simple Analogy

May Kid's Craft Along: Geometric Necklace

I know you want to celebrate MOM on Mother's Day, and this month's craft will help you do just that!  Give her a fun necklace to wear this summer...

Supplies: 

24 inch ball and chain necklace

10 wooden beads (mine were 3/4 inch in diameter)

acrylic paint

painter's tape (washi tape will work too)

Directions:  Can be found HERE.

Suggestion:

When wrapping the tape around the beads, make sure to lay the tape down smoothly and press down tightly against the bead.  You don't want any ripples or bumps along the edge of the tape or else you won't get a nice crisp edge.

I'd love to see your version!  Add pictures to the Kid's Craft Along flickr group or #kidscraftalong on Instagram.

April Kid's Craft Along: Rain Painting

April showers bring May flowers you know, so let's have some fun in the rain.  You can do this project on a rainy day or manufacture your own rain!

Supplies:  washable markers, paper, table salt (optional)

I used watercolor paper so that the paper would not wrinkle after it got wet, but you can do this with any kind of paper.

Approximate cost:  Free

Directions:

With washable markers, color a design on your paper.

Rain version:  Take it out in the rain and set it down on a flat surface.  If it's just drizzling, this will take a little longer.  If it's pouring it may only take a few seconds. 

Manufactured rain:  Spritz picture with a spray bottle filled with water.

No matter which way you wet your picture, keep an eye on it and bring it inside when you like the way the colors have spread.  Just remember the wetter the picture gets, the more the colors will bleed.  You may want to try several pictures at varying degrees of wetness.  If you don't want your colors to drip down the picture, make sure that you keep it flat.  However you could experiment with drips by holding the paper vertically and letting the colors slide down the paper.

Bring picture inside and lay flat to dry.

Optional: While picture is wet, sprinkle table salt on it and let dry completely.  The salt will collect some of the color, adding texture.

When painting is completely dry, brush off salt and enjoy your rain painting.

Add your paintings to the Kid's Craft Along Flickr group!

Kid's Craft Along: Eating Rainbows for St. Patty's Day

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Top o' the mornin' to ya!  Are you planning to celebrate St. Patrick's Day?  How about crafting a fun snack together with the kiddos?  The inspiration for this craft along project is from Sweet Lulu.  Seriously fun party supplies going on over at her shop!

Supplies:

rainbow colored licorice

small paper party favor/condiment cups

mini marshmallows

Approximate cost: $7 will make several!

Directions:

Really this is so simple, you probably don't even need directions.  But if you do...

1.  Place a little bit of double sided tape on the bottom of each cup to keep them from sliding away from each other, and position them a few inches apart.

2.  Gather your licorice rainbow and arrange in order.

3.  Place one end of the rainbow into the first cup and fill with marshmallows to hold in place.

4.  Bend other end over and place in second cup; add more marshmallows.

It'll take all of two minutes to make, and then they can have the fun of eating their own rainbow!

Share:  As always, I'd love to see your creations.  Add them to the Kids Craft Along Flickr group or hashtag instagram pictures with #kidscraftalong.

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If you're new to Simple Analogy, the Kid's Craft Along projects are usually posted on the first of the month. (This one's early because I have something exciting to share with you tomorrow!)  We'd love to have you join in the fun!  See this post for more information.

February Kid's Craft Along: Custom Chalkboard Valentines

I totally skipped the craft along project for January and was thinking about skipping this month as well (crazy busy), but after the fun my boys had with this I just had to share... 

Background:  We are going to be part of a Valentine's Day party with our homeschool group.  My boys are some of the oldest in the group, and sometimes the activities are geared more for the younger kids.  The list of what to bring to the party included valentines for each child.  "A valentine exchange?!  Do we have to?"  was the response from my junior high-er.

I told them they didn't have to if they didn't want to, but they decided they'd be good sports and participate.  Ok.  What to do...  Um, there are 40 kids involved here. 

40 valentines x 2 boys = 80 valentines

We needed something easy, creative, and not too childish - after all they are in the 8th and 11th grades.  Since chalkboard valentines are all the rage around blogland this year, I gave the boys a blank slate and let them create their own - digitally!  (If you have younger kids, you'll probably want to help them with the process.)

Supplies:

Cardstock

Approximate cost:  $0.30 for 80 valentines!!!!!

