 |
|
|
|
|
 |
 |
|||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||
______________________________________________________________
Book Review (January 2012): 5 Crafty Ideas Books - Hearts Published by b small publishing The book has 5 creative projects designed along the same theme. e.g. Hearts theme is a simple heart shape. Heart stencil on the front of the book and a sheet of stickers inside. The five crafts vary from cold cooking fondant hearts (no oven required) to making a heart shaped gift and are simple enough for even quite young children to do with adult help. Also in this series; Eggs, Pumpkins and Stars. Available to buy from Amazon 5 Crafty Ideas Books
______________________________________________________________ Book Review (January 2012): Early Years Daily Diary - www.earlyyearsdailydiary.com This daily diary has been developed by Registered Childminder Kay Fisher, Early Years Professional, and is suitable for all early years settings including Childminders, Pre-school and Nurseries. The soft back daily diary has 15 weekly sheets in each of the 26 sections which means the diary should last for about 6 months. The weekly sheets consist of:
The sheets are completed with either tick boxes or sections for written notes. Fun cartoon characters help you choose what mood the child has been in that day, it would be a good exercise to let older children choose for themselves thus giving them control over their own book, after all they know best how they have felt that day! At the front of the diary is a section for the child's personal details. There is a discussion thread about the diary on the Forum which you might find interesting: An idea for future development from me would be to look into having this spiral bound so the diary will stay open on the page you are using. Also an addition of tabs between the sections would be good so you can easily find your place as you use the diary.
______________________________________________________________ Book Review (March 2011): I Feel Good About Me! Feel Good Friends, The company dedicated to making children feel good about themselves and their world - I Feel Good About Me is an 'All About Me' book where children can draw pictures, add photographs, information and details about themselves. They can add all the things which make them feel good, happy and positive and other things such as their favourite foods and likes/dislikes plus many more things too numerous to mention.
The EYFS (Early Years Foundation Stage) looks for childcarers to find out as much as possible about children, their starting points and development as they grow, this book would be a great way for the children to do that with you, having fun along the way. The book measures approx. 26 cm x 21 cm, is very bright and colourful with beautiful hand drawn illustrations, is made from thick quality paper and has 34 pages.
______________________________________________________________ Book Review (March 2011): Handmade Cards and Gift Wrap - Vivienne Bolton Price £12.99 ISBN 9781843308300 Published by: New Holland Publishers Full colour book, 160 pages with step by step instructions for making over 50 cards using a variety of techniques Excellent hints and tips including how to decorate envelopes quickly and cheaply to match your card, making gift pouches and gift wrap also, scoring and folding and tracing templates. Each project has full colour step by step photographs to guide you, along with clear written instructions. Templates are provided at the back of the book for those projects which require them. Some of the projects could be done with children and many could easily be adapted for use with younger children, mixing ideas to create your own designs.
______________________________________________________________ Book Review (March 2011): Pergamano Parchment Craft - Martha Ospina Price £8.99 ISBN 1859748783 Published by: New Holland Publishers Full colour book, 96 pages with step by step instructions for a complete course in the art of parchment craft. Parchment craft does require some special tools and parchment paper but the resulting work looks stunning, almost like paper lace. Each project has full colour step by step photographs to guide you, along with clear written instructions. Templates are provided at the back of the book for those projects which require them.
______________________________________________________________ Book Review (March 2011): Making Cards in a Weekend - Jain Suckling Price £8.99 ISBN 1859741681 Published by: New Holland Publishers Full colour book, 80 pages with step by step instructions for making 20 handmade card projects for all levels of ability. To use with younger children it might be possible to adapt the ideas to make more simple versions and the basic ideas could be used for many types of card. Some of the cards I would like to make myself with children are the Christmas Cracker Card and Finger Puppet Clown. Each project has full colour step by step photographs to guide you, along with clear written instructions. Templates are provided at the back of the book for those cards which require them.
______________________________________________________________ Book Review (March 2011): Make a Monster - Fiona Goble Price £14.99 ISBN 9781847735966 Published by: New Holland Publishers Hard back full colour book, 128 pages with step by step instructions for making some weird and wonderful monsters. Made using soft fleece the projects use basic sewing techniques. Patterns are provided for each of the monste Ideal for craft stalls, gifts and simple sewing projects for children. Each project has full colour step by step photographs to guide you, along with clear written instructions.
