Kids' Nature Journals

One of my summer goals is to keep both my kids engaged in learning without the trappings of a classroom. Luckily, both are avid readers, but I'm always on the lookout for fun, educational activities. About a week ago, I came across an article about nature journaling and immediately added it to my summer must-do list.

Here's what we did. I found these blank drawing/painting pads today at Halfprice Books for $1 each (thank you, clearance). Now I'm thinking I should have grabbed a couple spares!

To transform the cutesy books into more rustic looking nature journals, we started with a couple paper lunch bags from my stash. I crumpled them to make them more interesting, reflattened and traced a cover, and then glued them onto the fronts. Then I set the kids loose with the two leaf stamps we had and some green and gold paint.




After labeling them (my daughter still confuses the d for a b in her name), I decided to reinforce the binding with some sort of tie to help make them sturdy enough to withstand our outings. We used some jute twine that we already had, and as an added bonus, we created loops the kids could slip over their wrists for easy carrying.

The kids can't wait to take these on a nature walk, and I can't wait to see all the brilliant observations and illustrations sure to come. On Friday, I'll pass along some good sites and tips for nature journaling for anyone interested in trying it.

Free Kids' Workshops at Home Depot

Did you know that Home Depot offers free "How-to" workshops for kids on the first Saturday of each month, from 9 a.m. to noon? I had no idea myself until I noticed a flyer the last time we were in the store. The workshops are for kids aged 5-12. In addition to the project, kids receive a free kid-sized Home Depot apron and an achievement pin. Upcoming projects include a Hardware Sorter on June 6th and a Picnic Caddy on July 4th. We'll definitely be checking out the next one! For more details, check out the website.

Family Fun - Kids Valentine's Cards

This year, the kids and I made Valentine's Day cards for their classmates. We surfed the Family Fun site to come up with J's googly-eyed fish idea. We used some red construction paper from my stash and white cardstock that my husband claimed from work as it was on its way to the trash pile, and we skipped the googly-eyes in favor of drawing the eyes. On the back, we wrote one of the following fish-themed greetings:

• I'm hooked on you this Valentine's Day!
• Best fishes this Valentine's Day!
• You're oceans of fun!
• Hope your Valentine's Day doesn't flounder!
• You're the catch of the day!

Coming up with a Valentine's Day card idea that passes an 11-year-old boy's inspection was a bit more challenging. We settled on a card theme. First, we sorted out all the hearts from our mismatched decks. Then, with a permanent marker, we wrote messages that had underwent an exhaustive search designed to eradicate any word or phrase that might remotely indicate romantic interest toward a girl. Or a boy. Here's the phrases that passed our 5-point-inspection:

• You're a real ace!
• From one card to another!
• To the King/Queen of hearts! (notice, no "of my heart" here)
• I'm lucky we're friends!
• You're a trump card!
• Betting on a Happy Valentine's Day!
• You suit me! (this one was a hard sell, but I managed)