Learning to write craft project

So, my amazing three year old recently learned how to write her name.  I wanted to continue to encourage her to learn her letters, so we came up with this fun craft to practice them.  We use erasable markers so that she can practice her letters over and over again.

Make a craft that encourages kids to learn to write:

• Poster board (you could do a smaller version with cardstock)
• Markers
• Pencil
• Ruler or yard stick
• Scissors
• Contact paper

What you need to make this reusable writing poster.

Measure out your lines. We did larger ones at the top for learning the letters and smaller ones at the bottom to practice them.

Trace your lines to look like the paper you used in elementary school.

We used green on the top (for “go” or “start”), a yellow dashed line in the middle (for “caution”), and a red line at the bottom for “stop.”  I also wrote the alphabet, numbers, and basic shapes in the middle so Dot could use them as examples when learning to write.

Lay the poster out on your contact paper, cutting two pieces and then affixing one to the back and one to the front.

I left about 1 1/2" around the edges to make sure I had enough and then trimmed it down.

Look what a great job my super-brilliant girl did! (She wrote the one on the right, which is probably obvious.)

I didn't want to waste the back, so I colored it like a picture frame, and she can doodle on that erasable surface, too.

What I Learned the Hard Way: I got dry erase markers for this, and they don’t come off quite as well as I was hoping.  Using washable ones and wiping it off with water might be a better way to go.

Related Pages: Printable Cell Diagrams, Solar System Projects

3D Cell Model Project

Here’s one of those projects I’ve been putting off posting for a very long time. The evidence is clear: that’s last years’ pumpkin patch in the background!

What You Need to Make a 3D Cell Model

Cell Model Styrofoam Balls

• 2 Styrofoam balls, one 6 inches in diameter, the other 1 1/2 inches in diameter:
• Play dough in at least 6 different colors (we used a set from the dollar store, but you can also make your own play dough).
• 10 inch square piece of foam core board
• Paper scraps
• Toothpicks
• Small piece of plastic or saran wrap (about 3 inches square)
• Pen or marker
• Clear tape

How to Make a 3D Cell Model

Grab a cell diagram to use as a guide for creating cell parts: My son made an animal cell model, but you can do a plant cell model of course, too.

Have an adult cut the styrofoam balls in half with a steak knife (older kids can probably handle this on their own).

Covering the Styrofoam with Play Dough

BTW, the color choices we used were pretty arbitrary – go with whatever works for you. Start by putting a bit of play dough in the center of the flat side of the large ball and place the small ball on top of it. The play dough acts like a glue to keep the pieces together. Then start covering the small half ball (the cell nucleus) with one color and then the area around it with a different color.

Creating the Cell Model Nucleus

Using the diagrams as a guide, start adding cell components out of different colors of play dough. This will make them easy to distinguish when you need to label them later.

Complete Unlabeled Animal Cell Model

When complete, cut a circle in the center of the foam core board about 2 inches in diameter as seen above. Then cut a small piece of plastic wrap to cover it before you place the cell model into the hole. This will protect any surface you place the model on when finished.

Protecting the Cell Model Bottom with Plastic

Place the finished cell model onto the plastic and nest it into the hole to keep it in place. You can cut away the excess plastic and then cover up the ends with a little more play dough like this:

Mounting the Cell Model to the Foam Core Board

(BTW – that top edge looks pretty janky in this photo. We cleaned that up a lot before he turned it in!!)

Gently turn the cell model over and place toothpicks into the bottom like in this photo to keep the model snug in place on the mounting board.

Securing the Cell Model to the Board

Lastly, have your child write out the names of all the cell parts on small pieces of paper and make little flags out of them with toothpicks and tape. Then have your child place the flags in the appropriate spots to label the parts like this:

Finished Animal Cell Model Project

If you want to add the title like I did to the mounting board, I just typed that up in Word and printed it out. Otherwise it’s done!

My boy got an A on this assignment, and he had a blast making it. In fact, my other daughter wanted to make one, too, even though she is 2 years younger and had no such assignment from her teacher.

President George Washington is immortalized on our refrigerator this Presidents Day

I thought Presidents Day offered a great opportunity to start introducing Dot to some of the best lessons of American history.  I was looking for something to teach her about either George Washington or Abraham Lincoln, as they’re the two most often recognized on this holiday in February.  The angle I went with, however is probably actually only a myth and never really happened.  Oh, well.  I think “don’t lie” is a good lesson, so I’m willing to perpetuate the myth if it gets the moral across.

First I told Dot about how George Washington owned up to his behavior.  Then I realized she doesn’t get what a “lie” is.  We’ve been working on it all day, and I’m not entirely sure that I didn’t just teach her how to be dishonest.  Time will tell.  ;-)

To make this tissue paper cherry tree, you will need:

• Construction paper
• Crayons
• Tissue paper
• White glue
• Scissors
• Pencil

I recycled tissue paper from birthday presents.

Cut the tissue paper into small squares.  (Mine were not exact.)

You need lots of green and just a bit of red.

Draw the outline of a tree on your construction paper.

Wrap a tissue square around the eraser end of your pencil and dip it in glue.

Stick the green tissue paper where the leaves would go.

Occasionally use a red square as the cherries on your tree.

Fill in the entire space. I added "I cannot tell a lie" as a reminder of the lesson.

What I Learned the Hard Way: The squares I cut were pretty small, and Dot just couldn’t hold them around the end of the pencil to affix them to the tree.  So, we did an easier version for her, where I spread some glue around on the top of the tree, and she just added tissue paper squares.  Here’s the preschool version:

I cannot tell a lie, the original project was too hard for my three-year-old.

