Van Gogh Projects for Kids - 10 Inspiring Ideas to try with your kids, celebrating 'Inspire your Heart with Art Day' starry night, sunflowers, art & craft.

Learn about France with this France preschool unit! Activities, crafts, food, songs, etc to give your child a taste of France.

Last summer I added Mo Willems' The Pigeon HAS to Go to School! to my classroom library. Of course, this addition was a no-brainer. Willems' books are always super popular, especially Pigeon books. Just as predicted, my students loved this book. It is the perfect length for the beginning of the year, when attention spans are extra short and students need a little break from all the procedural training they are receiving. Since I knew this book would be a hit, I decided to make it the centerpiece of back to school. I created some basic "Pigeon themed" math and literacy activities, as well as a simple craft. I used these activities intermittently during the first week and was able to glean some great info about my new students' basic math and literacy skills, as well as their fine motor skills and listening skills. One of the Pigeon themed activities was a number/number word/counting mini book. Students traced and wrote the numbers 1-10, as well as the number words 1-10. Then students illustrated a picture to go with each number. We broke this activity up over a couple of days. Students took part in a listening activity. Students had to complete a picture according to a series of questions/statements that I read aloud. (If you've every made a glyph with your students, this activity feels really similar.) Students also put together their first puzzler for the year. This puzzler focused on number representations. Students cut and glued the puzzler pieces to tell what number is represented in the box. By the end, students have a completed picture that they can color. I use various puzzlers throughout the year. This the Pigeon puzzler is a great introduction to how to complete a puzzler. Students loved making their simple, one-page craft Pigeons. All that was required was the Pigeon pattern (I used white card stock), scissors, and glue. The class Pigeons made a really quick and cute back to school bulletin board. In addition to these activities, students worked on counting/cardinality, geometry, place value, number bonds, handwriting, the alphabet, rhyming words, sight words, and more. The Pigeon HAS to Go to School! is a perfect springboard for a variety of skills. For a math freebie (from the printables featured above), click on the picture below. This freebie provides practice with ten frames, counting, and number identification. If you have not added, The Pigeon HAS to Go to School! to your classroom library, I highly recommend it. There are so many directions you can go with this book. More importantly, your students will love it and be totally engaged. What a great way to start the year, by reading a book that students truly enjoy. :) For more details about the all of the Pigeon inspired activities I used with my students, be sure to click on the picture below. Of course (like most), I'm not certain what this year's back to school days will look like. Whatever the setup, I know I'll be using The Pigeon HAS to Go to School! to help me kick off the year. Thanks for stopping by. School Is a Happy Place is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associated Program, an affiliate program that allows this site to earn advertising fees. Please know that all of the recommendations on this site are authentic and come from personal experience.

Check out our cheap home projects that will allow you to make a big difference in how your home operates. These simple projects can be done in a weekend and cost less than a dinner out.

Bem Vindo ao Brasil means Welcome to Brazil! Help your kids learn about Rio, the Andes, and many other things about South America! These beautiful Brazil-inspired crafts for kids are a perfect way to get

Discover creative IKEA Kallax hacks and ideas for stylish storage solutions. Transform your home with these budget-friendly DIY projects!

With Oliver's recent playroom makeover, we knew we wanted a floating desk in the space. Here's how we created one for under $50 and how we've made it custom specifically for Oliver as he grows.

There is just something about Spring that gets me in the mood to let the kids get really messy. Perhaps it is the fact that we can now do art outside. Or maybe it is the fact that the warm spring sun has melted the ice from my mind and I can think clearly. Because

Once you become a mother, you may be surprised at the types of purchases that excite you. Bleach pens for tough stains, new carseats, and diapers that were on a…

Black and white project planner printables are a great addition to your planner. Keep track of all the projects you're working on in one handy place.

Looking for free craft classes online? I put together a list of great websites where you can take free online craft classes and more. Learn crafts for free!

Any one of these fall crafts for women’s retreats will brighten your event and provide a meaningful take-away for retreat participant.

Is your cross stitch project turning into a mess? Here are some quick, helpful tips and tricks on how to cross stitch neatly.

How to update a hollow core door for $3 a side in wood trim. It is a super cheap and easy way!

Use these IKEA projects to organize home on a low budget. These IKEA hacks are fun to try and you can use them to organize every room in the house.

Remodeling a basement? It’s a great space to relax or entertain and these 11 makeover ideas will inspire you no matter what you have in mind. Come peek!

