These DIY moon rocks are super easy to make and a great for not only crafts, but science experiments as well. They actually resemble real moon rocks!

This moon craft is great for preschool, kindergarten, first grade, or older kids. It's a great art extension during a space theme in the classroom.

Pencil Name Craft For Kids | Fun back to school learning idea. Use a free printable PDF template to cut out & make. Great for preschool, pre k & kindergarten.

Teaching bible class holds a special place in my heart. And creating engaging bible lessons to teach these little ones is an added bonus! I recently signed up to teach our kindergarten bible class on Sunday mornings. Although the curriculum is provided, I can't help but put my own spin on each lesson. We are

Looking for apple crafts for kids? I have 15 EASY and adorable apple crafts that your kids will love at home or in the classroom.

Amazing things can happen with just one dot.

Our Wrist Wraps will make acknowledging positive student behavior and achievement fun, engaging and easy-to-prep! We have carefully illustrated 10 gorgeous bands and provided them in color and blackline versions for you to simply print and cut. Wrap them around the wrists of your students and apply a piece of tape or dab of glue to secure. Included in this file so far are the following brag bands: Great work Well done I am wonderful I am a super star I am kind I am an awesome helper I worked hard today I do not give up I am amazing I did excellent work Little learners would love to color a blackline version using crayons or bright pencils before you wrap it on their wrist! In each of the 10 designs, we've provided 5 different color choices. Hop over to TpT to find this new printable in our collection!

It’s important for preschoolers to have friends at a young age. Friendships help children develop many important life skills, like sorting out conflicts and getting along with other people. Encourage the class to make new friends and help them celebrate their friendships with the crafts listed below. These crafts are preschool-friendly, and children can play ... Read more

Kids will love how simple and easy it is to make pipe cleaner flowers for a fun spring craft or handmade gift for Mother’s Day.

Free International Dot Day Activity (Creativity Challenges) Teachers, are you looking for some free resources for International Dot Day? Dot Day takes place on September 15th. The inspiration for the day comes from the book, The Dot , by Peter H. Reynolds. In the story, the main charac

Check out these France crafts for kids on the occasion of France's France Fete de la Federation. Make sure to learn some French along the way!

Desk Pets for a fun and creative way to manage student behavior in your classroom.

All of these organizational printables shown on this blog post are FREE! This page contains affiliate links. Read Full Disclosure

Easy forest school activities, done-for-you forest school lesson plans and ready-made nature curriculum: save time and teach better!

We have another fun project for your kids (or you) to do during the hot summer months, this time we are sharing a fun summer agamograph template with you. Making an agamograph is really, really

These all about me, back to school art activities for kids are engaging icebreakers. Encourage creativity and build community during the first week back

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

Create awareness of the different cultures and traditions of people worldwide with these fantastic crafts that children will have fun making. Celebrate diversity while giving children the opportunity to understand the world they live in better. Explore these unique and engaging around-the-world crafts that will get children excited and creative. Conclusion Learning about the different ... Read more

Try these fun brain break ideas to help active kids stay focused and learn at their best like yoga, Go Noodle, and printable cards.

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

Need some fun Fall art project ideas that are beautiful and keep the kids busy? Our creative collection of amazing leaf art projects for kids is for all ages and makes a beautiful gift or keepsake.

Set a friendly tone in your classroom with these 30 "Get to Know You" games perfect for back to school or when welcoming a new student.

Students will have fun while learning how to cooperate and communicate.

Celebrate the varied culture, monuments, flora and fauna of Australia with these simple Australia Day Crafts for Kids! Includes koalas, kangaroos and more!

This last week we began our geography unit in second grade. We began by learning the mapping essential vocabulary of map, globe, key, scale, grid, birds eye view. We practiced making our own maps and creating symbols for our map keys. The students love making their own maps of our neighborhood where the school is...

Super easy paper bird finger puppets. These can be made from recycled paper. A simple origami project for kids. Great doodle art project too!

Discover the perfect All About Me preschool activity designed for young kids! Get a free printable worksheet that's simple, engaging, and ideal for emergent readers. Download now!

These printable Halloween puppets are super easy to make with the free printable hand puppet templates! Just print, color, and cut the Halloween hand puppets for a fun craft for kids!

