Getting Ready For A New School Year--LINKS TO CHECK OUT!

Hi there!

We start school later than many of you, so as of September 8th, I've just finished my first week back. I wanted to post links to a few resources I found online that I used to get my room ready. I think you'll find them useful--I surely did!

Stuff I Did For Me:

I love to be prepared and have nicely organized "stuff" but I don't think I need to reinvent the wheel. There are so many teachers out there that have wonderful ideas for classroom organization that I'm constantly "Pinning." Even though I teach Middle School Art, I do not only look for solutions that art artroom- or middle school-exclusive. I think we can find inspiration anywhere! This year, though, I wanted to actually DO some of the ideas I "pinned," so here's what I have done so far:

Organizing Files: I really loved the "30 Minute File Cabinet Makeoever" that I saw at Kate's Science Classroom Cafe. I had all of my files from last year in hanging file folders, but they weren't easy to find and just weren't working for me--I tried her system and LOVE it!!

Detail from "30 Minute File Cabinet Makeover"
from Kate's Science Classroom Cafe

The To-Do List: I love post-it notes and use them constantly, but sometimes (ALL THE TIME) I misplace them or lose them. This Fancy To-Do List Printable from The Colorful Apple is a perfect idea that will keep my post-it To-Do's organized! I printed this form out, laminated it and have it as page one in my teacher binder (what I use as a calendar and plan book). Love it!!

Detail from The Colorful Apple

My Plan Book and Calendar: Yeah, I'm not so good with remembering dates. I am notorious for showing up somewhere at the wrong time or or on the wrong day. But this year--It's going to be different!! I am also known for buying a planner, using it for approximately three months and then discarding it. Perhaps that is why I am horrible with dates and times....hmmmm....Anyhow! One of the teachers at school uses The Happy Planner and I found this Teacher Edition at Michaels and knew I had to try it (I mean, it comes with stickers and everything!). I am SO HAPPY I did! I can actually use it as a plan book and it is so nice to be able to layout my plans for my art classes in an easy-to-see format. I also use this for my personal dates and reminders as well. I am happy to report I haven't missed an appointment yet (although it's only been a month!).

Detail of The Happy Planner, Teacher Edition

My Toolbox: I love office supplies and when I am working I like to have what I need nearby. I saw online that teachers were making these teacher toolboxes and I knew that when I got my own classroom I would be making this ASAP! Last summer I made this and I loved it. It's right by my desk and I can reach it easily. I cannot live without it. It helps that is is SUPER cute thanks to the printables from Teach Create Motivate at Teacher Pay Teachers.

Detail from the Teacher Toolbox Printables
From Teach Create Motivate

Emergency Sub Plan (Notans): Planning for a sub is hard--especially if you (or your kids) are already sick. Last year, I had a pet emergency one morning and before I could take my cat to the emergency vet, I needed to go in and write emergency sub lessons--talk about stressful!! This year, I got smart! I found this Notan Lesson from Teach and Shoot and thought it would be perfect as an emergency sub lesson. So, I printed out her handouts (enough for every student in my four classes--in case I am out on a day when I see all four of the classes I teach), cut black paper squares and white paper (enough for all of said students to create this lesson) and took ALL of those things along with a copy of the directions I had laminated and placed EVERYTHING in a clear plastic tote labeled "Emergency Sub Lesson" and placed it in view near my desk. Glue sticks and scissors are always available in a prominent area of my classroom, so I didn't need to include those. WHEW, now I am ready in case of an emergency absence. I think this project could last two class period in my room.

Detail from the Notan Lesson
From Teach and Shoot

Easy Desk-top Paper Organization: This simple desk-top solution for daily materials organization from Juice Boxes and Crayolas seemed like a great idea to me. I usually use tagboard file folders for my papers that I need to copy and a desk-top bin for papers to file and another bin for papers to grade. This just seemed like what I was already doing, but more uniform. It seems to be better for me.

Detail from Juice Boxes and Crayolas

Well, that's it for now! What did YOU for yourself to get ready for this school year? Post your ideas in the comments section below (with a link) so that we can be inspired!

Here's to a wonderful start to the new school year!

Getting Ready for MY First Day!

I'm sorry I haven't posted in a while, but I've been enjoying life! I've been having a wonderful summer with my husband and four kids, reorganizing and renovating our home (yay! new bathroom!) camping, attending an online art conference and reading all sorts of non-scholarly books.

