After creating our painted fireworks and origami 4th of July themed boats, we hated to waste the leftovers so we painted the outside of the TP rolls we had used as brushes. We cut up an old pillow case into 8Â x 8Â inch squares, filled the center with cotton batting, wrapped a rubber band around the outside making a ghost like shape. Then we painted the ‘head’ and added facial features. We tucked the ‘heads’ into the top of the TP tube and glued it in place.
We called them sea monsters over octopus because they had many more tentacle legs then eight! Some had two eyes and some, like this one shown in the picture was a cyclops.
This 4th of July we were inspired to make red, white and blue origami boats. We struggled a bit with the instructions in the book we had at home so we found great assistance in this You Tube Video:
In addition to the boats created in this video, we added tooth picks, washi tape flags and string to give our boats more of an ocean liner feel. Here are our 4th of July boats:
This 4th of July we took a clue from Pinterest and made painted fire works.
The first step is to gather used toilet paper rolls.
Next, cut one end like a fringe, don’t cut all the way to the other end – leave a good inch or two so you have something to hold on to.
Once the fringe is cut all the way around, flatten it out in preparation for using it like a brush to dip into paint.
Now, lay out several paper plates and pour different colors onto each plate. Dip the TP brushes into the colors, leaving one ‘tp brush’ assigned to each color so as not to mix them.
Stamp the ‘tp brush’ dipped in paint onto black construction paper. in fireworks patterns.
Now make as many as you have sheets of black construction paper.
This week we celebrate all things local! Get in on the action and spend your money on your local economy this week. Laboratory5 Inc is a locally owned business so naturally it is important to us to promote and celebrate all of our localists in AZ and around the country.
Check out some of your favorite local shops and business this week and get in on some great deals. Grab your golden ticket and get to shopping!
This week I am kicking off a summer long series inspired by our love of STEAM and nature. I will focus on all kinds of ways to get kids out of the house and off of their tech this summer. It can be hard for working parents to take kids out so I am going to give examples of quick walks, small container planting, and ‘gulp’ . . . unsupervised play.
Want to get started with planning to keep you kids from getting Nature-Deficit Disorder this summer? Start here and read Richard Louv‘s book Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children From Nature-Deficit Disorder
From the book:
“I like to play indoors better ’cause that’s where all the electrical outlets are,” reports a fourth-grader. Never before in history have children been so plugged in-and so out of touch with the natural world. In this groundbreaking new work, child advocacy expert Richard Louv directly links the lack of nature in the lives of today’s wired generation-he calls it nature deficit-to some of the most disturbing childhood trends, such as rises in obesity, Attention Deficit Disorder (Add), and depression. Some startling facts: By the 1990s the radius around the home where children were allowed to roam on their own had shrunk to a ninth of what it had been in 1970. Today, average eight-year-olds are better able to identify cartoon characters than native species, such as beetles and oak trees, in their own community. The rate at which doctors prescribe antidepressants to children has doubled in the last five years, and recent studies show that too much computer use spells trouble for the developing mind. Nature-deficit disorder is not a medical condition; it is a description of the human costs of alienation from nature. This alienation damages children and shapes adults, families, and communities. There are solutions, though, and they’re right in our own backyards. Last child in the Woods is the first book to bring together cutting-edge research showing that direct exposure to nature is essential for healthy childhood development-physical, emotional, and spiritual. What’s more, nature is a potent therapy for depression, obesity, and Add. Environment-based education dramatically improves standardized test scores and grade point averages and develops skills in problem solving, critical thinking, and decision making. Even creativity is stimulated by childhood experiences in nature.
Outdoor Dance Party!
Let’s make this the summer of outdoor play and exploration. We need more scientists and engineers and artists who are inspired by nature. The Children and Nature Movement is forming – Want to know more about how you can get involved? Click HERE