Here is a cute craft idea that fits in with the olympics starting next week. Easy enough for all ages.

Craft- Making Olympic Flags
Materials- white paper, blue, black, red, yellow, and green paint, potatoes or paper towel
rolls
1- Show children a picture of the Olympic flag. Explain that this is a Flag of
Friendship. The circles represent the five parts of the world and each one has a
different color. Using potato stamps cut in the shape of a ring, or ends of paper
towel rolls, have the children recreate the flag using the different colored paint.
To create potato stamps wash and cut potatoes in half, then carve a ring in the
white part of the potato. Dip in paint then stamp on paper to create images. (You
can also use round cookie cutters…whatever you may have on hand.)

Good morning everyone.

I am writing this on Wednesday August 6th. for those of you who survived the terrific thunder storm last night. Of course it meant running around changing all the clocks again this morning after the hydro whent off again.

I will be leaving for Australia for a three week holiday tomorrow and will try to keep the blog up to date, but if I am unable I am asking you to post any ideas you have or even to just add a comment for me.

Today's craft idea is for a popcorn tree. It is an easy craft for the little guys to do on a rainy day. (sure have had lots of those this summer)

green construction paper
1 sheet
9" x 12"
popcorn
tacky glue
twigs
2

Step By Step Instructions1. Using the kitchen scissors, cut one of the twigs into four or five pieces, depending on how big it is.2. Arrange the long twig in the center of your piece of green construction paper. Lift up the twig, quickly squeeze a line of hot glue along the back and press it back into place if you have chosen to use hot glue. If you have chosen to use tacky glue, squeeze a generous line of tacky glue on the back and press it back into place. Keep in mind using tacky glue will lengthen the drying time.3. Arrange the four or five pieces of twigs beside the longer twig, two on one side and three on the other like you see in the photo. When you are satisfied with the arrangement, lift them up one at a time and glue them to the paper, using the hot or tacky glue.4. Now it is time to attach the popcorn to the branches of the "tree". Arrange pieces of popcorn in a staggered, random pattern on the branches. Squeeze some tacky glue into the yogurt container. When you are satisfied with the look of the tree, lift the pieces of popcorn up one at a time, dip them into the tacky glue and press them back into place.5. Let the glue dry completely before hanging your popcorn tree picture.

Good morning everyone.

Well they say it isn't going to rain today. I am almost at the point where the umbrella is part of my daily wardrobe. It has been a little difficult keeping the little ones busy during the rain. My bunch love to be outdoors so we have been building tents and pretend camping along with one of their favourite toys; the flashlight. They love it when I turn the lights out and give them each a dollar store flashlight.

We have also been doing lots of finger painting. This is something that my guys love to do and will actually sit at the table for almost an hour playing with it. I have all boys right now and I think it is the tactile feel that they enjoy as much as the finished product.

I came across the craft idea and thought it would be fun for the older ones to do outdoors. You can often pick up t shirts at Micheals at a resonable price.

Have a great day everyone and don't forget to post on the blog.

Marilyn

Spray Bottle Tie Dye Tee Shirts

You need: Fabric Spray Bottle ,Paint, Tee Shirt, Hanger, Letter and Number Foam Stickers, Spray Bottles (one for each color is recommended), Foam Sea Life Stickers (optional)

Instructions:

This project is best done outside where spray mess will not be a problem.

Lay tee shirt on a flat surface and place stickers to spell a word or make a design.

Press stickers firmly in place.

Hang tee from a fence or tree.

Dilute 1 part of each color paint with 18 parts water in a spray bottle.

You'll need a spray bottle for each color or you can wash a bottle out between colors.

Shake until evenly mixed.

Stand about 4 to 6 feet from the shirt and spray.

Experiment with the spray bottle nozzle to get a fine spray or a more concentrated spray.

Make sure to get a lot of color around the stickers but leave other areas white for a more interesting effect.

Let hang dry for a few hours.

Before washing, set the paint by drying tee shirt in a hot dryer for ten minutes.

Good morning everyone
I came across this cute idea for a teddy bears picnic that Ithought would be a nice idea for a warm day with the little ones.
I have also included the words to Teddy Bears Picnic
Have a great week
Marilyn

TEDDY BEARS PICNIC

If you go out in the woods today


You're sure of a big surprise.


If you go out in the woods today


You'd better go in disguise.


For every bear that ever there was


Will gather there for certain, because


Today's the day the teddy bears have their picnic.


Picnic time for teddy bears,


The little teddy bears are having a lovely time today.


Watch them, catch them unawares,


And see them picnic on their holiday.


See them gaily dance about.


They love to play and shout.


And never have any cares.


At six o'clock their mommies and daddies


Will take them home to bed


Because they're tired little teddy bears.


If you go out in the woods today,


You'd better not go alone.


It's lovely out in the woods today,


But safer to stay at home.


For every bear that ever there was


Will gather there for certain, because


Today's the day the teddy bears have their picnic



Bear Hunt
Hide all the bears (this can be inside or outside). Let the kids find them, one with the most wins. If you do this at night, hide them in the open and give each child a flashlight. Let them find them in the dark.Variation on the bear hunt. Have all of the children place their teddy bears in a paper grocery bag. Mix up the bags and arrange them in a semi-circle (in the backyard) with about 12 feet of space in between each bag. At "go", the children run to a bag to find their own teddy bears. Here's the twist -- if they do not find their own bears on the first try, they may throw the bear they find as far as they can in any direction (but leave the bag standing). The first child to retrieve his own teddy bear and get back to "home" is the winner.


