Paint Management

One of the most annoying 'chores' during my first year of teaching was managing that messy paint.  I had these big cups with lids and matching paintbrushes (seen below), but it was inevitable that the colors would be mixed by 'that one kid' (you know which one) and then the whole giant cup of paint was ruined.  Even when they used the correct brush with the correct cup, those kiddos who did the crazy-Picasso-helicopter-arm paintings managed to still mix colors.

Although I loved the cups and concept, it was a little more mental stress than I wanted to dedicate to paint cups.  I also had some overly picky girls who refused to use pink paint that had been tainted with a speck of brown.  What to do?

squirt bottles + ice cube trays = love

I can't tell you how much I love this.  I found packs of these clear squirt bottles at Target in the kitchen supply area (a lot of other stores have them as well).  I bought 12 and made sure I had enough for each color (including pink, skin colors, and gray).  I also labeled the outside with the color names.  

Cheaper version:

        

 Here they are in action:

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Why I love it:

• less paint wasted
• kids were independent and would only squirt out a little of each color they needed... then a little more if they needed it
• less 'mixing' of colors
• no dried up paint if we didn't use it during the week
• I only needed to get the gallon size paint bottles out when the squirt bottles got low
• Ice cube trays fit perfectly into the easel rack
• CHEAP!!!
• only one paintbrush needed per side... they rinsed with water in between color changes

Also, when we learned about mixing colors in science I only left the red, yellow, blue, white, and black bottles out.  They had to learn how to make their own colors.  Hahaha......

{ashley}lllllllllllllll

Black Marker Black Hole

I'm pretty sure it's not just me.  Why do the black markers always seem to disappear or run out of ink MUCH earlier than the rest?!  I can't stand it.  I can't tell you how many times my kids would come up to me...

"Mrs. Hughes!!!  My black marker is missing!  Waaaahhhh (Snooki voice)."

"Mrs. Hughes, my black marker is dead."  

They all assumed I had a secret-magical-endless supply of black markers somewhere.  Not.

Here's my fix:
 

Expo dry-erase markers!  Or any off-brand version.  Expo's were on the kid's school supply list and in abundance around our room.  So, we used them for black marker replacements.  You can buy them in bulk (skinny or fat tips) instead of buying a pack of markers for one black.  I also used these all the time when I made posters.  I like the using Expo's and the Mr. Sketch smelly ones (although I have a problem with those... especially the purple one... mmmmm delicious) a little more than Crayola.  A darker black.

 

Mr. Sketch now sells bulk packs of black too! 

{ashley}lllllllllllllll