Happy Valentine's Day

Izzy wanted to thank everyone for sending her Valentine's. She was spoiled with jewelry, money, and fun cards to play and color on.



Also, this is the first "staff made" art project that we've ever gotten. What a funny thing to have come home after I praised the school for not doing assembly line art projects.

Young At Art

I just finished reading Young At Art by Susan Striker. She is really reminding me about the way I value teaching my child. I highly recommend the book (I found it at the public library). Here are some key points that I am getting from this book. Also, I love that Izzy's school also prescribe to these points.

• It is never helpful to create art for or about holidays. They do not help a child understand the meaning of a holiday at all (p.12).

• Let the subject of the completed picture be completely the child's creation (p.12).

• Art projects that look like people, animals, or holiday symbols had to have been done under suffocating situations (p.12).

• In group situations, such as play groups, day care centers, nursery schools, or camps, it is safe to say that no art experience has taken place if all of the children's work look alike. Assembly-line art is worse than none at all (p. 12).

• Every art teacher will tell you that parental response to a child's work may be of the most important elements in the child's feeling for his or her work (p. 37). Comments like: How the child's actions (movements) affect the picture, how color is used, the type of line that is used, how the work differs from a previous work, the way a tool is being used, pressure of the hand on a tool, and how the child feels while working are helpful comments that increase vocabulary and self-confidence (p. 38).

• Edible finger paint- either flour or cornstarch, some water, and food coloring// or 1 egg yolk, 2 tbsps of water, and a few drops of food coloring. You can even do the last one on bread and bake it. Personally, cleaning up flour and water is tough. I will try the cornstarch first and I am looking forward to painting with the egg yolk on bread and baking. Not sure if she will eat it since she doesn't like eggs, but she may like to pick at it.

• One idea that is shared throughout is the idea that one color should be introduced at a time. Offering several colors serves only the pleasure of the viewing adult; it is not required by the child, who will be enchanted with the activity even if only one color is available. Children love to repeat the same thing: books, songs, stories, games; therefore, it is like Picasso's blue period where he only used blue for several years (p. 62). Personally, I have a hard time with this, but it may be me as an adult that I like to see color. I am not sure though if I am ready to get rid of all the colors but black, then introduce the colors slowly, white, red, blue, and yellow. She also does this not only with colors but shapes and art techniques (drawing, painting, sculpture, etc.).

• The author talks about letting children paint on windows and outside (p. 74). I cannot wait for a warm Spring or Summer day, when I can get out the art supplies and have Izzy paint outside or with lots of soap in the paint, on the windows.

• Some interesting painting variations that we will try are: splatter painting (outside of course), painting on wet paper, crayon resist (painting on crayon drawing), spray painting with a spray bottle (we already now she knows how to use this see Toddler and a Spray Bottle), and painting with objects used around the house.

• Parents and teachers often make the mistake of changing art projects for children frequently. That keeps life interesting for the adult but deprives children of the education they derive from the simple, basic projects (p. 101).
  

• Using tape or stickers (p. 104)

• Edible play-doh: 1 12 oz jar of peanut butter, 6 tbsp of honey, 3 c. of powdered milk (p. 110). We cannot wait to try. Even if there is a peanut butter scare.
  

• Regular play-doh: 3 parts flour, 1 part salt, 1 part water, 1 tbsp of oil per cup of flour (optional food coloring or 1 teaspoon of alum per two cups of flour, to preserve for up to six months) (p. 110).
  

Transferring dog food?

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Izzy decided that she would practice a new practical life skill today: transferring dog food. The good part is, is that she is good at dumping and pouring. The bad new is, is that she does it ON MY CARPET. Couldn't she have decided to do this 1 foot over on the just mopped floor (probably was still wet). Lucky for us we had some hungry dogs, a patient mommy, and a great vacuum.

Monkey is back

Anybody else see anything wrong with this? I am now waiting for the day that the oven door pops open with her hanging on it. Ahhh. It cannot be summer quick enough so we can go outside and play in the water or in our garden.

Doing Work

Most kids stand when they scribble. Mine has decided that laying out across the Learning Tower onto the counter is comfortable for her. Talk about a kid that needs a jungle gym in our living room.

Art for Toddlers

I am reading a great new book called Young at Art (I have more to say about this book, but I am not finished with it yet) which has inspired me to create an art area in our home. So I enlisted Paul's help and we bought Izzy a new art table from Ikea and he is staining the new benches that go with it. She has storage underneath for supplies and a lazy susan to spin her materials that she uses more often. I am super excited, but learning quickly what should be out all the time and what shouldn't be out for "free time". I am also learning how easily marker comes off of tile, but not so much legs, arms, hands, clothes, and grout.

Freedom in the Home

We have set up our home so that Izzy is free to go where she pleases. I hadn't heard from her in a little while, so I popped in to see what she was doing and she was quietly playing in her closet. She was so engrossed in this activity that she did not even hear me come in or snap a picture.

Using a Knife

We have been practicing a new Practical Life activity: Using a knife. We were making a banana shake for our dessert and Izzy was helping us cut, but ended up that she wanted bananas and not a banana shake.

Pizza Day

So we took Izzy for pizza for lunch and when we drove home this is what she sang us to the tune of Farmer in the Dell.

Pizza Day!
Pizza Day!
Da, da, da, da, da, da,
Pizza Day!

Think she likes pizza???