Golf Ball Painting

It's Scott from Brick by Brick. I love to repurpose materials—use materials in ways different from their intended purpose.

We love to paint in my classroom. And we love to paint with all kinds of things besides brushes. Last summer, in our Art Camp, we painted with golf balls...on a canvas...and made lasting wall art.

First, tape pieces of cardboard around the canvas. The cardboard should extend a few inches above the canvas surface, to keep the balls from rolling off and away. If you have a box that is the same size as your canvas, just nestle the canvas in it. I didn't have that, so we taped pieces to create our own "box."

Pour paint into shallow containers. Roll the balls in the paint and use a spoon to transfer the coated golf balls onto the canvas. Then children can pick up the box and rotate it back and forth to move the balls around the canvas. If the canvas is large, children can stand on either end of the canvas and work together to move the balls. (Check out the process in this post.)

Adding layers and layers of paint creates a really interesting design. The paint we used was a little thick, so the golf balls created interesting texture in addition to the colored designs. We passed our masterpiece on to a special leader to hang in her office. Or you could give the painting away as a door prize or as part of a fundraiser.

Or hang the masterpiece in your classroom to showcase the talents of your artists.

Visit my Dollar Store and Dumpster Pinterest Board and my blog for more repurposing ideas.

Changable Sign Posts

It's Scott from Brick by Brick. I love to repurpose materials—use materials in ways different from their intended purpose. 

This particular idea came from my wife. (Did I marry the right person or what?) I came into the room one day and found these.

Sign posts for our the blocks center! When we've used our logos before, we've taped them to blocks or cardboard tubes. That still works great. But Cindy wanted something else.

She got plastic lids, wide craft sticks, and clothespins. She made a slit in the lid and inserted the craft stick. Using hot glue, she secured the stick and then glued the clothespin to the other end of the stick. Presto! Sign posts that can be changed as we see fit.

Our boys really enjoyed using these signs. They built and incorporated the signs in their construction. They read the signs, at least some of them. 

They added them to what they built. Then they built specific structures for the signs. (And sometimes they built and ignored the signs. That's okay, too!)

I think these sign posts could be really useful in other ways. In addition to using them for street signs or other block play, here are some ideas I had.

• Clip on words cards for kids to read or write or spell with letter tiles.
• Clip on letters for kids to rearrange to spell their names.
• Add cards with numbers and kids could count out quantities. 
• Clip on sorting categories and kids could place items or pictures under the appropriate signs.
• Add statements or key words in different centers or other activities.
• Clip on instructions for a recipe or science experiment.
• Use name cards for place settings or other dramatic play in the home center.

I love repurpose ideas and these are a great addition to our collection of resources. Thanks, Cindy!!

Homemade Ball Maze Game

Hi! It's Scott from Brick by Brick. I love to repurpose materials—use materials in ways different from their intended use.

Recently we made some ball maze games for our preschoolers to use. These games are great for developing hand-eye coordination and for helping kids gain more control over their movements. Plus they are just fun to use!

What you need: cardboard tubes, plastic trays or shallow boxes, tape, large marbles or small balls

Cut your cardboard tubes to shorter lengths. Tape the tubes to the tray, leaving space between the tubes for the ball to roll. We used clear tape and taped through the tubes. You could also tape over the tubes with decorative tape or clear tape.

Kids can hold the sides of the tray and move it around to make the ball roll, trying to get the ball to roll through the tubes.

If you use larger trays/boxes and tubes, you can create a game that kids can use with partners. Add table tennis balls instead of small balls to this larger game.

If you want to add more elements to your game, print letters or numbers on the tubes. Challenge kids to roll through specific tubes. If you are using numbers on the tubes, roll a numbered cube and then try to get the ball through that numeral tube and not through in other tubes.

Adjust the game to fit whatever you want to emphasize. Or keep the game as a motor development activity. Since we had a space theme for these activities, we used balls that looked like planets and called them orbit trays. And our fun was out of this world! (Sorry I couldn't resist.)

Art Outside

Hi! It's Scott from Brick by Brick. I love to repurpose materials—use materials in ways different from their intended use. Today I'm thinking about repurposing things for art outside.
Here are some fun outdoor art experiences that we did last summer. I'm thinking it's time to try some of these again.

Flyswatter Painting

Buy plastic flyswatters from the dollar store. Pour paint into shallow containers or dishpans. Dip flyswatters in paint and hit the paper.

We hung the paper on our playground fence. Kids enjoyed hitting the paper. I would advise having several stations for this activity. And it can be messy, so make sure kids are wearing appropriate clothes and stand back when not painting.


Spray Bottle Painting

Fill plastic spray bottles with liquid watercolor and spray away. You can also color water with food color and use that, but the color isn't as vivid.

Make sure the bottles are filled with paint. Bring more to refill the bottles. Our kids loved this and wanted more.


Draw with Chalk and Spray Water

Drawing with chalk on sidewalks or parking lots is a favorite outdoor activity. Bring spray bottles with water, buckets of water, and large paintbrushes. Using these can make the drawings "disappear."