But, it's time to get serious. It's time to get ready for MY FIRST CLASSROOM! Yippee!! I'll be teaching 7th and 8th grade part-time at Amherst Middle School. I have a very large classroom and I am taking over for an art teacher that was VERY neat. The room was like a blank canvas and many of us know what it is like to sit staring a blank canvas: Blink. Blink. What am I going to DO?

Well. I just took a step and began. I decided the pressure was off to get my room 100% "DONE" (as if it ever would be!) for the first day of school. I feel as though the classroom is a very organic space where there are certain things that are constant (signs for where materials are located, the elements and principles bulletin board, the standards/competencies board), but I need to be able to have places to display student work and visuals and inspiration that pertain to what they are working on. So, I got a couple of the constants done and today I'm labeling my supply cabinets.

Here's are some of the highlights:

My Teacher Zone

Teacher Zone: I covered the old metal desk with contact paper. I think it needs a little something in the center or some inspirational art quotes on it...I'll work on that. My computer hasn't been set up, but will be soon. In the bookcase to the side, I have a couple of gallons of water (I try to drink a lot of water during the day) and a teacher toolbox for my supplies. I got the printables for the teacher toolbox on TeachersPayTeahcers--love the imagery!

Labels by Teach Create Motivate

The banner above the desk was done using the freebies I got at the Art of Ed Online Teacher Conference I attended this summer. This is NOT my idea, but rather a copy of an image I saw on Pinterest. I loved it and knew it would be perfect for the students at my school since we are using the Courage to Care Program and I believe that courage can come in many forms and I truly believe that it takes an amazing amount of courage to be yourself and take chances (i.e. be creative in middle school). 

Standards/Competencies Area: I am a BIG proponent of the standards/competencies in the classroom. I want EVERYONE to know what they are--parents, students, community members, etc. So, here's the place that I have them for everyone to see. I have the NH State Standards, the National Visual Arts Standards, and the strategic plan that our district is working on (this is an important document for our district and really relates to everything we do in our classrooms and as a district).

Those little art images are postcards I got a while back from IKEA. I plan to keep this up all year.

Standards/Competencies Board

Elements/Principles Bulletin Board: OK, as a graphic designer, I love the elements and principles and feel they need to be displayed and referred often. I saw this great bulletin board idea on the interweb and then saw these great posters on Teachers Pay Teachers by Mrs. Nguyen and knew they would work perfectly! The painting in the center is from Goodwill--I just really liked the colors and the op-art look of it. I just pinned these up and haven't committed to the arrangement yet. But I will need to soon! I plan to keep this up all year.

Elements/Principles Board

I'll post more pictures of the room soon, I'm going in today (with some of my kids!!), so we'll see what we get done. This is probably my last classroom-focused day and the rest of my prep I'll do at home on my computer...

Have a wonderful start to YOUR school year!!

Planning Your Classroom Design? Look at this research...

Well, I've been busy this summer taking one of my last Graduate courses--Research Design, and it has been pretty neat. I've actually enjoyed reading about educational research and it's given me some things to think about as I move into my student teaching this Fall (YIPPEE!! SO thrilled!).

If you are blessed to have a teaching job and a classroom to plan, check out this study called, "Visual Environment, Attention Allocation, and Learning in Young Children: When Too Much of a Good Thing May Be Bad" written by Anna V. Fisher, Karrie E. Godwin and Howard Seltman. This article was originally published in Psychological Science May 2014. 

Here's the Abstract:
A large body of evidence supports the importance of focused attention for encoding and task performance. Yet young children with immature regulation of focused attention are often placed in elementary-school classrooms containing many displays that are not relevant to ongoing instruction. We investigated whether such displays can affect children’s ability to maintain focused attention during instruction and to learn the lesson content. We placed kindergarten children in a laboratory classroom for six introductory science lessons, and we experimentally manipulated the visual environment in the classroom. Children were more distracted by the visual environment, spent more time off task, and demonstrated smaller learning gains when the walls were highly decorated than when the decorations were removed.
(from http://pss.sagepub.com/content/early/2014/05/20/0956797614533801.abstract)

If you don't want to purchase the full article, check out this online write-up from The Association of Psychological Science that summarizes the article.