______________________________________________________________
Book Review (March 2011): The Felted Bag Book - Susie Johns Price £14.99 ISBN 9781847734563 Published by: New Holland Publishers Hard back full colour book, 112 pages with step by step instructions for 21 fun projects. At first I thought it was a book for making bags from felt - the sort you buy at many craft and haberdashery shops - but this is different, felting uses wool, water and soap to create a thick, strong and durable material. Hand made bags are so fashionable at the moment, these would make ideal gifts. This book also gives clear instructions for using different felting techniques including:
The designs are for a variety of bags using the above techniques and also for making motifs and trimmings to decorate your bags. Each project has full colour step by step photographs to guide you, along with clear written instructions. Templates are provided at the back of the book for those projects which need patterns.
______________________________________________________________ Book Review (March 2011): Create a Card - Stephanie Weightman Price £9.99 ISBN 1845375793 Published by: New Holland Publishers Lovely full colour book, 126 pages with step by step instructions for over 35 designs of cards for birthdays, weddings, retirement and many more events. The cards are made using stickers, stencils and stamps plus some require tools such as embossing tools, all of which can be bought at good craft shops and many other stores. Each project has full colour step by step photographs to guide you, along with clear written instructions. Information on how to use the tools and materials plus technique tips and hints. It is the sort of book that you could have for yourself and make beautiful cards as a hobby but also adapt some of them for use with children replacing some of the more complicated design ideas with more simple decoration. I particularly liked the Christmas Card Bauble, 4 simple steps which would be easy to adapt to do with young children. Templates are provided at the back of the book for those cards which need patterns.
______________________________________________________________ Book Review (February 2011): Big Book of Papercrafts - Vivienne Bolton Price £19.99 ISBN 9781845377557 Published by: New Holland Publishers Really lovely hard back full colour book, 160 pages with step by step instructions for 40 papercraft projects. A variety of projects including making giftwrap, bags, boxes, mobiles and stationery. Some of the projects require special tools such as cutters and embossing tools. However it would be possible to adapt the projects to a more simple version to use with young children if you wished, for example some projects require cutters to make oval and round shapes but if necessary you could cut these free hand from the paper. If you are already into crafting this has some beautiful projects to add to your collection, the wedding invitations look stunning. A couple of projects which I particularly liked for use with children were: Making party invitations - children would love this and it is a very simple but effective idea which could be adapted to fit the theme of the party. The other was one for making bookmarks - ideal for gifts at Christmas and Mother's Day etc. one uses a weaving technique, great for manual dexterity. Projects use a variety of techniques including:
A technique guide helps you get familiar with how the crafts are done along with full colour photographs of the equipment you might need. Templates are provided at the back of the book for those crafts which need patterns.
______________________________________________________________ Book Review (February 2011): Pop-Up Cards - Jo F Mathieson Price £14.99 ISBN 9781847730763 Published by: New Holland Publishers Beautiful hard back, full colour book, 112 pages with step by step instructions for 19 3D greetings cards. Cards for all occasions including Easter, Christmas, Birthday, New Baby and Wedding to name but a few. Children will need lots of help and cards are rated on their difficulty level but it is a great way to learn new skills such as cutting and folding. Some of the cards require special tools such as embossing tools, punches, and stamps so if you are already into crafting this is a great book to add to your collection. To use with younger children it might be possible to adapt the ideas and templates to make a more simple version without the need for special tools, the basic ideas are certainly food for thought on creating your own pop-up cards. Individual photographs of each step make the projects easy to follow and special tips on each page help you to complete the cards with a professional look. Before you begin there is a Techniques and Materials section which shows you all the different cutting and folding methods which you will use for the cards and there are a variety of templates at the back of the book for those cards which need patterns.
