Shrinky Dink Crafts 5: Easter

Ask your students," What comes to mind when you think about Easter?" Write their answers on the chalk board. They will probably say words like bunny, eggs, cross, lamb, jelly beans, candy, baby chicks, and baskets. Let the students know they are going to make some of these Easter symbols and that the symbols will shrink to half the size.

Give the students a brief history lesson on the origin of Easter. Let them know why Easter is celebrated and what it means as an American tradition.

You will need the following items to create your Easter shrinky dinks:

1. Shrinky Dink sheets
2. Baking sheets
3. Oven
4. Scissors
5. Pencil crayons

Follow the directions below to create your Easter shrinky dinks:

1. Shop for shrinky dink sheets. They may be hard to find in stores, but are available online. They can be purchased from the original creators of Shrinky Dink. Just click on the link and choose "Shop Online". The sheets are sold in packages for three to five dollars.
2. Pass out the shrinky dink sheets to your students and instruct them to take each sheet and place the smooth side down against their desk's surface. The rough side should be facing up toward the student. It is the side that will be drawn upon.
3. Have each student create an outline of one of the characters or items written on the black board. They can do this with a pencil crayon.
4. Allow the students time to color in their creations. Anything can be created, as long as it is an Easter related item or character.
5. Show the students how to cut out their creations while leaving a clear edge all the way around their drawing. This compensates for the shrinking that is going to take place.
6. Place each Easter shrinky dink onto a baking sheet and head for the school's kitchen.
7. Turn the kitchen oven on to 325 degrees and wait until it is preheated.
8. Place the baking sheets into the oven for sixty seconds and no longer. Any longer than that will burn the shrinky dinks.
9. Set to cool for ten minutes and then remove from the baking sheets to use.