Art and Creativity

Art is important for children especially during their early development. Research shows that art activities develop brain capacity in early childhood; in other words, art is good brain food! Art engages children’s senses in open-ended play and develops cognitive, social-emotional and multi-sensory skills. As children progress into elementary school and beyond, art continues to provide opportunities for brain development, mastery, self esteem and creativity.

Thursday, September 08, 2011

What I Learned on My Summer Vacation


I just got back from a much needed summer vacation and was reminded that I need more NATURE in my life! Since I’ve attended numerous “Outdoor Classroom” workshops, and learned about the negative effects of “nature deficit” on today’s children, it was good to be reminded that I too find nature incredibly inspiring. On my vacation, I renewed my love affair with the sensory world of the forest. I fell in love with colored rocks, birch trees and waterfalls. It was all so simple, yet profoundly restorative.


As an educator, I was inspired by what I might bring back from my nature vacation to include in the classroom. There were so many things to choose from! Moreover, having this “take home task” on my mind helped me engage all the more in my natural surroundings.


Trees were just beginning to show off their Fall colors, and the white birch trees were especially lovely.


Imagine how excited I was to find this abandoned bird’s nest, all intact and perfectly formed! The woven strips of birch bark in the nest gave me an idea, and I picked up fallen strips of bark to take home and use as collage.


When I got home I tore strips of white bark and used Tacky Glue to mount it onto wooden picture frames, adding colored rocks as accents. How fun! I was amazed to find that birch bark tears along a seam just like fabric does, so you don’t need scissors to cut it. Such are the discoveries that excite me, and I bet you as well.


We also visited several lakes and found an abundance of beautiful colored rocks around the larger lakes.


Many local artisans made creative use of these naturally colored rocks that were a signature of the local geology. Here’s a large rock and driftwood mirror that I couldn’t resist purchasing. I hoped it would remind me to make nature a regular part of my life once I returned home to the city.


Later, I tried duplicating this idea of rocks as collage material on top of wooden picture frames. The rocks I brought were a little too large so I used them as accents and made a mental note to check out the Home Depot garden department for smaller pebbles. Or better yet, find a local hike where I could collect smaller rocks on my own home turf.


I was eager to make “Leaf Glitter” for a second collage project and had collected just a few Sugar Maple Leaves with tinges of red and yellow. Once they had dried, I made Leaf Glitter by simply crunching up the dried leaves, which were then glued onto the picture frame. When I do this in a classroom, I’ll ask children to sort the dried leaves by colors first, then crunch them into separate bowls so they’ll have yellow, red, brown and orange Leaf Glitter to work with.


Together these two experiments in nature collage make a nice pair, don’t you think? I realized I could extend the activity by first “staining” the wooden base frames with wet tea bags or another natural colorant before gluing items on top.


How fortunate I feel to have been able to replenish myself before the beginning of a busy school year. I hope you were also able to restore yourself, and will continue to do so on your weekend time. It’s so important.



Maybe we will run into each other at an Education Conference soon or at NAEYC where I’m presenting “Art as a Language with Children.” Please attend if you can! Most importantly, I want to thank you for reading my Blog and being a part of the Art and Creativity community. I hope you have a wonderful new school year full of passion and promise. To life!

Materials Used Here:
Colorations® Tacky Glue, set of 12 - (TCGJAR)

Colorations® Wooden Stand Up Frames - (WDFRM)

Labels: , , , , ,

52 Comments:

At 6:41 AM, Anonymous Allison McCumber said...

Summer is a great time to rediscover and reconnect with nature. The serenity and beauty of the natural environment is an effective therapy to calm and lift a person's spirits. By the way, I think your Leaf Glitter is brilliant and innovative. Using raw materials from the natural environment is a good way to teach kids the value of protecting the environment.

 
At 1:46 AM, Anonymous essay service reviews said...

This is a great idea. I would rather choose a universe full of planets. I wanted him to enjoy science. Turn your kitchen into an Exploratorium! as well as your kid' room. Encourage their creativity and building skills with writing and drawing stuff.

 
At 5:27 AM, Blogger Saranacash said...

