Pinned It- Did It

    I love Pinterest- I "pin" a lot of stuff often- I have all ready discussed this addiction here - but lets refresh- I like to Pin and often! I came across this cute little project the other day and thought that our littles would love this- anything to do with paint they are in- throw in some glue even better! This project is super short and simple- just the project to do with a half hour to spare before lunch. To start with I cut out a very simple tree top and trunk- which the littles then glued to a piece of back paper.

    The use of a few corks as stamps for leaves and apples was a fun change of pace - creating unusual shapes and patterns while at the same time being really easy for the kids to grasp. The original project on Pinterest was a fall project with yellows,oranges and reds- but I was feeling inspired by all the apple orchards we had been surrounded by all weekend. A discussion on apple trees and growing followed by a snack of sliced apples after lunch rounded out our apple project!

   This was a cute and easy project that bridged the gap between outside time and lunch time- it helped everyone unwind a bit and also got them excited about eating their apples after lunch! The use of corks in lieu of traditional painting tools is a valuable  experience as kids can learn to be flexible and to value surprise at the outcome of their work. Corks are just one type of alternative mark making tool- what other tools have you used to create fun and interesting marks? I would love if everyone shared!

ps- feel free to follow me on Pinterest! Just click the red Pinterest button to the right of the screen!