - We just ordered these online and my son is super excited to get his first pack. I thought the price was pretty good, so I thought I'd share the link here. Let's Fold an Origami Pikachu Face! Grab your origami paper and let's get folding! 1. Fold your paper in half along the diagonal. 2. Then, fold up the bottom bit. (If you want thinner ears, don't fold your paper as high.) 3. Grab your right side and fold your paper up. Then grab your left side and fold your paper up. Then fold down your top pointy bit. 4. Flip your face over and add details with Sharpie Markers. Let's Fold an Origami Pikachu's Body! 1. Fold your paper in half. 2. Fold your paper in half again. 3 and 4. Place your hand into the opening and push down to create a triangle. 5. Flip your paper over. 6. Place your fingers into the opening. 7. And then push down again to create a triangle. 8. Fold down both corners so they meet in the middle. 9. Flip pit over and do the same to the other side. Then, just tape the top and bottom together! They're so, so, cute. Seriously. And, they stand too. What? Oh yeah. My son got a kick out of that. Pika! Pika! (Happy making, friends!) Psst- If you liked this post, you might also like making your own Origami Yoda!

Basic tips for trying Suminagashi for kids -- awesome painting technique!

We may earn money or products from the companies mentioned in this post. Please see policies for more information. We’ve gotten LOTS of comments on some updates we’ve done to our home throughout the years so I thought I’d share the latest that I am SO happy to have done. The door knobs! Goodbye cheap knobs that

How to make a robotic coloring machine for kids using items from your toy box.

Easy 3D Unicorn Card DIY. Learn how to make these 3D Unicorn Card DIY - either from scratch or make use of the free unicorn printables. Easy. Fun.

Rememebr you can purchase This and That Items Individually or Save 15% and purchase the bundle. Some companies call them Smash Book, smashing all your memories in a book. Here are some clever ideas on how you can use your...

Origami frogs, namely simple origami jumping frogs, that you and the kids can make in just a few minutes each, are the perfect craft for the Passover seder. And of course they'd work very nicely with the origami pyramids I...

There are so many cool ways to teach your kiddos about the parts of a plant. Whether you're looking for a simple worksheet or a more hands-on approach, we're certain your kinders will love any one of these great activities! Photo Source: madebyteachers.com Here's a simple worksheet from Made By Teachers. Students can cut out the labels and glue them next to the proper plant part. Photo Source: squishideasforpreschool.blogspot.com.au Have your kinders review the parts of a plant with this colorful puzzle from Homeschool Creations (included in the Gardening Preschool Pack). You can add a handwriting component by laminating the pieces and inviting your kinders to use a dry erase marker to trace the new vocabulary words once all of the puzzle pieces are in place. Photo Source: hummingbirded.com Throw in some fine motor fun with a "Parts of a Flower" play dough mat like this one from Mrs. Drake's Room. Students review as they form each part of the plant! Photo Source: Gregg Aultman Models are always fun; especially when they provide unique textures and materials! Gregg Aultman had his kiddos make and label a plant model created from a cupcake liner, beads, foam, a craft stick, and yarn. {We especially love the yarn 'roots'!} Photo Source: alittlelearningfortwo.blogspot.com Three dimensional models are also sure to be a hit! Check out this awesome tree model from A Little Learning For Two! [NOTE: This could also be tweaked to create a flower model too! Simply create a 3D tissue paper flower, attach it to a chenille stem for stability, and thread the pipe cleaner through a green drinking straw 'stem'. The roots can be created from yarn - tie multiple strands to the pipe cleaner hidden in the drinking straw and let them below the edge of the straw - and leaves can be created or purchased, then glued to the straw!] Photo Source: Mrs. Stensland There's one more activity - one that we've featured a few times, but that we figured we'd pass along again because we're certain your kiddos will get a kick out of it. Click on the picture to see how Mrs. Stensland and her students reviewed the parts of a plant by eating them! We hope you have fun with these activities & happy learning!

Download and print these knitting planner/crochet planner pages and get your fiber and supply stash organized!

Discover 26 brilliant, creative and thoughtful DIY items to handcraft to donate to your local nursing home.

This living room turned craft room is pretty much beyond amazing! Can you imagine having a space like that? WOW! Check out all the cool ideas for her space

Host a Dollar Store Minute to Win It night for a lot of laughs and fun for everyone. There are few supplies needed and it's easy to set up.

I made these in Linen and in a Double Knit, they are great because they hang slightly different depending on the fabric that you use. They are so EASY to make and you can alter them as much as you …

Materials Needed: Purple, yellow, tan paper Scissors Glue/tape Googly eyes Markers Watercolors Start by cutting a rectangle out of colored paper. Fold it back and forth until you get to the end. Pinch it together

Another way to integrate Art History into your lesson plans. This project looks specifically at the paintings of the Sistine Chapel. There is no need to get a close up picture for the students be…

Looking for the perfect handmade gift idea to secure your spot as favorite child this Mother’s Day? Need a yummy treat recipe that’s guaranteed to make Grandma smile? WeR…

Add construction makerspaces to your library with these simple ideas I found on Pinterest!

Mike mike mike guess what day it is?! CRAFT DAYYYYY! That’s about as amped as I get for Wednesdays…but anyway, last week I saw these cute little monster bookmarks on Pinterest that made…

Come Celebrate With Us at Village Knitters (click that link for more info….) Elizabeth Zimmermann’s Knitting Legacy Aug 9, 1910 – Nov 30, 1999 100 Year anniversary! August 9th – 6 to 9 pm! An…

Figuring out the first art project of the year with my kids is always a daunting task for me. This is why I was so excited when I found this pin of suncatchers on Pinterest (links back to the blog Make, Do, Play). I really wanted to do something that my students would have fun with and could easily be started late if new students joined my class throughout the week (I see mine for an entire week.. then rotate to the next class). My students absolutely LOVE origami and even though I'm not particularly skilled at it, the folds in this project were very simple.. so it was a easy choice! I started this project by reviewing both linear and radial symmetry with my students. We talked about the difference between the two.. then sorted a number of images based on their type of symmetry. Once I was sure my students had it down, I moved on to demonstrating two folds that they could use for the project. I folded two different examples on my document camera, while my 5th graders followed along on scrap paper. After showing them the two folds, they decided which one of the two radial suncatcher designs they wanted to create... then picked out their colors. I originally intended for this to be a color wheel lesson.. but you need to have 8 different colored papers for these designs and not 6 like a standard color wheel has. So instead they had free reign on their color choices (either way they were getting some color mixing lesson). **The paper we used was a semi-transparent colored origami paper . It think these really turned out beautifully and they were very simple to make! On Friday I hung them up in the cafeteria windows.. they look stunning in the morning light! :)

I’m teaming up with my friends at The Elementary Entourage blog for a fun filled Back to School Bash! We are bringing you tips, ideas, lessons, and most importantly, FREEBIES for this back to school season! One thing that I think is so important at the beginning of the school year is to build a […]