Directions:  *NOTE:  You can click any picture to enlarge it to see more in detail.

Download the free chalkboard background c/o Lil Blue Boo (toward the bottom of the post).  Extract files.

Open pixlr express - a free photo editing site with lots of options and easier to navigate than photoshop.  Click on browse and upload the chalkboard image.

Click on Text.

This will bring up several different categories of text to choose from.  Click which category you'd like: dotted, grunge, handwritten, novelty, retro, sans, or serif.

 Click on Font.

Choose from the list of fonts.

Type in the text you'd like.  If you want each word on a separate line, hit enter at the end of each word.  As you type, it will put your text in a box onto the chalkboard.  We'll play around with the text next.

Center the text inside the box.

Move the text to where you want it on the chalkboard. 

Make text as large as you want it by adjusting the side or bottom circles.

Once you get it your preferred size, click apply.  It will bring up the list of types of fonts again.

We still need to sign our names, so pick a handwritten font.  Following the same procedure as before, type in "From:" and then your name.  Adjust the placement and the size, then click apply.

Now we need save the image to the computer.  Click Save.

Type the name of the file, slide the bar to the highest quality, click Save.

Now print your valentines onto card stick.  Using the picture gallery software on my computer, we printed nine wallet sized valentines on one sheet of cardstock.  Make sure that "fit picture to frame" is unchecked if using Windows Live Photo Gallery.

This valentine is pretty simple, but my boys got pretty creative using the overlays and stickers on Pixlr.  I'll show you theirs soon!  Three cheers for cheap but not cheesey valentines and digital creativity!

***If you create your own, I'd love to see them.  Upload picture to the Kid's Craft Along Flickr group.

December Craft Along: String Art Ornaments

Need super easy ornaments for the kids to make for Christmas?  These string art ornaments are beautifully easy!

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Supplies:

cardboard

crochet yarn (really any thinner yarn should work just fine)

Directions:

The Crafty Crow's directions are easy to follow!

I'd love to see your ornaments.  Upload pictures to the Kid's Craft Along flickr pool!

Project Thankful: Week One

I am really trying to incorporate thankfulness as daily habit.  Just think!  It's the kind of habit that you never have to feel guilty about!  The kind you'll never need to break!  Since I'm trying to be more intentionally thankful, I decided that the Sparks children in AWANA could join me.  This is a group of 25-30 kindergarten through 2nd grade children that I will be teaching in November and December.

This week's lesson was about being thankful for basic necessities:  food, clothing, shelter.  I am using Jesus' example of giving thanks for a meager lunch offered to Him by a little boy to use in feeding 5,000 people.  (John 6:1-13)  For those not familiar, the sum total of the boy's lunch was five little loaves of bread and two fish.  Not a whole lot to offer especially with the enormous amount of people to feed, but Jesus was thankful for the little boy's willingness to share.  He gave thanks for that little lunch, broke it into pieces, and passed it out to the people.  Don't you know that everyone there was suprised as the food just kept multiplying until everyone was filled to the brim.  And get this, there were leftovers - five baskets worth!  I love the way that a willingness to share and thankfulness were highlighted.

For this month long series, each child will be making a Thankful Journal using chiboard albums that I found in the dollar bin at Michael's.  Their challenge is to write down one thing each day of the week that they are thankful for.  It's scary for me to write on unlined paper, and I'm 37!  Since they are K - 2nd graders, I made numbered lines for them to write on.  Feel free to print as many as you need!

We will be decorating the cover of their journals, but since we only have a few minutes to get our craft done we'll be taking it in steps.  This week's step is the messiest because it involves paint.  I always cringe when I decide to paint with children, but I do it anyway because sometimes painting is just the best thing to do for the desired effect.

Journal Layer 1

Supplies:  Chipboard journal cover, foam brush, acrylic paint, bubble wrap

Children should wear a smock or paint shirt to keep their clothes safe!!!  Cover your surface with newspaper.  (In this case I didn't because we were using a surface that could easily be wiped clean.)  Tape a piece of bubble wrap that is a little bigger than the journal cover to the suface so it doesn't slip-slide around.  Paint the middle of the bubble wrap.

Press the front cover onto the wet bubble wrap, gently lift, and let dry completely.  It gives a nice textured base to add onto next week.

