Check out some of our cool activities!!!!
YES...
We can do it all!!
We are bag designers........
We are jewelry makers......
We are food magicians.......
We even create stylish shoes!!!!!!!!
Friday, July 26, 2013
SOCK CHIA PETS CRAFT
SOCK CHIA PETS
Encourage kids to make these, watch them grow and take care of them-
If properly cared for, their "hair" will grow for an unlimited amount of time and the kids can give them "haircuts".
They all look different and take on a personality of their own. It's really funny!!
Here is one we made in class
this is the growth after 3 days!!
We used:
- socks (knee high/pantyhose work great too)
- grass seed (shade and sun-dense growth- I found the cheapest one works the best)
- potting soil
- rubberband (to hold bottom closed)
- fabric paint (to draw on nose & mouth)
- googly eyes
- a cup or coffee mug (to hold the sock open while spooning in the grass seed and soil- easier for the kids to hold and work with- put the sock on the cup/mug so there is a larger opening to work with)
- a small bowl to let them sit in (a black plastic one I used from the dollar store worked the because it absorbed the sun. The bowl works better than the plate because it holds water without spilling and dripping)
OPTIONS:
CYCLOPES:
Some kids made a Cyclopes- using only one eye- you also can use fabric paint to draw the eyes or in the past have used buttons held on by hot glue or straight pins through the button holes
BEARD INSTEAD OF HAIR:
some kids decided to have theirs grow a "beard" by reversing the order of the potting soil and grass seed (you will see in the directions on the link below-)
If you would like a "beard"- put the soil in first (where the toes would go- then the grass seeds in LAST
HAIR INSTEAD OF BEARD:
if you put the grass seed in FIRST (think of where your TOES would go in a sock-) that will become the "head" and your chia will grow hair.
If you would like a "beard"- put the soil in first (where the toes would go- then the grass seeds in LAST
I read about this project years ago in a book about all the things you can make with plants. I have made them many times in my class as part of the Science unit on plants. The kids love them and them come out amazing. Each of them take on their own personality as they grow and the kids look forward to taking care of them and watching them grow.
Below is a link with step by step instructions on how to make one:
http://kidsonthegrand.com/2011/04/18/grow-plant-pets-for-kids-of-all-ages/
PIE IN THE SKY- simple ideas with PIE & PUDDING
Here are just some of the yummy things we did with PIE & PUDDING:
PUDDING PARFAITS:
We decided to create our parfaits- throwing together some of the items we had on hand. We got rave reviews about these parfaits.... you pretty much can do this with anything- fruit, cake, pudding, ice cream..... and you can't mess it up. We used a clear cup to show the layers- and a lid to make it transportable. You can even stick the back of the plastic spoon where a straw would go on the lid.
Here are the layers we used:-going from bottom to top
- vanilla wafers
- chocolate instant pudding
- mini marshmallows
- cheesecake sugar free instant pudding
- a mixture of crushed vanilla wafers and Twinkies
- instant chocolate pudding
- crushed graham crackers
- a splash of magic shell
- dollop of whipped topping
OTHER VERSIONS- VERY CUTE....
Candy Cane Pudding Parfaits -
taken from
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Pudding, cream cheese, and cookie crumbs make up a fancy but easy dessert parfait.
Ingredients
3/4 c. Candy Cane Oreo crumbs
1 pkg. cream cheese, softened (8 oz.)
1/4 c. sugar
2 Tbsp. milk
2 c. vanilla Cool Whip frosting
1 box Jello candy cane instant pudding mix (3.4 oz)
1 1/2 c. milk
2 Tbsp. crushed candy cane pieces
Instructions
- In a mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese and sugar until creamy. Stir in the milk. Fold in 1 1/2 c. cool whip frosting and set aside. Whisk together the pudding mix and milk. Let set for 5 minutes in the fridge.
- Layer the crumbs, cream cheese mix, and pudding in parfait glasses. Top with the extra cool whip and sprinkle with candy cane pieces. Serve within an hour of making. They will keep in the refrigerator, but the layers will start to run together.
Notes
*Add a little bit of pink food color to increase the pink color of the pudding. *Use icing bags and tips to prepare the parfaits with clean edges.
KOOL AID PIE:
This very simple, fast and surprisingly full of flavor (and sweet) pie was a piece of cake- or pie.......
You can pick ANY flavor of KOOL AID- just make sure you get the small single serve packette that is UNSWEETENED..... and DO NOT ADD SUGAR. The sweetened condensed milk is the sweetener in this pie and it is PLENTY SWEET.
The recipe can be found at the link below:
Here are some other really FUN KOOL AID ideas:
- Preschool Painting with Kool-Aid
- Rainbow Kool-Aid Snow Cones
- Orange Kool-Aid Crumble
- Kool-Aid Watercolor Painting
- Homemade Snow Cones
- Kool-Aid Slushies
- DIY Kool-Aid Lip Gloss
- Pink Lemonade Kool-Aid Pie (No Bake)
- Kool-Aid Cupcakes (Lemonade)
- Dip Dye Yarn
- Kool-Aid Lip Gloss Two
- Kool-Aid Sorbet
All of the above ideas can be found by following the link below:
***************
PUDDING PIE
(you can also can use this as a fruit dip- to make it low calorie- get sugar free instant pudding mix)
You can't go wrong with a pudding pie-
Simply follow the directions on the box and add to your favorite pie shell.
Another great idea is to take:
- 1 box-Instant pudding mix- (any flavor)I love Pistachio- it reminds me of almond cookies (delicious topped with a couple of maraschino cherries)
- 1 regular sized tub of Whipped Topping
- Pie Shell of your choice
- mix ingredients together
- put in pie shell
- refrigerate (or freeze) until firm
Thursday, July 25, 2013
DELI DAY- TATER TOT SALAD & HOMEMADE KIT KATS
TATER TOT 'TATER SALAD
Cooking potatoes can be difficult and now easy for kids to do or safe to use in the microwave. Here is where I decided to use something that they love...... TATER TOTS!!!!