This study really got me thinking about the visuals that are in the classroom and how they affect student learning. As a graphic designer and a visual person, I get distracted easily by clutter and "stuff" all over surfaces and walls. I also need to be able to know where my supplies are. I felt like this was also true with the students in the middle school art classroom I substituted in this past Spring. I tried hard to organize the classroom to have zones and label drawers and cabinets neatly so that the students (and I) could find things and work efficiently. I also tried to keep visuals to a minimum and have them relate to the project at hand. I think in my future classroom, I would make some adjustments to that even more--I'm always learning!

I hope you enjoy this study as you plan your classroom for the fall!

P.S. If you do want some kick-butt posters for your classroom, check out my free posters here. ;-)

Out with the old! Art catalog magnets

So, are you feeling the urge to organize your classroom, your paperwork, your art space? No, me neither! Just kidding!

But if you are throwing out some old magazines and art catalogs, here's a great project that you really should try (I know you've probably seen it everywhere)! Take a couple of those great art catalogs from last year (Crystal Publications catalogs are my favorite for this!) and grab a few inexpensive art supplies and get crafting! The reason I love the art catalogs is that they have tons of little images of art posters that are the perfect size for this project. It's sort of addicting once you get started--it's so fun to create your own gallery of art magnets!

You can also use magazine images and text (Family Fun magazine is another favorite of mine) if you like more random images and funky text for your magnets. You may be able to use your own images--just make sure they are laser color copies and not inkjet since the ink will bleed when you brush on the Mod Podge.

These make a nice little gift when you display them in a unique way. I had my art students attach them to a piece of card stock and slip them into a zip-top bag, but I've seen people put them in an old Altoids tin. The would be nice on a card that looked like a fancy frame (or maybe a whole bunch of little frames with one magnet in each frame)--really the sky's the limit on how you can present these. They are great gift for the artsy people in your life! (hint, hint!)

Art Catalog Magnets

Supplies Needed:

• Old art catalogs or magazines
• 1" clear glass "blobs" from the dollar store--these were bigger than the standard 1/2" blobs that I use for other projects
• 1" circle template (see below)
• Pencil
• Scissors
• Mod Podge
• Foam brush
• Palette for Mod Podge
• Newspapers for work surface
• Circle magnets (I bought mine at Michael's for $7 for a pack of 50 magnets, I think)
• Super glue (I tried jewelry glue but, WHEW! it stunk--serious brain cell killing going on with that stuff!)

Directions:

1. Create your template/viewing window: I used a 1" circle punch to punch a hole in a scrap piece of white card stock. I then used this 1" hole to view my art catalog images and select the images for my magnets. Clear, bright images work best. I also suggested to my students that they take one of the glass blobs and place it over any images that were questionable to see if they would read easily--most are fine.

2. Once you find an image that would work well for you magnet, use the template and pencil to trace a circle onto the image. Cut out using scissors.

3. Use the foam brush to brush a bit of Mod Podge onto the flat side of the glass blob. Place your image face down onto the Mod Podge and brush another coat of Mod Podge onto the back of the image. Set aside to dry thoroughly.

4. When you are sure the image is completely dry on the glass blob (give it a couple hours), add a dot of Super glue to the back of the glass blob and place a magnet on top. Allow the glue to dry according to manufacturer's directions before using.

5. ENJOY!

Easy Posters? Check this out!

We head back to school next week in these neck of the woods, so some of you may still need a bit of BLING for your classroom! I understand! If you haven't seen, scroll back a few posts and you'll see two posters I've made available for free for you to print out and use around your school and home...

"But, I want MORE!" You say? No problem!

Well, at least, no problem for ME--I'm not going to make more posters, but you can--and it takes really only a couple of minutes with this new (to me) site I stumbled upon called www.recitethis.com.

Super easy directions:

1. You go to the site www.recitethis.com

2. Type in a couple of words, phrases, a quote, etc. (the only part I don't like is that I want to credit the quoted person a bit smaller than the rest of the quote, but it doesn't let you futz with that--it's automatic).

3. Choose a layout you like from the preview selection in the scrollbar at the bottom of the page.

4. Click "create"

And....

BOOM! You are done! You can download the poster (to print), email it, share it on Facebook and more.

Here are a couple I made this afternoon...

ENJOY!

Free Posters! A Back-To-School Gift For You!

Hello there!

I have received a TON of feedback about the following posters I have created! It seems as though everyone wants a copy or two! So here's my gift to you: FREE POSTERS! 

