DIY Leaf Mulch

Our new neighbor raked up twenty-six bags of leaves from his tree-filled backyard. Although we left him scratching his head, he handed us all twenty-six bags over the fence. We've spent several days on this project, emptying and mowing over these leaves with a mulching mower to make finely chopped leaf mulch. I was able to cover the beds in the backyard with this mulch. The bags also had a lot of tiny brittle sticks mixed in with the leaves. It was a heavy leaf mulch, and will make an excellent cover for weeds. It will hold in moisture during our hot summers, and provide plant fertilizer as it decays. Worms love eating through old leaves, so I'm hopeful for lots of worm castings among the plants.

We used to get free wood chips delivered by local tree cutting businesses, but for some reason they no longer do this. Leaf mulch is a frugal option.

Pictured: our tall white iris just about to bloom.

Vintage April Blackboard Calendar

From a 1910 teachers education periodical. The dates are the same as 2011. Click on the image to enlarge and save.

"The Tree" Cut and Paste Nature Science Story, Elementary School

This might be fun to put together with drawings, and further research(extended study) by the student. Notebooking can to mind.

Click here.

To print and/or save, simply right click on the image of the page at the link.

April Teaching Guide: The Study of Buds(Elementary School)

From Primary Education, 1897: The Study of Buds, pages 135-136. Free and in public domain. To print and or save, right click on the image of the pages at the link.

Easy No Yeast Pizza Crust(Dough)

2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon garlic salt(less if you like it plainer)
1 teaspoon onion powder
2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
2/3 cup milk
1/4 cup vegetable oil

Mix all ingredients and then knead well by hand, adding oil if too dry. I use a few sprays of canola oil from a can to make it a bit more workable. Roll out or push out with fingers into a circle. I can make a thick one in a cake pan with this recipe, or one big thin crust one(pictured) on a pizza pan. The children really like this crust. It tastes like a Bisquick crust only better.

For the pizza, I use spaghetti sauce and a pre-packaged shredded pizza cheese mix.

These freeze well.

Free Jon Gnagy Video Art Lessons

Broadcast in the 1940-1960's, Jon Gnagy's original learn-to-draw broadcasts. Each lesson is 10 minutes. Read more here.

Art lessons here(YouTube).

Apple Tree Seedlings

These sprouted quite well! My son saved all his apple seeds from his green apples, and they grew rather quickly from these seeds in a starter soil(dollar store) under plastic.

We'll be transplanting these in our garden when they grow larger.

Discounted Gift Cards

I saw an article in Times Magazine online about the savings benefits of purchasing discounted gift cards, and Cardpool.com was one of the vendors mentioned. I tried it out last night and was able to purchase an AMC and Home Depot gift card at a combined savings of 16% - not bad! The AMC gift card will be an actual gift, and the Home Depot card will be used for a tile job in a bathroom.

Update: Forget Cardpool.com. I just got an email stating that they canceled my order because they couldn't get in touch with me to verify some information. I guess they tried to call me(but no messages?) because I never got any emails until today(almost two weeks)! What a hassle. Meanwhile Plastic Jungle sent out my discounted cards immediately, and I received them within a few days - much more professional, and better communication with emails when items are shipped, etc.

I'd recommend Plastic Jungle over Cardpool.

More DIY Pallet Furniture Ideas

I think these are from Norway. See more here at Stylizimo.

And here at French by Design

Elementary Level Paragraph Writing Exercise: All Things Bright and Beautiful

IV. PARAGRAPH WRITING —INSECTS

1. Write a paragraph telling how insects prepare for winter. Correct the paragraph and copy it into your notebook for future use. Think of —

Cold — enemies — bees — caterpillars

2. Write a paragraph telling how insects leave their snug winter cradles.

Home Reading. — It is a sign of a gentle spirit to take note of the little creatures that people this great world of ours. Poets look into the meaning of all forms of life. They find things to say that you and I should never think of. Sometimes they say these things in a beautiful way, sometimes in a humorous or whimsical, yet delightful way, as you may learn from these poems: —

All Things Bright and Beautiful.—Cecil Frances Alexander. Ladybird, Ladybird. — Caroline B. Southey. How doth the Little Busy Bee. — Isaac Watts. The Bee and the Flower.—Alfred, Lord Tennyson. The Housekeeper. —. Charles Lamb. To a Butterfly. — William Wordsworth. White Butterflies. — Algernon Charles Swinburne. To an Insect. — Oliver Wendell Holmes. "He prayeth well who loveth well." — Samuel Taylor Coleridge (from the "Rime of the Ancient Mariner " ).

If possible, read one or more of the poems. Commit to memory one that pleases you.

See here for printable page. Right click on image of page at link to print and/or save.

From: Modern English: Elementary Lessons in English, 1906.

DIY Pallet Flat Storage

See more here.

Kindergarten/Early Elementary March Lesson Plans

March lessons plans for young children -The Plan Book: Primary, 1898. Free and in public domain. At link, right click on images of the pages to save. Good clip art for topics as well. Pages 657-768.

Quick view of suggested topic areas:

Decorating with Seashells

See more here.

Thrifty Spring Floral Arrangement: Branch in a Vase

Instead of forcing forsythia stems in a vase, try an entire branch! I really like this idea, and could kick myself for not buying a large round bottle vase like this at the thrift. It was only a few dollars. I do have a tall arching Japanese rose bush branch in a liter Diet Coke bottle which I plan to sink into a basket, but the colored glass would have been very pretty. Tree trimmings make a thrifty and dramatic spring floral arrangement.

First Try: DIY Clothing Iron-Ons

This was my first attempt at trying to fuse plastic bags to fabric. I used a thin plastic shopping bag on my first attempt, and all it did was fuse to my wax paper. A thicker plastic bag did the trick.

I traced an image onto a white plastic bag using a Sharpie, then cut it out into a nice oval with clean edges, and placed it drawing side down onto my cotton t-shirt. I laid a piece of wax paper on top of that, then a piece of paper. With an iron on the highest cotton setting I pressed down for a few minutes, and ironed with a lot of pressure over area of the plastic bag drawing. It did not seem to be sticking, so I ironed the other side of the decal(through the shirt) just to get it good and melted. After it cooled a bit, I gently peeled the wax paper off.

It worked nicely, but my Sharpie was a little old and flat. I'd have gotten sharper lines with a new one. I have no idea if this will stay on through a wash, but for now it's firmly attached. I'll post an update. I'd like to try this again with colored plastic and/or different pen colors.

I tried drawing this snail free hand with the Sharpie but didn't like the results. I'm not a proficient artist; tracing is the way to go with my skill level. I'll go ahead and embarrass myself with a picture of my hand drawn snail - it's the one of the right. The stubby old Sharpie didn't help matters. Tomorrow I'll buy some fresh ones.

Paperless Wallpaper Created with Sharpie Pens

What a money saver! This was done using an overhead projector and a few Sharpies, but a purchased or homemade stencil would work as well. Click here.

Children's Rain Cycle/Evaporation Cursive Copywork

I found this story about evaporation in a 1910 "Primary Education" teachers' periodical. It is free and in public domain. Click on image to enlarge and save.