Wax Resist Painting

My children and their friends love experiencing wax resist painting. It is such a simple activity to set up for them, and the results are instant and satisfying. All you need is a handful of wax crayons and an ink wash to paint over the top (I used edicol dye powder and water, but if you don't have access to that food colouring drops mixed with water is also fine).

Today the little ones were drawing with white and pale yellow crayons- almost blindly, when they added the ink wash they were excited and surprised to see their image magically appear.

Simple home made bread

This Recipe is from a lovely Waldorf inspired book called 'Heaven on Earth', by Sharifa Oppenheimer. The children helped knead and shape the bread dough into letters, shapes and animals.

Foolproof No-Rise Bread Recipe


Dissolve in 1 cup boiling water:
4 Tbsp butter
1/2 cup honey


Stir until cool 


In a separate bowl, dissolve in 1.5 cups lukewarm water:


2 Tbsp dry baker's yeast

Add to honey-butter and stir.


Add, 1 cup at a time:


6-7 cups whole wheat pastry flour.
Knead on floured board.
Shape into rolls, bunnies, bread baskets, braids etc.


Bake at 350 F, 40-45 mins (depending on oven). Tap on top to test- a hollow sound means it's done.

Nature Table- Autumn

We are adding to our nature table almost daily- adding interesting leaves we find, acorns, pine-cones, gum-nuts, rocks and other organic items that inspire us with colour or texture.

I think nature tables are a lovely way to celebrate the changing seasons, appreciate the beauty within found objects and a way of bringing the outdoors inside.

Nature Night Concert

Finn had a lovely idea to take some chairs outside and listen to the night noises. I asked him to identify as many different sounds as he could- dogs barking, crickets chirping, cars driving. It was a lovely experience for them.

Autumn

After living in Brisbane for so many years, we are all (children especially) enjoying the changing seasons in Canberra and the dropping of leaves. Crisp mornings, sunny days and streets lined with colourful trees.

outdoor cubby

The children spent a lovely Autumn morning under a tree tent I made for them by draping some sheets over the low branches and clipping them with pegs. 

Bookmarks

Finn has started reading chapter books before bed, and we can never find enough bookmarks around the house. So our solution was to make our own, and give any extras away as gifts.

I folded an A4 piece of paper four times and re-opened it. I asked Finn to draw separate images on the inside of each crease.

When he was finished we signed, named and dated the back of each image, cut them out and placed them through the laminating machine (I bought mine from the local newsagent for around $29). Finn also discovered if you can turn it into a puzzle by matching up the right parts of the drawing.

pre-pasted Paper

We used pre-pasted art paper today to create some interesting designs. Children only need to wet the paper with water, or lick the back of the shapes for them to stick down. It's great for traveling with small children as it is low-fuss and low mess.