The Mom I Want to Be

 

2 round wooden beads (we used one 16-millimeter and one 25-millimeter bead) with holes large enough for a doubled pipe cleaner to fit through

6-inch pipe cleaners

acrylic paint

craft feather (pom poms for bunnies)

fine-point marker

 

First, paint the beads with acrylic paint. When they have dried, bend a 6-inch pipe cleaner in half, sandwiching the end of a tiny craft feather in the fold.  Thread the smaller bead onto the opposite end of the pipe cleaner and slide the bead up to hide the bottom of the feather.  Thread the larger bead onto the pipe cleaner, then bend the ends of the pipe cleaner into feet.  Finally, use a fine-point marker to give your little chick eyes and a tiny beak.

 

You can do bunnies as well.  Use pipe cleaners to make ears.

 

 plastic 3-D letters

 paper

 markers

 shallow basket

 

Using the plastic letters, spell the child’s name on the paper. Trace the letters with the marker so that the child’s name is written on the paper. Color in the letters all the same color. Place the plastic letters that are in the child’s name in the shallow basket. Have the child pick letters from the basket and match them, one by one, to the corresponding letters on the paper. Continue until the child’s name is spelled. The child learns that his or her name is made up of letters and what those letters look like.

Vocabulary Words: Art in the Making of Architecture

 

Arch: Noun, a curved structure that spans an opening or supports a bridge or roof

 

Dome: Noun, a rounded roof built on a circular base

 

Column: Noun, an upright pillar usually having a cylindrical shaft, a base, and a capital                 

 

Capital: Noun. Architecture the top part of a pillar or column that is often decorated with elaborate ornament

 

Rendering: Noun a perspective drawing of an architect’s design and is usually a view of the outside of the finished building  Renderings are often in color, making them beautiful pieces of art.

 

Floor Plan: Noun a scale drawing of the interior layout of a building

 

Section: Noun a view through the middle of a building, as though the building was cut in half

 

Elevation: Noun a scale drawing of one side of a building, exterior elevation is a view of the outside of a building from one side

 

Eave: Noun the underside of a roof that extends beyond the outside wall of a building

 

 

I-beam: Noun  a steel joist with short flanges and a cross section formed like the letter I used in the structural part of a building

 

Joist: Noun a beam made of timber, steel, or concrete, used as a  support in the construction of floors and roofs

 

  Perspective: Noun a method of drawing that gives the effect of solidity and relative distances and sizes

 

Skelton Frame: Noun  freestanding frame of iron or steel supporting the weight of a building, on which the floors and outer walls are hung

 

Balcony: Noun  a platform accessible from a door or a window that projects from the face of a building

 

Façade: Noun the front or face of a building

 

Scale: Noun ratio between the size of something and a representation of it; “the scale of  the map”; “the scale of the model”

 

Proportion: Noun adjust in size relative to other things

 

 

Design a House with Frank Lloyd Wright

 

 

Divide into groups of five.  Each group will have a long piece of paper with which they will draw murals.  Each group will draw different murals:  ie: school neighborhood, castles, business neighborhood, and neighborhood of the 1800’s.   They will write an accompanying list, naming the buildings and what their functions are within the neighborhood.  Students will also identify the differences of the structures of the buildings according to their intended purpose. 

 

Write a story about living in a structure that is not ordinarily thought of as a home.  This could be a bakery, police station, movie theatre, garden center.

 

Closely observe and study the inside of the school.  Identify the various components that make up the structure of the school ie: doors, windows, ceiling, duct work, vents, and beams.  Draw a floor plan of the school.  Identify and label each of the rooms, offices, and surrounding grounds.

 

Measure the classroom using a tape measure.  Use graph paper to draw the room to scale, making each square equaling one foot.  Indicate the windows, doors, and other identifying items in the room and complete a floor plan of the classroom.

 

Discuss the job of an architect.  Create a list of questions an architect might ask their clients before building them a home.  Students will divide into pairs.  One student will be the architect and the other student the client.  Provide the architect student the list of questions he needs to ask his client to get the information he needs to build/draw a house structure for him.  Once the architect obtains the needed information he will draw a house plan for the client.  The architect will also draw and color on another paper the interior of a room the client chooses.  Students then reverse roles and do the same activity. 

 

Read the book The Wright 3 by Blue Balliett. In this architectural mystery, destruction threatens Frank Lloyd Wright’s Robie House and the characters piece together the puzzle that will lead to the building’s rescue. Obtain pentominoes and have students create designs with them.

