Colorful Rainbow Popsicle Stick Stars

Posted on March 9, 2022 by Fullbloomcreativity

I am starting a new Dollar Tree Challenge where I will be using 5 items or less from the Dollar Tree to create a project. For today’s project, I made rainbow popsicle stick stars with my son.

I will admit that I have an addiction to the Dollar Tree. Well, I can’t help it. I find so many great things there to use for activities. What is your favorite thing to buy at the dollar store?

Today’s craft can be used for learning about stars and rainbows. They also make great Christmas ornaments. You can use these popsicle stick stars in many different ways.

Use this activity to talk about the colors of the rainbow. You can expand on that by discussing primary and secondary colors.

SUPPLIES FOR POPSICLE STICK STARS

Colored Popsicle Sticks

Hot Glue Gun

Twine

If you do not have colored popsicle sticks, you can paint plain popsicle sticks to use. Personally, I used regular sized popsicle sticks, but you could also use the jumbo size.

All of the supplies came from the Dollar Tree.

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Begin by sorting your popsicle sticks by color. You will need 5 popsicle sticks for each star. If you do not have colored popsicle sticks, you can paint plain ones.

2. Create your star out of the popsicle sticks. Then, glue the ends of the popsicle sticks together. Follow along through the step-by-step pictures below.

Just a reminder that an adult should use the hot glue gun.

3. We found a branch that had fallen off a tree in our backyard and hung it with twine from our ceiling. Then, I added twine to the popsicle stick stars and attached them to the branch in order of the colors of the rainbow.

I look forward to sharing more Dollar Tree Challenge activities with you. For another project from this challenge, check out my “Mess-Free Love Painting.”

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All activities here are activities I feel are safe for my own children. As your child’s parents/guardians, you will need to decide what you feel is safe for your family. I always encourage contacting your child’s pediatrician for guidance if you are not sure about the safety/age appropriateness of an activity. All activities on this blog are intended to be performed with adult supervision. Appropriate and reasonable caution should be used when activities call for the use of materials that could potentially be harmful, such as scissors, or items that could present a choking risk (small items), or a drowning risk (water activities), and with introducing a new food/ingredient to a child (allergies). Observe caution and safety at all times. The author and blog disclaim liability for any damage, mishap, or injury that may occur from engaging in any of these activities on this blog.

Valentine’s Day Sensory Bin

Posted on February 1, 2022 by Fullbloomcreativity

Since Valentine’s Day is just around the corner, I decided to create an inexpensive sensory bin inspired by the holiday. We love sensory play in our household!

SUPPLIES FOR VALENTINE’S DAY SENSORY BIN

Rice

Food Coloring

Scoops and Cups

Muffin Tin

Fun Valentine’s Day Fillers (gems, hearts, beads, etc.)

The great thing about this sensory bin is that all of the supplies, and I mean ALL, came from the Dollar Tree. I love to shop at the dollar store for sensory and craft supplies!

Just a reminder to use your judgment on what items are age appropriate for your child. Some of these items may be choking hazards.

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Dye the rice seasonal colors, such as pink and purple, along with some plain rice. I use a little white vinegar and food coloring to dye my rice. I will be making a post about how to dye rice in the near future. Keep an eye out.

2. Fill your container with the rice. This is your base layer. I then added some heart shaped containers and little white buckets.

3. Next, I used a muffin tin to separate out different fillers. I used glittery hearts, beads, plastic diamonds, and red kiss and heart gems.

4. Finally, I set out additional scoops and silicone heart cupcake holders.

One of the best things about this sensory bin is that I can reuse all of the materials to recreate this sensory bin or make new ones. I love to keep and reuse my sensory bases and fillers. I store my rice in a sealed ziplock bag.

INVITATION TO PLAY

I love setting out activities such as this Valentine’s Day sensory bin and letting Ben discover it on his own. As you can see, he dove right in and started to play. For this particular sensory bin, I did not have a specific purpose, and I did not give any directions to Ben. Therefore, I left him in control of his play and allowed him to use his imagination.

Today, he pretended that he was working in a bakery. The different fillers and rice were used as the ingredients to make cakes. I love seeing where his imagination takes him!

When his cousin came over to play, they pretended that they were mining for diamonds in the rice. This shows you how sensory bins create opportunities for open-ended play.

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How to Make Winter Pine Oobleck

Posted on January 7, 2021 by Fullbloomcreativity

I will start by saying that I have never made oobleck before. Therefore, I began by doing what everyone else does when looking for information and searched on Pinterest. As a result of my search for oobleck recipes, I came across the blog, Little Bins for Little Hands, and their post called, Evergreen Oobleck Science Winter Sensory Play.

