Wouldn't you love to have a fish on the wall?

Being a long-time aquarium lover, I really enjoyed seeing this craft at a preschool where I shared stories recently: fish-bowl wall hangings!

Here's how they seem to have been made:

Materials needed:

Paper plate

Blue construction paper (at least as big as the plate)

Colored paper for the fish

Scissors

Glue stick

Pencil

Ribbon

Stapler or Hole Punch

How-to:

1. Place paper plate upside-down on blue construction paper & trace the edge.

2. Cut out the circle of blue paper.

3. Take the paper plate & cut out the flat center circle.

4. Draw fish shapes on the colored paper & cut them out.

5. Draw details onto your fish, if desired.

6. Glue the paper plate, top-side down, onto the circle of blue.  It could also be stapled or "woven" using yarn through punched holes along the perimeter.

7. Now, put the fish in the tank!  Choose your placement & glue them onto the blue background.

8. To hang, staple or hole-punch & tie the ribbon to the top of your "fish tank," and cut the ribbon to the desired length.

Read Up: Back to Bed, Ed!

     Sure, Santa Claus made an appearance at my Family Storytime last night, but I think the REAL star of the show was Sebastien Braun's book, Back to Bed, Ed! 

     The book's subject matter is a situation with which I think most families can relate: a young child having a hard time transitioning to sleeping in his own bed.  Every time I read it, I flash back to the nights when I would be so tired from the struggle I'd somehow fall asleep down the hall next to the little bed--and to the mornings when I'd wake up with an extra little someone in my own bed!  The yelling at the door, the feet in the face--the events in Back to Bed, Ed may not measure up to the high drama you might've experienced in your own household, but I think they will ring true & take you right on back!

     For families going through "the change" right now, I think this is a great book to read & maybe even keep around.  There are no bad guys in the story; it just seems like Ed is facing a challenge, and that he may need time & a little help.  As I share this book at storytime, I ask the children, "will Ed stay in bed this time?"  We talk about whether those things Ed sees under his bed are real, and I point out how tired poor Daddy & Mommy look.  The discussion as we make our way through the story helps build empathy for all three parties, & I think by the end, everyone is rooting for Ed to stay in bed!  Will he?  Ever?!?

Braun's illustrations are simple & effective.  Just look at Ed, with a foot in one parent's ear, and an arm pushing the other parent off the bed!  And with a baby in a crib at the foot of the bed, you know those grownups might not be getting a decent night's sleep for QUITE some time...