Bean Art!

Super awesome photo submission from of the kids bean art! This week we passed out beans, a piece of cardboard, some glue and paint to create bean art.

Want to make bean art at home? Here's how you can do it!

You will need

• Scrap cardboard

• White glue

• Pencil

• Dried beans (various sizes and shapes)

• Folk Art Multi-Surface Acrylic Craft Paint

• Paintbrushes

Step 1

Cut your scrap cardboard down to whatever size you like – these ones are slightly bigger than postcards, and we used a few different sizes to mix it up. Use a pencil to roughly sketch out the character you’d like to create. It’s super helpful to use the movie posters as a reference when you’re doing this.

Step 2

Start by applying a thin layer of glue over the inside of the drawing, sticking to one color for now. For Dab-Dab the duck, we did the beans over her feathers first, doing the eye detail as well. Allow the glue to dry.

Step 3

We wanted the feathers to be ultra white, so we gave them a quick coat of white paint. You don’t have to be too tidy around the edges of the beans, because these will be covered with more beans later. Let paint dry.

Step 4

Next we glued on the beak, using slightly smaller beans for some difference in texture. Again, let the glue dry.

Step 5

Like before, paint the beak and let it dry. This time though, you’ll have to be a little more careful when painting around the feathers so that you have a nice tidy edge there.

Step 6 Repeat this process until the entire cardboard is covered. For Dab Dab, we just filled in the background with split peas, let dry, and gave a coat of paint. Finally, use a touch of black paint for the eye detail and your bean portrait is complete!

Use this same method for all your favorite Dolittle characters, simply gluing and painting one color at a time to make the process as simple as possible.

Planter Kits Art Project!

To welcome Spring we did planter kits! The kids worked their magic to paint their pots and make them vibrant. Below are some photo submissions from a few of the kids :)

Want to do your own planter kit? Here are instructions!

Planter Kit Instructions

Supplies: Planters, Soil, Seeds, Water, Markers

1) Soak the seeds in water for 24 hours before sowing. This softens the seed coat and speeds up the sprouting process.

2) While the seeds are soaking, fill your planting pots with potting soil.

3) Sow two seeds per pot, poking them a half-inch (1.25 cm) into the soil with your finger.

4) Place in a bright window in the house and watch it grow!

* Don’t forget to water it! But also don’t overwater it Make sure the water is dry before watering it again

ALSO! Talking to your plant can help it grow! :)

Fall Program

Hi everyone! 

Welcome to our website and blog. We are using this space as a way to provide online tutoring and give updates on what’s going on at the center. We are excited for the school year even though we’ve had a few bumps on the road. We are still in the middle of planning, but we are hoping to open up the space for kids who need in person tutoring, and/or a quiet space with WIFI to attend online class. As of right now our plan is to open in-person after school programming on September 28th and we will be focusing on social emotional learning. These are strange times, we’re in the middle of a pandemic and there’s been a lot of changes. The kids might not understand what is going on, why they are not in school and we want to make sure their mental health is not taking a toll. We will be learning about self-care, how to practice self-care and different activities that can help us feel better among many other things. 

Thanks for stopping by and definitely make sure to visit every so often for more updates and to see what we’re up to.