My art room is stripped bare, supplies sorted and cupboards cleaned. The last thing I want to think about is pouring paint and cleaning brushes but summer can be a great time to test out new art lesso

Testing is over and as the school year draws to a close, it can be difficult to keep kids engaged in ANYTHING, let alone meaningful and rigorous lessons/activities! Solution: End the school year joyfully AND academically with summer STEM Challenges! They're collaborative, hands-on, brain-busting work (disguised as fun)!

Our kids love, love, love scavenger hunts. They always ask for one when we are darting out the door on our way to an activity or when I have a gazillion things happening. I made a

Zacchaeus is a real-life example of the power that Jesus has to change our hearts. The goal in this lesson is for the children to feel the darkness and ugliness of sin, and then experience the joy and miracle of forgiveness when Zacchaeus meets Jesus! Bible Truth: Jesus has the power to forgives my sin. Bible Story: Jesus changes Zacchaeus' heart. Bible Study: Luke 19:1-10; I Corinthians 5:7 teach cha-ching! To tell the story of Zacchaeus "hands-on" style gather up these items: children's picture Bible, or flannel graph scenery and characters a small bag or coin pouch loose change a cut-out of a black heart and a white heart Peak your class's interest in your lesson by shaking the bag, and letting them guess what is inside. They will probably easily guess that you have money in your bag! Pass out a coin for each child to hold throughout the lesson. (Remind them that they should never put coins in their mouths!) Read the story of Zacchaeus from a children's picture Bible, or tell it in your own words with visuals, such as flannel graph. Introduce Zacchaeus as a short man, who was a tax collector. His job was to collect money that people had to pay to the king. But Zacchaeus took more money from people than he was supposed to. If someone was supposed to pay one coin to the king, Zaccahaeus made them pay two coins, and he would keep one of the coins for himself. That is called stealing. Zacchaeus was rich and had lots of money, but nobody wanted to be his friend because he stole money from them. He had a dark sinful heart. Hold up the dark heart as you describe Zacchaeus' dark and sinful heart. Go on to tell the rest of the story of Zacchaeus meeting Jesus, as you show pictures from the children's Bible or manipulate flannel graph characters. At the conclusion of the story, talk about how amazing it is that Jesus changed Zacchaeus' heart! He used to be a man that stole people's money, but now he gives his money away to people! Jesus did a miracle! Only Jesus has the power to take a dirty, sinful heart and give us a new clean heart! Zacchaeus repented, he turned away from his sin, and followed Jesus! Hold up the white heart as you describe how Jesus changed Zacchaeus' heart. Lead the class in a prayer, asking Jesus to forgive their sin, and change their hearts so they can follow Jesus like Zacchaeus. After you pray, collect the coins from the children. Tell them that they are giving the money back just like Zacchaeus did after he repented. sing Zacchaeus (was a wee little man) is a Sunday School classic, and the perfect song to reinforce the story they just heard. Be sure to do some actions with the song! The Repent Song is the same song we learned along with the story of John the Baptist, so it's great review and repetition. Follow the link for the lyrics and actions. The Bath Song is a great song about how Jesus washes away our sin with "super soap." The "call back" format makes it really easy to sing along! craft color & paste Here is a coloring sheet from Sermons 4 Kids of Jesus talking to Zacchaeus in the tree. Cut pieces of green paper, or green tissue paper into leaves for the children to glue onto the tree. zacchaeus meets Jesus A good craft is one that helps children retell the story that they learned. This craft does exactly that! You will need: this print out in (black & white) or (color) card stock scissors hole punch yarn green tissue paper glue clear tape crayons (optional) To prepare, print the print out page onto card stock. Cut on the dotted line, and cut out Zacchaeus. Punch a hole at the top and bottom of the tree. Cut out approximately 1" x 1" squares of green tissue paper. Cut yarn into 16" lengths. In class, provide glue for the children to attach the squares of tissue paper to the tree as leaves. Lace the yarn throught the holes and tie it behind the tree. If using the black and white version, provide crayons for the children to color Jesus and Zacchaeus. Tip: Tie the yarn near the top of the page, and attach Zacchaeus to the bottom of the page. It is easier for the kids, if you let them glue on the leaves before you add the yarn. Use clear tape to attach Zacchaeus to the yarn. Tip: Set the clear tape under the yarn, sticky side up, and then press Zacchaeus onto the tape. Move Zacchaeus up and down the tree to retell the story! up and down the tree For this craft you will need: this tree pattern this Zacchaeus pattern green construction paper jumbo craft sticks yarn scissors hole punch crayons glue tape To prepare, cut out the top, leaf portion of the tree pattern, and use it to trace onto green construction paper. Cut out tree and Zacchaeus figures. Punch a hole near the top of the trees. Cut yarn into approximately 7" lengths. In class, provide crayons for the children to color Zacchaeus, and the jumbo craft stick. Help them attach the tree to the craft stick with glue. Tape Zacchaeus to the yarn, thread the yarn through the hole in the tree, and tie the yarn off in the back to move Zacchaeus up and down the tree. Find more ideas and for teaching your child at home about Zacchaeus and his encounter with Jesus, here!