 

Take photos of buildings such as houses, churches, stores, banks, libraries, in the neighborhood (or bring in pictures of various shaped buildings).  Sketch the buildings reducing them to basic geometric shapes such as squares, rectangles, cylinders, triangles.  Discuss how shapes influence the way buildings look.

 

Art Activity Option # 1: Design a New School Classroom

An architect designed your school classroom years ago.  Today you are going to design a new school room for your class. Plan your design first by thinking about what the room will be used for, who will be in the room, what is the shape and color of the room, what building materials will be used, what are the dimensions/size, what furniture will be in it.  Be sure to consider lightening, desks, windows, flooring, wall coverings, bulletin boards, and computers. What other special features will it have? What would the students see, touch or experience in the room? Using a pencil, sketch a floor plan of the room and indicate the dimensions and structural features such as the windows, doors, beams, and arches.   Indicate where furniture would be placed and keep in mind the proportion of the furniture to the room space. Color the designed classroom with crayons and add details.  Show your drawing to the class and discuss what is unique about your new classroom space.

 

Art Activity Option # 2:  My Home

Today you will draw a special building that you know more about than anyone else – your home.  If you live in an apartment, you will draw the picture of the building your apartment is in.  Draw your home the way it looks from the front.  Include any windows, doors, porch, lamps, driveway, garage, posts or columns, bricks, tiles, roof, shingles, chimney.  Think of all the special features that make your house unique from all the other houses.  Think about the size of the window in relation to the door, the angle of the roof, the color of the house, and the material your house is made of.  Think about the structures you saw in the Architecture Exhibit.  Does your house have any of those same features? Using a pencil, sketch your home.  After the sketch is a completed, use crayon to add color and detail to your drawing.   Discuss with the class the one feature of your home that makes it unique such as house numbers, shutters, columns, arches,

 

Art Activity Option # 3: My Dream Room

If you could have your own bedroom and have anything in it that you wanted, what would this room look like?  What shape would your dream room be?  What color would it be?  What furniture, windows, rugs, pictures, lighting, would the room have?  What would you see, touch or experience in your room?  How many people do you want the room to accommodate?   After planning your Dream Room, use a pencil to sketch the room, using lines and shapes.  Then complete the drawing using crayon to add color and details.   Discuss your drawing with the class and share why you used certain colors in your dream bedroom.

 

 

 

Daddy fixed breakfast.

He made us each a waffle.

It looked like gravel pudding.

It tasted something awful.

“Ha, ha,” he said, “I’ll try again.

This time I’ll get it right.”

But what I got was in between

Bituminous and anthracite.

“A little too well done? Oh well,

I’ll have to start all over.”

That time what landed on my plate

Looked like a manhole cover.

I tried to cut it with a fork

The fork gave off a spark.

I tried a knife and twisted it

Into a question mark.

I tried it with a hack-saw.

I tried it with a torch.

It didn’t even make a dent.

It didn’t even scorch.

The next time Dad gets breakfast

When Mummy’s sleeping late,

I think I’ll skip the waffles.

I’d sooner eat the plate!

 

John Ciardi

The letter L is a dependable letter.  It usually makes the “lll” sound as in let.  This is especially the case when the letter L is not partnered with another consonant

However, it is sometimes silent when followed by a consonant in the same syllable (as in should or walk).  This isn’t always the case… it isn’t silent, for example, in words like milk and told

This sometimes silent, sometimes not rule, makes the letter l tougher to teach than the extremely reliable letters (M, R and V).  In the beginning, stick to the typical “l” sound and later move to the exceptions to the rule.

1. Present a capitol and lower case L to your child.  See if she knows the name of the letter and the sound it makes.  Give examples of L words, such as letter, lollipop and library.  Reinforce the sound by singing “La La La” to your favorite tune.

2. Read Lyle, Lyle Crocodile

3. Go on a scavenger hunt around the house to find items that start with L for the L bag this week.  Look for lion, lemon, ladybug, ladder, lock, leaf, lettuce, lizard, lunchbox, etc

4. Create an L collage.  Have your child search through magazines for L words, and glue them to paper for her alphabet book.

5. Lip stick painted L’s.  Provide a cut out L, taped to wax paper for easy cleanup and some inexpensive lipsticks.  Have your child cover the entire L.  Glue to a sheet of paper, and then cover with clear contact paper (lipstick smudges easily), and place in alphabet book.