Related pages: Truffula Trees craft, The Lorax activities, Dr. Seuss Activities

Dr. Seuss Cat in the Hat Craft

Cat in the Hat Finger Puppets Materials

I’ve placed a photograph next to each finger puppet with the exact materials needed for each finger puppet. All of them require a very easy to find set of stuff:

Pipe Cleaners

Pom Poms

Googly Eyes

Glue (Hot glue gun works best, but I’ve since discovered that even regular glue will suffice, it just takes longer to dry)

Wire Cutters (So you don’t ruin your scissors cutting the pipe cleaners)

Also, to make the Cat in the Hat’s whiskers, you need a small 3 inch piece of black thread

General Finger Puppet Craft Instructions

Please refer to the original Easter finger puppets post for general assembly instructions.

It explains how to wind the pipe cleaners around your finger and how to attach the pom poms accurately.

Cat in the Hat Finger Puppet

Cat in the Hat Finger Puppet Craft

For the Cat in the Hat, you’ll need 2 red pipe cleaners, one white, and two black (the black used together to make the finger puppet base). Plus a 4 inch black piece bent as shown to make the arms.

First, wind the puppet base with the two black pipe cleaners.

Then make the Cat in the Hat hat (say that three times fast!):

Pipe Cleaner Seuss Hat

First you’ll wind a red and white pipe cleaner around your finger to make the top, then after three turns, start winding them together to make the brim. The wire is so easy to work with and so forgiving, don’t worry if it seems to come out all wonky – it’s super easy to fix into whatever shape you want. To make the top of the hat, simply coil the top pipe cleaner piece a little smaller as shown in the last photo in the series above.

Glue the hat to the white pom pom.

Bend two small black pieces of pipe cleaner as shown for ears, and glue them to the sides of the head just below the hat.

Cut the thread into two 1 1/2 inch pieces, and glue them to the back of the tiny black nose pom pom. This is a little tricky because both are so small – younger children might need help with this part.

Glue the nose to the middle of the front of the cat face.

Glue the googly eyes right above the nose.

Glue the head to the puppet base.

Slide the cat’s arms in between the coils of the puppet base body.

Tie a ‘bow’ with a red pipe cleaner around the neck, and use your wire cutters to trim the extra length of the ends off.

Thing One and Thing Two Finger Puppets

Thing One and Thing Two Finger Puppets Craft

The materials shown will make both of these puppets – 4 red pipe cleaners plus two sets of arms bent as shown, two 2 inch pieces of white pipe cleaners, two white pom poms, one turquoise pom pom, 4 googly eyes, two tiny light blue pom poms.

Wind the puppet base with two red pipe cleaners coiled together.

Find the middle of the blue pom pom and snip it in half with your wire clippers or scissors:

Thing One and Thing Two Hair

Pull them apart very carefully so that the two sides stay intact. Quickly put a LOT of glue onto the blue hair and get it on top of the white pom pom head – otherwise the fuzzies will fly everywhere and make your nose itch.

Glue the nose onto the face and the googly eyes on top of the nose.

Slide the arms in between the coils of the puppet base body.

Coil the small white pipe cleaner into a tiny circle, and glue it to the front of the puppet body

Glue the head to the puppet body.

More Finger Puppet Crafts

Easter finger puppets

Halloween finger puppets – and more of them

Thanksgiving finger puppets

Alien finger puppets

Now that school has started again, I’ve been doing a lot more crafts for teachers (ohhh, the posts that are on the way!!!). I have a few projects I need to dig up from when I used to work in day care, but this one I developed just yesterday to accompany my Lorax Activities post on Classroom Jr.

You might also love this Cat in the Hat craft as much as I do!

Lorax Activity - Truffula Trees Craft

What You Need to Make this Truffula Trees Craft

Truffula Trees Lorax Craft Materials

1 yellow and black striped pipe cleaner (found mine at Hobby Lobby – or buy animal striped pipe cleaners from Discount School Supply)

4 multi colored pom poms (to be true to The Lorax book, use yellow, red/pink, purple and orange)

Green Play Dough (here’s a gluten-free play dough alternative or make your own play dough)

A square of tissue paper for the base (really, anything can work here, including not using anything at all)

Glue

How to Make Truffula Trees

Have an adult clip the pipe cleaner into 4 segments, any length will do, and they don’t have to be even.

Pour out some glue and let the kids dip one end of the pipe cleaner into the glue, getting a good sized drop on top:

Gluing the Truffula Trees Craft

Stuff the glued end of the pipe cleaner into a pom pom – I use a hot glue gun because it’s a little easier, but even just regular Elmer’s Glue sticks remarkably well.

Repeat for the next three pom poms and pipe cleaner segments, making four Truffula Trees.

Slap the green play dough onto the tissue paper and push the sides down a little to make it look like a hill. Again, there’s no right way to do this, pretty much any slap of the dough onto a surface will look good.

Stick the four Truffula Trees into your green play dough ‘hill’.

Done!

Here are more recycled crafts for Earth Day and conservation minded peeps, plus check out these How Do Plants Grow printable activities or these Earth Day printables, too!

Craft Materials List

Colorations Wheat & Gluten-Free Dough – 5 1/2 lbs.

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Jumbo Assorted Wild Animal Pipe Cleaners

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Pom Pom Classroom Pack – 700 Pieces