Portable Dollhouse

Kids like small things. And kids like to play with miniature versions of real life objects. So, sooner or later you end up with a box full of small dolls, animals, furniture and accessories. You might go and get a dollhouse, or if you are like me, you might decide to make one instead.

This is our recent project. The Dollhouse. It took only an hour to put it together. It's portable. It's cat proof (can be closed and put away). It does not take a lot of space, and is easy to clean up: all pieces stay inside the suitcase when the playtime is over.

Here's how we made it. Take one cardboard suitcase. We had a medium size one, and the room is spacious enough for two kids to play together at the same time, or to use larger furniture, if you wish.

We used a Calico Critters Deluxe Kitchen Set.

Open the suitcase. Line the "floor" with some scrap paper or newspaper, trace along the perimeter. Take another sheet of paper and repeat for the "wall". Take it out, carefully cut along the lines. Now you have your templates.

Take some construction paper, scrapbook paper or contact paper, trace the templates, cut out carefully. Affix the "flooring" first, using double sided tape or glue. Open and close the suitcase a few time to create the crease. 

I used the Contact cork for the floor. The result is nice and cork is more resistant to scratches, but it will be more difficult to remove, should I ever change my mind.

Glue the "wallpaper". I used a sheet of scrapbooking paper. I glued it on with the regular school glue.

Arrange the furniture. You may use a double sided tape or a mounting tape to affix the pieces to the "floor" and/or "walls".

I think I'll make a "window" to put above the sink/counter. To do this, you can either buy a Dollhouse window or just make a pair of curtains and a small picture (aka "the view"), and glue this onto the wall.

The only thing left now it to invite some toys over for a house warming party. Enjoy!

Coloring skills evolution

I've just noticed this, and I wanted to share. I was sorting out the pictures that my daughter made over the last couple of years and I could clearly see that there were several different phases of coloring skills development. This is based just on my observations of my own child. She never had art lessons.

1) If you give a coloring book to a toddler, he'll be doodling on it as if the list is blank. The fact that the crayon leaves a colored line is too fascinating for a child and he is too occupied trying to figure it out so he does not notice the image on the paper, he would not care to color it.

2) The child notices the image, and uses the crayon to color it. But he is not coloring, he's examine the image, points to the parts that interest him, and the crayon colors them. For example, the child first notes the face, doodles on it, when goes on to a next face/object that interests him on the picture (if any) or proceeds to the next picture. He can make as little as a few strokes.

3) The child colors the whole image with the crayon just to cover it, he is not even trying to stay in lines. Covered = Colored.

4) The child colors the image area by area, trying to stay in lines if possible, BUT forgets to change the crayon OR changes the color but just because he's tired of yellow and he wants blue now, not because the scene needs it. So the end result may be very similar to the stage (3) unless you can see the strokes or watch the process. The child will most often color only the main object of the scene or the one that interest him the most, leaving the rest of the page blank. (image on the left = 3.5 yo)

5) The child colors the image using different colors, thoughtfully assigning the color to a specific area. The colors are not always true to life (the clouds can be orange, and the trees purple). The child soon learns to use the yellow crayon to color all the areas that need to be yellow before putting it down and taking another one. He is likely to color the whole scene not just the main object. (image on the left = 4 yo)

6) The child may add his own details to fill up the blank page, such as a sky, clouds, sun, grass, etc. He makes the coloring book page look more like a free-hand artwork. (image on the left = 4.5 yo)

7) The child tries to make colors true-to-life. I don't think that, unless the child is taught so, he'll ever attempt to make images look 3 dimensional (by adding shades, shadows, using mixed colors -like different shades of yellow, red and brown to color a leaf).

Do you pay attention to how your kids color/draw? I would like to hear what other people think about my theory. I'm sure that professionals like OTs and art teachers can explain why exactly the child does what he does. And I know that the key answers will be concentration skills and hand skills (strength and endurance). This is fascinating to me nevertheless.

Propellers

We went to a science museum this weekend, and we bought a simple toy at the gift shop. It basically is a propeller on a stick. To launch it (note that the propeller stays ON the stick, it does not fly off), hold the stick between the palms of your hands. Quickly slide your right hand forward while keeping it pressed against the left hand.

Aside from being a fun toy to watch flying or to try to catch, it is a good practice for hand-eye coordination. You can buy it on Amazon.