6. Provide a worksheet with a line of L’s to trace across the top and a blank spot below, Lion pattern, yellow, orange and black construction paper, 2 inch pieces of black yarn, markers, googly eyes or small round stickers, glue sticks.

 

7. Other activities: Sing Mary had a little Lamb, Make Lunch together, make lemonade or lemon muffins, lick lollipops, talk about the things you love, do a love collage, play with legos, create designs from lines

WHEN I go up through the mowing field,

The headless aftermath,

Smooth-laid like thatch with the heavy dew,

Half closes the garden path.

 

And when I come to the garden ground,

The whir of sober birds

Up from the tangle of withered weeds

Is sadder than any words.

 

A tree beside the wall stands bare,

But a leaf that lingered brown,

Disturbed, I doubt not, by my thought,

Comes softly rattling down.

 

I end not far from my going forth

By picking the faded blue

Of the last remaining aster flower

To carry again to you.

 

           Robert Frost

Green Science

 

50 Simple Things Kids Can Do to Save the Earth
LLC Andrews McMeel Publishing and The Earthworks Group

 

Cool Stuff and How It Works
Chris Woodford, Ben Morgan and Clint Witchalls

 

The Down-to-Earth Guide To Global Warming
Laurie David and Cambria Gordon

 

Earth
James Luhr

 

Earth Matters
David de Rothschild

 

Hoot
Carl Hiaasen

 

The Live Earth Global Warming Survival Handbook: 77 Essential Skills to Stop Climate Change
David de Rothschild

 

The Lorax
Dr. Suess

 

Pick Me Up
Jeremy Leslie and David Roberts

 

Roots, Shoots, Buckets & Boots: Gardening Together with Children
Sharon Lovejoy

 

Superkids: 250 Incredible Ways for Kids to Save the Planet
Sasha Norris

 

Tracking Trash: Flotsam, Jetsam, and the Science of Ocean Motion
Loree Griffin Burns

 

Worms Eat My Garbage: How to Set Up & Maintain a Worm Composting System
Mary Appelhof

 

 

Sound, Light, & Heat

 

Awesome Experiments in Light & Sound
Michael A. DiSpezio

 

Experiments with Light and Mirrors
Robert Gardner

 

Eyewitness: Light
David Burnie

 

Heat
Jacqueline A. Ball, Katie King, and Gareth Stevens Publishing

 

Heat
Jenny Karpelenia

 

Heat and Energy
Kathryn Whyman

 

Light and Color
Peter D. Riley

 

Rubber-Band Banjos and a Java Jive Bass
Alex Sabbath

 

Secrets of Sound
April Pulley Sayre

 

Sound and Light
David Glover

 

The Sound of Colors
Jimmy Liao

 

Sound Waves
Ian F. Mahaney

 

What Makes The Light Bright, Thomas Edison?
Melvin Berger

 

 

Sports Science

 

And Nobody Got Hurt!: The World’s Weirdest, Wackiest True Sports Stories
Len Berman and Kent Gamble

 

Baseball Science
James Bow

 

The Leaping, Sliding, Sprinting, Riding Science Book
Bobby Mercer and Tom LaBaff

 

Slam Dunk! Science Projects With Basketball
Robert Gardner and Dennis Shortelle

 

Soccer Science
Natalie Hyde

 

Sports
Julian Rowe

 

Sports Illustrated for Kids: The Amazing World of Sports
Editors of Sports Illustrated

 

Sports Science: 40 Goal-Scoring, High-Flying, Medal-Winning Experiments for Kids
Jim Wiese and Ed Shems

 

Sports Science Secrets: From Myth to Facts
Gordon W. Russell

 

Sportworks: More Than Fifty Fun Games And Activities That Explore The Science Of Sport
Ontario Science Center

 

 

Structures

 

Creating Clever Castles & Cars
Mari Rutz Mitchell & Michael Kline

 

Building
Andrew Haslam

 

Skyscrapers! Super Structures to Design & Build
Carol A. Johmann and Michael P. Kline

 

Skyscraper
Lynn Curlee

 

Bridges! Amazing Structures to Design, Build & Test
Carol A. Johmann, Elizabeth Rieth, and Michael P. Kline

 

Bridges Are to Cross
Philemon Sturges

 

Building Big
David Macaulay

 

Architects Make Zigzags
Diane Maddex

 

Frank Lloyd Wright for Kids
Kathleen Thorne-Thomsen

 

Buildings in Disguise
Joan Marie Arbogast

 

Build It! Structures, Systems, and You
Adrienne Mason and Claudia Davila

 

 

Chemistry

 

