Glass Ornaments

Posted on December 31, 2012 by Creative Preschool Resources

Merry Christmas! What? It’s nearly a week after Christmas? {sigh} We’ve been so busy with family fun that I’m not posting until a week after Christmas. Oh well, pin this idea for next year! glass ornament cover - Page 001

Each year I make a dated glass ball ornament with my Preschool students. You can usually get the plain glass ball ornaments at Michael’s or Hobby Lobby 50% off which makes them affordable. glass ornament 3 - Page 001

Each year I do something different. One year we made glass balls with their handprint in a bright color like yellow, red or green. glass ornament 2 - Page 001

In my Pre-K class we made white handprints. I turned their little fingers into cute little snowmen. glass ornament 5 - Page 001

Another fun option is to do a white handprint. Then open the top of the ornament and pour in 2-4 acrylic paint colors. You’ll need a lot of paint. Swirl the paint around to make sure the whole ball is covered inside.

Turn the ornament over onto a cup to drain. glass ornament 6 - Page 001

Expect a lot of paint to drain out. glass ornament 8 - Page 001

Which one will you make {next year}? I love them all! They create great keepsakes for the families to keep for years to come. glass ornament cover - Page 001

Happy crafting and Merry Christmas!

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A day to remember… not to blog.

Posted on December 17, 2012 by Creative Preschool Resources

Whoa… big changes are ahead!

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Hi everyone! Our family is going through some major changes right now. My daughter is currently attending a local charter school that is 2 minutes from our house. On top of that my hubby teaches there. Recently we were faced with a big dilemma .. My daughter’s third grade teacher has decided that she would go to Louisiana for the rest of the year to teach at another school within the charter school company.

Needless to say my little Third grade Princess will have a Long-term substitute for the rest of year. Considering my hubby and I are both licensed teachers we started praying about what to do for our daughter. We just want the best for her.

We have decided to homeschool her from January to May. It will surely be an interesting adventure. Pray for us!!!

I finally had both kids in school full-time and a little “me time”. Now, suddenly I will have another kid home all the time and not only that, I don’t get to hang out with her, I actually have to prepare and plan lessons to make sure she’s learning PLUS run by preschool business. Don’t get me wrong, I’m excited but also a little nervous. I’m excited to be able to focus in on some gaps that we’re noticing in her education like math facts, writing skills, computer typing and art history. I’m excited to be able to truly bring “learning to life” through real life experiences and for our relationship to grow. My hubby (who currently teaches 5th grade and specializes in Math) is going to “own” her math education which takes a little off my plate.

I just love my beautiful girl!!!

Be patient with me as blogging will be hit or miss, but I hope to post as much as possible of the fun things that I’m doing with my Preschool lovelies and maybe some BONUS items for older kids!

I’m on Etsy!

Posted on December 7, 2012 by Creative Preschool Resources

Wow! I sure have my hands full lately, but to add to the craziness I’m working on selling some ADORABLE handmade products!!! I saw a version of these at a craft show I attended and fell in LUV, so I just had to make some myself. I figured, if I loved them that much, other people might like them to so I started making them!

I have more to come, but these are the completed items. They are all available in black, white, antique white, brick red, ocean blue, sage green, and walnut brown. Check them out at my Etsy Shop - Among the Aspens!

Merry Christmas!

3-D Christmas Trees

Posted on December 6, 2012 by Creative Preschool Resources

Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle all the way… Oh how I love Christmas! My house is decorated, presents are wrapped (well, some of them) and Christmas music is playing. I just love this time of year and the celebration of Jesus’ birth!

My Preschoolers made these adorable 3-D trees using the “cheap” version of paper plates. You know the kind where you have to use 2 or 3 in order to keep your food from flopping off your plate? Anyways, have your kids paint TWO PLATES each green.

After they dry… most likely over night, cut one of plates in half like shown below.

Cut the second in half first. Then with one half cut it in half again making fourths and with the other half just trim off about 1/4 of that and throw it away. See picture below for clarification.

Get your hot glue gun all warmed up. (This is a grown up job!) Glue the 2 halves together.

Glue the portion just smaller than a half on next.

Lastly glue the fourths onto the tree.

Once this is completed ask your kiddos to decorate with whatever you have lying around. I’ve used sequins, pom poms, foam stickers etc. Enjoy your cute Christmas trees! They add such fun and festivity to the classroom!

Enjoy and Merry Christmas!

Little Lamb Ornament

Posted on December 5, 2012 by Creative Preschool Resources

Awe! I just love looking at this sweet ornament! My daughter made this adorable ornament years ago at church and we still hang it on our tree.

I’ve re-created it for my preschool students and I thought I should share it with you as well! First print out the template here: Little Lamb Ornament PDF

Cut out the lamb and trace it onto white craft foam. You can get 4 on a 12×18 sheet of craft foam which costs about $ .89 at Michael’s.

Cut out the craft foam heads.

Have kids cover the lamb shape with cotton balls, insert a photo and display on the tree!!! Viola! An adorable ornament for all to see!

Enjoy and Merry Christmas!

Candy Cane Paper Patterns

Posted on December 4, 2012 by Creative Preschool Resources

Good morning all! I don’t know about you, but we’re having a warm December so far. It’s been in the 40′s-60′s for weeks with no end in sight yet. For Denver, Colorado, that’s warm. Don’t get me wrong, I like the nice weather… I just want to add a little cold and snow in here and there.

This week in preschool we’re working on lots of things for Christmas, but one is patterns particularly with Candy Canes. Last week I posted a candy cane painting project. Today we’re making Candy Cane patterns using construction paper. It’s great fine motor building for their little fingers to have to pick up tiny bits of paper. We made these cuties!