Children enjoyed exploring the different types of activities - drawing, spraying, brushing. Choose an area that will get rain or can be easily sprayed off with a hose. We drew on a covered area and it took a while for the "evidence" to disappear.


Plastic Cups and Fence Sculpture

Repurpose plastic cups of various colors. (Mine were again from the dollar store.) Kids can insert the cups in a fence to create a sculpture or overall pattern. Our kids really enjoyed this different activity. It looked like an art installation after we were finished. I liked the "come and go" nature of this activity. Kids would place one or two cups and then leave; later they would come back and add another one. Other kids would play on the playground for a while and then try the art. And others stayed with the art for a longer while.

Make sure you try the cups in the fence before using with the children. Our cups were just a little too big. Some children had difficulty making them work. (But the crushed sides added some different elements to the sculpture, too.)

Art belongs outside as well as inside. What art experiences have taken you into the great outdoors? What have you repurposed for this outside art?

Straws in the Blocks Center

Hi! It's Scott from Brick by Brick. I love to repurpose items and use them in different ways in the preschool classroom.

Sometimes I get things without any particular idea of what I'm going to do with it. (After all, I have those great thinkers in my classroom!) One day in the grocery store, I saw packets of neon straws. I tossed a pack into my cart and took them to my classroom.

I decided to put the straws in the blocks center. My group likes to build and I want to give them some different things to work with. We were talking about wells, so I also added a couple of small buckets with yarn attached. (In the past, kids have built wells and pretended to scoop out water.)

A couple of boys decided to use the straws as "water." They stuffed the straws into the buckets and transported them across the center. They dumped the "water" onto the picture of the well, I think to fill it up. The boys worked at this for a while.

Meanwhile, in another part of the center, one of my builders was at work creating a large structure.

After the others left, the builder completed his building and began to scoop and play with the straws.

Then he decided to incorporate the straws in his structure.

I love how each straw is strategically placed. He worked really hard to find just the right spot in his structure.

I enjoy exploring and experimenting just like my kids. Sometimes I'll put things out and they will be ignored. Sometimes the kids do things that I expect. And sometimes I get a block structure filled with straws. And if I put these same materials out with a different group of kids, I'll get a different result.

That's what's great about the early childhood years. Children are exploring the things they want to know more about or things they wonder. And, with a tiny push like a new material or a different idea, they explore into really great areas.

What experiments and explorations are you seeing in your classrooms?

Count on It (or Rather With It)

It's Scott from Brick by Brick. I love to repurpose materials—use materials in ways different from their intended purpose.

Counting and developing a concept of number and quantity is important for this age group. You can purchase all kinds of counters - those small manipulative objects to use for creating quantities. But you can also repurpose things you already have in great counting and number games. Here are just a few things we've used for counters.

Rocks, floral marbles, gems, etc.

These make great items to count or group into quantities.

Check in the floral section of a craft store for different colors and sizes of floral marbles. (We also used them another counting game.)

Lids
We saved lids from plastic bottles and use those as counters, too. Ask parents to help collect lids. (Save the plastic bottles, too, for other fun repurposing.)

Cubes
I found a collection of foam cubes at the discount area of a local store. Check dollar stores for these or other small objects to count. You can also use numbered cubes from games or small wooden cubes from the craft store.

And we like to mix it up when we count, stacking various objects together. This activity becomes part math, part construction, and part art. (Plus we can make bigger quantities by doubling up on the squares. More math play!)

Small Toys
We have used animal figures, cars, and other small toys to count or make quantities. Change up what you use for thematic play.

Pompoms
We use pompoms for all kinds of things but they are great for counting and number games. Change up the colors for more fun.

You can also use small erasers, old game pieces, checkers...anything that is small and plentiful. You will need a good quantity of whatever you use so kids will enjoy creating groups or counting specific quantities.

Look through your classroom or storage area. What could you use to "spice up" your math play?

Instant Songs for Your Classroom

It's Scott from Brick by Brick. I love to repurpose materials—use materials in ways different from their intended purpose.

Today let's think of a different type of repurposing - repurposing or recycling tunes.

Early in my teaching journey, I learned that I could take a song or tune that I knew, adjust the words to fit what was happening, and I had an instant song that was relevant (and that I could probably remember). I knew lots of children's songs and traditional songs: "The Farmer in the Dell," "Happy Birthday," "London Bridge," "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star," and so forth. 

Repurpose the tune with new words and a new song was born. And remember, no need to create lots of words; just repeat ones that fit. Kids love repetition and they will learn your "new" songs more quickly, too.

Since it's Thanksgiving week, let's create an instant thank-you song.

Thank You Song

Tune: "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star"

"Thank you for my family, Mommy, Daddy, and there's me,

We work and we play each day, We work and we play each day,

Thank you for my family, I love them and they love me."

Adjust the words as you choose. Ask the children to name things they do in their families and work those ideas into your song. Or change family to other things that children are grateful for (friends, teacher, food, whatever.) Repurposed songs can be versatile!

And Christmas is coming, so here's an instant song about Christmas.

A Happy Time

Tune: "Mary Had a Little Lamb"

"Christmas is a happy time, Happy time, happy time,

Christmas is a happy time, We decorate our tree."