The Periodic Table
Adrian Dingle

 

It’s Elementary!
DK Publishing

 

What Is the World Made Of?
Kathleen Weidner Zoehfeld and Paul Meisel

 

Chemistry
Ann Newmark and Laura Buller

 

Cool Chemistry Concoctions
Joe Rhatigan, Veronika Gunter, and Tom La Baff

 

Amazing Kitchen Chemistry
Cynthia Light Brown

 

Icky Sticky Foamy Slimy Ooey Gooey Chemistry
Kristine Petterson and Andrew Crabtree

 

What Can I Do? The Science Spiders Learn Acid-Base Chemistry
Kathleen E Kain

 

 

Habitats

 

Animal Habitats!
Judy Press and Betsy Day

 

The Magic School Bus Hops Home
Pat Relf and Nancy Stevenson

 

Kids’ Easy-to-Create Wildlife Habitats
Emily Stetson and J. Susan Cole Stone

 

One Small Square Series
Donald M. Silver

 

I See a Kookaburra!
Robin Page and Steve Jenkins

 

Dinosaur Habitat
Helen V. Griffith and Sonja Lamut

 

Discovering Rain Forests
Discovering the Arctic Tundra
Discovering Mountains
Discovering the Tropical Savanna
Janey Levy

 

The Field Guide to Rain Forest Animals
Nancy Honovich

 

 

Animals

 

Beaks!
by Sneed B. Collard

 

The Best Beak in Boonaroo Bay
by Narelle Oliver

 

Unbeatable Beaks
by Stephen R. Swinburne

 

Animal Encyclopedia
by Jayne Parsons and Barbara Taylor

 

Every Living Thing
by Cynthia Rylant and S.D. Schindler

 

Hands-On Life Science Activities for Grades K – 8
by Marvin N. Tolman

 

How Smart Is Your Dog?: 30 Fun Science Activities with Your Pet
by D. Caroline Coile

 

Bet You Can’t!
by Vicky Cobb and Kathy Darling

 

Sports Science: 40 Goal-Scoring, High-Flying,
Medal-Winning Experiments for Kids by Jim Wiese

 

 

Earth Science

 

Cave Sleuths: Solving Science Underground
by Laurie Lindop

 

Don’t Know Much about Planet Earth
by Kenneth C. Davis

 

Shake, Rattle, and Roll: The World’s Most Amazing Volcanoes, Earthquakes, and Other Forces
by Spencer Christian and Antonia Felix

 

Glaciers (True Books: Earth Science)
by Larry Dane Brimner

 

You Are the Earth: Know the Planet So You Can Make It Better
by David Suzuki

 

Shaping the Earth
by Dorothy Hinshaw Patent

 

 

Forces and Motion

 

Awesome Experiments in Force & Motion
by Michael A. DiSpezio

 

The New Way Things Work
by David Macaulay

 

Isaac Newton: Giants of Science
by Kathleen Krull and Boris Kulikov

 

Jan VanCleave’s Engineering for Every Kid: Easy Activities That Make Learning Science Fun
by Janice VanCleave

 

Ancient Machines: From Wedges to Waterwheels
by Michael and Mary Woods

 

 

Human Body

 

When Objects Talk: Solving a Crime with Science
by Terry M. Phillips

 

Uncover the Human Body
by Luann Colombo and Jennifer Fairman

 

Encyclopedia of the Human Body
By Jayne Parsons

 

The Healthy Body Cookbook: Over 50 Fun Activities and Delicious Recipes for Kids
by Joan D’Amico

 

Louis Pasteur: Hunting Killer Germs
by E.A.M. Jakab

 

Germs (Great Medical Discoveries)
by Don Nardo

 

101 Questions About Your Immune System
by Faith Byrnie

 

 

Inventions

 

Ice Cream: Including Great Moments in History
by Jules Older

 

Ice Cream: The Full Scoop
by Gail Gibbons

 

Ice Cream Treats: The Inside Scoop
by Paul Fleisher

 

Henry and the Kite Dragon
by Bruce Edward Hall

 

How Ben Franklin Stole the Lightning
by Rosalyn Schanzer

 

The Kite Fighters
by Linda Sue Park

 

Kites: Twelve Easy-to-Make High Fliers
by Norma Dixon

 

Visual Timeline of Inventions
by Richard Platt

 

How Things Work
by Carol Vorderman

 

The New Way Things Work
by David Macaulay

 

Boat (Eyewitness Books series)
by Eric Kentley

 