Their oobleck was perfect! So, I decided to recreate it and add a few things of our own. If you haven’t checked out their blog yet, please do. They have lots of great ideas for STEM activities, especially slime.

In our household, we absolutely LOVE sensory play! I have been wanting to try oobleck before, but never have. Now was the perfect opportunity.

Making oobleck is a fun STEM science experiment. It is an object that is both solid and liquid. Have you played with oobleck before? If not, I highly recommend it.

Oobleck Recipe

1 cup of Cornstarch

1/2 cup of Water

The instructions are very simple. All you need to do is mix the cornstarch and water together. I used a pie pan for this activity.

SUPPLIES

Pine Branches

Pinecones

Cranberries

Pie Pan

Spoon

Optional: Beans and/or Wood Blocks

On Ben’s little craft table, I set out the pie pan with the oobleck along with the pine branches, a bowl of cranberries, and some pinecones.

INVITATION TO PLAY

At first, Ben just experimented with touching the oobleck. He wasn’t quite sure what to do with it. Then he started adding cranberries and pinecones.

He loved watching the cranberries sink into the goop. He also liked pushing the pinecones into the oobleck and pulling them out.

Next, he involved a spoon. He tried to scoop the cranberries out of the oobleck. He discovered that it was hard to do. I also encouraged him to put his hands into the goop.

He tried pushing on the oobleck with his fist and found out that he had resistance. Solid. He also scooped some up with his hand and watched it drizzle between his fingers. Liquid.

As with any open-ended sensory play, Ben decided that we needed more materials to experiment with. He started by adding some wood blocks.

He discovered that if he pushed the end of the wood blocks into the oobleck that it would help support them. Then the building commenced.

Last, but not least, he added black beans to the pie pan. He had a blast trying to get them out of the oobleck. This was great for his fine motor skills.

As you can see, Ben had a great time exploring his winter oobleck sensory play. For being the first time ever making oobleck, it was super easy and simple to make and led to lots of fun. I am encouraging you to try this activity with your little ones. Happy Exploring!

As I said before, please check out the blog, Little Bins for Little Hands. It is full of great content. I want to thank them for sharing this activity on Pinterest. We had so fun fun recreating it!

For another oobleck activity, check out my blog post “How to Make Muddy Oobleck for Dinosaur Sensory Play.” Comment below with your favorite way to play with oobleck.

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All activities here are activities I feel are safe for my own children. As your child’s parents/guardians, you will need to decide what you feel is safe for your family. I always encourage contacting your child’s pediatrician for guidance if you are not sure about the safety/age appropriateness of an activity. All activities on this blog are intended to be performed with adult9 supervision. Appropriate and reasonable caution should be used when activities call for the use of materials that could potentially be harmful, such as scissors, or items that could present a choking risk (small items), or a drowning risk (water activities), and with introducing a new food/ingredient to a child (allergies). Observe caution and safety at all times. The author and blog disclaim liability for any damage, mishap, or injury that may occur from engaging in any of these activities on this blog.

Snowflake Sensory Bin Matching Uppercase and Lowercase Letters

Posted on December 30, 2020 by Fullbloomcreativity

For Christmas this year, I created three smaller sensory bins for our son, Ben. I picked up three clear 6 quart containers with latching lids from Target and filled them up with lots of fun items. Today, I am sharing the snowflake sensory bin that I created for Ben to practice his uppercase and lowercase letters.

Ben is fairly consistent with being able to identify all of the uppercase letters of the alphabet. Recently, the focus has turned more to identifying the lowercase letters. So, I thought that this would be a fun activity to bridge the gap.

Snowflake Sensory Bin Matching Uppercase and Lowercase Letters

SUPPLIES

Plastic Bin

Rice

Snowflakes

Glittery Styrofoam Balls

Recycled Water Bottle Caps

Paper

Markers

Optional: Scoops and/or Tweezers

I purchased most of the materials at our local Dollar Tree, which is one of my favorite places to shop for art supplies and sensory bin fillers.

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Begin by assembling the snowflake sensory bin. This could not get any easier. First, dump a bag of rice into the clear container. Then, add the snowflakes and small glittery styrofoam balls.

2. Next, using a black permanent marker, write the uppercase letters of the alphabet on the recycled water bottle caps (one letter on each cap). After you have finished, add the bottle caps to the sensory bin.

3. Once the sensory bin has been assembled, it is time to draw snowflakes on the paper. The center of the snowflakes should be a circle that you can write the lowercase letters of the alphabet in the middle. I used three pieces of paper to get all 26 letters in snowflakes.

Matching Uppercase and Lowercase Letters

4. Finally, set everything out for your child. Explain how to find the bottle caps in the snowflake sensory bin and match the uppercase letter to the lowercase letter on the paper. Then let them take it from there. I also gave him a few different scoops to use in the sensory bin.

