Creating Your Own Comics

Hey everyone,

Earlier this week, Keefer organized an activity to inspire creativity and artistic mind in the kids. Comics have been an entertaining pastime for myself and I'm sure for many of the kids. The idea of this activity was for the kids to create their own comics, their own superheroes that reflect their hidden interests or simply create something that they enjoy.


Keefer had his own collection of comics which he created when he was younger, which inspired kids to create their own. At the beginning, there were many puzzled faces as deciding on a character seemed quite tricky. I was asked multiple times, "What should I do?" and "Is this a good name?" and I just told them to leave it up to their imagination. It only took a few minute for their creativity to start flowing and the ideas started popping up. From Mayhem Girl to Captain Cool, their innovations were endless! Everyone has a different theme that was unique to their comic strip. Needless to say, I was quite impressed by the dynamics of the storyline and the visuals presented in the comics. It was enjoyable and rewarding to read their finished products.


You don't have to be the most articulate or artistic person to create your comic as it only takes a beginning idea and that's where your imagination takes off.

Until next time, 


Michael C

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A Day at the Library!

Hi, my name is Emilia, and today some friends and I visited the Richmond Brighouse Public Library. Come along with me and I'll show you around: 

The library was decorated for the holidays and we started our afternoon shaking hands with Frosty!
The library always has a bunch of cool technology for us to explore and play with:

Computers:
Ipads: 

3-D Printers:






Of course there are always loads of great books to choose from and the librarian is always a good resource to help find the perfect book!


Once you found the right book, you line up at the check out:


Using your library card, you scan the book and then you can take it home:


When it's time to return the book to the library, you put it in the 'return it' slot:


Overall, it was a splendid afternoon with lots to do and lots to see...


Oh, and you can't forget about the big fish! 



That's all for now folks!

Emilia, Mackenzie & Matt

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Carolyn's Corner


I can't believe our calendars now read December! The holiday season is fast approaching with winter break being only two weeks away.  I love this time of the year and can't wait for all the bonuses that come with December.  I even heard that snow may be in our future!

Last Friday at West Richmond we welcomed all of our families to our first Family Fun Night.  We had an amazing turn out.  I'd like to thank everyone who stopped by, for spending their Friday evening with us.  The candy houses and hot chocolate station were enjoyed by all and the slideshow, though a little late, was full of many smiling faces.

This week at Senior things started off a little messy, in a good way, with Corey's art on Monday afternoon.  He took on the challenge of making homemade bouncy balls with 15 excited children. Though the finished product went 'splat' instead of 'boing' everyone had a wonderful time. Sometimes it's worth just getting a little messy!

Tuesday I kept the messy theme going by introducing bubble art.  My participants were given a cup with soap, paint, water and most importantly a straw, and were told to blow bubbles!!! Soon the art table was covered in bubbles, water, color and smiling children.  Once they had an over flow of bubbles I showed them how to press a piece of paper into the bubbles to make home-made marble patterns.  The paper turned out great and after our large clean up we turned out art into home-made cards and envelopes.  All in all our mess turned out great!

Wednesday turned into 'Spooky Wednesday' when Keefer gathered a group together to play Werewolf.

Thursday Brianna continued the DIY theme and showed a group of children the bonus uses of potatoes in her DIY wrapping paper craft.  I'm sure everyone will be wrapping some very special presents throughout this holiday season.  Friday's Yarn Letter Art will surely be a great hit!

Next week, on Monday, Dec 5, there is an All Schools Pro D Day.  Matt and Keefer have planned an animal themed In Day at Senior.  Please arrive by 10am if you have signed up.

December has only just begun but I can tell it is going to be an amazing month! Stay tuned to hear more about our adventures at Sr OSC,

Until next time,

Carolyn


























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Lava Lamps with Brianna and Kevin

Each week, our leaders come up with various activities for the kids to take part in which creates a welcoming and enjoying atmosphere for them. Last week Brianna and I decided to mix up the activities slightly. So instead of our regular arts and crafts, we chose to experiment a little with common household items to create a one of a kind OSC lava lamp. On Thursday, they had the opportunity to let their inner wacky scientist loose by participating in our afternoon activity.

The lava lamp activity allowed them to expand on their scientific understandings further.  They found out that oil and water do not combine since oil has less density compare to water. This meant that the oil floated to the top instead of remaining below the water. This was an unique exercise that enable the kids to explore different scientific properties while having fun with their friends. Mainly they were really keen to make very their first lava lamp. When it came to the time for dropping the tablets into the bottle, the excitement was rising as each kid wanted to be the first to see the tablets perform its magical powers within the mixture.

After a couple unsuccessful attempts, we managed to create a few working lava lamps. The buildup of excitement was on a whole different level as it never once dropped throughout the different phases of constructing. Everyone was excited to try with their own bottle once we got it working. Therefore, we all took turns creating our own distinctive lamp that were of various colours.

This is an easy and inexpensive small activity that  any family can do together to bond with their kids and or simply  brighten their day. If any families wish to try it out, the necessary supplies needed for this homemade lava lamp are vegetable oil, water, food colouring and an alka seltzer tablet. The proportions of each material is up to the creator as it will produce varying results like our trials. This a great method to build upon a child’s creativity and allow them to think outside the box a little with only using household materials to construct things.

Until next time,

Kevin W


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Mask Making

Hello OSC Families,

Last Wednesday, Keefer and I did an art project that involved a lot of glue, newspaper, and a great amount of imagination!  As soon as the art activity opened up, the kids rushed to the board to sign up as they were all eager to begin. We brought the group of kids outside where we started this messy, sticky & fun activity. But what exactly was this art project? Great question; the kids made paper mache masks! As a child, I loved any art activity that involved a big mess and getting my hands dirty, so imagine how much fun the kids had with this!



The first step was to blow up a balloon, roughly the size of their face, so they could wear it. Next, the kids dipped or drenched newspaper in a water glue mixture and laid it over top of the balloon. Some made their masks more complex than others by incorporating facial features such as a nose or eyes while others chose to go the simple route and made a traditional mask. I heard a couple ideas of the kids wanting to make their mask into an 'emoji' and some were indecisive and had not figured out what they wanted their mask to be.





Paper mache was just part 1 of making the masks. They are hanging to dry and next week, part 2 will begin. The kids are going to paint and decorate their masks in whatever way they choose, letting their imagination run wild. They never fall short of impressing me with their creative skills and I am excited to see everyone’s final product!

Until next time,


Sarah A


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