Moving Fish

This summer went by way too fast.  Between vacations, camps and summer school, we were definitely busier than in previous years.  I loved it though, and am a little sad to see it come to an end. But, they must go back to school.  I can't believe it's the second week of school already.  Granted last week and this week are just 4 day weeks for them, but I'm glad they (and I) can ease back into our new routine.

The other day, I saw this video on how to make a moving fish.  It looked easy, so we just had to try it.  krokotak.com has all kinds of cute paper crafts for kids to make, be sure to check it out for yourself.

The video and pictures at that link show each step in creating this moving fish, so I'll just show you our finished product.  I made these with my 2, 6 and 12 year olds.  Of course I helped my 2 year old cut and glue but he wasn't very interested in making it.  My 6 year old tried to do it herself and got frustrated.  But my 12 year old was able to complete it on her own.  She enjoyed making it more than playing with it, whereas my 2 year old loved playing with it.  Later that day we went out and he had to wear it on his hand during the car ride.  So I'd say this craft is more for older kids to make and younger kids to play with.  

They were pretty easy to make and didn't take too long either.  You could do all sorts of colors and shapes of fins, making an entire school of fish.

And speaking of fish, check out this whooper my little guy caught while on vacation.

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Line Design Art

This week both my girls are at an Art Camp, so I thought I'd share some cool art we made a little while ago.  It's easy to create and looks oh so cool.  You could make this again and again and never have the same look.

I originally found the idea HERE at Art with Mr. E

Be sure to check out his blog for more ideas about how to make your own line design art.

Step 1:  Draw a slightly wavy line across the page.

Step 2:  Place several dots on the line various distances apart.

Step 3:  Draw bubble type lines from one dot to the next.

Step 4: Be sure to vary the shape and direction of the lines going from one dot to the next.  You can make them curve or get bubblier/bigger.  Make sure the lines never cross over each other.

Step 5:  Add color.  You can use pencils, markers, crayons, watercolors....

And here's where my daughter lost interest.  I'm pretty sure she spent at least an hour doing this much.  If interests wanes in this project maybe you could spread it out over several days, use different coloring mediums or patterns.

Another fun art project to try would be this Optical Illusion Handprint:

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