Make & Take Monday

Happy New Year! I have taken some time off and am ready to begin 2012. I hope you had a wonderful holiday season.

Paper Roll Bird Feeders

It dawned on me that January is bird feeding month and these poor creatures could use some food. So why not have your students create these simple bird feeders.

Materials:
Paper rolls (toilet paper, paper towel, or wrapping paper cut into smaller pieces)
Peanut butter (no sugar added)
Bird Seed
paper plates or newspapers
plastic knives

Directions:
1. Sprinkle bird seed on paper plate or newspaper
2. Spread peanut butter using plastic knife onto paper roll (or you could roll the paper roll in peanut butter) For a sensory experience spread the peanut butter with your hands!!
3. Roll the paper roll covered with peanut butter in bird seed. (Pat it on just for fun!)
4. Once the paper roll is covered with bird seed run a piece of string or yarn through the roll and hang it on a tree limb.
5. Watch the birds enjoy the seed!

Photos taken from The Moffatt Girls

Make & Take Monday

Homemade Felt Boards

Materials: a large picture frame with the glass removed; a piece of felt that is cut slightly bigger than your frame (black makes the felt pieces pop out).

Directions:
1. Center felt onto the back of your frame as if you were going to put a picture in the frame.
2. Pull the felt so it fits very tight. (The tighter the fit the better.)
3. Put the backing on and trim the excess felt.
4. Turn over and you have a felt board!

Idea taken from Jada Roo Can Do



Make & Take Monday

Extra Large Tablecloth Floor Mats

Materials:

• Felt-backed tablecloth or shower curtain liner (rectangle shape)
• Permanent Marker
• Yardstick (optional)

Directions:

1) Lay the tablecloth on the floor. Smooth out all of the wrinkles.

2) Decide how many squares you want and plan where you are going to draw your lines.

3) Trace your lines on the fold lines or use a yardstick to help keep lines straight.

4) Write the alphabet, one letter per square (in alphabetical order or mixed up).

5) If you have extra squares you could write numbers or other target skills.

6) Play!!

Variations for play:

• Beanbag Toss--toss a beanbag and say the letter name or sounds
• Look & Find--I told my son to find letters and stand on them.
• Move & Spell--Have your older tot spell three-letter words or names.
• ABC Match-Up--Match foam letters or other letter manipulative to the correct letter square
• Simon Says--"Simon says...jump on letter B two times."
• "Whack-A-Letter"--Give your tot a clean fly swatter to let them take a "whack" at letters you call out.

Variations for Tablecloth Mats:

• Numbers
• Shapes
• Sight Words
• Counting Routines (count by 2's, 5's, 10's)
• Computer Keyboard
• Anything!

Make & Take Monday

Make Your Own Crayons

Want to spice up your art and writing area - make your own crayons in fun and intersting shapes. And what a great way to recycle those broken pieces.

Materials: Bunches of old and broken crayons (without the paper); Some type of mold, like a silicon mold or even a metal mini cupcake pan (DO NOT re-use this for food!!); Cooling rack; Oven

Directions:
1. Unwrap your crayons and  break into small pieces. This is a fun job for the children. And a great fine motor activity too.
2. Place the broken pieces into your mold. You can use one color in each mold or mix your colors for a rainbow effect.
3. Bake at 300 degrees for 10 - 15 minutes.
4. Once completely melted, let cool on your cooling rack for about 30 minutes or until the crayons are hard again.
5.  Pop them out and your artists are ready to go!