I Am SO Making These

Found this idea on Pinterest (where else?) and had to share! My idea will be simpler--the kids won't draw such intricate snowflakes, so they'll get to paint whatever they would like to leave white and we'll water color the rest. We happen to have cool silvers, blues, greens, etc. in watercolors (the cheap kind), so I think it will turn out well, especially as a project for two weeks of no curriculum. The full tutorial for the project (and all the credit for the idea) comes from a blog called The Mayberry Sparrow.

The picture has an Amazon link

I have to say, preschool is MUCH more fun without a curriculum. It's like babysitting, and I can get all excited about silly things (like popsicle stick snowflakes and metallic paper coloring). Not to mention it's easier. I had all of our pre-k kids, which equaled ten. It was easy to give everyone my full attention, and listen to their stories, help with crafts, read fun snowmen books, etc. For "circle time" (more like a line with so few kids and no curriculum) I handed out parts to a snowman. There was a body (three pieces), two arms, two eyes, a nose, a hat, and a scarf, which equaled enough for each kid to have one (I also created this about five minutes before circle, so I thought it turned out well). We discussed how you build a snowman, and in what order, then each kid got to bring forward a piece of the snowman and put it together. Then we read The Biggest, Best Snowman, a book my mom used to read me when I was little. I actually brought it in from my home Christmas collection. The overall theme worked out far better than I had planned (especially for no planning whatsoever), and the kids loved it. They kept connecting ideas back to it for the rest of the day. I had a really great bunch of kids, which was incredibly lucky. They worked well together and we had no fights, no tears, no problems. The whole day was smooth as chocolate, and I even got out early.

The dramatic play area currently has a backdrop of snowflakes, snowmen, and white not-Christmas lights. I've added snow to the area, and I'll be stopping at Goodwill for cheap winter clothes for them to wear while playing in the "snow" as well. I don't have super up-to-date pictures of the area yet, so I haven't created a page, but I will soon (hopefully).

I can't wait for some of the other cool crafts I have planned! I'll update as we complete them (if I remember to take pictures).