First Week Watercolor Portraits 7 comments Back to School, Bulletin Boards, Self Portraits, Tutorials Every year, my second graders paint a watercolor self-portrait. It is truly my most favorite first week activity of all time. After sharing this picture of this year's portraits on Facebook, a sweet reader asked if I had a blog post about them. Well, it dawned on me that while I have shared my annual self-portraits many times, I've never really shared them exclusively in a post. So, here goes! Every year, I have my students paint a self-portrait during the first week of school (an idea I learned while student teaching many moons ago). I hang these portraits in the room, for the entire year. They really brighten up our space and they are such a joy to look at (this is a picture of my students' portraits from last year). I am not an art teacher and I believe that kids should be encouraged to take risks, so when I task my students with painting their portraits, I pretty much let them "have at it." Don't worry, it isn't a total free for all. I do model the process and I also share examples from years past, like the ones shown below. I just make it very clear that I don't expect their paintings to look like an actual photograph. ;) I always begin by pointing out how much of their body/self they will be painting. I tell them to think about the pictures they see in their yearbooks and how those pictures only show people's heads and shoulders. I explain that they will include only their head and shoulders in their paintings. I then show them examples from previous years (sometimes students move and they get left behind, so I have a few on hand). Once the students understand what it is that they will be including in their portrait, I model the drawing process on the board. I discuss how large the head should be in relation to the paper and show them what this looks like. From there, I show them how I draw a neck and shoulders, hair, and facial features. I apologize that I don't have a photo of this, but essentially, I model and narrate the process, one step at a time. And, then...it's the students' turn. I give each student a piece of white card stock (8x10 inches) to work with. Card stock is brighter and thicker than construction paper, and it just seems to hold the paint better, in my opinion. Then, they start their drawing. Sometimes, I have them draw the outline of their pictures with a black crayon (see below). When I do this, there is NO pencil involved. This helps them to really slow down and visualize before they draw because they know that they can't erase. However, this year, I let them draw with pencil first and then they traced over their pencil lines with a Sharpie. Why did I do that? I have no idea, it was just what I decided to do when I was prepping the materials, but the end result was still fab! Once the students draw the outline of their portrait, they get to paint! Using watercolor is a tricky thing for many second graders. They have a hard time always gauging how much water to use, so a discussion about this (and a little modeling) ahead of time is a good idea. Tip: No matter how much explaining and modeling you do, you'll still have a student or two that uses too much water. Let them use a tissue to blot their paper if you notice this happening. I lay the portraits to dry on the floor, in an out of the way spot. They dry within minutes here in the desert. Once they are dry, I flatten them by stacking heavy teacher manuals on them overnight. I could iron them, but my iron and I do not get along. At all. The next morning, I hang them up and admire the sight before me...all year long. :) At the end of the year, it's always fun to repeat this process. You will be amazed at how much growth your students show. Here are a few examples from last year. Amazing, right? We always get lots of compliments on our portrait display, and the kids are always very proud of them. They love seeing if their parents can guess which one is theirs, and it's fun to see how many parents get it right! At the end of the school year, I send the portraits home as a keepsake. Many parents have commented how much they love them, and they are the perfect size for framing! First week self-portraits are a great way to encourage students to take risks, have fun, and learn to use materials. Beyond that, the students take great pride in their creations and enjoy them just as much as I do, and we have something truly magnificent (that they created!) to look at all year long. :) Share It:

Pipe cleaners are a versatile craft material easily obtainable if not already in your craft supplies at home. Kids can make all sorts of pipe cleaner crafts, and they're also perfect for learning activities such as STEM projects or fine motor activities. Kids can even make little toys to play with using pipe cleaners! Below

Discover some fascinating, no prep, STEM activities and challenges you can do with your students using paper! Engineering, math and science.

Amazing things can happen with just one dot.

Super fun project for your Pre-k, Kindergarteners, and even 1st Graders. Your students will have so much fun mixing colors, whether they are just learning about color, or revisiting color mixing. This project is very versatile and can be created using a variety of mediums such as watercolor paint, t...

Galaxy Jars DIY, easy way to create a galaxy in a jar and all its wonder in your hands, use tutorial to make Nebula necklaces and other sensory calming jars

This moon sand recipe is so easy to make! With only two ingredients, you'll be playing with this soft and sensory sand within minutes. Moon Sand This moon sand recipe is so much fun. The texture is soft and crumbly, but it also molds really well into different shapes. The kids thought it was the best thing ever! I've tested different kinetic sand recipes before (like this kinetic sand, this moldable play sand and this foam sand), but this one was BY FAR the best. And with only 2 ingredients it's also super easy to make. We loved how the

Hello, it's Megan from Homemade Ginger again and I'm back to share a beautiful watercolor art project that is perfect for Halloween! These watercolor spider webs are so fun to make and they turn out great every time! I love playing with watercolors. Even though I'm a grown adult, sitting down with a tray of watercolors and a blank piece of paper is so fun and calming. I'm not a skilled watercolor artist by any means, but I just love the way that the colors bleed into one another and create new shapes and textures. Painting with watercolors is one

Learn more about Argentina with some amazing Argentina Crafts for Kids! Celebrate this country's Revolution Day with gauchos, Maradona & more!

Fine Motor Activities for kindergarten: Create a rainbow fish and rainbow name to develop fine motor skills with young students

These all about me, back to school art activities for kids are engaging icebreakers. Encourage creativity and build community during the first week back

Our art and craft printables have moved and can now be found HERE>>>

Need some ideas for bible crafts on the days of creation? If so, you'll love our next creation craft for preschoolers that's very easy to assemble and initiates a great discussion on God's creation.

Add elements of sight, sound, touch, taste and smell to your preschool centers to integrate science and play while students explore their senses.

Looking for some fun, faith-based crafts for your kids or Sunday School classes? Check out these 50+ easy Bible crafts for kids!