Pencil Monster DIY ~ Halloween or Whenever! VIDEO

My friend Maria makes some great craft DIYs.  She made this video the other day and I thought it would be a really fun project.  The littles will need some help with this, but this is when I like to put the bigger kids to work helping with certain steps or any pre-prep I might want to do.

And Yes! I let kids use glue guns.  After 15 years of glue gun use I have had a few kids with red fingers, but no major catastrophes.  Low temp of course.  Those cheapie ones at the dollar tree don't get too hot, but they work well.

Moon Sand Recipe

Have you seen this moon sand?  It's so fun to play with, but very expensive if you buy it in the store.  "Happy Time" has an easy, and cheap, recipe to make it.

She has a lot of other fun videos with activities and recipes you can use.

Engaging Children in After School Programs ~ Professional Development VIDEO

While searching You Tube, I came across this great video that includes several ways to engage kids in your program.   I couldn't have said it better myself!

Art For Kids Hub! - Daily Art Lessons

I started following this channel on You Tube a while ago, and I have been repeatedly impressed with the art lessons that are shared here.  Super fun to share with kids as a daily drawing lesson or as a reward once in a while. Also can provide you will some fun lesson ideas and activities to do based on themes and holidays.  They do lots of drawings, but they also do painting, finger painting, origami, clay and more.  Check it out!

Remember, if you are getting great content from a You Tube channel, watch the whole commercial and "Like" the video. That helps support their channel.

This Kids Should See This + Make a Hot Air Balloon

I've recently found this site called The Kids Should See This.  It's a great site with images and videos that kids would love and become inspired by.  They have found a lot of amazing videos that would fit into any of your themes or just something cool to show the kids as a reward or a way to get the crowd calmed down.  You can subscribe to the site and they will send you a weekly email with lots of fun!

One of the awesome videos that I've found on the site is this one about Hot Air Balloons.  It talks about the science behind them and shows you how to easily make your own with 2 garbage bags and a hair dryer.  Neat project the kids will be amazed by!