AND YOU AND YOU AND YOU!

Here are some valentines for your friends. Download and print on heavy stock like cover paper, then cut on dotted lines and color with crayons OR even better, markers (for the most dramatic effect). This is wonderful for kids to pass out in school, or do as a class activity to give to family OR adults to give to friends, family or colleagues... or anyone who has been kind or thoughtful this year. 

In fact, make a family night of it and set a fine example of appreciation for your kids...


FREE DOWNLOAD HERE -  Happy Valentine's Day fom me...
 This is where the idea for these creative valentines came from. 
Aren't these hearts beautiful?

I LOVE YOU...


Here is a fun coloring page poster for your valentine... print on cover stock and color with markers, crayons or colored pencils. Make patterns in the hearts and around the border, OR color each heart a different color

       Have fun, take a pic and post... we'd all like to see the fabulous results!

DRESS UP!


DRESS UP... for a perfect snowy day.
When I sewed and shopped for this 
dress up basket, this just what I had in mind!

BIGGER LOVE


Consider friends with kindness, generousity and empathy... 
in a secret Valentine's Day portrait.
     
   A wonderful way to get to know someone better is to paint a portrait of them.

  • When they were ready they drew a picture of the subject in black poster paint on red construction paper. Let dry completely.
  • Next they added color to the portrait with oil crayons. (regular crayons are too timid for this project)
  • Then they chose words to describe their friend. This is always interesting because they have chosen a subject at random. It's a great time to discus what friendship means if the artist didn't get her best friend and to find the best in someone else.
  • Finally, hearts are added, these are made from painted paper.

BIGGER LOVE!

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY-

BIG LOVE!



These large scale hearts are works of art. I drew a casual pencil outline to maintain some continuity, but these children knew how to mix colors, so I just let them go. Beautiful! We talked about love and kindness so they were ready for the next project...




OUR BIG CASTLE -


I love a big project - This kind of complicated cooperative project takes lots of time and organization, but the lessons it provides are well worth it... over two weeks children build a big castle from card board boxes. To keep control and ensure a satisfactory result it must be a cooperative effort between adults and children.

 The first step is to collect smallish boxes for each two children (one side cut off), assorted packaging, egg crates and tubes. Big box building stores are good resources for interesting shapes, especially the light bulb department. One large sheet  for a base keeps it all together and portable. The teacher paints all boxes white inside and outside creating a blank canvas.




Below - kids paint the outside of all the boxes and base gray. Then with crayons they draw stones on the outside walls and the base. 

 Together we stack the boxes and decide where each tower or chamber or stable will go. Each room faces outside (doll house style) leaving a courtyard in the middle with a way in. After school the teachers hot glue the boxes in place.



     Then the children are assigned a partner and a chamber to decorate. The class has been studying castles so they are aware of the various rooms and parts of a castle. 
They have been building castles with wooden blocks and drawing castles and everyone who lives there.





They plan the room and add torn paper stones to the walls, fire places and in the stable hay on the floor. We have discussed tapestries and their uses as decoration and insulation. Tapestries were drawn using figures from DRAW! Castles and Dragons. They worked on their rooms with great purpose and enthusiasm.


When the building was complete it was furnished with doll house furniture from our blocks corner. And the figures from our block play move in. Pennants with each builder's name flew from the towers and a week of imaginative play in the castle they built ensued...


                      Finally, our castle spent two weeks on display in the school library.
                                                      All in all a great success!