Snowflake Sensory Bin with Water Bottle Cap Letters

INVITATION TO PLAY AND LEARN

Ben absolutely loves sensory bins! He really enjoyed digging in to find the different letters. He did a great job matching the uppercase letters with the lowercase letters. However, he did need help with some of the harder lowercase letters.

Matching Uppercase and Lowercase Letters using Recycled Water Bottle Caps

This was such a fun activity. After Ben matched the letters, he continued to play with the snowflake sensory bin. He even built a maze out of blocks and had the styrofoam balls navigate their way through it.

Matching Uppercase and Lowercase Letters using Water Bottle Caps

I hope that you give this sensory bin a try with your little ones, since it is both educational and fun. Yay!

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Candy Cane Pattern Worksheet for Preschoolers

Posted on December 24, 2020 by Fullbloomcreativity

My four year old son has shown an interest in patterns recently. So, I decided to make a Christmas themed pattern worksheet using candy canes. I have included a FREE Printable Candy Cane Pattern Worksheet for Preschoolers at the end of this post.

SUPPLIES

Free Printable Candy Cane Pattern Worksheet

Crayons

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Begin by downloading and printing the Candy Cane Pattern Worksheet.

2. Next, color the squares on the second page in different patterns. I started easy and worked to harder patterns.

3. Finally, have your child color the patterns on to the coordinating candy cane. They will need to continue the pattern in order to completely color the candy cane.

This activity will work on your child’s pattern skills, coloring in the lines, and gripping a crayon.

Click the button below to download the FREE Printable Candy Cane Pattern Worksheet for Preschoolers.

FREE DOWNLOAD

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Polar Express Small World Play with Fake Snow

Posted on December 22, 2020 by Fullbloomcreativity

Polar Express Small World Sensory Play with Fake Snow

I know that in most houses, ours included, reading The Polar Express is a holiday tradition. This wonderful book is written and illustrated by Chris Van Allsburg. If you have not read this book, you definitely need to. Both you and your child will love it.

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My four-year-old son, Ben, is train crazy. Every year at Christmastime, we ride on a steam engine at the Wilmington and Western Railroad where Santa Claus visits each of the children. Last year, my son picked out a wooden Polar Express train set from the gift shop as his souvenir.

This year, my sister gave my son the little figurines from The Polar Express. This got my wheels turning…. So, I decided to make a Polar Express Small World Play with fake snow. First, we read the book and then he got to play with this set up.

Fake Snow Recipe

2 1/2 cups Pure Baking Soda

1/2 cup White Hair Conditioner

This instructions are very simple. All you need to do is mix the baking soda and hair conditioner together until combined. That’s it!

Safety Information About Fake Snow

WARNING: Children should be supervised by an adult while playing with the fake snow. Keep the pretend snow away from their mouths and eyes as it can irritate their eyes and is not safe for consumption.

Immediately wash your child’s hands after using this pretend snow to avoid getting any residue in their eyes should they touch their face or rub their eyes.

Storing Fake Snow

The pretend snow should be stored in an air tight container and stored in a cool area. Accordingly, it should last up to five days. Out of personal preference, I discard the snow after its been used.

SUPPLIES

Wooden Train Tracks

Polar Express Wooden Train

Silver Bells

The Polar Express Figurines

Fake Pine Trees

Fake Snow

Plastic Platter

How to Assemble the Polar Express Small World

First, I set up some wooden train tracks into a circle and added my son’s Polar Express wooden train set.

Next, I sat a shallow plastic serving dish into the middle of the tracks. I made the pretend snow in this container.

Then, I added a small building, trees, silver bells, and figurines on top of the snow. This created a little vignette for Ben.

Invitation to Play

Finally, I invited Ben to play. He took over from there.

The snow is moldable. It it cool to the touch and somewhat wet feeling. This makes pretend snow great for sensory play.

I let Ben have free rein with his play during this activity. At first, he started by playing with the train. Then, he played with the people by having them interact and making up conversations.

After awhile, Ben started to really dig in and explore with the pretend snow. He made mountains and buried things in the snow.

After that, he brought in more trains and cars to play with.

Next thing you know, monster trucks were running over everything, and snow was piled onto the train tracks.

And here’s the aftermath! Ben played with this small world set up for hours.

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How to Make Watercolor Ornament Christmas Cards

Posted on December 17, 2020 by Fullbloomcreativity

One of favorite mediums to use for art are watercolor paints. To start with, they involve one of Ben’s most favorite thing in the world… Water. He loves to mix the paints together and watch his water cup change color. I used his artwork to make watercolor ornament Christmas cards.