_______________________________________________________________ Book Review (February 2011): Crafts with Kids - Susie Johns Price £12.99 ISBN 9781847735973 Published by: New Holland Publishers This is a full colour book with step by step instructions for over 40 craft projects ranging from quick and easy ideas such as a tambourines made from paper plates and beads made from paper to more complex ideas like tie dye and painted china. Each craft has a full listing of required materials and also some ideas of how it links to learning through play. Individual photographs of each step with simple to follow instructions make the crafts as simple as child's play! There are a variety of templates at the back of the book for those crafts which need patterns. 128 pages with projects using a variety of materials including paper, paints, fabrics and recycled items, all of which they say can be completed in under one hour. There are 5 chapters:
_______________________________________________________________ BOOK REVIEW - June 2010: Poisonous Plants - A guide for parents and childcare providers by Elizabeth A. Dauncey (Kew Publishing, 2010) ISBN 978 1 84246 406 9, £15.00 available via www.kewbooks.com Over the years I have looked at many books, online resources and information sheets in the search for information regarding various plants and their poisoning risks, I wish Poisonous Plants - A guide for parents and childcare providers had been available at the time, it is one of the most easy to use books I have come across with alphabetically listings for indoor and outdoor plants and a general section with information on toxicity and risks including the HTA (Horticultural Trades Association) risk code for each plant. It is an excellent reference guide with over 230 full colour photographs and detailed descriptions of 132 of the most poisonous plants and plant groups which you are likely to come across in your garden, vegetable plot or when out and about in park and woodland. I like the fold out symbol key which helps to quickly identify where you might find the plants, what type of plant it is and what would be the most likely attraction to children. At the back there is even a fold out measure to help with plant size identification! The full colour photographs are excellent - it is ok knowing that a plant might be poisonous but how would you know if the plant that lurks at the end of your flower border is one of them without being able to identify it? The photographs do just that, not only of the plant but of seeds and pods too. Plants are listed not only in their Latin names but also with various common names and family plant group. I am more than happy to recommend this book to childminders, you could use it when doing your risk assessments and at just 9"x6" in size it is small enough to take out with you on an outing and use with the children to identify plants, discuss the risks and develop the child's understanding of why plants should be looked at but not touched or eaten unless you are fully aware of what the plant is and how it can affect you. Click pictures for larger image: _______________________________________________________________ back to top BOOK REVIEW - June 2010: Is That Cat Dead? and other questions about poison plants by John Robertson - former warden of the famous Alnwick Garden Poison Garden. ISBN 978-1-84624-425-4 Available to buy from the Childminding Forum's Amazon Shop - click here: Is That Cat Dead Being a cat lover the title certainly got my attention! This isn't an A-Z book of poisonous plants it is instead an informative, sometimes funny and very interesting insight into a variety of poisonous plants, the folklore that surrounds them and just how poisonous (or not) a plant can be. As a childminder it might help to stem the flow of worry as to how many plants are lying in wait for little Johnny and whether you should allow children out to play in the garden for fear of them being poisoned by some deadly plant. Like I said there are fun stories which have John travelling up the M1 with a class A substance in the boot of his car! Or little snippets like our ancestors mixing fly excrement with opium to get children to sleep! But then there is the more serious and disturbing information on plants which cause addiction. You will learn how plants have been used down the years as medicines, poisons and recreation drugs and for murder and beauty. John uses his extensive knowledge to put all the information into a pleasant read. ....... and was the cat dead? I will leave you to find that out for yourself!
_______________________________________________________________ BOOK REVIEW (June 2008): Registered Childminding - The Secrets of Success (Second Edition) by Tunja and Tamsin Stone Available to buy from the Childminding Forum's Amazon Shop - click here:Registered Childminding the Secrets of Success 19 sections and over 300 pages cover just about everything you could need to know about Childminding. The authors are themselves Registered Childminders, the book is clearly written and easy to understand. From starting out and becoming registered right through to supporting children with special needs this book give an excellent range of advice and references. The business side of childminding and record keeping is well covered as is observations, assessment and evaluation plus many other areas just too numerous to mention. Ideal not only for those thinking about becoming a childminder, or new to minding, but also for the established minder to improve their skills. My husband (who is also my Registered Assistant) said he found the book easy to read and full of information and, even though I've been minding over 25 years and he has always been involved in some way, there was information in the book which helped him to better understand some of the more practical aspects of Childminding. Written in a way that makes it ideal to just dip into when you have a problem or question that needs to be quickly answered but at the same time equally good for a sit down with a coffee when you get one of those rare moments for relaxation!
Custom Search
|
|||||||||||||
 |
 |
||||||||||||
 |
|||||||||||||
 |
|||||||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
A lovely keepsake for the future
suitable for the beginner or more experienced card maker. 
15 projects in all, helping you to create decorative parchment gift tags, cards, boxes, envelopes and bookmarks.
Many only require basic tools such as ruler, scissors and glue. 
rs and are full size
This book is aimed at children between the ages of 4 - 10 years but with help some of the crafts could be completed by younger children giving them the satisfaction of making something for themselves. 
We use cookies to make this site as useful as possible. They are small text files placed in your browser to track usage of our site but they don't tell us who you are. By continuing to use this site you are consenting to cookies being placed on your computer. Find out more here: Cookies in Use |
||
|
|
|