How to get the files:

Visit my Google Docs page at:

https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=0Byb1fmno7uIvSGRDSmtDZHJpYjg&usp=sharing

And you'll be able to download the pdf files of both of these posters. For you. For FREE!! Yippee! They are both 11" x 17" and print out nicely--the colors are lovely! 

The Fine Print:

Please feel free to print these posters out and share them, but no selling them and no changing the text. Also, please leave my name and copyright info on the posters. If you decide to publish the posters in a newsletter or such, please make sure you credit me (and you could email me at bpettus02@gmail.com--I'd love to see how you've shared them!).

So print, share, enjoy! 

And, happy "Back to School!"

Just Read: "Your Creative Brain" by Shelley Carson, Ph.D

As part of an upcoming course on creativity, innovation & imagination I'll be taking next weekend, I've read a great book called "Your Creative Brain: Seven Steps to Maximize Imagination, Productivity, and Innovation in Your Life" by Shelley Carson, Ph.D.

I was excited to read this book because, when I thumbed through it, it had quizzes and activities and I really love a book that gets me up and doing things rather than passively trying to muddle through and make sense of some dry textbook. The quizzes are short and the activities do not take long and can be done a little at a time. Hey, I read it and I have four kiddos at home for the summer!

This book was nicely written and accessible with clear examples and humor thrown in. I really enjoyed reading the book--it doesn't feel like a dry textbook. That being said, this book isn't fluff. It is chock full of information about seven different creative pathways or brainsets all people have and can use in life. After identifying which brainset(s) you are strong in and those you may want to develop, Carson delves into each, clearly describing each in detail, the neuroscience of each, and when you may want to access this brainset. She then gives exercises that will help get you accessing these brainsets even more.

Now all of this cognitive mumbo-jumbo may seem a bit heavy for your summer beach reading, but this book is worth the look, I promise! As a teacher and a mom, I am constantly looking for ways to encourage creativity in the children around me. As an ART teacher, I am usually told by people that they aren't creative. I've always thought that this couldn't possibly be true. OK, not everyone can paint with oils or write a symphony, but creativity exists well beyond that! Creative does not mean artistic.

I was so inspired by the text, that I created a poster for the classroom based on Carson's ideas for establishing a creative environment (I'll see if I can make the poster available for download later in the summer--it's on my to-do list!).

This book is a wonderful tool to help you access creativity in your own life--no matter if you are artsy or not, and is great food for thought as you are planning for the next school year. Do you want to recognize, encourage and appreciate the unique and diverse talents of those around you and build an environment of creativity in your home, classroom, or place or work? Then check out this book!

Technology in the Art Room: Digital Books

The other day I posted about Books In The Art Room. I've since heard of a couple additional sites that you may want to check out. Trust me, they are worth it!

Here are a few sites that have digital picture books to use in your classroom:

• www.storylineonline.net (SAG Actors read children's books)
• www.speakaboos.com (a colorful, interactive site for traditional read-along stories)
• www.readtomelv.org (Las Vegas celebrities read children's books)
• www.schooltube.com (like youtube but without the commercials. There are read alouds and picture books as little movies. Search other topics such as "Kandinsky," etc.)
• www.pbskids.org (I like: www.pbskids.org/lions/stories) hunt around for additional online stories
• www.nhptv.org/kn (you could get lost in this resource--there's so much!)
• www.wegivebooks.org (you'll need to register to use this site, but it is pretty neat and there are lots of free popular books you can read online. Their selections do change, though, so make sure the book you want is still available before you present your lesson!)

(Thank you to Program Associate & Technology Guru, Tiffany Dube at Plymouth State University and Selina Smith at Classroom Magic for their help with this list).

There's a BOOK For That!

I got up early this morning to head out to our town library's annual book sale.

Of course, I went right for the children's book, and $20 later, I was on my way home. I spent the morning sipping coffee and dreaming of art lessons as I looked through my new treasures. Because for me, books = inspiration. I have found this true for my students as well. there's no denying how the illustrations and stories of books can get a child's creative juices flowing, activate background knowledge, and really help concepts hit home.

Even as an art teacher, I gather more than just art books. I rarely buy books on technique, but I collect lots and lots of other books. I think of this as job security. Yep, I do. Take a look at my lessons on this blog. My students don't just make a pretty picture to hang above the sofa--art connects to all subjects. So, while I read books to my class to create a rich, multi-sensory learning experience, I am also incorporating math, social studies, science, physical education, music and more into my lessons. When I do this, I inspire and engage my students, and tell everybody, "Art connects to ALL subjects!"