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

These Fingerprint Bugs are so simple and fun for the kiddos. I love seeing what my kids come up with.

Download our free printable sandcastle template, perfect for making summer and beach themed crafts with your kids.

FUN End of the Year Art Projects- It's the end of the year-go out having FUN! I know how it goes at the end of the year-your tired, the kids are tired...EVERYONE is ready for summer break! Go out with a bang with these super fun end of the year art projects!

Listening and following verbal or oral directions is an important skill that many students lack. You may relate to Charlie Brown's teacher after going over step-by-step directions. Students often hear the sound the teacher's voice is making, but fail to tune into the meaning of the words. When students aren't actively listening, they miss important information that can impact their academic AND behavior in the classroom. One way you can help your students practice active listening so they will follow directions is with a fun activity called Listen and Draw. Listen and Draw is a great activity to do with your class at the beginning of the year when you are teaching class procedures. Include these with your plans after breaks as a warmup plus a good reminder about practicing listening and following directions. Grab a free copy of FREE Listen & Draw - Following Directions Activity. Sources to make my blog post graphics can be found HERE. Click HERE to read my blog's disclosure statement.

These rainforest no prep pages will serve as a printable addition to our rainforest themed sub plans. This is another free set of worksheets from The Curriculum Corner.

Over 20 Fun Italy Themed Activities for kids, perfect for Learn more about the Beautiful Country. Includes Many Fun Crafts and Printables!

There are so many ways to approach self-portraits with children: observation, inspired by a particular artist, symbols of interests and activities, the list goes on. This time, I wanted to create an engaging, multi media

Lake Bohinj is the place for outdoors activities such as hiking, biking, paragliding and waterfall trekking, with beautiful scenery, snow-capped mountain

These Summer Olympics Cutting Practice Sheets are perfect for preschools to learn how to work on their cutting skills.

With the Olympics just days away, children are very excited to learn more about the Olympics both in school and at home. Parents and teachers will love the

Learn about Children Around the World with these FREE printable Around the World worksheets for kids K-6th grade to complete.

My kids are so excited for the Olympics this summer!

Over 20 Fun Italy Themed Activities for kids, perfect for Learn more about the Beautiful Country. Includes Many Fun Crafts and Printables!

Don't make your camping plans this summer without checking out these 10 cool campsites in Alberta. Some of them are closer to you than you might think!

Use this collection of Vincent Van Gogh teaching resources and complete Famous Artist Unit lesson plans for elementary art classes.

In this Aquarium Perspective Lesson, Middle School students will dive right into learning about the principle of perspective while designing an aquarium.

Du planst einen Roadtrip? Hier findest du die ultimative Roadtrip-Packliste – egal, ob mit dem Campervan oder für's Auto.

This FREE handout is a great activity for warm-ups or even early finishers. This handout was inspired by the book Beautiful Oops! by Barney Saltzberg. Here is the BLANK version. This is a good opti…

Here are four inquiry-based STEAM activities for classroom ideas and resources to integrate visual art, engineering, and science in your classroom!

A guide to planning the perfect 2 to 3 days in Lake Tahoe itinerary including things to do, where to stay and tips for getting around.

A great way to incorporate learning about the Olympics - one activity at a time!

Your kids or students will love coloring and cutting out our free Squishmallow scissor skills activity pages. Kids will have fun learning, great for homeschooling, teachers, road trips, and more!

From stunning lakes and hikes, to restaurants and hotels... Read this blog post for all the best things to do in Banff in the summer!

Use household ingredients to create fireworks in a jar! A fun science experiment for kids of all ages that illustrates liquid density.

I had never really thought about visiting Albania until I was planning a summer road trip in Europe. I wanted to visit a country that was budget friendly and off the usual tourist radar. After a bit of research I decided to discover Albania & Montenegro in the Balkans. I was curious about Albania's history

Planning a relaxing weekend to the famous Finger Lakes region in New York state, explore Watkins Glen State Park NY to uplift your spirits.

These FREE Printables and Unit Studies for Eric Carle's Books will help you expand on what your kids are learning through these beloved books.

Do your children need an introduction to scissors and cutting? Practice using scissors while creating Henry Matisse-inspired art!