Boats, Ships, Submarines, and Other Floating Things (How Things Work series)
by Ian Graham

 

On Board the Titanic (I Was There series)
by Shelley Tanaka

 

Until I Met Dudley: How Everyday Things Really Work
by Roger McGough and Chris Riddel

 

Chuck Close, Up Close
by Jan Greenberg and Sandra Jordan

 

Georges Seurat (Getting to Know the World’s Greatest Artist series)
by Mike Venezia

 

Monet and the Impressionists for Kids
by Carol Sabbeth

 

Murals: Walls That Sing
by George Ancona

 

Museum Guides for Kids: Impressionist Art
by Ruthie Knapp and Janice Lehmberg

 

Space

 

Apollo 13 (American Moments series)
by Alan Pierce

 

James Lovell: The Rescue of Apollo 13 (The Library of Astronaut Biographies)
by Jan Goldberg

 

Team Moon: How 400,000 People Landed Apollo 11 on the Moon
by Catherine Thimmesh

 

You Wouldn’t Want to Be on Apollo 13!
by Ian Graham

 

Backpack Books: 1001 Facts About Space
by Sue Grabham

 

DK Space Encyclopedia
by Nigel Henbest and Heather Couper

 

Space
by Carole Stott

 

Cosmic Science: Over 40 Gravity-Defying, Earth-Orbiting, Space-Cruising Activities for Kids
by Jim Wiese

 

 

General Science

 

Popular Science: Almanac for Kids
by Brainpop.com

 

DK Science Encyclopedia
by DK Publishing

 

Science in Seconds for Kids: Over 100 Experiments You Can Do in Ten Minutes or Less
by Jean Potter

 

The Everything Kids’ Science Experiments Book: Boil Ice, Float Water, Measure Gravity-Challenge the World Around You!
by Tom Robinson

 

Hands-On Physical Science Activities for Grades K-8
by Marvin N. Tolman

 

Janice VanCleave’s Earth Science for Every Kid: 101 Easy Experiments that Really Work
by Janice VanCleave

 

How Come? Every Kid’s Science Questions Explained
by Kathy Wollard and Debra Solomon

 

Making a bean bag can be a very fun project for lots of people, but sometimes it is difficult to get the younger kids involved and keep them safe at the same time. Sewing can be a challenging task for anyone and especially for kids who don’t have any experience with needles and thread. So here are some ideas for making bean bags that don’t require any sewing and that anyone in the family can participate in.

 

One of the easiest bean bag crafts to make uses a sock, beans and some markers to color. It is nice to use a sock that is still in good shape because you don’t want to use one with a hole in the bottom because then all the beans will fall out. With the permission of a parent, choose a sock that can be used and that will still be durable enough to use as a toy. Fill the sock up to the heel with beans and tie a knot to seal it off. Then simply draw a face or other design on the sock to decorate it and make it look great. This idea makes a fairly large bean bag depending on the size of the sock, so smaller socks may work better depending on what you are going for. This bean bag idea is also great because it doesn’t require any sewing and doesn’t have to be permanent either if you want to reuse the sock later.

 

Another common material used for making bean bags is simple felt fabric. This is great for bean bags because it is somewhat rigid and is easy to work with. Another great reason to use felt is that you don’t have to sew it together but can use other materials like glue to hold it together. Hot glue guns are the best kind of glue for bean bags and using this can be challenging for some children and there is also the possibility of getting burned. If you will be using hot glue to complete this project, then make sure the kids are being supervised at all times and that they know the proper techniques before starting. The bean bag is made by cutting out two identical shapes out of the felt and then putting any designs on them you want. Glue all of the sides together but one that you will need to stay open to put in the beans. Make sure that the opening you leave is big enough for the beans to fit in easily. When you have the right amount of beans in the bag, close the rest of the bag carefully with the glue gun and then you are finished.

 

There is another kind of bean bag that doesn’t require any fabric at all but can still be fun to play with and attractive. To make this bean bag craft, you will need some dried beans, a sandwich bag, some scissors, and duct tape. Start by pouring the beans into the sandwich bag and then tie it off with a knot that will not come undone easily. Then either cut off the extra part of the bag (recommended for zipper bags) or just wrap it around the beans again. Then cut strips of duct tape and wrap them around the bag of beans until it is fully sealed and will not spill even if the plastic bag breaks. Then you can decorate the outside of the bag with permanent markers or paint to make each bag unique. Let the bags dry before you play with them so your hands don’t get messy. When the bag is finished, you can use them for juggling or just to throw around with friends.