SUPPLIES FOR WATERCOLOR ORNAMENT CARDS

Watercolor Paints

Paint Pallet

Paint Brushes

Watercolor Paper

White Cardstock Paper

Marker

Scissors

Glue

Optional: White Crayon and/or Salt

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Draw Designs with White Crayon

First, use a white (or another light color) crayon to draw designs on a white piece of watercolor paper. I drew loops, zigzags, dots, swirls, etc. you do not have to draw anything if you do not want to.

I recommend using watercolor paper versus other paper because it can handle a lot of water. If your child is like mine, more water ends up on the paper than actual paint.

2. Prepare Paint Pallet

Next, I set up a paint pallet with different color liquid watercolor paints and a cup of water. I love this simple plastic pallet, because it is the perfect size for Ben and it is easy to clean. It has held up well through many projects. If you do not have a pallet, you can use a paper plate.

3. Paint

Now on to the fun part, let your kid paint. No other instructions. As they paint, the hidden designs will reveal themselves. Surprise!

4. Add Salt (Optional)

In addition, you can sprinkle salt onto the painting while it is still wet. It will make the paint look splotchy. Once the paint has dried, just brush the salt off the paper. This is an optional step.

5. Cut Out Circles

After the paint has dried completely, cut various size circles out of the artwork. I cut out 3 different sizes to make watercolor ornaments for Ben. Set them aside for now.

6. Cut Out and Fold Cards

Next, I cut the white cardstock paper in half to make two rectangles that measured 8 1/2 inches by 5 1/2 inches. I then trimmed 1/2 inch off the long side to make is 8 inches long. Then I folded the paper in half to make a card that measured 4 inches by 5 1/2 inches. I made mine this size, because I already had envelopes that fitted a 4 x 6 card.

If you do not want to make your own card form, you could purchase plain white cards at your local craft store or online.

7. Glue the Watercolor Ornament Cut-outs on to the Cards

One of the last steps is to glue the circle watercolor ornaments on to the front of the cards. Add as many or as little as you want.

8. Draw Strings and Bows

For a final touch, I drew lines from the top of the card to the top of the ornament to look like they were hanging. Lastly, I drew a bow at the top of my ornament at the bottom of the line.

For more ideas about watercolor resist painting, check out our blog post, “How to Make a Color-Resist Watercolor Spider Web.”

For another homemade Christmas card, check out my blog post: “How to Make Christmas Tree Cards Using Paint Chips.” Happy Holidays!

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How to Make Christmas Tree Cards Using Paint Chips

Posted on December 12, 2020 by Fullbloomcreativity

This year, I decided to make homemade Christmas cards to send out to family and friends. I loved being able to involve my son, Ben, with this activity. For these cards, I used paint chips to make Christmas trees.

SUPPLIES

Paint Chips

White Cardstock Paper

Scissors

Glue

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Start by cutting different size triangles out of various shades of green paint chips. The great thing about using paint chips is that you can get them for FREE at your local hardware store.

2. Next, I cut the white cardstock paper in half to make two rectangles that measured 8 1/2 inches by 5 1/2 inches. Then, I trimmed 1/2 inch off the long side to make is 8 inches long. After that, I folded the paper in half to make a card that measured 4 inches by 5 1/2 inches. I made mine this size, because I already had envelopes that fitted a 4 x 6 card.

If you do not want to make your own card form, you could purchase plain white cards at your local craft store or online.

3. Next, glue the triangles onto the front of the card.

4. Finally, an additional option is to write on the front of the cards. Therefore, I wrote “Merry Christmas!” and “Happy Holidays!” on some of the cards.

For another homemade Christmas card, check out my blog post: “How to Make Watercolor Ornament Christmas Cards.” Happy Holidays!

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SUPPLIES FOR POPSICLE STICK STARS

INSTRUCTIONS

SUPPLIES FOR VALENTINE’S DAY SENSORY BIN

INSTRUCTIONS

INVITATION TO PLAY

Oobleck Recipe

SUPPLIES

INVITATION TO PLAY

SUPPLIES

INSTRUCTIONS

INVITATION TO PLAY AND LEARN

SUPPLIES

INSTRUCTIONS

Fake Snow Recipe

Safety Information About Fake Snow

Storing Fake Snow

SUPPLIES

How to Assemble the Polar Express Small World

Invitation to Play

SUPPLIES FOR WATERCOLOR ORNAMENT CARDS

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Draw Designs with White Crayon

2. Prepare Paint Pallet

3. Paint

4. Add Salt (Optional)

5. Cut Out Circles

6. Cut Out and Fold Cards

7. Glue the Watercolor Ornament Cut-outs on to the Cards

8. Draw Strings and Bows

SUPPLIES

INSTRUCTIONS

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