myjumbles

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A precious house

As many of you will know, we own a very charismatic little house in Castel Rigone. Jumble House. It is known by many names. The magic house, La casa dei bambini. The house for children. The creative house. It is a very happy house, loved not only by us but by the many families it has looked after over nearly two hundred years. They have all changed it a little. Doors have been removed, a bedroom…

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Instant Halloween

A plastic ball covered with electric tape. Stick on Eyes and mouth cut from card or sparkly felt or similar. Then just a piece of muslin or cheesecloth. Simple but effective.

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Halloween …getting ready

Putting finishing touches to the head of with for life size model. Started with a plastic ball. Covered with clumps of tinfoil using hot glue. Then a couple of layers of newspaper papier-mâché and finished with toilet paper. When it’s dry I will coat with Gesso and then paint.

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Escaped! From the New Forest. Papier-mâché Model of Bull.

Escaped! From the New Forest. Papier-mâché Model of Bull.

On a recent trip to the UK to reunite with our family after 18 months, we had a walk in the New Forest. Now, I know that the ponies are famous and very prolific but I’d never actually encountered one of these amazing and majestic BULLS before! What surprised me even more was that a couple were actually having a picnic just around a bush from two of these creatures! So, on returning home I just…

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Escaped from the New Forest

Escaped from the New Forest

youtu.be/UmAwV-qtPyo

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Experiment with collage I illustrated my latest book using collage. During the process I changed pictures many times and used different materials until I was happy with the result.

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Channel of Art and Learning activities.

Channel of Art and Learning activities.

placeholder://http://tinyurl.com/funjumbles

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Crazy Art

Yesterday I placed an easel outside Jumble House. On it was an example of art produced by blowing paint with a straw. A technique enjoyed by generations of children.

It’s also one of the methods I used to create the illustrations in my book, ‘Roo’s Magic Colours’. This is the story of Rupert (Roo) who loves painting and, through his art , finds a way to make the ‘boring’ everyday tasks like…

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I Spy Trasimeno

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Everyday Science

https://videopress.com/embed/Mx2xoc5H?hd=0&autoPlay=0&permalink=0&loop=0

EVERYDAY SCIENCE

Why? How? What if?

We experience the magic of science so many times a day without even thinking about it. To us it is just routine. Part of our everyday life. Very quickly it also becomes routine to a child and then the ‘magic’ is lost and so is a very easy way of absorbing basic science concepts. Things…

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Make a Snowman Lamp Make a ⛄️ lamp. Fun, quick and effective. Not quite as quick as this video but there’s a more ‘relaxed’version on my channel (see bio) and website to watch with your children or group.

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Mrs Spoon

https://videopress.com/embed/IWSQSY6O?hd=0&autoPlay=0&permalink=0&loop=0

Collecting autumn leaves is fun. They are colourful! Crispy and NOISY!

We love crunching them under our feet and watching them fall from the trees.

I take a magazine out with me and slip the leaves between the pages. That way they don’t get broken on the way home.

Once home I slip the magazine under a rug for a couple of…

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Catch them being good

Catch them being good

Catch them being good.

You know that great feeling you get when someone says ‘Well done,’ or thanks you for your hard work, or comments on how nice you look or how much they enjoyed your meal? Acknowledgement, positive reinforcement and praise work wonders to raise our self esteem and motivate us to continue.

The same applies to children.

Like us, they need praise.

Too often we tend to comment…

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Make a Jumble Dragon

Make a Jumble Dragon

Quick, easy, effective. A ‘Jumbles’ Dragon made as all the Jumbles are from 100denier tights, elastic bands and the stuffing from inside a pillow!

The only remotely tricky part is making the wings.

I’ve used a tie dye method to colour the fabric from the cover of the pillow but you can use a scarf or similar.

If making the wings looks too complicated then a couple of bought lightweight fans would…

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Abstract clock from strips of folded paper. There are paper folding and rolling projects to suit all ages and tastes from simple pencil holders and picture frames to abstract art and clocks. The technique of paper rolling and folding improves coordination and strengthens hand muscles making it a good exercise for young children. With help a four year old will enjoy making simple but attractive and useful pieces. Last night I made this clock from torn out pages from some rather dog eared picture books. Pages from any shiny magazine or brochure will work just fine. You could also print out family photos or snaps from a celebration or holiday to make a great ‘memory ‘ clock. The base is a canvas clock which I have fallen out with! The only other requirements are white glue and a pair of scissors. The full video can be found in the Art and Craft playlist on my channel ( click on the link below:

Abstract clock from strips of folded paper. There are paper folding and rolling projects to suit all ages and tastes from simple pencil holders and picture frames to abstract art and clocks. The technique of paper rolling and folding improves coordination and strengthens hand muscles making it a good exercise for young children. With help a four year old will enjoy making simple but attractive and useful pieces. Last night I made this clock from torn out pages from some rather dog eared picture books. Pages from any shiny magazine or brochure will work just fine. You could also print out family photos or snaps from a celebration or holiday to make a great ‘memory ‘ clock. The base is a canvas clock which I have fallen out with! The only other requirements are white glue and a pair of scissors. The full video can be found in the Art and Craft playlist on my channel ( click on the link below:

Click here for the video showing you how to make the clock.

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Why? Why are there more yellow flowers?

Why? Why are there more yellow flowers?

WHY? My daughter once asked me why there were more yellow flowers than white. To be honest I’d never even noticed! But, yes, she was right. When I looked around there were more yellow flowers. Why? I hadn’t a clue so I threw back the question! “I don’t know. Why do you think it is?” Young children are SO much better than us at answering their own difficult questions! Back came the answer, ‘Maybe…

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The one with the glove!

The one with the glove!

In the first part of the video Lizzie Witch works magic on a glove.

THIS IS THE LINK TO THE VIDEO

In the second part we show how this can be achieved without magic. In other words ‘clever science ‘.

There is also a simple explanation of the process which is an acid reaction.

So, with the help of an adult, children can produce the same results as Lizzie but …..is that enough? Well, in my opinion…