Pumpkins for Teachers!

Because I love my job, I want to start sharing what I do. I teach Art in the 3-year old “Pod” at my school. I probably should have figured out that this was my calling much sooner than I did, considering that I taught preschool art several times in several settings since the age of 12. It only took me 11 more years to realize there was a reason I kept coming back to it! One thing that has helped me get a solid footing has been having access to online resources. I have found so many ideas for art projects (which usually have to be tailored to our specific age and/or theme), centers, discussions, and general ways to explain or explore concepts by simply looking online. It's fun to finally be able to contribute to that pool of information. Here goes:

We recently did a unit on Pumpkins at school in the 3-year old group. As an art teacher, it was a bit challenging to find several different projects focused on the same thing. It would have been one thing to have Halloween as the theme, but with such as specific theme, I had to really reach for some variety.

I wanted to share one project that went over really well with the kids. It's very simple but gave them cutting, gluing, and puzzle practice, as well as some sensory exploration.

The kids cut out their pumpkin shape first, on the fold with guidelines. Then they cut the pumpkin into three strips using guidelines I drew on the pumpkin. The next step was to glue their pieces onto a background page in the right order. Then they got to do the fun part-- they glued pumpkin seeds onto their pumpkin!

The kids really enjoyed using real seeds (that I had dyed with Liquid Watercolor) for their pumpkins. It added texture and reality to an otherwise simple project.

Ta-da!

Keeping it Simple

Eric and I finally got a Sam's membership. It sounds good doesn't it?

Nope. Not good. AMAZING. Let me tell you why.

I bought the most ginormous pork chops at Sam's. 9 chops, about 2 inches thick, for $15! I couldn't believe it. We fixed our first batch the other night and they were just as good as I imagined, although most of that was due to the talented chef cooking them (thanks, Eric!). We had a wonderful dinner, healthy and flavorful, and it was so easy!

First Eric seasoned the chops with a pork rub we got in Albuquerque from a local vender. It was spicy and sweet, almost apple-y. In other words, I couldn't stop drooling. Then he tossed them on the grill pan for a few minutes until both sides and the edges were golden brown. They baked the rest of the time. Absolutely delicious. To go with our pork, we heated up some broccoli, garlic mashed potatoes (just boiled, added butter and garlic powder), and-- here's the real treat-- sauteed mushrooms and onions in red wine.

Sauteed mushrooms are one of those side dishes that instantly make a meal seem fancy. They are so quick and easy and there are several different ways to go. I usually opt for either red wine with onions, or white wine with garlic and lemon. To make the red wine and onion version, we just tossed about 2 cups of sliced mushrooms in a pan with olive oil, over medium heat. I added a clove of chopped garlic, and about 2 slices of onions that had then been quartered. I let those simmer for about 5 minutes, until the mushrooms had released their liquid. At this point I added about ¼ to ½ a cup of red wine and let the mushrooms simmer until all the liquid had cooked down. 

We served the mushrooms over the chops and proceeded to enter food nirvana.