This week was Truth and Reconciliation Week in Canada. Although officially recognized over one week, these are conversations and teachings that should happen throughout the school year, not just one week, or one day. Reconciliation is about building relationships and respect, and that just cannot be reduced to a week. I wanted to share some of the activities, readings, and discussions I had with my Grade 5/6 class this year, mainly inspired by this resource, Every Child Matters. After reading the book Trudy's Rock Story, and discussing how Trudy uses rocks to relieve her anger and release her feelings, we decided that making our own Resilience Rocks could help us process some of our feelings about Canada's history, mainly anger and confusion, and by placing them back on the Earth, we could release some of the feelings and remember to act. Tuesday we started painting our rocks orange while I read the story, I am Not a Number. (We used acrylic paint - I would suggest spray paint - we had to do many many coats of acrylic paint, and them still seal them). We also watch a video from residential school survivor, Lillian Elias, and then used orange sticky notes to send her a message. Wednesday we sealed the rocks with an outdoor mod podge. We did this BEFORE they wrote on them, otherwise the sharpie marker would pull the paint off when we wrote. We read the story, When I was Eight, and wrote some more reflections on sticky notes. Thursday was Truth and Reconciliation Day and Orange Shirt Day. For art in the morning, we looked at beautiful examples of Indigenous Art and Artists - current and past. We worked on Canada Goose Drawings, inspired by Benjamin Chee Chee. We chose the Canada Goose because we liked how they inspired flight - and they may have to move or leave for a bit, but they always come back, stronger. I let the students use their laptops to look at different images while they drew their own. These turned out stunningly. Even mine - and I usually struggle with a stick figure. We had been talking about what message we wanted to share on Orange Shirt Day on our Resilience Rocks, and had brainstormed a long list over the week. Some students wanted to apologize, others wanted to send a word of support or strength, and some just wanted to share their beliefs that every child really does matter. We knew we would placing the rocks around our school yard and school community and we wanted to choose something that would inspire continuing to spread this message - that every child matters and why we need to understand why. In the afternoon we took a 2.15 km walk (for the 215 children found in Kamloops) and placed our Resilience Rocks around the school community. As we walked in our orange shirts, we were careful to spread them out around our route so we could share our messages with our small community. I told my students that if they were able, it would be nice to bring their grown-ups to where they placed their rocks earlier, and tell them about our learning and their reflections from the week. Our last day was spent working on the writing reflection, "If I was given a $1000 budget to plan an Orange Shirt Day event at my school, this is what I would do." Again, this was our week of Truth and Reconciliation activities in the classroom, but our conversations won't end at the end of the week. This acknowledgement and promise to learn the truth will continue throughout our whole year of curriculum. If you are looking to add more indigenous-themed books and authors to your classroom, HERE is a good place to get started. How were some ways you observed Truth and Reconciliation week at your school?

Our collection of Germany Crafts for Kids are ideal to help you learn about this amazing country! Perfect for German Unity Day and Oktoberfest!

A wide range of weekend home projects under $100! These ideas will add beauty and value to your home without breaking the bank.

Everything you need for this pool noodle headboard is on Amazon.

When she told us she spent just 3 hours on this floor makeover we weren’t expecting the gorgeous result:They'll be amazed when you tell them how little it cost. #diy #budget #flooring

Discover creative IKEA Kallax hacks and ideas for stylish storage solutions. Transform your home with these budget-friendly DIY projects!

The giant list of places to find free SVG files that you can use in your cutting machine - Silhouette, Cricut, Brother and many more.

Love finding the easiest ways to update things around the home, especially when they look great and save money? These cheap and easy but cool remodeling hacks should be at the top of your list, then. From DIY bathroom ideas to kitchen projects to walls and countertops, we found some of the best home remodeling

Kids can make something pretty incredible when they pool their talents.

A DIY tutorial for making easy and pretty plywood shelves for your linen closet. Make your closet organized, functional and user friendly with shelves.

{Beadboad Paneling} I couldn’t decide if I wanted to do beadboard paneling in the kitchen, or in the living room. But since our living room… kinda’ IS in the kitchen, I opted on putting it there. lol. Plus, I love beadboard because its a great way to fill a wall space. I’m LOVING the way…

Bring on the balance.

10 Summer knitting patterns to keep you cool, calm, and stylish. Includes knitting patterns for 6 tops, 1 bralette, and three dresses.

The chalkboard stamping style has been popular for awhile, it’s usual done with white embossing powder on black cardstock but here’s a clever twist on that idea, actually stamping with …

Build your own queen size murphy bed with detailed instructions and plans! It's a great space saver and looks like built-ins on your wall! Perfect for a multi-purpose room!

These Magic Eraser Hacks are great for projects around your home. Check out all the mind blowing ways you can use a Magic Eraser!

Make your own amigurumi shark with this free shark crochet pattern. Detailed step-by-step instructions from Sir Purl Grey.

These bear crafts for kindergarten and preschool will go great with all of your bear themed units and activities. Check out all 19 ideas!

My foolproof method to make a lined zipper pouch with zipper tabs. Zipper pouches are fun and practical and they’re so easy to sew.

A DIY tutorial explaining how to whitewash wood in 4 easy steps. Creating a vintage feel for your home with whitewashing. How to whitewash wood walls.

Use leftover paint using this DIY whitewash brick technique (how-to video included!) to update a dark or dated brick wall or fireplace.

The people over at IKEA are all over the clever DIY projects shoppers have been crafting with its basics. In fact, the Swedish brand has a not-so-secret website that’s a library chock-full of IKEA hacks that will turn your world upside down—or, at least, your house.If you’ve yet to be acquainted with Livet Hemma (which translates to “life at home”), it’s time to be formally introduced.