How to Make Caterpillar Cupcakes

These caterpillar cupcakes are great for a birthday party or even just for special spring treat. The fun is in the decorating, so it’s a good idea to set out small bowls of candy for the kids so they can decorate the caterpillar on their own.

Caterpillar cupcakes are made using a very simple vanilla cupcake recipe so children of all ages can help with all the steps. I used whipped cream frosting but feel free to use any you like.

This recipe makes six cupcakes and it can easily be doubled or even tripled to make the caterpillar as long as you want.

Related Pages: Paper Plate Caterpillars, The Very Hungry Caterpillar Activities and Lesson Plan, Butterfly Mobile Craft

Cupcakes from Scratch Ingredient list

Cupcakes

1/3 cup butter

1/2 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

Pinch of salt

40ml milk (About 3 Tablespoons)

Frosting

110ml whipping cream (A scant half cup)

1 tablespoon sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Green food coloring

To Decorate

Small colored candies – M&Ms work really well

Chocolate or pretzel sticks

Caterpillar Cupcake Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350F and line a 6-hole muffin pan with cupcake cases.

Beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, and whisk well after each one. Stir in the vanilla extract.

In another bowl mix together the flour, baking powder and salt.

Combine half of the flour mixture with the butter and sugar then pour in the milk and stir, scraping down the sides of the bowl if you need to. Gently fold in the remaining flour.

Fill each of the cupcake liners 2/3 full and bake for around 17 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean. Remove the cupcakes from the oven and leave to cool on a wire rack.

To make the whipped cream frosting, mix together the cream, sugar and vanilla essence. Add the green food coloring drop by drop until you get the perfect caterpillar-green – be careful not to add to much or the color will be too dark.

Place the bowl and the whisk you plan to use in the fridge for about 1 hour – the colder the ingredients and utensils are, the more voluminous the frosting will be when whipped.

When fully chilled, remove the bowl and whisk from the fridge. Beat the liquid until the mixture is thick and forms stiff peaks. Spread onto the top of the fully-cooled cupcakes.

Chop the chocolate/pretzel sticks and poke them into the sides of all but 1 of the cupcakes to make the caterpillar’s legs. Decorate the face with small chocolate sweets and two chocolate/pretzel sticks for antennae.

This craft gives you the perfect way to decorate your own pirate ship or pirate birthday party!

My little one is not yet aware of these, but I have this whole pirate plan.  It started off with this pirate flag craft, but it’s going to end in a really cool rainy day activity…and that’s all I’m saying about that for now!  To be more technical, I believe this string of small flags would correctly be called “bunting,” but we went with the more obvious “flags” around here.

Related Pages: Pirate Coloring Pages, Printable Pirate Party Decorations, Pirate Crafts for Kids

What You Need to Make Pirate Flags

How to make pirate flags to decorate for a party or just have fun.

You will get two small flags from each piece of construction paper by cutting it in half the short way.

Fold that paper in half the short way, and then again the other way. Cut off the bottom right corner. When you open it up, you will have a two-sided flag with a notch cut out of the bottom center.

Decorate your flags with a pirate theme. You could print out clip art to glue on or just draw them on like we did. We went with ships, anchors, palm trees, and of course, the skull and crossbones.

We also used the discarded triangles from when we “notched” the flags, gluing them on to some of our blank flags for a nice colorful outcome.

Add some glue along the inside fold and lay your yarn down. Fold each flag over and glue in place.

A little closer shot for how to space your pirate flag craft.

Make an Easy Beaded Bracelet

Memory wire bracelets are one the the easiest ways to make your own custom jewelry to match your favorite outfits. Memory wire is pre-formed into a circle and keeps it’s shape, making it perfect for bracelets and simple necklaces.

Related Pages: Make a Framed Jewelry or Photo Holder, Beaded Ribbon Necklace Craft, Make Friendship Bracelets

Beaded Bracelet Craft Supplies

What you Need to Make These Easy Beaded Bracelets:

• Bracelet-sized memory wire (available at any craft store)
• Round nose jewelry pliers (regular needle-nosed pliers will work, too)
• Large round beads of your choice
• Small round beads of your choice
• Wire cutters (not shown)

The great thing about memory wire is that it springs back into shape, so you can make a single loop bracelet or a multiple loop bangle. For the purposes of this tutorial, I’ll be showing you how to make a single loop bracelet.

Start by taking your memory wire and cutting off one loop, leaving about a two inch overlap. This size will fit almost any wrist.

Take one end of your wire, and using your round nose pliers, create a small loop in the opposite direction that the memory wire curves.

Your loop should look like this, and will keep your beads from sliding off the bracelet.

Now grab the open end of your wire, and start stringing on your beads in any pattern you’d like!. Here I did a simple one small, one big. Keep going until your bracelet is full of beads, and you like how it looks.

Leave about half an inch at the end of your bracelet to make another small loop the same way you did at the beginning.

And you’re done! Now you have an easy, pretty bracelet!