The measurements are not exact - because it depends on how many servings you are making, so since we had a fairly large class, I use the biggest bag of TATER TOTS I could find.... and it was BIG!!!
Here is all you need (add in other items to suit your taste):
- Tater tots (I defrosted them in the refrigerator the night before and then gave them a quick warm up in the microwave right before we made the salad. You could bake them in the oven for a little more crunchy tater tot salad- but we don't have an oven in class)
- Use a couple of cups of Tater Tots per 5 people
- 1/2 - 1 bag of cole slaw cabbage mix - already cut- the kind you buy in the store in the lettuce section where you only have to add the dressing (add 1/2 cup for less crunchy- up to a cup for more crunchy)
- approximately 1 cup of mayonnaise - stir it all up... add more mayo if it seems dry- you really can't mess this up
- chopped up celery
Suggested add-ins:
Chopped onions, hard boiled eggs, salt, pepper, red bell pepper
****************
HOMEMADE KIT KAT BARS
Our class version was a lot simpler than the original recipe that I found down below- due to allergies we omitted various ingredients. The best part of this is that you can stack these kit kats to your heart's content...... yummm!!!
CLASS VERSION:
(we made three trays of these with this recipe- approx 40 small bars)
- soften 1 stick of butter with 1/2 cup of brown sugar
- 1 box of crackers (I like "CLUB" square crackers)
- mix together with a spoon
- set aside
- melt chocolate- we used a mixture of milk and dark
- line a pan with tin foil or parchment paper** (prevents messy clean up and sticking)
- layer the bottom of the pans with crackers (we used "CLUB" crackers, you could use Ritz- but the CLUB crackers are square)
- smooth on your first layer of chocolate- we used milk
- spoon on a layer of butter and sugar mixture
- add another layer of crackers
- add another layer of chocolate- we used dark this time
We stopped at 2 layers because we were making 3 pans full (9x9 pans)- but you could keep going as high as you like.
Put the tray(s) into the refrigerator or freezer. We used the freezer due to time constraints.
Once chocolate is completely dry- remove from the fridge or freezer and lift out the tin foil or parchment paper (**if you didn't line the pan in the beginning- you will have a very hard time getting these out- hardened chocolate acts like glue to the pan)
Lay flat on a cutting board and carefully cut them with a sharp knife-
*** AN ADULT MUST DO THIS- THIS IS VERY DANGEROUS AS THE KNIFE MAY SLIP***
Also- be very careful not to get the chocolate wet- like in the case of doing this on a hot day- taking them out of the freezer into a warm area will cause condensation. Water ruins the consistency of chocolate. This is true when you are trying to melt chocolate. Never melt chocolate on a damp dish- or if using a double boiler to melt chocolate- sometimes the steam will escape into the top pan. the chocolate gets ruined. This is also true when trying to dip strawberries/fruit.... everything must be completely dry.
INGREDIENTS for MORE INVOLVED VERSION
- 75 Club crackers (about one box)
- 1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter
- 2 cups graham cracker crumbs
- 1 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
- 1/2 cup milk**
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- 2/3 cup creamy peanut butter**
- 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
- 1/2 cup butterscotch chips **
** These items were omitted due to allergy reasons in the classroom. We also only used the microwave and did not cook the butter & sugar mixture, When doing this on the stove, you will get a thicker consistency to your final product- (we just don't have a stove).
Fake BBQ DAY
Nothing is more fun then letting kids have fun with their food. I call this day JULY JOKE DAY ( a version of April Fool's, but in July)
ALMOST A HOT DOG
Below is my smaller version of the picture above. (Then I will include the website where you can make the full sized cake which is always a crowd pleaser).
In class we used:
Twinkies (or Little Debbie Cloud cakes)
Vanilla Frosting
red food coloring*
buttercup yellow food coloring*
pound cake
ziploc bags
- Unwrap the Twinkies
- make a small amount of RED frosting* & a small amount of Buttercup yellow frosting (* I prefer the gel food coloring- available at most craft stores in the cake decorating section)
- red frosting is your ketchup
- yellow is your mustard
- put each in a separate ziploc bag - to use for piping later- you don't need a lot of this- place to the side
- mix in a bowl- vanilla frosting and mostly red gel coloring and a little bit of yellow coloring (thus should make a redish-pink-with a small yellow tint)- keep working with it until you achieve a hot dog color
- frost the Twinkie with this frosting
- use the pound cake as the "bun"- I buy the pound cake from the grocery store-already sliced when possible
- extra pound cake- becomes French Fries if you cut them long ways (or you can use those potato sticks in the potato chip aisle if you prefer)
- garnish the hot dog with the "frosting mustard and/or ketchup"...... also do the fries.
- cut up green licorice (or sour gummy candy in squares to look like relish)
Link to the LARGE SIZED HOT DOG CAKE:
HARDLY A HAMBURGER
The adorable treats are so easy to make!!
Here is all you need:
- mini peppermint patties (as the meat)
- vanilla frosting (colored red as the ketchup)
- Vanilla frosting (colored yellow as the mustard)
- vanilla wafers (as the top & bottom bun)
- *sesame seeds (for the top bun- attach with a little bit of corn syrup)
- * green dyed coconut shavings (for lettuce)
*These items we did not use in class due to allergies
Assemble the items so they look like little hamburgers. You can also use vanilla frosting (not colored) as mayonnaise.
Another cute and different version for the top of cupcakes:
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