Situs Judi Terpercaya Crown303
PROMO di Crown303 :

*Bonus New Member 10%
*Bonus Next Depo 5%
*Bonus Mix Parlay Jutaan Rupiah.
*Bonus Cashback 10%
*Bonus Rollingan Casino 0,8%
*Bonus Referral 10%

Agen Bola Terpercaya
Daftar SBOBET
Daftar Judi Online
Bandar Judi Bola
Agen SBOBET Casino
Situs Judi Online
Agen Bola Euro 2020
Agen Bola Online

WHATSAPP : +6281807160790

 
At 8:04 PM, Blogger ffff said...

Leaf Glitter is brilliant and innovative
ดูหนังใหม่ HD
รีวิวซีรี่ย์เกาหลี

 
At 1:59 AM, Blogger moviehaha-88 said...

I wanted him to enjoy science
ดูหนังออนไลน์
seriesfin.com

 
At 10:50 PM, Blogger Felicity said...

Thank you so much

ดูหนังใหม่ 2021
review-movies.com

 
At 9:51 PM, Blogger แนะนำหนังดังต่างชาติ said...


Thank you for creating good content for us to read.
ซีรี่ย์เกาหลี
seriesfin.com

 
At 1:57 AM, Blogger You to view said...

ดูหนังออนไลน์
หนังใหม่2021
ดูหนังใหม่ 2021
ดูหนัง แอคชั่น
ดูหนัง netflix

 
At 2:00 AM, Blogger You to view said...

ดูหนังออนไลน์
หนังใหม่2021
ดูหนัง Action
ดูหนังใหม่ 2021

 
At 2:00 AM, Blogger You to view said...

AV Subthai
หนัง av ซับไทย
AV Uncen

ดูซีรีย์
ดูซีรีย์เกาหลี
ดูซีรีส์จีน

 
At 4:09 AM, Blogger moviehaha-88 said...

I think your Leaf Glitter
ดูหนังออนไลน์ฟรี
movienewhit.com

 
At 9:52 PM, Blogger You to view said...

ดูซีรีย์ ฟรี
ดูซีรีย์เกาหลี
ซีรีส์จีน

 
At 9:52 PM, Blogger You to view said...

ดูหนังฟรีออนไลน์
หนังใหม่ 2021
ดูหนัง Action
ดูหนังใหม่ 2021
ดู Netflix ฟรี

 
At 9:42 PM, Blogger wyn said...

Thank you for sharing good content.
ดูหนังออนไลน์
ดูหนังฟรีออนไลน์

 
At 2:07 AM, Blogger You to view said...

ดูซีรี่ย์
Netflix

 
At 4:07 AM, Anonymous dodosol said...

ดูหนังออนไลน์
ดูหนัง 2021
รีวิวหนัง

 
At 9:03 PM, Blogger Spoiler-Man said...


Thank you so much.
ดูหนังใหม่ 2021
รีวิวซีรีย์ใหม่

 
At 7:24 PM, Blogger Hedwig said...


Thank you.
หนังใหม่ 2021
ดูซีรี่ย์ netflix

 
At 12:31 PM, Blogger PowerZ said...

ดูหนังใหม่ 2021

 
At 2:34 PM, Blogger little14766 said...

series-master series-night. anime-totoro

 
At 2:34 PM, Blogger little14766 said...

ดูซีรีย์ ดูซีรัย์ใหม่ ดูการ์นตูน

 
At 8:44 PM, Blogger Felicity said...

It's so good

ดูหนังออนไลน์ 2021
spoiler-series.com

 
At 8:04 PM, Blogger Felicity said...

This is the absolute best.
หนังใหม่ 2021
review-movies.com

 
At 2:25 AM, Blogger Review_disney said...

thanks for the information / ดูหนังฟรีออนไลน์ 2021
movieplotfree.com

 
At 3:40 AM, Blogger moviehaha-88 said...

I feel really good reading your article

ดูหนังใหม่2022
movie123-days.com

 
At 12:17 AM, Blogger Review_disney said...

Thanks for the information shared.
หนังใหม่ 2022
big-moviehd.com

 
At 8:31 PM, Blogger Felicity said...

หนังดูฟรี
ดูหนังใหม่ Netflix
newseriesforyou.com

 
At 12:55 AM, Blogger Sasaka-4628 said...

Thanks for the information shared.

ดูหนังออนไลน์
ดูหนังฟรีออนไลน์ใหม่

 
At 10:06 PM, Blogger pop 888 said...

