Animal Bed Tins

Animal Bed Tins

            I love making little things for little children to play with.  These little felt animals are so perfect for little hands and fingers. Eye hand coordination and manual dexterity certainly needs to be developed in young children.  This is a great you for quiet time or interaction between children.

   

         Left over felt and mint tins are a good combination for a little summer project.  During the summer our family will be getting together for a week long extended family summer vacation.  I told my nieces that we would do some craft projects.  I thought that these might be a good jumping off place to get us started. Some years have been so very nice Up North in Michigan, but some have been cold and rainy.  You have to prepare for both.

       So, I made these little animals that the kids could play with. Possibly the older girls might make more for themselves. Basically, an egg or oval shape for the body and some small scraps of felt for the arms, legs, and ears.

        

    
                    Today I am linking up with Tara at 4th Grade Frolics for 

Monday Made It! 

Check out all the great links and ideas.

www.4thgradefrolics.blogspot.com 

I gave this penguin a fish.

    
       I started out sewing them by hand.  The little brown bear is hand sewn,  All the others are mostly done on my sewing machine. 

       Here they are tucked into their little beds. They each have a tiny pillow, sheet, and blanket made from felt scraps.

Raccoon

Brown Bear

Wise Old Owl

Of course the bunny needed a carrot!

                     This tiny bunny would make a darling addition to any Easter basket this year.
    
   My nieces and nephews enjoyed playing with their new little friends. Tucking them into bed each night was a great way to end a busy day while on vacation.

 I saw this idea, Bedtime and Picnic Playset  on www.jenimadeit.com

Please leave a comment if you have a spare minute. I'd love to hear from you.

 Enjoy your day!

Beti  

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Girls' Bathroom Beautification

           
      Butterflies 
     and Flowers
 
     Would this made you  smile and feel good when you walked into the girls' bathroom?  That was our intent with our Bathroom Beautification.

   Today I am linking up with 4th Grade Frolics for Monday Made It.

Here is the Link....   www.4thgradefrolics.blogspot.com

        Before  the beginning of the school year, I though it would be fun to "beautify" the bathrooms at our school.  So we had a "little contest" to see which bathroom in the school could be the cutest.  I know it is quite hard to make a school bathroom look cute, but we tried. My good friend Dawn, who teaches 2nd grade just next to my 5th grade room, took on the challenge with me.  Since the 5th, 2nd, and 1st graders share a bathroom we worked together. 

  
    This is the view when you enter the girls bathroom.  Dawn had made and laminated these butterflies many years ago.  We thought they would be  nice, bright, and happy.  

      Dawn also had these stars in her classroom decorating stash. The words were added to made the girls believe in themselves. Some helpful students were around school and they made some little butterflies hanging above the window. You can see a pink butterfly on the right side of the picture. They seem to fly a bit when the window is open and a breeze comes in.
     Some cute stickers were added to the stall doors.  

      Unfortunately, there was no prize in our contest, but we did have fun improving the bathrooms of our school a little bit.

    I encourage all teachers and schools to do this type of project. It could make a difference to someone you least expect!

     Have a WONDERFUL DAY! 

Beti

Student Name Sticks

        

     Today I am linking up with 4th Grade Frolics for Monday Made it. Here is the link...
www.4thgradefrolics.blogspot.com

      

   Teachers have many different ways to call on their students.  Today I made these containers to hold the students' name sticks.    Room 111 is my homeroom.   113 and 116 are the other two homerooms of students that I have for Religion and Social Studies each day.  

I found these cute little plastic jars at the dollar store. To make each class different, I used left over boarder to decorate and hold the containers together. 






      Modge Podge came in handy when I adhered  all 90  names to popsicle sticks. 

        I usually have a student pick students to read or answer questions.  After a name is called, the stick is placed in the second container.  This way, all students are called on each day.  As we all know, there are some children who never raise their hand and don't want to be called on.  I do give students the opportunity to "pass" their turn, but give then another opportunity to speak during class at a "better " time for the child.

        The kids love it when I pick a stick and then say, "Would you like to be the "Stick Person" today?" Their answer is always "Yes!"  That student gets to pick sticks and call student names to read or answer a question.  You know how that keeps more kids on their toes. It it fun and interactive!  What more can I say?

What do you use to call on your students?

    

    Please leave a comment if you have a minute.  I enjoy reading your thoughts and helpful hints.

Enjoy your day!

 Beti