Halloween and Day of the Dead crafts

It was a crisp 46 degrees when I came into work this morning and the leaves are changing color so that means that fall is indeed on the way. Besides fall crafts, a big hit this time of the year is Halloween crafts and Day of the Dead crafts. For more information on the Day of the Dead celebration you can check this website.

Skeletons aren't scary when they're done with construction paper and q-tips such as the one below. This next one is a cute little skeleton that can be done by little ones ages.  For these and a host of other skeleton templates check here.

                            




Games for preschoolers and little ones are a fun part of Halloween as well.  This tic tac toe game is easy to use and if you laminate the pieces you can reuse it year after year.

                           



Crafts are an awesome way to help build motor skills and coordination and of course let kiddos express their creativity.  These pumpkins are simple to make and depending on the skill level of your kids you can either cut out the pieces beforehand or let them go to town.

                               

                      



Papel picado is an awesome decorated paper (it means perforated paper). I found some cute decorations online that would be wonderful in classrooms. This video shares how to make papel picado calveras.

Lists of books and crafts for Black History Month

Things have been hectic lately but I still wanted to drop a short post today highlighting some great  lists I found. I like lists as they usually enable me to pick and choose items. Even the worst list has at least one valuable tidbit. So here goes...

This PBS list provides a short summary as well as some themes the book explores. The books are written from a variety of perspectives and thus are a wonderful tool to help young ones of all ethnic origins.

It's not always easy to find books about Black heroes so this buzzfeed list is timely and very useful. I will be the first to admit that I don't frequent buzzfeed's website (the few times I have, I found it to be frivolous) but this list has made me view the editors in a different light. Activists, ball players and chefs are just some of the folks featured.





                    




Do you have a middle grade reader?  How about this list featuring middle grade books that feature the black experience- from slavery to civil rights to life in the so-called post racial era. I've read the excellent One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia but I need to add more of the books here to my to-read list. I would like to see some more boy friendly titles added to it as well.


If you are teaching at a preschool, after school center or simply want some crafts to celebrate Black History month, this site has 29 crafts (one for every day and one extra). I would add that several of the crafts reference Pinterest so that may be another resource to find similar things.


Last but not least, one of my go-to sites, education.com has compiled a comprehensive list of activities for Black History Month (everything from making a Jackie Robinson baseball card to making a shekere). Check it out here.

Sensory programs at libraries, children's museums and the like

 I am the parent of a child with sensory processing disorder (SPD). In a nutshell this means that he has trouble processing stimuli in order to respond appropriately to the demands of the environment. Over the years my wife and I have worked with his school in order to help his teachers find ways to ease the sensory burden (he has sensory chews, fidgets etc.)

Here are some of the questions that are always going through my mind as a parent of a child with SPD.

How do we help our child self regulate?
How do we make our kiddo comfortable in a noisy program or when kids are too noisy for him?
How do we help other parents know that his body can't control itself sometimes and he goes straight to "lizard brain" bypassing "wizard brain" completely?

What are some simple ways that libraries, museums and other places can help make things less stressful for children with sensory issues and their parents and caregivers. Programs that cater to the needs of this growing segment are becoming more popular.

I have seen:
*Programs where kiddos make sensory play things, fidgets, eye spy rice jars and the like
*Storytimes that have a visual schedule and with books that are interactive. Here is a how-tosensory storytime blog that ALSC did several years ago

Below are some other crafts that can be made simply and relatively inexpensively

Some parents and caregivers are not attentive, as a library professional who has worked in three different library systems in a large urban area I can attest to this. So, there may be times where staff may have to gently redirect kiddos. This guide I received a few weeks ago from one of my lists provides some tips to help refocus tired, hyper or restless students.

Transitions are always rough- in the classroom and in storytime...Some ways to help sensory kids are to have a few phrases that let them know that one activity is about to end and another is about to begin:
-5 more minutes Timmy
-We will finish this activity in a few minutes and then move on to something else
-Sing: "Clean up, clean up, everybody clean up"

Be patient, it is not an easy fix and there is no one size fits all solution. Parents will appreciate your efforts to help their kiddos!

