Thursday, May 27, 2010
Pollock Prints
Part of this post is from last year. It's just my favorite project that I teach and I love how the finished products turn out.
Monday, May 24, 2010
Warhol Flowers
Play-dough 101
2. The colors turn out so pretty and can be completely custom.
3. It's Science.
I would say it's less expensive, but store bought play-dough is not very pricey at all. Still, I love to make it at home for the fun of it.
1 C. Flour
1 C. Water
1/2 C. Salt
1 t. Vegetable Oil
1/2 t. Cream of Tarter
food coloring, or unsweetened kool-aid for color
Combine all ingredients except for food coloring in sauce pan and cook over medium heat until it holds together. Keep mixing or it will stick to the bottom of the pan. When the mixture is cool enough to touch, knead it on a floured surface, divide it into smaller balls, and add a different shade of food coloring to each ball. Store in an airtight container.
We made up a batch Friday after we ran out of the model magic. Derek and his buddies played with it for about 15 min. Fortunately, Allison and Candice showed up and made it worth my time to make it. They created bunnies and ladybugs, and were excited that they could keep their creations.They entire time they were telling me how creative and talented I was...Oh how I wish I had a girl....
Saturday, May 22, 2010
Casts and Cakes
Derek wanted to invite friends over, but he started in on the cake without them. And then Clint and Jeff had some for breakfast the next morning. Finally a few friends made it over to the house for a piece before it was gone. It was really dry because I made the cake from scratch and improvised the butter cake recipe to try to make it chocolate, and then cooking it in the Pyrex bowls didn't bake it evenly. But it looked good. And the homemade buttercream frosting is always heavenly...And the red candy lava looks awesome! Overall, I won't complain. The cast is gone! That's all the matters.
- In heavy saucepan, bring the sugar, syrup, and water to a boil. Continew boiling until the mixture reaches 295 degrees on a candy thermometer.
- Remove mix from heat and add red food coloring.
- Allow liquid to cool for a min. or 2 before pouring it on a foil covered cookie sheet sprayed with cooking spray. Pour candy into lava like shapes and let it harden and cool completley before handeling.
- If you don't have a candy thermometer, you can tell the candy mixture is at the hard ball stage if a drop is placed in a cup of cold water and it hardens immediately. The mixture will turn thick, bubbly, and dark when it is ready.
Goodbye Cast, Hello Summer
Dino-cakes
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
Science Perrinals I
To make things easier for Derek, I pour the vinegar in a bowl so he doesn't have to pour it. He just dips his little measuring cup in the bowl and adds a little vinegar at a time to the volcano. I put the baking soda in a bowl too and give him a measuring spoon to add it in. And I always remind him to keep it all on the cookie sheet.....all on the cookie sheet, on the cookie sheet, on the cookie sheet on the cookie sheet....
Milk and Food Coloring Trick.
I love this experiment too. I never get tired of those swirling colors. The experiment calls for Milk (The fatter the better), food coloring, and dish soap...and toothpicks.
This is why it works. Milk is made of 3 things. Water, Fat and Protein. The Fat absorbs the food coloring, and the dish soap breaks down the fat. Hence, the swirling colors.And you don't have to swirl the colors around. Just barley touch a drop of color with a dab of soap on the top of a toothpick. The colors explode automatically. It is the perfect activity for a boring day. And like I said, I love to play with it too. That is the best thing about being a mom. Playing. So glad I get to play. I just can't wait until summer so I have the time. It's been a hard year back at work. I know, I know. It's only part time. But I love being home. And I can't wait til I get to be there all the time this summer...except of course when I am at the POOL!!!!!!!!!!