I'm happy to say that by filtering 25 children through the craft station, we were able to complete this in under 20 minutes.  And THANKFULLY no major mishaps!  Thanks for keeping them coming, Beka, and for helping with directions! 

Join us next Wednesday for the contiuation of Project Thankful!

November Kid's Craft Along: Project Thankful

After reading One Thousand Gifts I've been taking being thankful more seriously.  This month I will be teaching Thankfulness during AWANA to K - 2nd graders at my church.  We will be doing a month-long craft together to help us on this thankful journey which I'll be sharing every Wednesday along the way.

In the meantime, want to foster thankfulness in your children?  Join us by making your own thankful tree...

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Supplies:  branches, jar or vase, paper

Approximate cost:  Free - just use things you have on hand.

Directions:  Found at Simply Vintagegirl.

Add pictures of your thankful tree to the Kids Craft Aong flickr pool!

October Kid's Craft Along: All About Texture

The boys and I have been having fun with clay during art class this year.  It's something totally different for us and we're still in the experimenting stages.  One of our experiments was with texture.  It was so fun, I thought we'd share it with you as our project for the month.

Supplies:

modeling clay (we use sculpey)

a rolling pin

assorted items from around the house:  tapestry pins, lace, sticks, slinky, straws, rubber stamps, aluminum foil, buttons, paper clips, silk flower, leaves...  You get the picture:)

Approximate cost:  $2 for the clay

Directions:

Soften your clay by working it in your hands until it is soft, and roll out the clay into a thick layer.

Press items one by one into the clay.  This texture is from a balled up piece of foil.

Or combine several objects on the same layer of clay to vary the textures.  This one is a combination of sticks, a small knife, and a tracing paper wheel. 

Want more of a challenge?  Pick one item and use it in several different ways to make different textures.  Both the design above and below were made using a tapestry needle.  The tip was used to poke the clay, the "eye" was pressed into the clay to for a sort of long skinny u-shape, the long part of the needle was used to create lines.

When the clay is filled with texture work it in your hands again, roll it out, and start all over.

The great thing about this project is that it can last as long as the kids are interested.  Have a child with a short attention span?  They can be done in just few minutes.  Have a future artist with the patience of Job?  They could sit for hours and create different designs/textures.  

Show off your textures by sharing them on the Kid's Craft Along flickr group! 

September Kid's Craft Along: Back to School Lava Lamps

School's back in session for most.  What's your favorite subject?  Math?  Not me!  I'm an English kind of girl.  What about science?  Labs were my favorite part.  So in loving memory of all my science teachers, Mrs. Sizemore and Mrs. Venters in particular, let's do a fun hands on science project this month.

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Supplies:

empty 1 Liter soda bottle

vegetable oil

food coloring

Alka Seltzer tablet

Approximate Cost:  $3

Directions:  Found HERE via A Lemon Squeezy Home.

So simple, yet so fun!  Make sure you shine a flashlight through it to get the true lava lamp experience.

You can pictures of your lamp to the Kid's Craft Along Flickr group.  Happy school year!

August Kid's Craft Along: Handprint Flower T-shirts

So once you do your lazy girl ombre dying, you have a great summer t-shirt that is just DYE-ing for some handprints.  We did these with the two and three year old children during VBS.  I'm not going to say it's not messy, because it is.  PAINT + KIDS = MESSY!  It's just the way it is.  But the kids had a fun time making their own shirts and even more fun wearing them.

So, are we ready?

Supplies:

Ombre dyed t-shirt (or any solid t-shirt)

Fabric paint (or acrylic)

Foam paint brush 

Approximate cost:  $1 if you have a t-shirt on hand.  A few more if you don't.

Directions:

Place a piece of press 'n seal (or cardboard) between the layers of your shirt to keep the paint from bleeding through to the back.

Paint a coat of paint on one hand.  Using the above picture as your placement guide place painted hand with fingers spread apart in position on the shirt.  Press firmly.  Lift hand straight off the shirt.  Repeat three more times to complete your flower.

Let dry completely, then heat set with an iron.

Line up with your friends and show off your creation.

You could add a green stem at the bottom and add lots of finger prints to the middle of your flower, but we were on a time constriant.  And truth be told, I didn't want to freak out my helpers any more than necessary to get these done. 

If you make some of these, I'd love to see your version!  Add pictures to the Kid's Craft Along Flickr pool!