Free Custom Color Photobook For Your Child's Artwork

Yesterday Oprah featured a "Clean Up Your Messy House Tour" and among many other things was a spot about organizing your children's artwork. As suggested in my last posting, this show also recommended using an online photo service to create a customized book of your children's artwork.

Oprah's viewers and fans can take advantage of a FREE custom cover photo book by going to this link. But you have to be quick, this free offer expires tomorrow, November 14, 2008 at midnight!

To Save or Not To Save Your Kid's Artwork

Here's an interesting article from the Chicago Tribune with tips on displaying and saving kid's artwork.

By Cindy Dampier
Chicago Tribune

You're in for it now, moms and dads. If you have kids in elementary school, the deluge of crayoned cows, fall-leaf collages and tissue-paper wreaths is in full force. It's an onslaught that has buried many a refrigerator, not to mention dining-room tables, kitchen counters and whole family rooms.

Before you rent off-site storage to preserve every precious scribble, take a calming piece of advice from Jennifer Farrington, president and CEO of Chicago Children's Museum. "Art is not a receipt of your child's childhood," says Farrington, a mother of two kids, ages 7 and 9. "We as parents have to get over that."

In other words, it's OK not to keep every scrap of paper they produce.
"I think it's good to teach kids not to be accumulators, but to save what's special and memorable," says Kathy Peel, organizational guru and author of "The Busy Mom's Guide to a Happy, Organized Home" (Picket Fence Press, 304 pages, $16.99). "It helps us to live better because things are not taking up all the space in our homes."

Here are the best ideas we found to help you get a handle on that artful clutter:

1. The gallery: Create a display space where new artwork can be displayed for a week or two. Think beyond the fridge/magnet combo: Try a clothesline hung in your child's room or, in a more public area, a retractable clothesline — when guests come over, simply unclip the artwork and snap the clothesline back into its base. Or hang an artsy arrangement of empty frames on a wall, then use adhesive putty to stick artwork inside, allowing for a rotating display of kid art — which instantly can be transformed into an artsy wall display by emptying the frames again.

2. The boxes: Once pieces have had their run in the gallery space, it's time to consider where (and if) they'll be stored for the long term. Peel recommends a two-part system: an easily accessible box (use simple cardboard storage boxes your kids can decorate) for things children would like to keep until the end of the school year. These can store under beds or even under your sofa. And a long-term plastic bin, for things you plan to save indefinitely, can live in the attic or basement. At the beginning of the summer, sit with your child to sort through and pick out the year's best for the long-term bin. "Compliment their work, and make it kind of a game. Say, 'Let's save the 10 best from this year,' " Peel says.

3. The albums: One way to convince your kids that it's OK to consign some of their creations to the recycle bin is to create art albums. "Photograph it and get your child to document what it was," says Farrington. Put the photos and your child's quotes into artwork-themed albums. Create easy albums with plain-paper scrapbooks, or go all out and create your own bound volume of favorite pieces — an easy project to accomplish through photo sites such as kodakgallery.com. (Three-dimensional works, which are hard to store and imminently breakable, are great subjects for photography.)

4. The computer: Peel suggests using scanned or photographed artwork as rotating screen savers on your computer. Farrington suggests simply making files on your computer for each year. To go one step further, try creating an online gallery at a photo-sharing site that can be viewed by grandparents or other family members.

5. The fragment: For those large pieces that just won't store (or display) neatly at home, Farrington suggests trimming them down. Favorite parts of oversized pieces can be cut down to 8 ½ x 11, punched with a three-hole punch and kept in a binder until they are ready to be stored or purged.

Two of my favorite solutions - particularly at this time of year:

• Use some of your child's paintings or drawings as wrapping paper for holiday gifts.
• Create a calendar with your child's artwork. You can easily do this on Kodakgallery.com for $19.99. Makes a wonderful holiday gift for grandparents!

Aspen Trees - Ages 3 and up

'I hope that my work will encourage self expression in others and stimulate the search for beauty and creative excitement in the great world around us' - Ansel Adams

One of our favorite art lessons is inspired by the great photographer, Ansel Adams. Ansel Easton Adams (February 20, 1902 – April 22, 1984) was an American photographer and environmentalist, best known for his black and white photographs of the American West and primarily Yosemite National Park. To view a great collection of Adams work go to http://www.anseladams.com/

This water color resist painting lesson takes it's primary inspiration from Ansel Adam's photographs of aspens in New Mexico.

