Friday, July 12, 2013

Friends With Flair ~ A New Generation of Stampers!

I had the best time this past week!!! Lots of rambling and pictures ahead!

I was invited to lead an activity for the youth group at a daycamp that was held for girls age 8 through 11. I got to choose the activity within the theme, "Past, Present, Future". I chose to have the girls make a collage cover for a journal, for them to record their wishes, dreams and plans in.



I bought a composition book for each girl, and brought along a huge stack of scrapbook paper, every black stamp pad that I had...and my big box of Unity Itty Bitty stamps! I keep all my SOTW and the other Itty Bitties that I have in one box...and I figured that it would be easier for the girls to sort through and choose than flipping through binders (and that it would be far more likely that my stamps would be semi-organized when they were done!





I had the girls cover the front and back of the composition books with torn bits of paper, then they could glue on their name that I cut with my Silhouette. After that, they were allowed to move to the 'stamp' table to choose stamps and apply the designs to the book. To finish up, if they wanted to glue some ribbon on the edge they could.



They had so much fun!!! I had so much fun watching them plan and decide then jump in to create! I love that they all look unique. Some of the girls covered every bit they could, some were more particular about what they put on...and all of the girls were so accepting of the creative process! None of them fussed about things not being 'perfect'. It was wonderful!




This was the sample I made to show them how it could look.

The girls were in awe of the selection of stamps...they thought I was joking when I told them that the box was not even a quarter of the stamps that I own...please tell me that some of you can relate???? I was grateful that the selection of stamps was so varied in style and theme...pretty much anything the girls asked for, they could find in the box. Big flower? Check! Owls and penguins? Check! Bicycle? Check! Heart? Double Check! Young girl? Check! Puppy? Hmm...looks like that one should go on the request list for the SOTW! Who wants a puppy SOTW by Phyllis Harris??? Ooh yeah!!!

I'm hoping that the leaders decide to make this an annual event! I know that the projects will change, but I'm sure that I can share my love of paper and stamping with the next generation again!

All in all, a great start to my week...and now I get to finish off my week with the linky party on the Unity Blog ~ Friends with Flair!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Meredith








19 comments:

  1. This is awesome!!!! Thanks for the ideas! I will be doing the teen group after school program for our church in the fall. This gives me great ideas! Thx.

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  2. Don't you just love scrappin' with kids? Totally love all their journals. They all did a wonderful job.

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  3. Meredith, this is awesome!!! Love how you got the girls to craft together and the result is just beautiful !!

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  4. Scrapping with kids is awesome. Great projects.

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  6. Sorry, I had a typo in the first comment I posted:-) It is great to help kids unleash their creativity with stamps!

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  7. Yea for you, Meredith! I love this story! I love your excitement! I'm sure the girls had a blast! Wonderful idea, and so generous of you!

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  8. What a fun idea..bet they loved it!

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  9. Love your description of the class and the girl's reactions to your stamps! So fun and creative a project.

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  10. Woot! They did an awesome job on these journals! Fun!

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  11. What an AWESOME gift you have given these kiddos! To let them be free to choose what they want and to give them a placed to let it all out? You are AMAZING!!! This entire project you created...right down to the organization...is BEYOND fabulous!!! Three cheers for you, Meredith!!!

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  12. OH MY GOSH! this is so amazing, what a great project! they all look so focused and like they're having so much fun. amazing idea! they turned out great!
    -Rachel w k
    rwkrafts.com

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  13. All the journals are terrific!

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  14. This is WONDERFUL!! Those journals are AWESOME cause they had such an AMAZING teacher! Well done!!!

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  15. These journals turned out beautifully! What a wonderful idea and what a wonderful soul you are, to help them! A job well-done by all! :)

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  16. The journals are beautiful! Looks like a bunch of girls had a bunch of fun!!

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  17. Looks like the girls had so much fun doing up their journals. All of them look great!! Well done, teacher!! Have a great week!!

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  18. Oh my goodness - - this project is SO up my alley. Meredith, I would have LOVED attending this youth group activity as a kid...heck, I'd love it as an adult! And it sounds like were perfectly suited for the job in leading it. Not only did you have all the supplies they could ever need (and more), but I love your thinking behind the journals - - that they would be a place for recording wishes, dreams, and hopes for the future. We all need a space for spilling such secrets. And you've given these girls a great gift in this project! Thanks so much for sharing.

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Thank you so much for taking the time to comment! I appreciate each and every one. Have a lovely day, and thank you for stopping by!