Bean Bag Toss
Enlarge a teddy bear picture so that it willfit on a large 20x26 foam poster board and cut about 5 holes to use as a bean bag toss game. (enlargements can be done at Office Depot)

Stick the Heart on the Teddy
Use another enlargement or draw another picture of a teddy bear, get some heart stickers and play 'Stick the Heart on the Teddy Bear'.

I think I got it...

oh, I think I got it....some times I get a "new post" on the right side and sometimes I don't!
But it worked this time....yahoo.
Has anyone else finished the book yet?
I hope everyone is having a great summer!
jojo

Book Club meeting July 24th ...

Hi ladies,
Jojo, I just saw your message re. the book club meeting on July 24th (sorry for delay on replying but I was away over the weekend) ... and thought to try and figure out how to start a new post about this ...
Anyways, I've almost finished reading it and will be done by next week -- who else is ready to meet?
Thanks, and have a great day,
Ann

Good morning everyone. Hope you have been enjoying the great

summer weather. I thought you might enjoy this article on seperation anxiety that I came across. This is something that all of us go through with new children when they start. It might be useful to print off and give to the parents when they sign on with you.

http://www.activityvillage.co.uk/dealing_with_separation_anxiety.htm

Have a great day.

Marilyn

If I had my child to raise all over again,

I'd build self esteem first and the house later.

I'd finger paint more and point the finger less.

I would do less correcting and more connecting.

I'd take my eyes off my watch and watch with my eyes.

I would care to know less and know to care more.

I'd take more hikes and fly more kites.

I'd stop playing seriously and seriously play.

I would run through more fields and gaze at more stars.

I'd do more hugging and less nagging.

I'd see the oak tree in the acorn more often.

I would be firm less often and affirm much more.

I'd model less about the love of power...

And more about the power of love."

Diane Loomans

Summer Hours for THRC:
Oakville Site: Woodside Public Library:
The Halton Resource Connection Oakville site will be CLOSED during the summer hours and will
re-open on Thursday, September 4, 2008.
If you have any outstanding items please contact THRC at
905 875-4600 or info@thrc.ca.

Milton Site: Will be closed on Saturdays only for the month of July and the first two weeks in August. Will be re-opening on Saturdays August 16, 2008. Weekday hours remain the same at Tuesday 12 – 8 pm, Wednesday, 9 am -8 pm and Thursday 12 – 8 pm

A new craft idea for a rainy day

Hi again everyone. Hope you are all coping with the heat.
I came across this cute idea that I thought would be cute as a rainy day activity. They are calling for a chance of rain tomorrow so it could come in handy
Hope you enjoy it.
Marilyn
All About Me Puppet
I found a cut out of a gingerbread person that was just the outline and provided different materials (scraps of fabric, buttons, googley eyes, yarn - whatever you have around for collages). Encourage the children to dress the gingerbread man to become themselves. Once they were done decorating them, the children glued tongue depressors to the back of the cut out to make a puppet. They can then stand up and talk about their puppet to the others if they like.

A cute summer craft to do with the kids

Hi again

I just came across this cute summer craft that the kids can do.

I thought it would be cute to roll out some newsprint on the picnic table and let them do it outside.

Marilyn

Ladybug prints
These striking prints can make great wrapping paper so hold on to your little one's handiwork for special occasions. Oh and in case you hadn't guessed, this one can be a little messy so you might want to take suitable precautions!You will need

• a potato

• a carrot

• red acrylic paint

• black acrylic paint

• paper

Directions

Chop a potato in half, lengthways, to form an oval-shaped print.

Then cut 5 cm off the end of a long thin carrot to make a dot print.

Squeeze paint onto a tray and use the vegetables to make ladybug prints.

I hope everyone has managed to work the site

Good morning everyone.

I have had a bit of trouble getting the blog to work. But I think we are away now.

We have had a few members post a comment so obviously they have figured it out.

FYI the Bronte Creek Provincial Park tot hikes are back. They are every Tuesday and Thursday at 10 am.

This is a great way to spend a morning with your kids and get them the exercise everyone says kids are lacking. The hikes are geared for kids 5 and under, though older kids are certainly welcome.

The cost to get into the park is $13.85 per car with no additional fees. (save the receipt for your income tax).

Just look for the park ranger at the nature center to start your adventure.

Have a great day and don't forget the sunscreen.

Marilyn

"Laughter and tears are both responses to frustration and exhaustion. I myself prefer to laugh, since there is less cleaning up to do afterward."

Kurt Vonnegut

Welcome to our new blog

Good morning everyone and welcome to the Halton Child Care Providers Association Blog.
We are here to provide networking for home child care providers wherever you are.
You are welcome to post anything pertaining to home child care. We want to hear your thoughts and ideas as well as recipes, craft ideas and even problems you are having.
Please make the blog suitable for everyone by being fair with your posts. We will not accept any unsuitable language or content.
Have a great day everyone and we hope to hear from you soon.