Here are the steps to create this artwork as shown above:

• Children tear masking tape and put strips of it on watercolor paper to make tree trunks. Tiny pieces of tape can be used for branches. For youngest children, have strips of tape already available.
• Use a brush to wipe water across the paper and the tape.
• Now paint the background with color. Children can choose colors to make a day or evening background.
• When paint is dry, remove the tape. The white spaces are the tree trunks.
• Add some tiny brown or black lines on the tree trunks. If you want leaves on your trees, use a sponge dipped into your watercolors to sponge on leaves.

Recyle That Pumpkin!

Don't throw that pumpkin in the trash after Halloween! Instead, you use it to give your kids a great/easy lesson in recyling (and make your trashman happy with a lighter load).

Here's what you can do with that pumpkin after Halloween:

1. Put it in the compost heap - it will make good fertilizer
2. Bury it in the garden - it will decay quickly and enrich the soil
3. Wash, dry and save the seeds to plant next year (they will grow!)
4. Wash and roast the seeds - they make good eating.

Lasdon Park

While the weather is still mild and the Fall foliage is at it's peak, take a trip with your kids to Lasdon Park in Somers. Lasdon Park is one of the Westchester County Park system's gems. Located on Route 35 in Somers, NY, Lasdon is a magnificent 234 acre property consisting of woodlands, open grass meadow and formal gardens with flower and shrub specimens from all over the world. While there's no playground equipment for kids, it's a great place for a family walk or hike.with lots of paths to follow.

Make it an adventure for the kids by giving them one of the free colored maps of the park and letting them figure out which paths to follow. Along the way, take time to point out to your kids all the different specimens of trees, plants and grasses. Don't miss the "Historic & Famous Tree Trail." This trail features species that commemorate historic events and famous Americans from our country's past. At each station, one can read about a famous person or event to which the original parent tree was witness. The trees were grown from seeds of the original trees provided by the American Forestry Association. Another interesting site in the park to visit with your kids is the rain water basin which is show in the attached photos.

Starting Saturday October 24th through Halloween day October 31st, Lasdon will be holding it's first "Halloween Hair Raiser" exhibit. This exihibit will be in the Lasdon Arboretum . It will feature a miniature “Eerie Railroad” winding its way through a miniature haunted village. There will be Venus flytraps, Dracula orchids, pencil trees, weird cacti and other curious botanical specimens and much more to view. While access to the paths, museums and grounds at Lasdon is free, there is a charge to visit the Aboretum and this special Halloween exhibit.

There's so much more at Lasdon Park for people of all ages.Click here for full information on Lasdon Park.

Paper Bag Pumpkins - Ages 3 and up

Halloween will be here before you know it! Kids love holiday decorations and love even more when they can help make them. Here's another great way to re-use paper bags - this one courtesy of Crayola®. Don't stop at just one pumpkin - make multiples - and big and small ones. They make a terrific Halloween display when grouped together in big and small sizes.

Click here for the instructions.

Chameleon Collage - Ages 3 to 6

A favorite project of our youngest students is the "Chameleon Collage". For inspiration, first read them the book, "A Color Of His Own" by Leo Lionni. The story is about a chameleon who goes in search of a color of his own and finds a true friend. It's a terrific book to teach small children about this creature's special connection to it's environment - with beautiful watercolor illustrations by Leo Lionni.

The primary material used in this artwork is leftover red or green tissue paper from Christmas. Let the child choose one color theme for the chameleon's environment and it's head (either green or red) or you can do two pictures - one with the chameleon in a green enviroment and one with the chameleon in a red environment.

Materials required:

• 1 piece of white paper for background
• Crayons in various shades or green or red
• 1 round piece of red or green construction paper for the chameleon's head
• Leftover pieces of green or red tissue paper
• Glue - a non-toxic glue stick or you can make a mixture of Elmer's glue and water which the child can apply with a paintbrush.

