Snowflakes Everywhere!

It is so cold here, but not as cold as in many parts of the country. We have lots of snow and I decided to take advantage of that idea for some new reading and simple art projects with snowflakes.

My suggested reading for this will be:

Fiction- "The Hat" by Jan Brett from G. P. Putman. Many of you might be familiar with her book "The Mitten" which is certainly a favorite of many children. You may not be as familiar with her other story of winter fun. It takes place on a farm with animals using a child's clothing to have hats to wear in the cold snowy winter.
- "Down The Hill", a Frog and Toad story from the book "Frog and Toad All Year" by Arnold Lobel, published by Scholastic, Inc. We see the famous duo in another hysterical story about riding down a steep hill on a sled. The kids just laugh and laugh during this wonderful winter tale.

Non-Fiction- "Zoo Flakes ABC" by Will C. Howell, published by Walker & Co. This is a superb book for teaching children the alphabet using gorgeous cut paper snowflakes showing animals. The kids and adults as well, will enjoy admiring each piece of art. The bonus is that you get the directions for making your own six-sided paper flakes in the last few pages of the book.

Art Project
1- Following the directions mentioned above, cut some great paper snowflakes to string and hang at the windows.
2- Make some fingerprint flakes. Using blue construction paper folded in half, cut (from the folded edge) a simple pattern as in my sample. I used white so you can see it easier. When unfolded, let the children dip their index fingertip into white tempera paint (if mixed with a small amount of liquid soap washes off more easily), and make finger prints on the flake. You can follow up with some silver glitter if you wish, which really looks nice. Another option is to use white paper with blue paint. Either way, they have fun!







3- The last idea I have is using popsicle sticks. You will need three uncut sticks and about three sticks which you will cut into smaller pieces. An adult will need to use pruning shears to cut three sticks into quarters. Then you crisscross the three full size sticks and glue into place. Let dry. Next, you use the small pieces to glue to the ends of each sticks at an angle. As you can see in my sample, I then painted the snowflake white. You don't have to do this step but it really enhances the look. Then, find all those unused buttons you have around and decide how to arrange them. I used buttons I bought at JoAnn Fabrics since they comes in large bags or coordinated colors. I also use them for making cards and scrapbook pages. You can also use the extra buttons you get with blouses and sweaters that you rarely use and the mix of colors and sizes adds interest. Glue them on and then add a hanging ribbon. These look great at the window, in doorways, and if you like planning ahead, on Christmas trees as ornaments.