Art In The Park ~ Painting In The Park

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Well, I have to say our first Art Group experience was a success! All of our little friends created masterpieces under the shade of the trees on this beautiful summer day. Every single child (6 in total) were immersed in painting for upwards of fifteen minutes. Not bad for 2 and 3 year olds! Did I mention there was a park complete with swings and slides within 100 meters? I was quite impressed and inspired watching the little hands mix colours and spread the paint so freely. We even had a little Jackson Pollack in the group!

I decided to keep the first Art Group activity straight-forward but added a little twist to give each child a personalized outcome to their artwork. I brought watercolour paper, tempera paints and brushes and palettes of course. But, I pre-cut the first initial to each child’s name using my handy Silhouette machine and contact paper.  The idea comes from this Watercolor Initials project. Unfortunately I don’t have the finished products as the artwork was too wet to peel the contact paper before our art date was over. I’ll have to see if I can get some photos of the final pieces.  But really, the fun (for me) is watching the kids create. It was a happy morning. I’m looking forward to the next one!

Eye Spy…

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Have you ever wondered what to do with all of the stuff in your junk drawer? How about scrap toys or that bin of little odds and ends or toys that don’t really belong anywhere? This collage found at the Alaska State Museum turns the mundane everyday little objects into a really interesting collection of treasures. Found in the Children’s Room of the museum the framed object art is accompanied by cards that encourage child interaction from an Eye Spy activity to challenging you to make up a rhyme that incorporates the objects found in the collage. What a great idea!

Art In The Park ~ Art Group Take 1

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I’m very excited! I’ve organized an art group that is meeting for the first time tomorrow morning!! We’re gathering at our local Lakeside Park – the perfect inspiration for our little artists.  Looking forward to tracking our experiences here!

I must give credit to Jean at The Artful Parent for sharing her art group experiences and providing some of the inspiration it took me to finally get our group up and running. Thanks Jean!

The Daily Groove ~ Creative Parenting

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I subscribe to an online newsletter called The Daily Groove by Scott Noelle. I enjoy his daily tidbits of insightful perspective on parenting mindfully and enjoying parenting. Today’s post (a continuation of yesterday’s post on Terrible Two’s) is something I keep top of mind with my toddler through this stage of power struggling and protests.

Below is today’s ‘Daily Groove’, more can be found at the Enjoy Parenting website. The image above is the cover of The Daily Groove book, currently out of print until further notice.

Developmentally, toddlers and Teens have one thing in common: they’re on the verge of a quantum leap in personal autonomy. They’re on a mission to become themselves — to get in touch with their Inner Power more than ever before.

Anytime they feel imposed upon or coerced, that mission is blocked, and they instinctively protest. In nature-based, pleasure-oriented, partnership cultures, such protests are rarely triggered, so terrible two’s and teen rebellions rarely occur.

But in our anti-nature, control-oriented culture, parents are expected (if not required by law) to oppose or control children’s natural developmental impulses toward personal empowerment, which guarantees the terribles!

The shift from terrible to terrific begins with your commitment to creative partnership. Then, whenever your child exhibits “terrible” behavior, you can re-interpret it as evidence of his or her unfolding autonomy, and ask yourself this:

“How can I use my creativity to support my child’s growth in a way that works for ALL of us?”