Welcome to Tree Stone National Park

Every February our entire school participates in a read-a-thon.  The theme this year was "Going on a Read Trip" which took the students on "tours" of various national parks.  The preschoolers used their knowledge of wildlife, nature and national parks to create this classroom mural.

The first thing we did was blot white paint on our backdrop with cottonballs to create clouds.  We then used construction paper to create the mountains, trees and our sun (which of course needed glitter!).  The preschoolers then honed their cutting skills by taking scissors to magazines to find animals for our park. 

The preschoolers came up with several name ideas for our park including Beautiful National Park, Butterfly National Park and my personal favorite, Super Awesome National Park.  The majority of the class voted for Tree Stone National Park, the only national park where buffaloes and polar bears roam the same mountain range!

 
I was so impressed with the preschooler's creativity!  They searched for dirt, grass and small sticks outside to add to our mural.  Several students used the art center to create signs (we wrote down what they dictated).  They also decided that we needed a road so people could visit the park.  I added the clip art cars driven by the preschoolers.  They loved it!

My 1st Try at a Tutu!

My sister is expecting my first sweet little niece right now!  I have decided that this precious little girl is going to need a closet full of tutus!  I measured my roommates little girl to create my first little tutu.  I sewed 3/4" elastic at a length of 2" less than the waist measurement (as the elastic stretches out while tying on tulle).  I cannot remember how much tulle I used but I cut it in 6" wide strips.  To cut the length, I measured from waist to knee and doubled that measurement.  I then put the elastic around my thigh and tied on the tulle by slip knotting it around the elastic.  

In retrospect, I should've cut the ribbon into longer lengths.  I also sewed ladybug buttons at the knot of each ribbon.  We have been calling my soon-to-be niece "the Lil' Lady" so it seemed fitting to make her a ladybug tutu.  This will not fit her until she is close to a year old.

The Pixar Alphabet

I created these alphabet flashcards for a former student who loved the Disney Pixar movies.  He was three years old at the time and non-verbal.  He loved looking through his cards!  I also made him a Pixar Alphabet poster that I could hang on the wall or place on the floor so he could match up his flashcards.  The first words he ever spoke in my classroom were "Mo" for Nemo and "Dohy" for Dory.

   

 The Pixar Alphabet pdf

I store my flashcards in a quart size ziploc bag.  I used packaging tape to attach the alphabet title to the bag.