Early Childhood Education-"Encouraging children to "Make their own kissed Blarney Stone to celebrate St. Patrick's Day "

Saint Patrick's Day can be a fun day filled with many arts and crafts for the children. It can also be very educational, filled with sensory and great story telling. Before, the children go down for a nap, make sure the space is opened enough, so when Louie the Leprechaun visits, he leaves some chocolate on there pillow and his gold glitter trail. Once they wake from nap, and use the restroom; the children will discover that Louie also used the restroom, by seeing green water in the toilet.....For snack? Cookies with green milk (a few drops of food coloring)!

There is a legend, "Legend says that anyone who kisses the Blarney Stone of Ireland will be blessed with eloquence. Make your own kissed Blarney Stone to celebrate St. Patrick's Day with your children in preschool, daycare or at home!"

Materials:

• Rock
• White and green acrylic paint
• Sponge applicator
• Pencil
• Gold paint pen
• White glitter glue
• Paintbrush

How to make it:

1. Using sponge applicator or large paint brush, paint the rock white, set aside to dry.
   
2. Draw lips on the rocks; trace around the lips lightly with a pencil onto the rock.
   
3. Paint the lips green and let dry.
4. Outline the lips with a gold paint pen.
5. Use gold paint pen to add other decorations to the rock, swirled lines, circles and other shapes.
   
6. Cover the entire rock with glitter glue and let dry.
   

Early Childhood Education-"Benefits of making Valentine's Dat Crafts in Childcare"

Valentine's Day can be an exciting time for children to exchange cards or notes. There are many projects one can make with there children in preschool or daycare. This activity is fun and encourages children to work together by sharing the materials and a great use of there fine motor skills. Your children will love it!

Materials:

• Cereal box
• Construction paper: red, white, purple and pink
• Glitter glue or glitter
  
• White craft glue or glue gun
  
• Scissors
• Heart-shaped cookie cutter (optional)
• Heart-shaped craft foam, felt
  

How to make it:

1. Cut cereal box in half, keeping the bottom half.
   
2. Cover the entire box with felt, foam or red construction paper using white craft glue or glue gun.
3. Trace cookie cutters, or draw freehand, to create hearts from construction paper. You will need two of each color for a total of six.
4. Use glitter glue to write short on the hearts.
   
5. Allow the glitter glue to dry completely, this can take several hours.
6. Glue three hearts, one of each color, to one side of the box, overlapping the hearts, tops of the hearts should stick out above the top of the box.
   
7. Glue foam hearts to the sides of the box.
   

Early Childhood Education-"Encouraging children to work together and make Valetines Day Keepsakes"

With Valentines around the corner, why not create a fun fine motor activity with your children in daycare or preschool? This activity encourages teamwork and for the children to interact with each other. It's a great gift for our mommy's, daddy's, grandparents, family to display in there home.
Materials needed:
-Ribbon
-Writing Pen
-Green Floral Tape
-Terracotta Pot
-Plastic Flower, Grass and Leaves
-Glue Gun
-Foam
**All of the above materials can be purchased at a craft store

Directions:

1. Glue the ribbon around the rim of the terracotta top.
2. Take the lid of your pen and wrap the pen in your green floral tape.
3. Cut the stem off of your fake flower, and glue the flower head to the top of your pen (not the part that writes.)
4. Glue your fake leaves to the middle of the pen.
5. Set a chunk of flower foam into the bottom of the pot and glue into place.
6. Fill the pot with your dried grass until you reach the top of your pot
7. Stick your pen into the flower foam. If the pen won't stand up, try adding more dried grass.

Early Childhood Education-"Encouraging children to work together and make Valetines Day pops"

Looking for yummy ideas for Valentines Day? This is a great activity for children to make at preschool or daycare. It encourages teamwork and also a great fine motor skills activity.