Let 'em play: Building Creativity in Young Children through Self-Directed Activities

Some of my library colleagues here in Colorado, Katie O'Brian and Kristen Bodine and Andrea Cleland both did presentations at CLEL's recently concluded conference in which they talked about child-centered programs.

Here is what I gathered:
-focus on the process rather than the product. It is not helpful to anyone to have parents and caregivers yelling at their little ones just because they aren't doing it right

-let children explore a material. If they want to talk about the clay or wood then let them do so. The goal is to expose them to a variety of materials that they may not necessarily see each day

-it's not necessary to provide a sample or a template and there is not necessarily a right answer...whatever kids do is the correct answer. Many schools prioritize teaching to the test so often library programs are one of the few places kids can have some spontaneity and autonomy

-some developmental benefits are increased motor skills, greater self expression, sensory exploration, spatial ability, decision making

For highlights from these and other great presentations check this link, we should have most of the session materials loaded here soon.

Here are a few pics:

Olympic-themed crafting for kids

For those who love crafts with an athletic theme this summer is something that they have been eagerly awaiting. The Olympics start in early August but I have already seen a nearby library with a craft program based on the Olympics. At our branch we are fortunate to have a big green space in the front of the building which is perfect for games such as running tic tac toe and so forth.

For me, I love to see the Olympic flame enter the stadium. Crowds line up on the streets just to cheer whoever is carrying it.  The craft below allows any child to pretend that just for a moment they are the ones with all the glory. How cool would it be to have kids make this in a program and then parade through the library.

.                                                   


Whenever we see images of Greek gods they are often wearing a toga and one of those cool wreaths. Little ones may well want to put one of these on after gluing and sticking it together.

                                                              

The Olympic rings are iconic symbols known the world over. Here are some ideas I found across the web to represent said rings.

 

Instead of the rings perhaps little ones can use hand prints (be careful with the mess!)

                           Cool glasses that the kiddos can use to show their Olympic spirit.

These are just a few of what's out there but they are a good starting point. The Olympics only come around once every four years so it's perfectly fine to be hyped about them!

Seuss celebration!

Last week was Theodore Seuss Geisel's (better known as Dr. Seuss) birthday. Libraries across the country if not the world.  Most libraries start planning these events months before and at our branch this was the case. Thank goodness for Google Drive and Pinterest. In our library system we use Drive to create documents for programs and share with each other. One of my coworkers has been almost begging us to use Slack as well so perhaps we may start to use this platform in the future.


The actual celebration was a bit more low key than in other years but I still wanted to share some of the pictures. This was not the best picture I could find of the Seuss hats we made but kudos to our volunteers who cut and cut and cut to get all these pieces ready.  If you are reading this and you work in a library and don't have volunteer help, try to get some as soon as you can. They take some of the load off you and your staff.

My sons enjoyed themselves at the Seuss silly photo booth. We had a variety of props that have accumulated over the years and we store these in a big storage box.  We thought about using the curtains you see in the picture as a backdrop but decided not to. The library system has a green screen that could be used for a program such as this so that may be an option to pursue in the future.

These thing 1 and 2 stick puppets were my favorite thing on the day itself. What surprised me was that kids young and old made them. I think the cuteness must have factored into it. Googly eye clean up afterward wasn't too bad either

Til next time!

A-maze-ing winter crafts

     First, before I say anything else I must give props to my colleagues in the Children's department of the Denver Public Library and in particular Amy Forrester. She was the mastermind behind a huge family friendly Harry Potter-themed maze made of cardboard. After the event she generously allowed staff at other branches to recycle the maze however they wanted.

     My colleagues and I jumped at the chance and we decided to make the maze winter-themed. The timing was right since area schools are on winter break until the first week of January and we are also on a story time break. Whenever we are on a story time break we usually try to have other events for families to do when they come to the branch.  This maze could never have come together without the help of a small army of coworkers, volunteers and helpers. Thank you!!



Here are some of the crafts that my colleagues Melody and April came up with.


This bird feeder uses chenille sticks and cheerios. Kids can twist the sticks into whatever shape they want. We saw some wacky shapes!










 







 Kids will use a penguin template, cotton balls, googly eyes and other little pieces to make their own creation.












This activity was actually on the back of the maze itself. For some reason it reminds me of the old Price is Right game Plinko. I know my own sons enjoyed it very, very much.