So, what do I look for in a book? Many things, and that is why I have so many books! As I said, I don't have many books on art technique, but if you are a classroom teacher, you may find these helpful. I don't like to own more than I have to, so you may be able to find many "how to" videos and tutorials online.

All of the books I decide to own must have a great story and great visuals (illustrations, photos, etc.). I like books that aren't too wordy and are easy-to-read. Simple picture books I can read word-for-word, but more complex books, I summarize as we look at the pictures. Hey, we need time for art! The pictures should get us talking.

Art/Art Movements/Artists Books

I collect books on artists (such as Van Gogh), art movements (such as Fauvism), and more. I use picture  books as read-alouds (sometimes) and grown-up books for reference (I'll show pictures of the artist's work from a grown-up book). I also grab old, worn-out books and rip out the color plates for my files, laminate them for visuals, use them for posters, etc.).

Book About Time Periods/Cultures

Visuals, visuals, visuals! I like folk tales that are nicely illustrated in a style that we'll be applying in class. I love photo books that depict a child from a certain culture moving throughout a typical day. I also grab any of the DK books about a culture or time period. They have lots of great pictures that inspire my art projects!

Math Books

I collect books about math concepts such as counting, shapes, forms, patterns, matching, etc.

Science Books

I am a sucker for a good science book! I collect all sorts of nature-inspired books about insects, plants, animals, etc. Books about the seasons are great, along with more sophisticated science ideas such as optical illusions.

Music Books

There are many great books about music as it relates to art (colors, rhythms, patterns). Some books are illustrated versions of songs and that is cool. I also have a nice little collection of books on how to make musical instruments.

Language Arts Books

I like stories that inspire and have great images. Sometimes the illustrations connect to specific techniques I want to show the children such as collage, cut paper, linocuts, etc. Or deal with themes I think would make great art lessons such as quilting, family history, colors, feelings and more.

Reference Books

As I said above, I grab any DK book about pretty much any subject for reference. I also have visual dictionaries and Nature Encyclopedias. These are helpful when students want to draw a certain type of animal and they want to draw it accurately. 

Early Finisher Books

I make most of my books available to my students if they finish early. Usually I'll select a few books that pertain to the theme we are dealing with in art (say, Egypt) and leave them as selections for the children to peruse if they finish early. There are some books, however, that I know I may not use for a lesson, but I grab them specifically for the early-finishers. These would be the I Spy and Can You See What I See series of books.

My loot from today's sale! I think there must be at least 10 art lesson ideas
in this pile of books. And notice my new favorite book: "Paddle-to-the-sea."
I found multiple copies of this classic--enough to share with some
teacher friends of mine.

How do I get these books?

I'd be broke if I bought all of these books new. So, a couple tips for acquiring books:

1. Try it before you buy it. You don't need to have every book! Also, a book that earns rave reviews from one teacher, may leave you flat. Look at the book--will you really use this?
2. If you can get it used, do it!
3. Be patient! You aren't going to get every book your first year teaching. These things take time. Get what you can as you go and borrow the rest. Gradually add when you can.

My sources for books:

Borrow (FREE): Borrow from other teachers you know, ask your friends and family to lend from their personal collections, and USE YOUR LIBRARY! 

Seriously, your library is the best! I have a card at my local library which allows me access to their books and the resources from many other libraries in the consortium they belong to. Intra-library loans do take some time, so you need to plan ahead, but you can borrow movies, books, audio books and more. One library near me even lends artwork. 

Also utilize the library at the school you teach at as well as the school you are an alumni of. I can borrow books from my Undergrad library as well as my Graduate school library and the public library in the town I work in. I don't use all of the resources, but I could.

Find it (FREE)! My local transfer station (dump) has a used book area where people can leave books (and keep them out of the landfills). I have found so many resources there--and the return policy is great. When I no longer want the book, I bring it back. Online groups such as freecycle.org are also great--you can join and ask for books (and other resources you need)--who knows, maybe someone out there has something you need that they no longer want.