INGREDIENTS

1	package (18 oz) Pillsbury® Ready To Bake!™ refrigerated sugar cookies
15-20	flat wooden sticks with round ends
1 1/4	cups vanilla creamy ready-to-spread frosting (approx 1-lb container)
	small candy, sprinkles
10	yards red, white or pink ribbon

DIRECTIONS

1.	Heat oven to 350°F. On ungreased cookie sheets, place cookie dough pieces 2 inches apart. Into side of each piece of dough, insert wooden stick 1 inch, overlapping wooden sticks as necessary.
2.	Bake 12 to 16 minutes or until edges are light golden brown. Cool 2 minutes; remove from cookie sheets. Cool completely, about 10 minutes.
3.	Spread frosting on one side of each cookie; decorate with sprinkles. Tie 18 inches of ribbon into bow around each stick next to cookie. Eat and enjoy!

Early Childhood Education-"Encouraging children to make a Valentine Day Wreath"

With Valentines Day around the corner, this is a great activity for children to make in daycare or preschool. It's also a great fine motor activity. By having children cut out red, white and pink hearts. Making a Valentine wreath decorated from paper hearts and paper plates is very easy to make.

Materials:

• Red, white and pink construction paper
• Paper plate
• Scissors
• Glue
• Optional - glitter

Early Childhood Education-"Encouraging children to make and eat Foccacia"

Making fresh foccacia with children at preschool, daycare encourages many things. For example, children learn basic math skills; on measuring the right amount. Great use of fine motor skills to pour and scoop; sensory as they mix the ingrediants. It encourages great life skills where children get the opportunity to participate in an activity and see the end result by tasting it. This activity is very easy and a great activity for children to work together as a team.

Ingredients:

• 1 cups tepid water (90 degrees)
• 1 package yeast
• 1 tablespoons sugar
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 2 1/2 cups plus 1/4 cup bread flour
• 1 teaspoon salt

Toppings: Optional

• Approx 1/4 cup olive oil
  
• Garlic, rosemary to taste
• Kosher salt to taste

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, mix water, yeast, and sugar.
2. Stir in oils and salt.
3. Add 2 1/2 cups + 1/4 cup flour, mixing well til spongy.
4. Add enough remaining flour to make stiff dough.
5. Turn onto floured surface and knead until elastic.
6. Cover with bowl and let rise til doubled.
7. Spread on cookie sheets using your fingers.
8. TOPPINGS:
9. Mix crushed garlic with olive oil; brush over bread.
10. Sprinkle w/ dried rosemary and kosher salt
11. Bake at 375 for 1/2 hour.
12. Cut into squares and serve.
13. NOTE: You can also slice squares in half for sandwiches or simply for dipping
    

Early Childhood Education-"The art of creating Homemade Pizza in Childcare"

Cooking projects can be exciting and fun for children in daycare and preschool. They add as great fine motor skills, where children are using there fingers and hands to mix the flour, water and yeast. They are also using there senses, to touch the dough and while its forming one can smell the yeast mixing with the water and flour. This can be a great project and a great cooking lesson for the children to participate in. It can also encourage children to try new foods.




Ingredients for the dough:
3/4 cups warm water
2 cups white bread flour
dash of salt
1 package very active yeast
corn meal
cooking spray-pam

-Mix the water, flour, salt and yeast together in a bowl;using your hands.
-Set aside and let rise-about 1-2 hours
-Flour a cutting board and using a dough roller, roll out the dough-sprinkling flour on the pizza dough; so it doesn't stick to the roller.
-Spray pam on a cookie sheet or pizza stone
-Sprinkle some corn meal on the sheet, transfer dough to the baking sheet and form pizza on sheet.
Turn oven on 450

Filling:
Optional:
red tomato sauce, pesto sauce,cheese, peperoni,salami,chicken breast slices,pineapple,zucchini,onion, bell pepper,basil,tomatoes,mushrooms,olives,asparagus,

Bake in the oven for 20 minutes

Enjoy