Add other things that children do at Christmas time. Or change the song to reflect whatever holiday or celebration that your children celebrate.

A few tips:

• Choose songs/tunes that are familiar to you. Songs that have simple, repetitive melodies are best. They can be familiar to your children or not. The kids will pick up the tunes quickly.
• If you have a song that you use regularly in your classroom, change up the words. It makes the song new and uses something already familiar to connect with new ideas or content.
• Make sure the words you choose fit the rhythms and notes. Sometimes I try to use too many words for the tune. While some of these tunes will adjust a little more easily, I often just reword or find a new tune to make the blend easier.
• Don't worry about rhymes. If your new lyrics rhyme, that's fine. If they don't, that's fine too. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. Don't force it. Just sing the words you need, even if they do not rhyme.
• Have fun with your new songs and don't sweat it! 
• Sing, even if you don't think you are a singer. Kids love music and will enjoy one of their favorite adults singing with them.

So...go make some music this holiday season. Music that you have repurposed and recreated yourself!

(What songs or tunes have you repurposed or recycled? Share them with us in the comments.)

DIY Feel Box

It's Scott from Brick by Brick. I love to repurpose materials—use materials in ways different from their intended purpose.

I like easy ideas...and ideas that are little cost. That's why I love this feel box.

You need an oatmeal box and a large NEW men's athletic sock. Slide the sock over the oatmeal box = and the feel box is ready.

Put in anything that you want kids to feel--small toys, nature items, magnet shapes, anything.

Kids reach in through the sock and feel the items. They can easily pull them out.

This is a great activity for all ages of kids. I've used it with one-year-old toddlers and kindergartners. With younger kids, I just put in 1 or 2 items. With kindergartners, put in several items and lay similar items beside the box. 

They can feel one of the items they can see and then find items that feel the same inside the box. 

Another advantage - no cheating! Kids cannot see inside the box, even when they reach inside it.

I like this activity. The box is recycled and the sock can be purchased at the dollar store. The items that go in the box are things you already have. Easy. Little cost. 

And fun!  

Drawing on Mirrors

It's Scott from Brick by Brick. I love to repurpose materials—use materials in ways different from their intended purpose.

We love to draw. We draw on paper and on paper plates. We draw at the easel. We draw with pens and pencils and markers and crayons. We draw with dry erase markers.

We love to use the small dry erase boards to write and draw. But we recently used mirrors as the surface for drawing.

Small hand mirrors are easily acquired at discount stores or the dollar store. We used our regular dry erase markers and erasers.

We write and draw just like on the dry erase boards - circles and loops and designs.

We can also draw "on" our faces (the reflection not the actual faces!).

The reflection gives a different dimension to what we are drawing or writing. 

Plus it's just fun to do it!

You can also draw on a large stand-up mirror or a large mirror on the table, floor, or ground outside!

Visit my Dollar Store and Dumpster Pinterest Board and my blog for more repurposing ideas.

A Cupful of Ideas

It's Scott from Brick by Brick. I love to repurpose materials—use materials in ways different from their intended purpose.

Cups - paper and plastic cups - can be versatile resources in the classroom. Of course, you can use them for snacks and drinks, but they can be so much more than this regular, expected use.

You can use them to pretend to eat. 

Use plastic cups and plates as part of your pretend play area. We placed some in a basket with a tablecloth and we had an instant picnic! If you do not have play dishes, take a trip to the discount store and get some disposable cups and dinnerware. These make great and inexpensive possibilities for playing out family situations and pretending to work in a restaurant. (Yes, it's close to intended use but still great play possibilities.)

You can use them for art.

Place cups with a stamp pad or with a shallow pan of paint. Kids will enjoy pressing the cups into the stamp pad or paint and then onto paper. They can create lots of circles or experiment with using the cups. Or make a group of circles and then use a marker or pen to create faces. I always say that you can paint with just about anything and disposable cups are great for stamping circles and exploring form.

Make a drawing "propeller" by cutting a slit a cup and sliding a craft stick through it. Then tape markers to the ends of the stick. Kids can draw with the propellers, a fun variation to using markers.

You can use them to hold stuff.

Of course, you can place collage materials or markers or other small items in cups for a center. You could use them to sort items or to transport items in a game.

You can use them to build.

Add cups to your blocks for more building possibilities. Or just build and stack cups. I always enjoy adding different elements to the blocks/construction area and watching how kids use them. You don't need a grand plan. Let the kids explore their creativity with the various materials.

You can use them to scoop and pour.

Place cups with sand, water, grain, or whatever you want to scoop and pour. Kids will enjoy experimenting with scooping, filling, and pouring materials. Cups of any size can be used, but I'd recommend smaller cups for this purpose. (You have less in a cup at a time that can cause a mess.)

You can use them for outside sculpture.

Some colorful plastic cups and a chain link fence make great basic materials for sculpture. Encourage kids to create a design or let them place cups randomly. The overall effect is really cool. (And a great way to exercise those fine motor skills! Manipulating cups into the fence can be a challenge.)

What ways have you used cups in your classroom?

Visit my Dollar Store and Dumpster Pinterest Board and my blog for more repurposing ideas.