Katonah Museum Of Art

Don't miss out on visiting the Katonah Museum Of Art - particularly if you're looking for something to do on a rainy or cold day. While small in size, it's rich in art experiences for both children and adults. The museum provides brochures for children and clipboards which they can use to browse the galleries in search of specific items - along with tips for adults to stimulate the child's thoughts and discussion while viewing the artworks. On a recent visit there, we found the "California Impressionists" exhibit an absolute feast for the eyes and our three year-olds loved browsing the galleries in search of the specific items in the paintings (e.g boats, horses, night landscapes, teapots, etc.)

The museum also houses the "The Learning Center" where children can drop-in and explore just about any type of art project they desire. On a visit there during the summer, there were wonderful college interns in the center who welcomed the children and engaged them in a fun art project making sailboats out of cork stops, toothpick and painted paper. The interns then led us outside to the sculpture garden where there were tables and chairs setup with pastels, water and paper for the children to do "en plein air" paintings. The center also has scheduled art activities on Saturdays and Sundays and periodically on weekdays (check the event calendar on their website).

This fall, the interns weren't there and things were more quiet, but we still had a very enjoyable time by engaging some other parents and children that were there and making fun and creative use of all the art materials provided in the center.

Admission is free Tuesday-Friday from 10am-12pm. Other times, the admission is $5 for adults, $3 for students & seniors and children under 12 are free. In return for such a wonderful (practically free) art experience, please don't forget to clean up after yourself and child before you leave the Learning Center - and don't miss the donation box on the wall near the exit. The Katonah Art Museum certainly deserves donations for maintaining such a wonderful art center - and every small donation matters!

Brown Paper Bag Art - Ages 3 and Up

This is a first in a series of examples of how you can recycle common day-to-day items as art materials for your children.

Who said that all painted art works has to be on white paper?! Cut out the bottom of a brown paper grocery bag and you have a great piece of paper for your child to create a beautiful work of art. In the examples shown here children applied color to the brown paper with colored marker and tempera paint. Here are the supplies you need for this project:

* Brown paper grocery bag with bottom cut out to create a flat piece of brown paper

* Washable & non-toxic colored markers

* Washable & non-toxic tempera paint in various colors - highly recommend some white and silver and gold colors that really look wonderful on the brown paper

* To apply the paint: paint brush, paint roller and small piece of sponge

Non-Toxic and Safe Art For Kids

Whether your child is engaged in art activities in a public setting or at home, it’s important that only non-toxic and safe art materials are used.

First, materials and tools should be age appropriate (e.g. pre-schoolers should not be given sharp scissors or tools or very small objects that they might swallow). Second, make sure that art materials are non-toxic by checking to be sure they have the AP seal for non-toxicity & quality and they conform to ASTM D-4236 (this is a US labeling regulation and this is what it looks like). Also check that the products are washable by checking for washability on the label. Finally, to ensure a safe art experience, make sure that the space in which the art activity is done has proper ventilation.

Why Environmental Education Is Important For Your Child

1. Helps them develop into adults who understand and care about environmental stewardship

2. Nurtures their sense of wonder, imagination, and creativity

3. Provides them with a sense of beauty, calm, and refuge in a sometimes frightening world

4. Expands their intellectual development; it’s been proven to improve test scores, grade-point averages, and problem solving skills

5. Enhances physical development

6. Helps them understand the interrelationship of all life

Source: http://www.charityguide.org/volunteer/fewhours/environmental-education.htm

Why Art Is Important For Your Child

1. Art stimulates and develops the imagination.

2. Art develops cognitive and creative abilities.

3. Art strengthens problem solving and thinking skills.

4. Art is important for fine motor, language and social development.

5. Art teaches children that problems can have more than one solution.

6. Art celebrates multiple perspectives.

7. Art teaches children that small differences can have large effects.

8. Art helps children to say things without words.

9. Art enables children to have experiences unlike any other learning situation.

10. Art is the one curriculum area in which there are no wrong answers.

Sources: Learning and the Arts: Crossing Boundaries Jan. 2000, Americans For The Arts Benefits of Art Education Preschool Arts Education Fact Sheet 2002 and Young Children and The Arts: Making Connections, 1998