 These last few crafts were some simple things that I may use this year after we take the maze down or use next holiday season. I am blessed to have a very artsy teen volunteer, the reindeer came out looking even better than the picture online!   (She also drew the Yeti in the maze)

Last week I had my volunteer make some example tree ornaments for me to use with our weekly craft hour.

















Finally here is a short vid that I put together of the maze itself. Enjoy!  Happy Holidays!

National Hispanic Heritage Month crafts

National Hispanic Heritage Month runs from September 15th through October 15th and during this time we recognize the many and varied accomplishments Hispanics and Latinos have made to American culture, politics and life in general. If your city has school groups that do folkloric dance I bet those groups would be willing to perform at community events or at libraries and other community places. Such a program would be excellent and a craft would be the icing on the cake. If no such group is available then crafts are an excellent way to celebrate the month.

Some of these crafts I have done and some I am yet to try. This first craft is one of my all time favorites because it is easy and it allows for an explanation about the tradition of lucha libre in the Spanish-speaking world.




I like recycle crafts because I can teach the kids a simple lesson without being too preachy. This particular craft involves using old paper grocery bags to make sarapes.  Kids can be as creative as they want too and I usually have some made before hand as well as pictures of some so the kids can get an idea of what they're supposed to look like.




Another cool craft that is easy to make and that can be part of a craft/music program is a shaker or maraca. These can be used in a small ensemble and kids usually enjoy shaking the life out of them. Toilet paper rolls, empty tin cans, plastic cups and paper plates can all be used to make these.

 


Learning a language is learning a culture and part of that is knowing what certain words are and their significance. A small picture dictionary is a fun way for kids to increase their vocabulary as well as solidify their letter knowledge. 



Ojo de dios are classic crafts and kids of all ages can complete them with a little help and a short demo.




Addtional resources:

Scholastic's Hispanic Heritage Month site has games, information about famous Latinos as well as a teacher's guide.

Time for kids is another excellent site with crafts, activities, printables and profiles of influential Hispanic Americans.

Here are some fantastic books to share with children about Hispanic Heritage month.

The National Education Association (NEA) has a trove of lessons, activities and other ways to celebrate the month.

Back to School crafts

Believe it or not summer is over and the kiddos are going back to school. For the little ones, the first few days are usually spent teaching the rules, getting to know each other and practicing routines.

Some teachers incorporate crafts into those first days because it helps build hand muscles that will be used to practice writing letters and numbers later on. I have scoured the web to find some crafts that will appeal not only to teachers but also to homeschoolers, librarians and those of that ilk.



I did the pencils below last week at craft hour and they were delightful. Parents and kids alike found them to be very cute and of course they can be personalized to suit individual desires. In the pic below the pencil tip is drawn on but I glued a piece of construction paper onto the pallet stick and used a sharpie to color the tip and it looked just fine.

                                                    


For tomorrow's craft I plan to decorate pencils and pens with yarn, here are two of the samples that I have to show. I added the pom poms as a pièce de résistance!

Pencil toppers are always a nice idea and you can use chenille sticks and any number of materials. But I found these pretty simple crafts using craft foam, scissors, glue and some markers.

Crafts aren't only for little ones however and for this craft you can get older kids to help out although I think that when they see the colorful duct tape they will want to dive right in. I have seen duct tape wallets, pouches, bracelets and such but this duct tape lanyard is perfect for kids who may have to have keys, school ids and such within easy reach (somehow putting things in bookbags doesn't always work). These simple duct tape lanyards are useful, colorful and original.

Often on social media I see parents post pics of their little ones holding signs saying "I'm a 4th grader" etc so I wanted to find some cool signs since I myself am thinking about doing that this year with my two sons. This link has a ton of  them in all colors and some can be customized as you like. Be careful however as it is easy to spend an hour or more just browsing. Until next time, happy crafting!

