Spring Break Art Adventures

My children are ages five (a boy), six (a girl) and seven (another boy). So, as you can see, there's some range in age and gender doesn't matter when it comes to these projects. Because you might be working with children younger than my group, parental supervision during cutting is necessary.

As I mentioned in the description, Spring Break tends to be stigmatized by grand trips to exotic places or other expensive details and rituals. This is fine for some families, but because my children are all so young and we're on such a tight budget, a different approach to school vacations is taken.

We live in a very small town, lush with farm land and patches of wooded areas. Living in an area like this is considered boring by most people who find out we live here, but to us, it's a wonderland full of opportunity. During Spring Break, we're going on adventures in the nature surrounding us and turning our findings into pieces of art.

Here's how we prepare for our adventures:

1: We dress appropriately for the weather, of course.

2: Each child carries a small backpack containing: a disposable camera, water, snacks, baggies, dry socks, small plastic containers, a notebook, a pencil, sunglasses and napkins.

3: I carry a backpack containing a disposable camera, crayons, a sketchbook, sunblock, bug repellent, a grocery bag for trash, extra water, extra snacks, a first-aid kit, wet naps, a plant book and a bug book.

4: We all wear hats and have a sweatshirt tied around our waste if the weather starts out warm. (In Maine, it can cool down quickly this time of year.

5: Don't forget the bathroom trip before heading out the door!

Plan how long you plan on being on your adventure, what you'd like to collect, what you'd like to take pictures of, where you'd like to walk and what you plan on discussing during the trip (Are you focusing on trees during this trip? Are you focusing on ground growth this trip? And so on.)

While on your adventure, take advantage of every possibility you can. Remember, what you bring home will be for art projects you'll complete between now and your next adventure. If you plan on going on one adventure, collect a lot of items. If you plan on going out everyday, then only collect a few items at a time. Here are some things to focus on while you're out:

1: leaf rubbings and collection

2: bark rubbings and collection

3: acorn collection

4: pine cone collection

5: photographs of interesting plants

6: photographs of the sky and how nature is against it

7: photographs of interesting bugs

8: photographs of animal evidence

9: collection of flowers and buds

10: rock rubbings and collection

What do you do with the items you've collected during your Spring Break adventure? Here are some ideas:

1: Create a "What I did on Spring Break" collage or shadow box.

2: Create a series of "wish you were here, Spring Break 2007" postcards and greeting cards to send to family.

3: Create a terrarium of the larger items you found on your Spring Break adventure.

4: Create a picture frame out of the larger collected items and place photos from your Spring Break adventures inside.

5: Create embellished candle holders.

There's a lot of opportunity for these items you've collected on your adventures. Remember to keep each child's collections separate so their creations are their own, unless they want to share and swap out. Spring Break doesn't have to be about trips or about spending a lot of money. As you can see, your imagination can create a lot of opportunities for family time inside and outside of the home.