Here's Your Finished Bracelet Craft

You can make them to match any outfit, from simple jeans and a tee to your fanciest dress! The best part is that one size fits all, so they make a great gift for your friends too! Have fun and be creative!

Memorial Day Worksheets

Memorial Day Word Search	Memorial Day Word Search Answer Key	Memorial Day Word Scramble
Memorial Day Word Scramble Answer Key	War History Worksheet - Letter Tiles	War History Worksheet - Answer Key

Memorial Day Poem

Red poppies are traditionally worn and given on Memorial Day. It was written in 1915 by World War I Colonel John McCrae. McCrae’s poem had a huge impact on two women, Anna E. Guerin of France and Moina Michael. Both worked to initiate the sale of artificial poppies to help orphans and others left destitute by the war.

Poppy Poem for Memorial Day and Veterans Day

You should also check out the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs website for their free Veterans Day Teacher’s Guide.

Related Pages: Solar System Worksheets for Kids, Printable Constellation Maps

What you need to make a solar eclipse viewer:

• Cereal box
• Aluminum foil
• Tape
• Scissors
• Pencil
• White paper

How to Make a Solar Eclipse Viewer

Cut a sheet of white paper just a bit smaller than the bottom of your cereal box and tape it to the inside. This will be your projection screen where you can safely see the eclipse.

Cut off the top side tabs of your cereal box, along with about 1 1/2 inches on each end of the top flaps.

Tape your aluminum foil over one side. This will be the "lens" of your solar eclipse viewer.

With a pencil or a pin, poke a small hole into your aluminum foil to allow the image of the sun in.

The finished solar eclipse viewer will look like this, although you could totally fancy it up with some paint or some astronomy-themed stickers!

How to use your solar eclipse viewer.

OK, so I sort of cheated on the picture since it’s daytime and indoors, but I wanted to get a good shot of how to use it.

1. Stand with your back to the sun.

2. Look through the viewing window.

3. Move the box around until the image of the sun comes in through the pinhole and is projected onto the bottom of the box.

4.  Watch as the circle gets smaller and smaller when the moon moves between the earth and the sun!

Parts of Plants Worksheet	Plant Life Worksheet
Plant Life Cycle Sequence	Plant Life Mini Book

You might also like these printable worm alphabet letters or these easy tissue paper flowers, too!

Parts of Plants Worksheet	Plant Life Worksheet
Plant Life Cycle Sequence	Plant Life Mini Book

You might also like these printable worm alphabet letters or these easy tissue paper flowers, too!

Teach Your Kids Where Their Food Comes From

When I started writing for Classroom Jr., I asked some of my teacher and homeschooler friends what types of things would be most useful for them.  One of the responses I got was that because budgets are so tight, it’s pretty hard to find science experiments that are both accessible and affordable.  That’s exactly why one of my very first posts was Six Inexpensive Science Experiments for Kids (And Where to Find More).

So, now wherever I travel around the web, I always keep my eyes open for new ideas that fit in with this need.  While surfing Pinterest recently—I’ve also written about possibilities there with 3 Creative Ways Teachers Can Use Pinterest—I came across this super easy idea that I never would have even realized was possible.  Talk about a totally simple science lesson that using things you already have on hand!

Related Pages: Plant Life Worksheets, Toddler Friendly Gardening

Teach Your Kids Where Their Food Comes From

Sprouting various foods in the kitchen has a few practical applications from an educational standpoint.  Obviously, you can teach about the life cycle of the plant as it goes from seed to sprout to plant to bloom and back to seed.  It can be a great additional lesson when studying the seasons, as each aspect of the plant’s cycle is often correlates to the seasons and weather.  Finally, I love the idea of kids learning first-hand where their food comes from, beyond the obvious answer of “the grocery store!”

I was surprised to learn just how many things you can sprout and grow.  I don’t know why it hadn’t occurred to me that you could grow bean plants, for instance, but I just never would have expected they would even sprout!  I found lots of suggestions in this Martha Stewart post, of all things.  In addition to beans, they also recommended trying:

• Lentils
• Root vegetables
• Fruit seeds
• Spices (caraway seeds, mustard, etc.)

You can also use a variety of things you already have around the house for sprouting your seeds.  Some suggestions include discarded jars, clear canisters, egg cartons, pie plates, and even an aquarium.  Some will just need a moist paper towel in order to sprout, while others will do better with soil or perhaps a dish full of moist gravel.

If you want to take things to the next level and augment a lesson about agriculture, why not actually grow and eat food in your kitchen.  Consider different kinds of sprouts to add to sandwiches and salads, for example, such as alfalfa, broccoli, and peas.  Of course, herbs make a great window or even counter-top garden, as well.  You might have to specifically purchase seeds for these projects rather than using dried beans from the cupboard or caraway seeds from the spice rack, but it does make for a great science experiment.