Foam Crafts

Last week in our craft hour I decided to do a simple foam craft with various foam shapes glued on to foam rectangles that I cut. I decided to make them small so the kids would have to maximize  their effort and also because I knew that a large surface would have taken longer to fill. I wanted to strike a balance between the kids having just enough fun without being overwhelmed and getting frustrated.  I kept it simple and used:

1. foam shapes   2. foam squares  3. glue  4. scissors                                                                         

My son made this creation to show his love for all things ninja turtle. He did way more cutting than I thought he would; he actually cut a piece of another larger foam bit to make the bo staff and he cut the TMNT letters as well.  I love how he made the shell out of a circle and then wrote Donatello on some small foam pieces.  I don't expect a younger child to be able to do this craft without some serious help but I just wanted to show what can be achieved with just the right bit of ingenuity. Bear in mind too that he is right at that age where he is still interested in doing crafts; I know that soon he will begin to view them as ¨baby stuff¨.

Here are some other simple designs we came up with. These are all things that can be done by a smaller child with perhaps just a small bit of grown up help for the gluing part. Remember that crafts such as this one are a good way for preschoolers and young kids to build fine motor skills.  Notice that the creations below are made with shapes; there were foam animals and other creatures but I deliberately used shapes because I think that doing so forces little ones to use their imaginations more.

Until next time, happy crafting!

Kids Paint at the Library

      For the longest while I have been itching to do some painting at my branch's weekly craft activity for kids. We have washable tempera paint in abundance so I didn't have to buy any paint.  I wanted to combine a recycle activity with some STEM-related activity so I used some tp rolls and some paper towel rolls which a great teen volunteer and I then made into shapes. I will say from now that the heart shape was the hardest to make and I ended up making two variations of those.  Inclement weather meant that the turnout wasn't as great as most weeks but I was able to save the materials for the next time I do this activity probably in six months or so.

   Here is how I ended up setting up the room. I thought about putting the drop cloths on the tables but decided not to. Some paint ended up spilling on the table and I was able to use clorox wipes to clean the mess fairly quickly. If you look closely you will see some small dixie cups in which I placed small amounts of paint. The kids then dipped the shapes into the paint to make various patterns. I started with red and black paint and then poured more as requested. Going forward I will pour less paint in the cups (just a dot not a lot!) because I had too much left over and I will also wait and see how many kids turn up before I set material out.

This is the cart that I used to wheel all the materials into the room.

Here is a sample pattern I did just to show the kids what they could do.

I could not take pics of any of the actual participants at the branch but I was able to get one of my son when I reproduced the craft at home with my son. We discovered that dollar store paints aren't the best quality (big surprise!)

Summer Paper Crafts

Summer officially started several days ago but most kids have been out of school for almost a month now and if they are anything like mine boredom is setting in. Here are some crafts that can be done with any combination of paper, paper plates, chenille sticks,glue, markers, craft sticks a wee bit o glue and a little ingenuity. Crafts are good because not only do they help beat boredom but they also develop fine motor skills in little ones as well as help kids to think creatively.


This fan is not only visually stunning but it is also a perfect way to beat the heat. I would recommend using tempera paint due to the fact that this paint cleans fairly easily. Be warned though that as with many paints when it dries it may cause paper to get a tad stiff.   For the melon use some green paint (you may have to use more than one coat since the paint may dry very light) and then stick the various colored paper on the plates.



The directions for this and for others can be found here.

Summers are hot because of the sun so how about making a cool paper plate sun. Paint or color a paper plate yellow and if you have a hole puncher punch some holes around the edges through which you will thread the chenille sticks (you can slip some plastic decorative pieces over those) and if you'd like glue some decorative jewel pieces on the plate.



This next craft is really easy to do and you will need a few different kinds of construction paper which you will then cut in small strips and then fold them and stick them to the craft sticks. Then cut another piece of paper in a circle and stick that on top of everything. It comes out looking very nice.





 The above crafts are perhaps a bit too involved for a preschooler to work on independently so I am including two crafts that are perfect for this age group. In this first craft a grown up will have to cut the fish shape first or perhaps cut the circle before the little one sticks the triangle onto it. Little ones can then stick on little pieces of construction paper to serve as the scales of the fish.





This next craft is one that I like because there are many ways to do it. If you have more than one child you can have them use their hands only or you can do the craft as shown in the pic below and use everyone in the family's hand. If you want you can use plain construction paper and have the child color it, write something on it or even stick something on it to decorate it. When completed you can stick it up somewhere in the house that way you can keep a ready visual of how small the child's hands were at one point.



Till next time, keep crafting!