Go digital (FREE): I'm just starting to use online books, so I know this isn't a huge list. But here are some sites to check out:

• www.storylineonline.net (SAG Actors read children's books)
• www.speakaboos.com (a colorful, interactive site for traditional read-along stories)
• www.readtomelv.org (Las Vegas celebrities read children's books)
• www.schooltube.com (like youtube but without the commercials. There are read alouds and picture books as little movies. Search other topics such as "Kandinsky," etc.)
• www.pbskids.org (I like: www.pbskids.org/lions/stories) hunt around for additional online stories
• www.nhptv.org/kn (you could get lost in this resource--there's so much!)
• www.wegivebooks.org (you'll need to register to use this site, but it is pretty neat and there are lots of free popular books you can read online)

(Thank you to Program Associate & Technology Guru, Tiffany Dube at Plymouth State University and Selina Smith at Classroom Magic for their help with this list).

Buy Used ($): Yard sales, book sales, online (craigslist.org, Amazon.com, ebay.com), thrift stores and used book stores such as Goodwill

Buy New (With a Discount)($$): If you shop online, you can get reduced pricing on new books and some places have free shipping if you buy enough. You can go to publishing house sales (get on their mailing lists and they'll let you know when they are having sales). You can go in with a group of teachers and get a group discount. Discount/overstock stores such as Building 19 and Ocean State Job Lot also have new books for a couple dollars each.

How do you get the books you need for your classroom? Do you know source for great children's books to read online? Please share your sources here and help fellow teachers out!

Using Centers at Art Camp

I had read about using centers in the classroom and the idea intrigued me! However, many of my lessons for my 2nd-5th grade students fit comfortably within my one hour class (including discussion and cleanup). So, I filed the idea of using centers away for later.

Using dollar store foil to create sculptures
(You can also supply pipe cleaners to use for arms and legs if you'd like).

Then, I was asked to teach art camp at Peabody Mill Environmental Center in Amherst, NH. I had two sessions: the first week with 5- & 6-year-olds and the second week with 7- & 8-year-olds. There was no set curriculum, so I needed to design an art & nature camp that would fill the time (9:00 am to noon, Monday through Friday) in a way that would allow the children to create art and take advantage of the beautiful, natural surroundings, and allow for free play and exploration. After all, this is CAMP and it is supposed to be fun!

So, the idea of centers came back out of the files!

As you can see in my previously published post on my art camp schedule, we had center time after we did our main art project. I chose to have three centers each day. One center was located inside and was with me. At this indoor art center, students worked on a smaller art project relating to the day's theme such as making clay birds in nests, making a bug bookmark, or doing a craft about tree rings. The art project at the center was one that would take about 10-15 minutes or so.

The two other centers were located outside on a covered patio. They were (sometimes loosely) related to the day's theme as well, but were self-directed play and exploration. I had a helper outside making sure things didn't get out of hand and that no one ran off into the woods, but other than that, the children were free to play at whatever station they were at.

Rules of the Centers:

1. Stay with your partner at your center
2. Play quietly and respect the toys
3. When you hear the bell ding once, it is time to clean up and stand quietly
4. When the bell dings the second time, move to the next station with your partner

Ideas for Centers:

• Blocks (mine were wood-look foam blocks)
• Build-a-bug toy
• Plastic Critters (One day I had a bin of insects and another day I had a bin of reptiles and amphibians) with a plastic bin of water for the critters to swim in
• Cloud dough or moon dough with various molds and scooping toys (too messy for my liking)
• Bubbles
• A fishing game with little fishing poles and plastic fish that float in water for the students to "catch"
• Dauber-type paint pens with large pieces of paper
• Clay (make your own so you can reuse it and keep in plastic bags between sessions). You can have the clay "as is" or give them the plastic bugs to press into the clay or use as reference when making their own bugs from clay

Building with a toy called "Exobugs" allowed the students
to reinforce what we learned about insects and create
some really unique bugs of their own!

How it worked:

Before we started, I walked them briefly through each center, explaining how to clean-up each center. Then we practiced with the bell (the highlight of the day!). Once in a while, I needed to remind a child to stay in his/her center or to finish picking up, but all-in-all it went great! I was able to spend some focused time with the children doing the smaller art project (this was a great time to have the children do a project that might be hard to do as a group due to multiple steps or different paces within the group). Using centers also broke up the "work time" so that the children weren't standing there listening to me walk them through two art projects the whole time--that would have been boring for them and frustrating for me!). By scheduling in some play time this way, the children were able to take a break and play on their own and with their new friends (we also had hikes, played games, and exploration time outside as well).

It was a great experience and something I will definitely do again!

Building blocks was popular with the children and my helper!