Here are some fun things you can do with your kids.

Crafts


Sand Layering

Materials
sand
a clear jar with lid
plastic cups (not foam cups)
paper towels
powdered fabric dyes or food coloring

Instructions:
Set out as many plastic cups as you want colors of sand, and fill each cup half full of sand. In another cup, mix water and as much dye powder or drops of food coloring as it takes to make the color you want. Remember the dyed sand will be lighter than the colored water, so go a shade or two darker. Pour colored water into the cup of sand and stir with a plastic spoon. Rinse the water cup before repeating the coloring process with each new color of sand. When all cups of sand have dye in them, let them stand at least 15 minutes.
Carefully drain the water off of sand. (It's better to go this outside sot hat no grains of sand will go down the drain.) Cover a worktable or countertop with waxed paper; then lay out four sheets of paper towel (4 thicknesses) for each color of sand. Spoon the sand onto paper towels, spread it out a bit, and let it dry. Keep colors separate. After the sand is dry, carefully begin to spoon it into dry jars in beautiful layers. You can make "mountains" and "valleys" by mounding sand of one color against the side of the jar, filling in the valleys with another color.


Sand Paintings

Materials:
Brightly colored chalk
Sand Samples
Baby food jars or empty 35mm film canisters
White glue
Manila paper or poster board

Instructions:
Collect Sand sample of different textures. Cursh some brightly colored chalk with a rock or hammer and mix with sand to create desired colors. Or use dyes or food colors, as described above. "Paint" your picture with glue, one item at a time. The sprinkle colored sand on the glue. Tip picture gently to remove excess sand on another piece of paper; then return unused colored sand to container.
Keep adding glue and colored sand until your painting is finished. HINT: If you first "paint" the background such as sky, sea, mountains, fields, and let this part dry for a few hours, you can add more detail (buds, trees, flowers, boats), even on top of the dried background.


Bleach Bottle Bird Feeder

Cut two holes on each side of a clean, empty bleach bottle. The holes should be about 1 � inches wide and about 2 inches from the bottom of the bottle. Make two holes in the neck so you can attach a wire for hanging the feeder, and make some small drainage holes in the bottom. Fill the feeder with birdseed, then hang it outside from a tree branch so your child can watch the birds feed.


Making Leaf Tracks

Gather a variety of leaves that have already fallen from trees or dropped from plants. Leaves with prominent veins work best. Arrange the leaves on a flat hard surface and cover them with a sheet of think paper, such as newsprint or tracing paper. Have your child use crayons or colored pencils to rub across the paper to bring out the pattern of the leaf. Use a different color for each leaf.


Plaster Casts

Mix plaster of paris with water until it is smooth and stiff. Pour the plaster into a foil dish. Press your hand into the plaster. Keep your hand still until you feel the plaster begin to set. Remove your hand gently when you can take it away without taking plaster too. Scratch your initials into the plaster with the round end of a brush. When the plaster is completely dry turn the plaster out of the dish. Paint the cast with acrylic or poster paints.


Jungle Masks

Materials:
Plain paper plates
elastic
scissors
paint
colored felt tips
some wool

Draw an animal face on a paper plate. Cut out two large holes for the eyes, and two small side holes that will hold the elastic. To hold the mask in place, thread the elastic through the side holes. Tie a knot at the ends. Add extra bits of decoration to finish off the mask.


Pomander Balls

Materials:
1 Orange
A packet of Whole Cloves
Meat Skewer or Sharp Nail
Ribbon

Instructions:
Use the sharp end of the skewer to puncture the skin of the orange all over so that you can push cloves into the rind. Stick the cloves as close together as possible, in circles around the orange until the whole clove is covered. Now push the skewer or nail through the center of the orange and tie a bow around each end covering the skewer. Make a long loop of the ribbon to hang it by.
The orange will shrivel and dry, the oil of its skin blending with the spiciness of the cloves to give a wonderful fragrance.
Give them as gifts or hang them in wardrobes and linen cupboards to make clothes smell sweet and spicy.


Outdoor fun

Desert in a Jar


Materials:
Clean, wide mouthed half-gallon or gallon pickle jar with holes in the lid
Sand
Small desert rocks or dried broken bits of dead cactus
Small live cactus plants

Instructions:
Pour about two inches of sand in the bottom of a clean jar. Plant cactus plants, being careful not to get prickles in your fingers. (Cotton garden gloves might help). Place a few colorful rocks or broken bits of dead cacti around the plants. Add a small amount of water, just enough to dampen the sand. Place the lid on the jar and put your desert garden in a sunny window.


Plastic Terrarium

Materials:
Plastic 2 Litre Soft Drink bottle
Potting Mix
Small Plant (seedling)
Rocks or Charcoal
Instructions:
Collect an old soft drink bottle with a separate black base. Remove the base in hot water (get an adult to do this). Cut bottle at top ridge with sharp scissors. Be very careful not to cut yourself. Make sure the container is clean. After placing drainage holes in the base container, put in rocks or charcoal for drainage then three quarter fill with potting mix. Place the plant vertically. Do not use a big plant or the top of the terrarium will not go on. Press plant lightly into position and water.
Place the plastic dome over base and your terrarium is complete. Have fun watching your plant grow.


Grass Head

Materials: Potting Mix
Old Stocking
Grass seeds
Yogurt or Paper cup

Instructions:
Mix some potting mix with grass seeds. Cut the leg of a stocking so that you have approximately twenty centimeters from the toe. Fill the toe of the stocking with the mixed dirt/grass seed mix. When it is about the size of a tennis ball, tie a knot in the stocking. Put some water in the bottom of the yogurt/cup container then place stocking on it so that the loose part of the stocking is in the water. Decorate the grass head by drawing or painting a face on it. Watch the grass grow through in a few days.


Great Ideas For Parents And Kids!
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