Sophie and Sadie's Scholarly Site

Now that  my summer is winding down, and I will be back to school in another week, I have found TONS of crafts to make from “recycled” items on Pinterest, and   I am  busy trying  out some of these ideas as possible art projects in my social studies classes. For instance, I found directions for making beads made from old magazines and catalogs, and I created a  beaded bracelet. Because I am always looking for ways to make abstract ideas tangible, I am thinking of making “ friendship” bracelets  during our study of William Penn and the Quakers settling Pennsylvania. Did William Penn actually use old magazines to  make and trade beads with Native Americans? Uh-mmm, sources say  “No,” but one of my goals this year is to bring in more creativity into my lessons while making my lessons a bit more real, and so making and trading beads to create bonds of friendship  as a tangible reminder is a good thing.

Here’s how I created this simple project:  I  cut strips of an old catalog into thin triangles.  ( The wide part  or base was about an inch in this project). Then, I rolled the triangle from the wide end to the smaller  end.  I  added a  little dab of glue ( I used Elmer’s), took a finger and smoothed the glued end,  and voila- a bead. I let the beads dry.

After the beads were dry, I trimmed a few just to make the look a little more uniform. I used  twine to thread my beads and did a spritz of shellac to make it a little more permanent and give my creation a glossy finish.

And here’s my bracelet- nothing fancy but pretty nonetheless:

Thanks for taking a look, and I hope you’ll share some ideas with me on my Pinterest boards.

Because Christmas in July is here, the NEW SCHOOL YEAR can’t be too far behind so it’s time …

to avoid the television because the “back to school” ads like this classic are in full force!

Why not celebrate and think of happier times?  My memories of  Christmas in my classroom are all good ones, and by the time December 2011 rolls around, the nationwide heat wave will be in the past, and I’ll be dreaming of a White Christmas.

Actually the day after Christmas, we got SNOW here in SC. Nice to think about when the temperatures are 100-plus. All the more reason to stay indoors and check out some COOL ideas.

Charity over at The Organized Classroom Blog is celebrating Merry Christmas in July. Charity has put together some activities from several great blogs showcasing the BEST ideas, and let me mention  that they are all FREEBIES!

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all!

Hello. My name is Fran, and I have a problem: PINTEREST!

Actually, my interest in pinning projects has been a Godsend. I grew up drawing, painting, and making crafts daily, and my parents at one time thought I might go into something that was artistic, but it seems like over time, I have deemed those desires to create things counter-productive and wastes of time. To be truthful, it seems as if there was a point when I was in school back in the late 70’s where there was an artistic track and an academic track in education especially in high school.  I believe with the testing mania that has taken over education,  art has been pushed aside. If it’s not tested, we usually don’t do it. Yet listen  to Sir Ken Robinson : Creativity is a skill we need to nurture if we as humans are going to survive.  (Thank goodness for that ancient person who decided fire was a good idea!) There is a human need to create in all of us whether we acknowledge it or not. All the more reason to search for projects that will allow teachers and their students to create. Teachers especially  almost all have that desire: Talk to most teachers, and they will say that we love those few times a year that we get to sit down and just color or make something- and the messier the better for me.

So I am loving the fact that I can create something after finding inspiration!

Here’s what inspired me today:

from The Blue Eyed Owl Boutique

Here’s my own creation made with an apple I stenciled many years ago, a Flip camera, and befunky

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My READ Poster

Take a look at my Classroom Pinterest and  perhaps you will be inspired to start creating some of your own projects.