Teaching about Charity

Its time to do something GOOD... REALLY GOOD... and Pajama Projects needs your help to pull it off!
   Pajama Projects is hosting a PAJAMA DRIVE to give a pair of new pajamas and a new book to children in need.  Pajama Program, a 501-C3 charitable organization, has located 2 shelters for Pajama Projects to send aid to. These shelters take in children in need from desperate situations. Many of those children have nothing of their own, and have seen much harder times than anyone deserves.  Wouldn't it be great for those children to have something that is theirs to bring them comfort at bedtime?
   We are collecting new (they don't have to be expensive) pajamas (newborn to teen sizes) and a new book to go with each pair!  Together, you and your child can pick out a pair of new pajamas and a book to send to Pajama Projects. I will deliver them to the shelters Pajama Program has chosen.  Teaching our kids to look out for those in need is one of the GREATEST lessons we can ever teach! You can go to sleep with a full heart knowing you gave a child, who rarely gets one, a peaceful bedtime.  What a blessing this charity is in the lives of those children.

I implore you to please send donations to :
Pajama Projects
c/o Jenny Kramer
8921 Lakeview Drive
Fairhope, AL 36532
I will update the blog with pictures of the pajamas and books when they come in.  I am really excited about this program and hope that you are too, and will help out!
(If you are interested in doing a Pajama Drive in your area, or to find out more about the charity and all they have done , log onto http://www.pajamaprogram.org)


Much LOVE,
Jenny

Symmetry Collage

Today we talked about symmetry... we didn't get too technical, but we discussed when a picture or an object is the exact same on one side, as it is the other.  I described it as "matching" and "twins" - terms he can understand and is familiar with.  To explore this new concept, we made a collage.
Materials needed:  paint, paper, paint brush, glue, scissors
To begin, he picked his 3 paint colors, and then painted one full sheet of paper the color of his choice.  This was to be the "background" of our piece of art.

Then I took one piece of paper and folded it in half.  We discussed how each page was the same, and that each half matched.  I cut the paper in half.  He used the remaining two colors and painted each of these pieces.  At this point, I suggest letting them dry.  (We did not, and things got messy :)
We took the two smaller pieces and folded them in half (we did one lengthwise, to be tall and thin, and one widthwise, to be short and wide).  Then he used a pen to draw a design along the paper.

This would be our outline to cut along.  I did the cutting.  Then we unfolded the piece together to see what shape we made.

 We discussed how each side was the same, or "symmetrical".  He decided how he wanted to place it on the big background page, and we centered and glued it down.

We did the same thing with the other  piece of painted paper.

 We used some of the scraps to make a "border" on our piece of work.

We then folded the whole piece in half, and discussed how the artwork, itself, was symmetrical, as well!  We think this one might be a framer!  It was lots of good messy fun, too!

What do they eat?

   First, let me thank you all, so much, for hanging with me throughout this lazy and long pregnancy!  We are proud to announce we welcomed a beautiful baby girl into the mix on July 23rd.  We are so blessed!  I think I am now at the point, where I can begin working on posting our pajama projects again, and hope you will have fun reading about our early morning adventures!
  Dodson woke up the other morning quite inquisitive about what specific animals eat.  I am not sure what sparked this interest, but I recognized this as a great learning opportunity!  He would name an animal that he wanted to know more about, and together, we would look up facts about its eating habits on the computer.  We decided we would make a book with pictures of the animals, and their diet.
  Since Dodson is learning to read, we used short phrases that he would easily be able to master and memorize.  He quickly did just that, and was able to "read" the book back to me once it was complete.  This gave him confidence in his reading ability, helped him flex his memory muscles, and learn about something he was genuinely interested in.
  Supplies needed:  computer, printer, paper, construction paper, scissors, glue and a stapler.

 Have your child practice their cutting skills by cutting out the pictures (or help them if they aren't ready for scissors - or YOU aren't ready for them to have them :)  They can also glue down the pictures.  Allow your child to write out the animal names below each picture, or do it for them, while spelling and sounding out the word.  (you can make the letter sound, and have them tell you the letter)

 Here, Dodson wanted to write out the word "Fish".  I helped him sound it out.

 Once the book was complete, we named it, "What do animals eat?" and put his name as author.

 He was very proud of his new book, and that he created it!

Animals and what they eat is just one idea for a subject matter... pick what is interesting to your child at the moment, and go with that!
Let me know what you come up with!