Toddler Friendly Gardening

3 years ago, I never would have believed that I would have a child and that BABY would have her own garden.  Parenting is eye opening in so many ways and this Spring, I learned that my 2.5 year old can handle her own garden!

Related Pages: Make Garden Markers, Bird Feeder Craft, Kids Stick Crafts

Whether you have 10 acres or only a back patio, you easily create a TODDLER GARDEN.

My top choice for a toddler’s first crop:  POTATOES!

Potato Plant in Our Garden

Potatoes are hardy, plentiful and practically foolproof!  They grow quickly and can be harvested early (“new”potatoes) or left in the ground for larger potatoes.  This way, you child can provide food for the family over a longer period of time and let’s face it, potatoes are DELICIOUS!

Kids’ Gardening Materials & Techniques:

• Seed potatoes
• Now a quick note on potato seedlings.  For the simplest & cheapest toddler garden, you can use any ole potato growing a sprout.  HOWEVER, it is best to use disease free, certified seed potatoes bought from a garden supply store.  Using grocery potatoes or saving potatoes from last year’s crop will likely weaken the plants every year through easily transmitted plant diseases.  With that said, a few potatoes in a corner probably won’t hurt anything!  There’s a reason people call  me the “Lazy Green Mama”:)
•  Garden area:  either a small, sunny spot of open ground or a large barrel
• If using a barrel or large bucket: (ask for discarded food-grade buckets from your local bakery/deli!)
• Drill a few holes in the bottom and along bottom sides for drainage
• Place 2”of gravel in the bottom for drainage
• Top with about 6”of dirt
• If planting in the ground, it is recommended to plant potatoes in a long trench and back fill with the dirt as the plants grow.

Adding dirt as the potato grows

• Plant the potatoes with the sprout pointing UP.  Cover with a few inches of dirt and water gently (ahem…maybe your child can handle this…mine, not so much!)!  Place in direct sun and water about every other day.
• Fortunately, potato plants have large green foliage, so it should be easy for your toddler to identify weeds and gently pull them out of the dirt.
• As the plants grow, you can either harvest your small potatoes or keep covering the plant with soil to encourage more growth!
• Once your plant is about 5”tall, add more soil so that only the tip is showing.  Continue this until the plant yellows and wilts… time to harvest!

Adding even more dirt as the plant grows

• Small watering can
• We like to give our toddler a large bucket filled with water so that she can fill her watering can by herself.  Remember to never leave your child unattended around water!

Potato watering and trampling (Editor's note: Dogs are good at trampling, too!!)

• Small hand shovel (however our child prefers to use her hands for planting and weeding!)
• We prefer to give our toddler REAL tools whenever possible.  There are a lot of great resources for child sized real tools (check any montessori supply company)
• Sandbox shovels also work great

 Other great FIRST crops that are easy for toddlers and kids to grow in their garden:

• Strawberries
• Cherry tomatoes
• Lettuce

Please leave a comment sharing your toddler garden plans, triumphs and mishaps!  We’re in this together :)

Disney / Pixar's Brave Coming Soon in June 2012

I have yet to take my four-year-old to a movie in a theatre, but this may very well be the one that makes it happen.  Disney/Pixar is releasing Brave at the end of June, and it looks like it’s going to be a good one.  Just the visuals alone have been enough to suck me in, and I’m pretty much smitten with the red-haired heroine of this female-centered story.  I hear it’s supposed to be a bit dark—more in line with old-school fairy tales, though—so I’ll probably have to see it first to determine if it’s suitable for my little one.

Related Page: Brave Coloring Pages

The main character, Merida, is a princess by birth, but is much more interested in archery and being outdoors than she is in courtly customs.  Unlike your typical Disney princess, Merida seems pretty darn human, with a temper that gets her into trouble and courage that (we can pretty safely assume) gets her back out.  She ends up unleashing a curse on the kingdom, and it is up to her to be brave enough to do what she needs to do in order to stop it.

The movie is set in Scotland and is based on the fairy tale The Bear and the Bow.  Judging by the cast list and previews, we should be treated to some fun accents and great voice acting.  Merida was originally supposed to be voiced by U.S. actress Reese Witherspoon, but when she had to turn it down, the role was filled by Scottish Kelly Macdonald.  This is Pixar’s first movie with a female protagonist, which is enough of a buzz in and of itself.  If it lives up to amazing Pixar predecessors like Finding Nemo; Monsters, Inc; or Wall-E (all of which are massive favorites around our house), it has the potential to become one of those “instant classics” that every movie hopes to be.

The screenplay was written by Branda Chapman and Irene Mecchi, and Chapman was the original director until being replaced by Mark Andrews.  It was executive produced by Pixar staple John Lasseter.  The cast includes:

Kelly Macdonald as Princess Merida

Emma Thompson and Queen Elinor

Kevin McKidd as Lord MacGuffin/Young MacGuffin

Robbie Coltrane as Lord Dingwall

Billy Connolly as King Fergus

Craig Ferguson as Lord Macintosh

Julie Walters as Wise Woman