I really like your article. It made me feel like reading it and thought it was really cool.
ดูหนังออนไลน์
ดูหนังออนไลน์888

 
At 3:02 AM, Blogger Autumn Duong said...

Great tips regrading home depot boxes. You provided the best information which helps us a lot. Thanks for sharing the wonderful information.

 
At 12:55 AM, Blogger You to view said...

ดูหนังใหม่2022
ดูหนังใหม่2022
ดูซีรีย์ออนไลน์

 
At 1:14 AM, Blogger You to view said...

GCLUB เว็บตรง ฝาก-ถอน ออโต้ ฟรีเครดิต Gclub Casino Royal Online

 
At 1:19 AM, Blogger Leaf` said...

SLOT TRUE WALLET ไม่มี ขั้น ต่ํา สล็อตเว็บตรง ทรูวอลเล็ต ฝากถอน ออโต้ ขั้นต่ำ 1 บาท สล็อตเติม true wallet ฝาก10รับ100 ไม่มีขั้นต่ำ2021 ไม่มี บัญชีธนาคาร.

 
At 2:22 AM, Blogger รีวิวซีรี่ย์ NETFLIX said...

Thank you for the good information you share.
ดูหนังฟรี
ดูหนังฟรี2024.com

 
At 11:25 PM, Blogger Felicity said...

New movies to watch. New movies to watch.
ดูหนังใหม่ชนโรง 2022
movie2024.com

 
At 6:24 AM, Anonymous แนะนำหนังแบทแมนใหม่ said...

Everything was open and the problem was explained very clearly. is truly information Your website is very useful. Thanks for sharing.

I request permission to submit my work. Recommended websites to describe movies for free.
แนะนำเว็บ อธิบายหนังฟรี อ่านสปอยหนัง อธิบายหนัง
: แนะนำหนังใหม่

 
At 9:58 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...


thanks for sharing
ดูซีรี่ย์ออนไลน์
ดูหนังออนไลน์2024.com

 
At 5:57 AM, Blogger moviehaha-88 said...

This comment has been removed by the author.

 
At 5:59 AM, Blogger moviehaha-88 said...

Thanks for the good information.

ดูซีรี่ย์
moviehd2024.com

 
At 3:50 AM, Anonymous Anime said...

ดูอนิเมะ

 
At 7:10 PM, Blogger Anime said...

Summer is a great time to rediscover and reconnect with nature.
ดูอะนิเมะ

 
At 9:28 PM, Blogger Felicity said...

อยากดูหนังใหม่ๆ หนังที่ไม่ควรพลาดต้องที่นี้
หนังใหม่
movie2024.com

 
At 2:37 AM, Blogger รีวิวซีรี่ย์ NETFLIX said...


thanks for the good information
ดูหนังเอเชีย
ดูหนังฟรี2024.com

 
At 2:23 AM, Blogger You to view said...

Slot Online
amb slot

 
At 2:24 AM, Blogger You to view said...

หนังออนไลน์
ดูอนิเมะ

 
At 6:54 AM, Blogger moviehaha-88 said...

Thank You

ดูหนังใหม่ 2022
การ์ตูนออนไลน์ 2022

 
At 5:57 AM, Blogger ดูหนังออนไลน์ฟรี said...

ดูซีรี่ย์จีน
I seriously love your website.. Excellent colors & theme. Did you create this site yourself?
Please reply back as I’m hoping to create
my own personal website and would love to know where you got this from or what the theme is named.
Appreciate it!

 
At 6:45 AM, Blogger ดูหนังออนไลน์ฟรี said...

Heya are using WordPress for your blog platform?แนะนำหนัง
I’m new to the blog world but I’m trying to get started and set up my own. Do you require any html coding expertise
to make your own blog? Any help would be really appreciated!ดูหนังออนไลน์ฟรีแนะนำซีรี่ย์

 
At 4:51 AM, Blogger pop 888 said...

The number 1 online movie watching website
ดูหนังออนไลน์2022

 
At 9:18 PM, Anonymous ดูซีรีย์คุณชาย said...

nature looks so good You write so much about it that I might actually have to experience it.ดูซีรีย์คุณชาย

 
At 2:03 AM, Blogger NaomiChess said...

Thanks for tips.

ดูหนังออนไลน์
รีวิวหนังใหม่ แนะนำ

 
At 2:46 AM, Anonymous john5 said...

moviefreeplay

 

Post a Comment

<< Home